FARS - The FARS Relay -- Volume 26, Number 3

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Volume 26, Number 3 March, 1996

Copyright © 1996 by EMARC

MARCH MEETING

The March speaker will be Wayne Burdick on the topic of QRP. Even if you are running a 5000 Watt linear, there is something to be learned from QRP operation. When dealing with small signals, operating technique is important, antenna location and match must be optimal, and the equipment must be the best. We should all be able to benefit from Wayne's experience.

CALENDAR

Regularly-scheduled events

The Station Open House program for 1996 is expanding! Omri, AA6TA, will host open houses on Tuesdays from 7 to 9 PM local time on an "as available" basis. The emphasis in the Tuesday open houses will be satellite operations and HF digital modes (RTTY, AMTOR, etc.). Please check with Omri (he is available virtually anytime on the W6APZ repeater, 145.230-, 100PL before coming. This is in addition to the Wednesday open houses, typically hosted by Bob, KD6VIO. The station open houses are for EMARC members and their invited guests only. Please do not discuss on the air the exact location of the station.

EMARC Monthly Meeting: Fourth Friday of the month (except 3rd Friday in June, Nov. & Dec.) at 7 PM; Business Meeting, 7:30 PM; Program starts 8 PM. At the Covington School in Los Altos; directions on last page. See specific date listings below. EMARC events are also listed on packet (to EMARC@allscv); on the N0ARY event bulletin board (type EVENT or List Clubs); and on the automatic enunciator on the W6APZ repeater (145.23-). Note: The 4th Friday is not necessarily the last Friday.

EMARC NET is held every Thursday at 8 PM on the W6APZ repeater, 145.230-; the 100 Hz PL is off for the net.

10 AM net. Weekdays at 10 AM on W6APZ, 145.23- (100Hz PL). A very informal rag chew net with mostly EMARC members.

Foothill Flea Market: 2nd Saturday (starts pre-dawn), March thru September. Bring 4 quarters for the parking meters. At Foothill College, just west of I-280 at the El Monte/Moody Rd. exit in Los Altos. Talk-in: 145.27-

Livermore Flea Market: 1st Sunday (starts 7 AM) year round, rain or shine. At Las Positas College, Airway Blvd. exit off I-580 just west of Livermore. Talk-in 147.120+ or 145.35-(100Hz PL). NOTE: The NorCal QRP Club meets following the flea mart at 11 AM at the California Burger in Pleasanton, about. 2 miles from the flea mart.

T-hunts: See the February, 1995 RELAY under Carrier Detect (page 6). Difficulty Levels: 1 - very easy; 2 - simple; 3 - average; 4 - hard; 5 - very hard; 6 - "never find it". For latest info and directions, call Rich KN6FW, 510-462-1467, or via packet at KN6FW@WA6YHJ. #NOCAL

Amsat net. Wednesdays at 19:30 on the WA6PWW repeater, 147.015+, as well as the W6APZ repeater, 145.230-, 100 PL. Net control: Bill, AA6PA.

10-10 Net. The local net for 10 meters enthusiasts meets every Monday at 8 PM on 28.475 MHz; net control: Neal, WA6OCP.

EMARC Relay

The EMARC Relay is the official monthly newsletter of the Electronics Museum Amateur Radio Club. Club meetings are held at 7 PM on the fourth Friday of each month except January (Winter Banquet); and 3rd Friday in June, Nov. & Dec. Annual membership $20; family $25. Visitors are always welcome! Directions on the back page. Talk-in: W6APZ (145.23-, 100Hz) or W6ASH repeater (145.27- or 224.36-).

Contributions to the newsletter from members, family, and guests are earnestly solicited! Contributions subject to editing and/or compression. ASCII files via packet, Internet or diskettes preferred; but all readable forms welcome. Here are the various ways to reach the editor:

Packet:			KD6WRG@N0ARY.#NOCAL.CA
Internet:		dwilkes@svpal.org
CompuServe:		71242,3255
AOL:			davewilkes
VHF voice:		KD6WRG on W6APZ, 145.23- (100Hz PL)
			10 AM net weekdays;
			EMARC net Thursdays 8 PM;
			Various other times.
Eyeball:		at EMARC meetings.

SECRETARY'S REPORT

Board meeting for March 6
Date: 96-03-16 12:41:30 EST
Attendees: Mikel, KN6QI; Shel, KM6GV; Steve, KE6YQP.

Thanks to Shel for providing a place for this meeting and for the future board meetings.

Unfortunately, since the board meeting was unusually early in the month, many of the board members forgot about it.

There was discussion about possible improvements for the club station over the next year. With all the improvements of the station over the past year, the only definite item we could think to improve, was possibly a new beam. We decided to put $500 into the budget for the year to cover this and any other small items.

We discussed the upcoming Technician License class that the club is putting together. Steve, KE6YQP indicated that he could use just a bit more help, but preparations are well in hand. He mentioned that he has 20 people signed up to take the class.

We discussed that we have not renewed our ARRL affiliation in some time that we should do so.

-- Mikel, KN6QI

1996 RELAY

For the April issue, there must be some favorite amateur radio April Fool jokes. If I don't get some, I'll have to create some.

For the May issue there is a problem with a theme: May 1st is sacred (so to speak) to the Pagans, the labor unions and the Communists. Since the pseudo-communist state in Russia broke up there aren't many admitted communists anymore. I do have some friends in the Pagan community, but they aren't hams. What's left: Labor unions and gardening?

MARCH MADNESS

Well, no examples of Amateur Radio March Madness came in so I guess everything is calm out there. I thought for sure someone would have a tale of a neighbor going ballistic when his ballgame was interrupted by CQ, CQ. Come on gang, let's hear about some tricks for April.

BANQUET REVISITED

There is some unfinished business concerning the raffle: Thank-you notes to the companies which donated the prizes. See list below.

The companies below showed their support for Amateur Radio and should be the first places to go when you need to buy something. If you won one of the prizes, here is where to send the thank-you note:

Dennis Trimble, W6LVY
Alltronics
2300 Zanker Road
San Jose, CA 95131
Special thanks to Dennis Trimble

Mea Culpa, I left Dennis Trimble's name and company out of the list last month. No excuse, I've been shopping at Alltronics for years. DW

Zack Electronics,
2514 Channing Ave., San Jose, 95131;
408-942-5432.
Special thanks to Dennis Awad.

Weird Stuff,
1190 Kern Ave.,
Sunnyvale, CA 94086
408-746-1100.
Special thanks to Dave McDougal.

Ham Radio Outlet,
510 Lawrence Expressway, #102,
Sunnyvale; CA 94086
408-736-9496.
Special thanks to Ken Millman

EMARC Calendar of Events

March 20 Open House (QRP) Bob, KD6VIO is holding an open house at the WB6WSL club station from 7 PM to 9 PM. Call to confirm.

March 30, 31 HAM Class EMARC is teaching another 2-day intensive technician license class. Saturday and Sunday March 30 and 31. Contact Steve KE6YQP for details.

April 2 - 10:30 - 11:30 AM School Earthquake Drill. Hams needed to be located in Los Altos schools and participate in drill. Contact Ernie, WA6PVM at 415-968-4215.

April 19 - 21, 1996. International DX Convention will be held in Visalia at the Airport Holiday Inn. Contact Don Bostrom, N6IC, (H) (818) 784-2590 or (W) (310) 334-8717 for details.

April 21, 1996 The Valley of the Moon Amateur Radio Club, WB6DWY, is holding its annual ARRL Hamfest Sunday, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Sonoma Veteran's Memorial Building, 126 First Street West, in Sonoma, California Talk-in will be on 145.35, -600, PL 88.5. For information call Darrel, WD6BOR, at 707-996-4494.

TELEPHONE NUMBERS - INTERNET ADDRESSES - WEB SITES

This column is for interesting and/or useful Internet sites. Henceforth, they will only be printed once. Keep your back issues for reference.

TVI booklet available on the World-Wide Web: www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Compliance/WWW/tvibook.html

ARRL License Class Hotline: 408-971-1424

FCC Inquiry Line: 717-337-1212

FCC Customer Assistance: 800-322-1117

FCC Forms Distribution: 800-418-3676

ARRL PACIFIC DIVISION

ARRL PACIFIC DIVISION UPDATE

MARCH, 1996

by Brad Wyatt, K6WR
Director, Pacific Division, ARRL
18400 Overlook Rd. #5
Los Gatos CA 95030-5850
(408) 395-2501 (Phone and FAX)
Packet: K6WR@N0ARY.#NOCAL.CA
Internet: K6WR@arrl.org
Web: pacific.arrl.org

ARRL Files to Clarify and Modify PRB-1

The ARRL wants the FCC to take additional steps to compel state and local governments to make reasonable accommodation for Amateur Radio under PRB-1 and apply the least restrictive means to regulate amateur antennas and activity. In a Petition for Rulemaking filed February 7, 1996, the League calls on the FCC to amend Section 97.15(e) to say that any state or local ordinances restricting ham radio antennas to heights below 70 feet would be presumed unreasonable, unless the state or local authority could show its restrictions support a clearly defined health, safety or aesthetic objective. State and local governments also could not impose substantial application costs on amateur service licensees. The League also wants the FCC to acknowledge that it has an interest in the effective performance of Amateur Radio stations in areas regulated by deed restrictions or restrictive covenants rather than by local zoning ordinances.

The League says clarifying the preemption policy (PRB-1) would help guide municipalities to enact provisions that make fair accommodation for amateurs and avoid highly divisive litigation between hams and localities. QST will carry more details in the April 1996 issue.

Telecommunications Reform

Telecommunications reform continues to be a hot topic in Washington DC. In early February, both Houses of Congress passed a conference bill and President Clinton signed the bill into law. From all the information available it appears that the new law has little direct impact on the Amateur Radio Service with the exception of the items noted below. It should be noted, however, that the spectrum allocation aspect of the law was removed and will be brought up later in the Spring.

The relatively immediate direct impact on Amateur Radio is in the Titles IV and VII.

Title IV - Regulatory Reform - has somewhat more effect on Amateur Radio than did the draft bill that disappeared into the conference rabbit hole. Instead of simply eliminating the so-called firewall between VEs and publishers (as we had expected), it now completely eliminates the conflict-of-interest provision, even for manufacturers. This is the result of an FCC request that, we are told, came up late in conference, but had been floating around since last May. Also eliminated is the statutory requirement for certification and record keeping by VEs and VECs who retain reimbursement of out of pocket costs.

Some early interpretations of this title are as follows.

1) In removing the "conflict of interest" provision, the legislation permits employees of manufacturers to become VEs;

2) the legislation permits ARRL (and of course others) to distribute literature at exam sessions. FCC confirms that this was FCC's intent;

3) the biggest (and most immediate) direct benefit to our VEs is the removal of the record keeping requirements.

Title VII - Miscellaneous Provisions - contains at least one potential "sleeper" which may have an impact on Amateur Radio -- It mandates that FCC complete ET Docket 93-62 to "prescribe and make effective rules regarding the environmental effects of radio frequency emissions..." within 180 days after passage of the law. This docket refers to the ANSI 1992 standard currently before EPA and FCC. There are a number of possible outcomes ranging from Amateur Radio being exempt to each of us having to file an Environmental Impact Statement for each transmitter, power level and frequency we use. Keep tuned for more on this one.

Of course, these changes don't become applicable until FCC rules change. FCC has been given 180 days to implement these and many other changes. The ARRL Washington Team continues to monitor these developments and be active on our behalf. See DC Currents in QST for additional information.

Spectrum Protection Battles Continue

The 2300 - 2310 MHz battle is probably coming soon. There is a proposal by the NTIA to make this segment available to Land Mobile Services, but this would require "auction authority" from Congress.

NTIA has also written a letter to FCC urging FCC to issue an Notice of Proposed Rule Making for the Apple Petition which involves a sharing of the frequency allocation in the ham band at 5.7 GHz. See earlier Updates for details.

Antennas, Towers and Ordinances

The negotiations over these ordinances continue in Fresno, Sonoma and Napa counties. Fresno appears to be a long term project into late 1996; Sonoma meetings continue in front of the Board of Supervisors; Napa also continues in front of the Board of Supervisors meeting. It appears that progress is being made, but slowly. Good luck!

There is an indication that Contra Costa Co. will join in this effort to try to regulate cellular towers - unfortunately, amateur radio has been caught up in the discussions.

Please forward copies of all antenna, tower and related ordinances to Phil Kane, N6SP, who is collecting this data for the Pacific Division. Phil can be reached at P. O. Box 280192, San Francisco CA 94128-0192, (415) 369-7373 and commlaw@netcom.com. See the article by Chris Imlay, N3AKD. ARRL General Counsel, "But I Never Agreed to That", Dec. 95 QST.

Scholarships and Awards

There are many awards and scholarships covering a wide range of situations available to licensed Amateurs. (I have the contact information. DW)

Hams with HTs needed for the Walk for Choice in May This will be a late morning event lasting a few hours in downtown San Jose. Contact David, KD6WRG for details.

NEWSLINE

NEWSLINE RADIO #965

Hams needed...

for the Baker to Vegas Relay Race April 20 - 21. See March 96 QST or Pacific Division Web Page or call 510-792-1661 for details. Looks like fun.

The Electronics Museum Amateur Radio Club (EMARC) of Los Altos
In association with The Mountain View Fire Department

Presents:

A two day Amateur Radio class

to obtain a Technician (no code) license

Cost:		Only $15 (And $15 for Now You're Talking
		Textbook reg $19)

Dates:		Saturday and Sunday, March 3Oth and 3lst, 1996

Time:		9:30 AM to 5:00 PM

Where:		Auditorium of the Police - Fire
		Administration Building
		1000 Villa St.
		Mountain View, Ca

Class will include video(s), multiple instructors, equipment demos, etc.

No technical background required!

The emphasis is on fun. Learn about the various activities of amateur radio, the possibilities, and the equipment. Discover that it really isn't too hard to pass the tests.

Students should obtain a copy of the text and read it prior to class.