136 results for author: Scott Toth

Statement of the Board of Directors Regarding WA2BAJ and Interference Issues

The Greensboro Amateur Radio Association welcomes and encourages all licensed operators to use our repeaters. We strive to maintain a community of users who enjoy the fellowship and knowledge sharing that takes place on the W4GSO repeaters. We embrace innovation and the adoption of new technologies. In the spirit of maintaining that community, the GARA board has taken the following action. GARA installed a Yaesu DR1X repeater in April, 2016 to replace their aging VHF repeater. This state of the art repeater allows both traditional FM analog and C4FM digital mode usage, based on what type of signal is received. Since the installation of this ...

Bouvet Island DXpedition Aborted

Most hams who love to work DX wait for years to add some entities to their logbooks.  Bouvet Island, the most remote island on earth, is highly desired because it is normally uninhabited and requires a huge amount of effort to reach and activate.  After years of planning, hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations and personal expense, and a huge logistical planning operation, the 3Y0Z team left port and began sailing towards Bouvet Island on January 19, 2018, arriving 13 days later on January 31.  Preparations were made and checked, plans were finalized and gear was readied, but the weather wouldn't cooperate.  Bad weather became the least of ...

October GARA Meeting – Improve Your Wi-Fi!

Last month we heard from Kenny, KK4HAO about a new NTS traffic net that has officially started every night at 7:30pm on the W4GSO 145.15 repeater.  Kenny would love to have anyone who is interested check into the net.  You won't be obligated to pass traffic, but it would be good to have a strong showing of support for this important service.  Please try to check in if you're able.  Formal training to become a traffic handler will be scheduled soon. This month's presentation will be related to the one in August.  At that meeting, I talked about simple networking concepts to help you understand how to connect your digital devices to the internet ...

New Nightly NTS Net Coming to W4GSO

At the GARA meeting on September 25, the club was presented with an opportunity to help the ARRL National Traffic System cover some territory that has has not been consistently served by the System in the Piedmont Triad area.  Clyde Sawyer, WC9CW and Kenny Grabarczyk, KK4HAO who will serve as Traffic Manager for the new Piedmont Triad Traffic net, gave examples of traffic that is passed by the system and showed how it works.  As a result, and after a vote by all members present, GARA has offered the use of our VHF repeater to be used for this new net every evening at 7:30pm EST.  Please be aware of it and make every effort to keep the repeater ...

Carolina Link Digital Net

Please join us on Thursday, September 28th, at 9:00 PM for the first ever Carolina Link Digital Net!  We're encouraging check-ins from every where to help us test & celebrate the Carolina Link, the Carolina's first all digital multi-mode link system.  Currently we have D-Star, DMR, and  Fusion (C4FM) tied together.  The Carolina Link went from an idea to reality within a short time thanks to several people including Steve KA4YMY, Roland W9HPX, Ray KI4UDZ, Mark W4BOG, Ken KC4YOZ, Jesse K4AX, Scott ND4L and input/assistance from several others including, Doug W4DGB of the Alabama Link, Bill KC8YQL, Pascal VA2PV, and spearheaded and engineered ...

September GARA Meeting – Piedmont NTS

At the beginning of last month's meeting we had a short presentation by Kenny Grabarczyk, KK4HAO about a new National Traffic System net that he is trying to establish in the Triad.  Since there was a good bit of interest in this topic, and since we didn't have time to go through all of the details, Kenny has offered to return this month to provide more insights into the net and show us how it will work.  This is your opportunity to learn about NTS, ask questions, and find a way to become involved.  I hope to see you all there on Monday, September 25!

Qorvo Amateur Radio Club Freegate this Saturday!

FreeGate 2017 is happening THIS SATURDAY, September 23, 2017.  Put it on your schedule to be there! FreeGate will be held in the back parking lot at the Qorvo headquarters at 7628 Thorndike Road in Greensboro.  For more information, visit http://kd4rf.org.

August GARA Meeting – Pre-Shelby Sale!

This month's meeting will have a lot of things to offer and you're going to want to be there.  First off, GARA will have many items on hand that have been donated to the club for fundraising purposes and will be selling them at the meeting.  Anything that isn't sold will be taken to the Shelby Hamfest and sold there, so this is your chance to get some great deals on some good gear.  Much of the gear that will be on hand is test or computer equipment, but we will also have a full list of stuff that GARA has for sale. Second, we're going to have a short announcement from Kenny Grabarczyk, KK4HAO about his desire to start up an NTS traffic net in ...

July GARA Meeting- Time to Learn CW!

Well, now that another Field Day has passed and we're moving into the summer heat, it's time to get back to business and meet in the cool, refreshing air conditioning at Cooper's Ale House on Monday, July 24.  If you're like me (i.e., not proficient in Morse Code), there's probably a mystique surrounding CW and using Morse Code in amateur radio despite the things you've read and heard.  Even if you're an old pro, this month's presentation will be a treat that will bring a lot of good information.  Our very own Chris Thompson, K4HC, will be speaking to the club about Morse Code, how to learn it, how to operate using it, and many other topics ...

April GARA Meeting: Tell us about your HT, with bonus raffle!

A few weeks ago, a number of hams volunteered to help with the Odyssey of the Mind event at NC A&T by providing communications between event officials and staff.  While I was preparing my gear for the day, I had a thought about our upcoming meeting because I had a hard time deciding which HT to bring, which headset to use (I needed one that would be comfortable to use for the entire day), how long the battery would last, or if I had a spare.  I figured that if I was having those questions, others must be too.  It also occurred to me that it might serve our newer members better to have a meeting topic that is dedicated to our experiences with ...