Well anonymous, that's what's bothering me a bit about Code Quick. I've heard all the praise and visited their web site. You're right, the program apparently uses a phrase-like mnemonic identifier for each alpha and numeric character. In other words, the brain must learn an association between a Morse character sound and this mnemonic, which is supposed to then invoke a mental image of the English character. I'm not a psychologist, but this seems to mean that one must memorize 50% more audio "images" and 50% more "links" than just listening to the Morse character tone while looking at its' English character representation. This doesn't sound very efficient to me. All I really want is a program that allows me to play strings of Morse code (at speeds and order under my control) while looking at the English character representations on the screen. This is memorization, not solving integral equations, so why shouldn't the method be very straightforward? Jeez, I could probably memorize the code in the time it's taking to figure out which crutch to use. :~)

If you could subscribe to only one Amateur radio magazine (including QST) which one would you choose for quantity and quality of technical article content.

Thanks for that info Bob. I just got a new HRO catalog and noticed the 910H is still listed as non-FCC approved and price TBD. Got plenty of other irons in the fire, so maybe they'll be on the market by the time I get caught up. 73

kd5maw

Do appreciate all the good advice folks. Hoping I don't discover that my skull is code proof. :~)

I'm thinking about a UHF/VHF base rig for my "shack". There are all kinds of mobile units available but only a couple which are obviously designed for use as a base station. The Icom 910H looks interesting, but I understand it has not yet received FCC approval. I've also not found any reviews on the unit or expected price info. Anybody know anything about this critter?

Rondo, I checked the FCC rules again to verify the rules for 10m. It is correct that you may transmit CW and single sideband (SSB) voice on the 28.300-28.500mhz portion of 10 meters IF AND ONLY IF you have passed the Technician class written exam AND the 5 wpm Morse code test. That is, you and the wife MUST both hold what is generaly called "Tech plus" licenses. To get frequency privileges in phone mode (voice) beyond that (e.g., outside the 28mhz slice plus 20m, 40m, etc.) you must BOTH hold General class licenses. This requires passing a 35 question written exam in addition to the 5 wpm code test. Hope this helps.

gadget

Can't help with the Blazer but can give a summary of the installation I did on a 93 Ford Explorer a month our so ago. Maybe that will give you an idea or two that you can use. I drilled holes directly into the battery terminals and attached the leads with self-tapping screws, then covered these with grease to help prevent oxidation. Ran the leads along the fender (as far away from ignition components as possible), attaching the leads to solid stuff with nylon ties along the way to keep things from moving around. Could find NO access to the passenger compartment through the firewall (without removing the dash), so I drilled a hole in the floorboard, high on the ~45 degree section you rest your feet on. Ran the leads through there and then filled in the hole with lots of silicone gasket cement to prevent leaks and protect the lead jackets from wearing and shorting to the chasis. Fortunately, the hole is behind a section of heavy plastic fenderwell for protection against rock damage. The Explorer carpet is a one-piece job, so had to cut a small slit in the carpet near the console to hook to the radio power leads (the power feed on the Alinco I installed is in two pieces which snap together ~ 8" from the radio). Anyway, this installation has worked extremely well. Luckily, I'm getting zero ignition noise on this vehicle (a miracle?). Hope you can find something useful in this description.

73, gadget

What about SSB on 28.300 - 28.500 mhz? Isn't this 10m sliver available to Tech Plus licensees??

I plan on studying for the code test over the next few months and taking it in late Feb. Maybe I'm wierd, but what I want to do is get good enough to copy 10 wpm with minimal errors so I can loaf through the 5 wpm test. I've heard stories of folks who used 5 wpm tapes and flunked the test because they panicked; i.e., they MEMORIZED the tape rather than LEARNING the code. Can anyone recommend a CD which allows for speed variation and has lots of test file variety so that I'm not just memorizing a couple "canned" transmissions?? As long as I'm going to the trouble of taking a test, might as well get good enough to actually be able to use the stuff (call it a challenge if you wish). Thanks for any advice.

gadget
kd5maw

It's hard to imagine anything deader than 440. In my area, the highlight of the week is someone kerchunking the 440 repeater.

If you are in a hurry to get a license, go find a Technician class study guide at a bookstore (or Radio Shack). Read it two or three times. Take a class from your local Ham club for good measure (if they give them). They can tell you where and when exams are scheduled. Some of their members may include VE(s) who actually give the tests. After you pass the test, you are now ready to order some books from ARRL and start doing some serious studying, because what it takes to pass this test is a small nick in the surface of what you will need to know to really enjoy the pursuit of Amateur Radio. If you aren't in a hurry for the license, forget the study guides and start with the ARRL books. If you have no background whatever in electronic theory, you might also want to consider taking a basic course at a local community college. You can memorize the material required to pass a Tech test, but if you don't understand what it means, you're only cheating yourself. That's the view from a new no-code Tech scumbag.

Gadget
kd5maw

Sounds like you have it covered KB9UEZ. I'll eventually switch to Linux at home, but am a little gunshy after my adventure with OS/2. We were looking for a PC-based alternative to running one of our combat simulation models at work (currently on HP workstations running HP-UX 10.2) and had some lively discussions on which way to go. One of the guys semi-jokingly suggested NT 4.0. After the laughter subsided, we settled on Linux. Good compu-haming. :~)

Gadget
KD5MAW

I bought an Icom W32A handheld and am trying to determine a "cost-effective" strategy for batteries. The W32A seems to eat batteries at an impressive rate. The NiCad packs are expensive, and I can't seem to find any NiMh power sources for this rig in the AES or HRO catalogs (maybe I overlooked them?). Seems like the NiMh route (if I can locate a source) is bound to be more expensive than NiCads, but I would think the higher energy density might make it worth while. Anyone have any suggestions on this?

Gadget
KD5MAW

I just installed a 605TQ along with a Larson dual band roof mount antenna system in a Ford Explorer last weekend. So far so good. Only pick is a nit: I sometimes get some case vibration when hit with a strong signal - think I can fix that though.

Gadget
KD5MAW

We have about 20 machines at work running Red Hat v 6.2 - install was relatively painless. I would suggest, however, that you might want to consider setting the drive up with a Linux bootable partition and a Windows bootable partition. Linux may or may not be the wave of the future but, for now, Windows is king of the hill for application availability. I went down this path in '91 with IBM's OS/2, for about the same reason (MS sucks and all that). OS/2 was/is superior to Win 3.1/95/98 (and some would argue NT 3.5 and 4.0), but I finally got tired of fighting the non-support of IBM, the constant driver problems, and the scimpy selection of application software. It was fun but, alas, I use a computer to do real work, so software availability and support is crucial. Folded my OS/2 tent and went to Win98 shortly after it was released. Judging from the Linux cult which has developed at work, you'll like Linux . . . just don't make it your only operating system.

Gadget
KD5MAW