My beacon was turned on briefly at breakfast time.
UPDATE 1432z: No spots. About to change back from 10m FT8 RX to 10m 200mW WSPR TX.
UPDATE 1541z: So far, spotted by just 2 stations in the Canary Islands multiple times.
UPDATE 1919z: Spotted by 3 stations with the best PP5ZX (10058km). QRT soon.
I think most western nations see Iran as a potential threat. However, it would appear, allegedly, that the US president did not realise what he was getting in to. Like many, I do not know how this will end.
After a very brief period on TX I am RX only.
It was a small package that I was not expecting and I had no idea what was inside.
On opening it, I saw this which I was not expecting at all. They sent me a certificate and I thought that was it.
Thank you GQRP Club so much.
Opinions vary over what happens to the essential “us” when we die. Many religions believe in some sort of afterlife, but we really don’t know.
What we do know is that is that our genes get passed down the generations. We probably have some sort of connection with our ancestors millions of years ago.
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The HW7 a QRP HF transceiver was produced first, then the HW8 (which I owned) and finally the HW9.
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For several years I have enjoyed my Chromebook.
This one is supported with updates until 2034. It seems to work perfectly.
I changed to 10m FT8 at about 1515z.
UPDATE 1526z: Spotted by a couple of stations, but now RX only. 32 stations spotted on 10m FT8 RX.
UPDATE 1843z: 70 stations spotted here. Suggests conditions were probably not good.
My beacon has been on until about 1510z
UPDATE 1523z: Only 2 stations in the Canary Is have spotted me. Now QRT .
This video shows a possible way to improve the range of a handheld by adding a counterpoise.
I only came across this blog seeing a post in Amateur Radio Weekly.Maybe true experimenters are not in amateur radio?
These were seen at the Cambridge Botanic Gardens on Saturday .
This was posted on DX Explorer some 6 months ago. The receiver is available from China at a very low price. Watch out for counterfeit copies!
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My TX beacon was turned on at about 0943z.
UPDATE 1553z: Spotted by 4 stations with the best PP5ZX (10058km) in Brazil.
Late in the afternoon I switched to 10m 200mW WSPR TX. In the end I went QRT at about 2030z.
Before my 2013 stroke I enjoyed 481THz optical tests over the horizon. What surprised me at first was that, even when absolutely nothing was visible in the sky, clear signals could be decoded on a PC as long as the aim was correct. My tripod and aiming left a lot to be desired! If I was fit enough to repeat these tests I think a much better tripod would be called for allowing better repeatability.
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The world of home computing is dominated by MS Windows and Apple Mac (to a lesser extent), whereas I understand Linux is used by the most powerful computers in the world.
I mostly use a Chromebook that runs Chrome OS (using it now) and am so pleased with this OS. It is fast and does almost everything I do. They also tend to be less expensive. The Chromebook has been used for years now.
A friend of mine did an external drive with a version of Linux, but I have resisted changing my Windows PC to Linux, for now at least.
I am definitely not a PC expert, so tend to remain with what I know!
Today I am on 10m 2.5W FT8. Apart from a very brief period on TX (1 local spot) I am RX only.
UPDATE 1106z: Just 4 spots so far with the best A71MM (5184km) in Qatar. Disappointing so far. I must check that nothing is wrong.
UPDATE 1143z: Plugging the antenna into the IC-705 revealed lots of stations, I plugged the antenna back into the QDX-M and immediately spotted 67 stations! I wonder if the coax plug is intermittent?
UPDATE 1337z: Re-soldered the plug and again lots of stations copied on the IC-705 but remarkably few on the QDX-M, which is very odd. Looks like there is something amiss with the QDX-M. It also seems to be running somewhat warm, which I would not have expected RX only on the QDX-M. Has anyone seen anything similar?
Maybe it is as a result of having got 10m QRP SSB way back, that I seem to get as much pleasure from RX nowadays as TX. I know everyone is different and this is a good thing.
It never fails to amaze me how far away some stations were. Even my low ERP was spotted at 327km!! The map shows the stations spotted here.
I am on 10m 2.5W FT8 although I shall probably be mainly on RX.
UPDATE 1623z: 645 stations spotted as far as Japan and South Africa.
For years the Iranians have been considered the pariah state of the Middle East.
I am not naturally a politician, but I have severe doubts that the USA and Israel will do any good and it looks like they are doing real harm.
There are other examples of asymmetric wars such as Russia and Ukraine. This one has lasted 4 years already.
President Trump is saying the war will soon be over yet Iran still has loads of fast small gunboats which could cause havoc in the region to say nothing of the hacking harm they could do across the planet. My own view is the USA is entering its biggest crisis in nearly 100 years.
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My beacon was turned on at about 0615z.
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It looks a very handsome rig, although I do not think it was ever mass produced.
I have never seen it for sale.
It seems to me that we are still waiting for that breakthrough moment similar to that which moved us all from CRTs to LED displays or moved cameras to digital.
In the case of cars it would be range and cost. Almost exclusively electric cars need batteries with lithium and have limited range. Imagine if we could charge at home infrequently and have huge ranges at a price people could afford.
There has been a lot of excitement about Donut batteries who claim to have produced a solid-state battery with some remarkable figures. If true, this could be the start of a revolution. I believe the Chinese company BYD has also released an electric car that does not use lithium batteries.
If we really could buy cars that no longer need petrol or diesel with similar ranges we would be free of the stranglehold of the oil market.
It is coming, but just how soon?
My beacon was turned on at about 0815z.
