FEEDBACK VOLUME 63 ISSUE 5 MAY Waiting on dx MAY MEETING

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FEEDBACK VOLUME 63 ISSUE 5 MAY 2018 MASSILLON AMATEUR RADIO CLUB OFFICERS PRESIDENT Tony Casebolt KD8UXK kd8uxk@yahoo.com VICE PREISDENT Perry Ballinger W8AU w8au@sssnet.

1 FEEDBACK VOLUME 63 ISSUE 5 MAY 2018 MASSILLON AMATEUR RADIO CLUB OFFICERS PRESIDENT Tony Casebolt KD8UXK kd8uxk@yahoo.com VICE PREISDENT Perry Ballinger W8AU w8au@sssnet.com SECRERTARY Vern Sproat KE8VS vsproat@hotmail.com TREASURER Mike McNamara KB8OTK kb8otk@gmail.com MRN NET Sundays 8:00 PM KHZ WEST STARK INFO NET Fridays 8:00 PM MHZ ( except 1st Fri of month ) CONTENTS Secretary Report -2 N8ATZ Column 3 For Sale, 4 KB6NU Column 5 Presidents Column 7 Calendar by K8INN -8 MAY MEETING The meeting for the month of May will be held on May 4th 2018 at the Grace Fellowship /church, 6282 Nave St SW Canton, Ohio Time for the meeting is: Doors open at 7:00 PM for the eyeball QSO and the meeting starts at 7:30 PM. First off I d like to explain this short newsletter. As you know I have been actively trying to get someone to take over the job of newsletter editor. Well it finally caught up too me this past week (April 26th) in the form of a heart cath operation with the insertion of a stent to help clear an 80 % blockage in one of my arteries. Needless to say it knocked me on my rear and I am now in the process of getting my strength back. Hopefully I ll be able to make the meeting on the 4th if not you ll know why! Please consider the enjoyable position of editor. Yes this position does require some time dedicated to it each month. But the rewards are quite a few. Such as free membership in the club, a position on the governing board, just to name a few. And yes Ladies of the club you to are eligible to hold this position. I know of at least two other women who are editors for their club. And are doing a wonderful job. MAY MEETING PROGRAM NO PROGRAM PLANED, EYEBALL QSO INSTEAD Waiting on dx

2 2 MARC Minutes April 6, 2018 Meeting at Grace Fellowship Church Tony KD8UXK called the meeting to order at 7:30 PM. After the Pledge of Allegiance, there was a roll call with 24 people present. Secretary s report: A motion to accept March Secretary s minutes as published in the newsletter was made by Fred KD8SMO & seconded by Jim WA8GXM. Motion passed. Treasurer s Report: Mike KB8OTK then gave a detailed report of club finances. Mike gave a good detailed report of all items. One of the items was the purchase of ACLog program for the club and there should be any costs in the future to update the software. A motion to accept was made by Jim WA8GXM & seconded by Bud WA8KWD. Motion passed. 90 th Anniversary patches are available for 2 for $5.00, see Mike KB8OTK. Vice Present s Report: Perry W8AU identified Local Exam times listed on the ARRL site were identified. Cuyahoga Fall Hamfest April 14, & 21 in Portsmouth, 28 April Jackson, April 29th in Athens, several other which are farther away. A more complete listing is at the ARRL web site. April Fema ICS 200 training class prior to meeting Canton Ham meeting in April. Perry handed out certificates for those who assisted in the 90 th year anniversary. Perry has mailed out the response to requests for QSL cards were received from the 90 th Anniversary. Committee Reports: There were no committee reports presented this month. Old Business: Mike KD8OTK, talked to the Parks office about Fry Park about Field Day potentially being held there. They are not taking reservations yet and may not be taking reservations until sometime of spring No rules or regulations or price have been setup yet. Mike is to check every month on the status. As backup the Club is still set up for Petro Park and an options at Hartwick Park & Kiwanis Park. Gary needs a replacement for doing the newsletter, Terry Russ suggested; but identified he needs to retire first, so in the meantime there is still a need for a replacement. New Business: A date needs to set for the W8NP Hamfest, Perry W8AU is to contact the Boys Club on available dates. Arrangements are being made for the Hall of Fame Parades. The May meeting will be at Grace Fellowship Church, 6282 Nave St. S.W., Canton, OH just east of RG Drage Career Education Center. Entry for the meeting is to be the big double doors in the front. Doors to open at 7 pm and the start of the meeting 7:30 pm Copies of the budget are available to be voted on in the May meeting. With all business concluded a motion to adjourn was made by Mike KB8OTK and second by Rex NX8G. The motion passed. After the business meeting there was a short break for coffee, soda and donuts for everyone to enjoy. Thanks to all who helped provide the treats. A very enjoyable presentation was made by Tom Sly WB8LCD on QRP and Portable Operation with a show and tell of several pieces of equipment. Thank you Tom. Submitted by Vern KE8VS

3 DAYTON HAMVENTION M ay brings with it the beginning of warmer weather and most importantly the annual trek to the Mighty Mecca of Ham Radio, Dayton Hamvention.

3 3 DAYTON HAMVENTION M ay brings with it the beginning of warmer weather and most importantly the annual trek to the Mighty Mecca of Ham Radio, Dayton Hamvention. Celebrating it s 67th show this year on May 18, 19 and 20, this is one hamfest everyone should visit at least once. This year s theme is Amateur Radio - Serving the Community". Additionally 2018 brings back the now standard ARRL EXPO which is a showcase of exhibits to enhance your ham radio experience, this is going to be yet another great ham radio event. In addition the ARRL will have several new presentations on their DIY Stage. Expect a variety of creative projects and cool technology to be demonstrated that will interest both novice and seasoned operators alike. So what exactly is Hamvention? It s a forum where you can meet the authorities on nearly all facets of our great hobby. It s 500 inside exhibit spaces where manufacturers show off their latest equipment that you can see & touch. Some is even operational and you can fiddle the knobs on some really expensive radio gear. It s also 2,500 outdoor flea market spaces where everything and anything is available for sale. Last years attendance rebounded slightly and all indications are that this year's event will again increase with the move to their new location in Xenia. Let's hope this is true. thing at Tom has posted a special announcement on his website this year indicating this may be the last broadcast unless some additional funding becomes available. This is always a great way to see what's going on at Hamvention and I hope he will be able to continue this now great tradition. Stop by his flea market spaces and donate if you can. If you are looking for alternative transportation to Hamvention, the Pioneer Amateur Radio Fellowship group is once again sponsoring a charter bus to Dayton on Saturday, May 19th provided they get enough riders. The deadline will have passed by the time you read this but they may still have some open seats left. Complete details and costs are on their website at The basic Dayton Hamvention website is They also have posted a complete list of the forums scheduled for this year as well as a list of the inside vendors for this year. I found a link on their website that will take you to a full listing of the vendors on the inside as well as everyone in the flea market. Perfect if you are looking for someone specific on the outside flea market. That s it for this month, see you at the club meeting. 73 s Terry N8ATZ If you are interested in forums, hamvention this year will sponsor over 50 different talks covering everything from operating to equipment to rules & regulations. Many programs this year will center around this year's theme of public service. Another fun repeat feature this year at Hamvention will be streaming audio and video from the event via Tom, WA5KUB who will provide live video from Hamvention. If you can t make it to this years event check out the next best

4 NYE VIKING MB-V-A TUNNER Full legal limit tuner NEEDS REPAIR! Meters don t work, probably resistor or fuse blown. Not needed anymore Universal advertises sold used tuner for $ 279.

00 OBO ICOM 271A 2 METER ALLL MODE TRAN- SCIEVER Also needs repair special priced of just $ 100.

4 4 NYE VIKING MB-V-A TUNNER Full legal limit tuner NEEDS REPAIR! Meters don t work, probably resistor or fuse blown. Not needed anymore Universal advertises sold used tuner for $ I will sell this one for $ ALINCO DR-570T/E Dual Band Transceiver NO TRANSMIT $ OBO ICOM 271A 2 METER ALLL MODE TRAN- SCIEVER Also needs repair special priced of just $ needs output transistors, new battery for memory If you are a good tech here is a bargain for you! Parts available on e-bay. Sold whole for $ ALL PRICES SUBJECT TO BEST OFFER. AVAIL- ABLE AT: wc8w@sssnet.com or 330/ after 10:00 AM Also for sale : Assorted hardware (nuts, bolts & washers) machinist tools, misc drill bits etc. Name your price!

5 5 Alexa, help me with ham radio By Dan Romanchik, KB6NU I have had an Amazon Alexa for nearly a year now. Mostly, I just use it to listen to internet radio stations or tell me a joke, but I think it has more potential than that. For example, I ve written before about how I d like to develop an Alexa skill to control my IC I haven t gotten around to that yet, but, Joe, N3HEE, has just published an Alexa skill called Continuous Wave. It s designed to help you learn Morse Code. To use this skill, you have to first enable it. Once enabled, say, Alexa, open Continuous Wave. This opens the skill at the main menu. You can then say any of the following at any voice prompt Learn Practice Alphabet Common words Random words Words Sentences Call signs Contest Quick Brown Fox QSO Help Stop To end your session. I ve just played around with this app for a short time, but I've found it to be quite entertaining. It does, however, have one big drawback. You can t set the speed. It s currently limited to sending at 20 words per minute only. Also, the learn function could use a little refining. When you give the command learn, it asks you for a character, sends that character three times, and then asks you for another. If you could set the speed at which the skill sends characters, it could teach a character like the K7QO Code Course, first sending the character slowly, then ramping up the speed. Overall, though, I think this is a great first shot at a usable Alexa skill for teaching Morse Code. I hope this is the first of many versions of this skill. Other ham radio skills While I was poking around on Amazon, I decided to see what other amateur radio skills might be available. Here are a few that I found: Ham Exam. Ask Alexa to ask you questions from the Technician Class question pool. Ham Lookup. Allows you to look up amateurs by call sign. Information is provided from the callbook.info database. Ham Radio Propagation Forecast. Reports the latest forecasts directly from HamQSL (run by N0NBH). ARRL Audio News. Adds ARRL Audio News to your Alexa flash briefing. Building your own voice app The Continuous Wave Alexa skill was developed using tools found at VoiceApps.Com. Two other websites Pullstring and StoryLine also have tools to help you build voice apps. And, Amazon has an online tutorial that will

teach you how to build an Alexa app. I'm just getting started with these tools, so I can't recommend one over the others, but they do look like they'll make developing voice apps easier.

6 teach you how to build an Alexa app. I'm just getting started with these tools, so I can't recommend one over the others, but they do look like they'll make developing voice apps easier. Since I'm currently in the process of updating my No Nonsense Technician Class License Study Guide, it occurs to me that I should also develop an Alexa skill for drilling students on test questions. I guess you could call them audio flashcards. Stay tuned for that When he's not trying to figure out how to build voice apps, Dan blogs about amateur radio at KB6NU.Com, teaches ham radio classes, and operates CW on the HF bands. Look for him on 30m, 40m, and 80m. You can him about the voice apps that you like at cwgeek@kb6nu.com 6 Dan, KB6NU, will be teaching a one-day Tech Class amateur radio license class on Saturday, May 19, at the DAYTON HAMVENTION! The class will start promptly at 9:30 am and run until 4:00 pm, at which time the license exam will be given. The class costs $75 and includes a copy of his No-Nonsense Technician Class License Study Guide (it s available in various e- book formats or as a print book). Class size is limited, so SIGN UP NOW by going to Thanks & 73! Dan KB6NU

7 Hello everyone, May Club Meeting At the May meeting of MARC, we will need to get ready for upcoming events. Kid's Day will be on Saturday, June 16 th. This is the day that we can give young people on -the-air experience, and hopefully get them interested in amateur radio. Our hobby and our club, need to get more young people involved. Also, Field Day is coming up, I would like to get some members together to make sure the club's equipment is working properly. Club Meetings The Club will need to decide if we will continue to meet at Grace Fellowship. I have reserved the Fellowship Hall for the club until June. Pastor Keith Stephens and Administrator Debby Heaton of Grace Fellowship would like to have our answer A.S.A.P. Hamvention Hamvention 2018 is May 18th thru 20 th. I've been listening to reports, it's suppose to be bigger and better than last year. Like any other move to a new location, you will have issues at first, hopefully this year the traffic problems will be less. Club Information As I mentioned in prior newsletters, I would like for someone ( or committee ) to work on our club information. Gary WC8W as asked for help with our Feedback Newsletter, we have social media and websites that need updating. I am willing to help out as much as possible and if you are interested in helping out, let us know. Hope to see you at the May meeting,73. Tony Casebolt KD8UXK President of MARC

8 May 2018 W8NP Monthly Planner Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Upcoming Events: Apr /2 - Breezeshooters S M T ARC W Hamfest, T F S Prospect, PA /16-8Milford 9 Hamfest, 10 11Owensville, OH /23-6/24 - Field Day! BD WA8KWD Massillon Amateur Radio Club Meeting. Grace Fellowship Church, 6282 Nave Street, Canton, 2000 Doors oopen at BD WD8MBE Cadillac Hamfest, Cadillac, MI, Ctc: Alton, Jackson County ARC Hamfest, Ripley, WV, Ctc: Roy, Massillon Radio Net khz, VE Test Session, Cuyahoga Falls ARC, 1900, Bruce, , Stow-Monroe Falls Public Library 11 West Stark Info Net at Massillon Radio Net khz, 2000 Mother's Day VE Test Session, Pioneer AR Fellowship, 1830, Ctc: Joan, , Firestone Park Community Center Dayton Hamvention, Dayton ARA, Xenia, OH, Ctc Henry, West Stark Info Net at Armed Forces Day BD K8CP Dayton Hamvention, Dayton ARA, Xenia, OH, Ctc Henry, Dayton Hamvention, Dayton ARA, Xenia, OH, Ctc Henry, Massillon Radio Net khz, West Stark Info Net at VE Test Session, Area VE Team, 0900, Ctc: , Emergency Mgmt Agency, Sheriff Office/EOC, Canton, OH 27 BD N8PII Massillon Radio Net khz, BD WB8HHP Memorial Day (Observed) BD KA8ZQH 31 Jun 2018 S M T W T F S Please contact K8INN for updates, changes, or additions.

QSP. July VE Report. QSP On-Line at: Central Kansas Amateur Radio Club. July 2012

QSP. July VE Report. QSP On-Line at: Central Kansas Amateur Radio Club. July 2012 Central Kansas Amateur Radio Club QSP QSP On-Line at: http://www.centralksarc.com/qsppage.htm July 2012 The July Meeting is Friday July 27th at KWU s Peters Science Hall Room 211 7:30 PM Inside this issue: