For some time now software engineers have being using AI to generate code. It would appear that hardware designers could also use AI to design circuits. It would appear that AI is capable of doing everything as well as humans (and more?) , if trained.
The future is indeed scary. When we eventually meet intelligent life in outer space how do we know if it is conscious?
Where will AI be on Earth in 50 years' time?
AMSAT-DL is seeking inputs on a possible future geosynchronous amateur satellite covering Europe and much of North America.
The take-up would probably be low, although coverage of much of North America might help. It might appeal to real enthusiasts.
Based on the experiences with Oscar 100, a lot of effort seems to be needed to get a station together, then people lose interest. The lack of commercial products puts many off.
See https://amsat-dl.org/ .
In the USA the FTX -1 is now on sale.
People have reported some bugs with the Yasesu radio and I am not sure if these have been corrected with latest firmware. Certainly in the UK, the Yaesu radio is far more expensive that the IC-705.
In my view the ICOM IC-705 represents far better value. There is certainly (at least) one video on YouTube comparing the two.
I am definitely NOT rushing out to buy the FTX-1F. Personally, I still think Yaesu is floundering again.
My 500mW W5OLF beacon was turned on at about 0844z, but no spots yet.
UPDATE 1327z: 4 stations spotting me.
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| Stations spotting me today |
UPDATE 1035z: 56 stations have spotted me. Plenty of Es.
My beacon was turned on at about 0645z . No spots.
UPDATE 1542z: 23 spots of me.
Yaesu has released some firmware updates to the FTX-1F. In my view it is FAR too expensive and under-featured.
My W5OLF beacon was turned on at about 1356z.
UPDATE 2020z: 20 spots of me today Most look like Es.
My IC-705 at 5W was turned on at about 1355z. 6 stations have spotted my 5W FT8, but I have spotted 2 stations in Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. Some think this is multi-hop Es. I think it is more likely to be some sort of chordal hop Es.
UPDATE 1540z: 47 spots of me.
Many of us will recall the radio broadcasts by countries during the cold war. All sides tried to outdo the other with propaganda. I recall getting some excellent gifts from Radio Peking, even though I had no interest in their, or anybody else's, propaganda!
One of the famous ones was Radio Moscow. I heard this very well with my shortwave crystal set and remembering getting a QSL card from this and many. I have attached a link to their interval signal. It is quite a large MP3 file (22M) so may take a time to come through.
In the late spring and early summer we get sporadic-E in the northern hemisphere. Bands it most impacts are 10m-4m with occasional openings on Band 2 FM and rarely on 2m.
When Es is good there are widespread, strong openings and, QRM allowing, only really low power is needed. Indeed last year I was spotted across Europe on many occasions on 6m FT8 with less than 10mW ERP.
It usually starts in early May and disappears around early August, with the best months being May and June. Occasionally multi-hop or chordal hop Es can cover astounding distances, which is one reason 6m is called "the magic band". Many years ago I recall working the USA with QRP one summer on 6m CW
Es can occur at any time of year but is best in late spring and early summer.
Since 1948, the UK has had a health service free at the point of delivery. 12 years ago I had a stroke and was hospitalised for 3.5 months and the care was very good.
However, I am aware of many inefficiencies. Things (hopefully!) have improved. It appeared that the same information was asked for again and again. I am aware of a neighbour that cancelled a hospital appointment weeks in advance and yet an ambulance came to pick up the patient! It was as if the right hand did not know what the left was doing. Things were not joined up!
This very morning my wife tried to phone a local hospital multiple times to cancel an appointment. She gave up.
You are left with the impression that this is a totally inefficient service that must waste millions each year. I am sure the doctors, nurses and support staff are overworked and underpaid and this is part (but not all) of the problem.
In my view the UK National Health Service wants looking at anew and made fit for the nations in the years ahead.
We like our NHS, but like all organisations, it has to work well. Also the social care service is poor, yet every government seems to "kick the can down the road" rather than fixing it.
UPDATE 1237z: Spotted by 193 stations, mostly I presume by Es. See map.
UPDATE 1727z: Spotted by 222 stations today. A very good 6m Es day.
My 500mW beacon was turned on at about 0755z. 6 stations spotting me via Es already.
My 8m TX permit expires soon.
As it would cost me £50 annually to continue my research and the RSGB, OFCOM and others seem so against (not even neutral) even a small band, I have taken down my 8m dipole and have no intention of carrying on. Sad.
As I have said many, many times, the best time for research would have been around the solar peak, which has passed. Instead I am concentrating on 6m and 10m.
Life is too short to battle on.
I hope in the end we will see a very tiny allocation at 8m, but I can't see this happening soon. If it does come about, I shall return to 8m.
In looking for something else I came across the Wayback Machine. This is a vast resource of old internet material.
Just one example is this broadcast by Lord Haw Haw from Germany to England during WW2.
Human consciousness is a real puzzle. We are aware of ourselves but do not know how.
Some think AI can be conscious. If true, this makes world religions even more of a puzzle. Some religions believe that something that makes us "us" continues after our bodies dies.
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| Stations spotting me this morning |
UPDATE 1027z: 24 stations have spotted me this morning with the furthest Switzerland.
UPDATE 1241z: 46 stations have spotted me today.
Imagine the thrill in those early days of radio.
When I retired some years ago I was bought a Gecophone 1920s crystal set that worked.
I had a webpage for the Gecophone on my old website that I must put on my more recent site.
My old website is still there, but the links may not work as this site is not being maintained.
See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/home/other/gecophone-crystal-set
Many digital modes need the PC to have accurate time. For several months now I have just used the Windows 10/11 system of linking to internet time. As far a I can tell, this works perfectly.
How do you do this? On Window 10 there is a time/date shown on the bottom right of the screen. I cannot speak for Windows 11, but I assume this is similar. RIGHT click and the select "adjust time and date". Select "sync now" in the box that appears. I do this every morning, but I doubt you have to do it this often. Once the tick appears your PC is synced to internet time. Easy.
When on 6m, it means my 10m antenna is free, so I go on 10m WSPR with my 500mW W5OLF WSPR beacon (if I remember!). This does not need the PC. Once the time is set (I use an atomic clock) it is entirely stand-alone.
UPDATE 0921z: No spots.
UPDATE 1010z: 16 English stations have spotted me this morning. No Es seen yet.
This is now well and truly over.
Dayton, Ohio, USA (where it is held) is probably the biggest ham gathering on the planet and often the place where new rigs are announced. I am not aware of anything from the major Japanese companies.
Often visitors come from other countries. It would not surprise me if foreign visitor numbers are down this year.
In all, 58 stations across Europe managed to spot my QRP 6m FT8. As yet, I have not yet seen any super DX on 6m.
My own view is this radio is far too expensive and lacks many essential features (you pay extra for GPS and it lacks wifi!! I don't think it has Bluetooth either).
The ICOM IC-705 looks far better value even before they dropped the price. Hopefully the price of the FTX 1F will soon fall so that it becomes a market leader.
I have the feeling ICOM will soon sell the IC-705A with some features that kill the FTX 1F. Often the price of radios drops before they sell a new version. If so, I think Yaesu is finished or soon will be.
Selling a competitor to the IC-705 with what seems like fewer features at a higher price? Are they stupid? If I was in charge of their marketing team I would sack the lot. In the last few years they seem to have made some daft decisions. They come across as followers rather than leaders, and poor followers too.
Many like it, so I have attached the video of it being unboxed.
See https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression
Although my 500mW beacon has been on since before breakfast, no spots of me. I suspect more people are now using other modes.
UPDATE 0854z: 19 spots so far including a couple of German stations.
UPDATE 1613z: 36 stations have spotted me. See map.
UPDATE 1847z: 43 stations have spotted me.
My 5W FT8 was turned on mid afternoon. I went QRT at about 2025z.
UPDATE 2030z: 113 stations (all in Europe) spotted me today.
As a sideline, I maintain another website http://www.burwellhistory.org which is our village history society. This meets every month and meetings are well attended. Visitors are always welcome for a nominal sum.
UPDATE 0920z: So far, 90 stations have spotted me today, all in Europe.
UPDATE 1233z: 360 stations have spotted my 5W 10m FT8 so far with the furthermost A71AE (5195km) in the Gulf. See map.
Today, I took down my 8m dipole. This means I can no longer go on 8m TX. It marks the end of my campaign and experiments on the band. Everything I sought to find out has been completed and I refuse to pay £50 a year to continue. Instead I am QSYing to 6m and 10m.
It is a sad day, but life is too short to continuing my battle with the RSGB and OFCOM. In my view, their attitude is disgraceful.
My beacon was turned on at about 1037z.
UPDATE 1255z: 14 European stations spotting me. Es I assume.
At 1037z I QSYed to 2m QRP FT8 using 5W and the big-wheel omni antenna. I am also on 10m WSPR TX with my 500mW beacon.
UPDATE 1028z: 46 Europeans spotting me.
UPDATE 1408z: Back on 5W 10m FT8.
UPDATE 1855z: 303 spots of me today. See map.
UPDATE 2112z: 325 stations have spotted me today. QRT soon.
Although I had plenty of RX spots I only saw one on TX from an HB9. Previous attempts on FT8 were unsuccessful with just a couple of RX spots and none on TX.
My long-term desire has always been for everyone to live in peace, even though we may believe in different things, or nothing. We are all different, but all human beings. We are basically all the same.
Clearly what happened in Israel on October 7th 2023 was horrific. Nobody in their right mind would think otherwise. Israel has a right to defend itself from attack.
What I do not understand is Israel's response. Very many innocent people have been killed, maimed and made homeless. Their homes have been destroyed. Many are starving. Foreign journalists are unable enter Gaza to see for themselves.
What I cannot understand is how a people that suffered so much in WW2 can be so cruel to the people of Gaza. For every bomb and killing, more people will be recruited by Hamas!
Surely the killing and starving of a people has to stop.
What is needed is everyone to change: Hamas and the others in the region must recognise Israel. Israel must live in peace with it's neighbours. Israel is fast becoming a hated state.
Many of my best friends are Jewish. To me this whole thing is senseless and ultimately fruitless.
As a blog owner I can see how many people are supposed to look at my blog every day. At breakfast time I was supposed to have had more visitors today already than some whole days last week!
It seems a healthy dose of disbelief is needed when looking at these figures.
Basically I do not believe them!
As a Chromebook it does everything I need in the lounge: browsing, blogging, YouTube, letters, spreadsheets and emails. It is very fast.
I am using it now.
Although I confess to watching few of these, the RSGB does regular live talks on Mondays at 1900z.
My 500mW W5OLF WSPR beacon was turned on at about 0815z.
UPDATE 0829z: No spots.
UPDATE 1037z: Widespread Es with 23 stations spotting me.
My 6W from the IC-705 to the V2000 vertical omni antenna was turned on at about 0815z.
UPDATE 0824z: 6 English spots so far. See map.
At some point in the near future I want to do more tests at very low power with a ferrite rod TX antenna. I have a small manual ATU which I can use.
The best bands to try is 40m or 30m. Best mode would be WSPR but I want to try FT8.
See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/antennas/ferrite-rod-tx-antennas
UPDATE 0830z: I have dug out the ferrite rod and ATU in readiness. Maybe tonight?
UPDATE 1628z: On 30m FT8 TX with the ferrite rod (vertical) matched via the Z match ATU. No ground.
UPDATE 1950z: Although plenty of RX spots, nothing on 30m FT8 with the ferrite rod, so I have decided to try 30m WSPR.
Weather permitting, I plan to do the same as yesterday going on 6m QRP FT8 and 10m QRP WSPR.
Not sure where this is legal , but I don’t expect the power to be very great. I guess you change frequency by adjusting turns on the coil. Might be a fun weekend project.
My W5OLF beacon was turned on about 0630z.
My 6W was turned on at about 0630z.
UPDATE 1330z: 26 stations have spotted me.
It is blisteringly fast and works really well. I have also downloaded BitDefender (free antivirus) although Chrome is pretty safe and my internet provider also has free antivirus and malware protection.
I understand that driverless cars are coming to the UK in 2027. I am not sure if this is generally or just taxis.
Once driverless cars become ubiquitous it will mean a revolution on the roads. Initially I expect most accidents will be the result of human error with drivers of other cars on the roads making stupid mistakes!
It will take some time for people to gain confidence (20 years?), but by then all cars will be driverless and the roads safer. It would not surprise me if we see a revolution in car ownership.
By then, I expect I shall be dust pushing up daisies!
My 6W from the IC-705 was turned on just before breakfast.
My 6W to the vertical omni was turned on at about 0830z So far just English stations have spotted me.
UPDATE 1440z: 30 stations have spotted me.
UPDATE 1612z : 116 stations have spotted me today. See map.
My 500mW beacon was turned on at 0836z.
UPDATE 0906z: Spotted by 1 Austrian station. It's interesting that this station has spotted me 10 times but not a single spot from central Europe on 6m FT8.
UPDATE 1521z: 19 stations have spotted me today.
My little beacon has been on most of the day with no spots. Maybe something is wrong?
UPDATE 1550z: As far as I can see everything is correct. Reset the time sync..
My 6W FT8 has been on much of the day .
Death puzzles me.
When we die we no longer have brain cells so whatever makes us who we are no longer exists . We really know so little.
Indeed I cannot know if anyone really exists! To me, time is real and passes, but I have no way to tell if this is there for those other than me!
Maybe the whole universe is just in my head and is unique to everyone.
Do we really have memories or are we just programmed to think we have memories?
Maybe I think too much!
My 500mW beacon was turned on at 0800z.
UPDATE 0814z: No spots.
It looks like there is a 2m Es event, so I have QSYed to 144.174 MHz FT8. Although my 5W to the V2000 has not been spotted by Es, on RX th...
