Is Ham Radio Dying Out ?
 

Not according to the IARU page at URL:

http://www.iaru.org/statsum00.html

Sez
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

I suspect the figures have increased since 2000
--
Caveat Lector

In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

How you interpret these numbers depends on how you define
a station, in part. Does it weigh less than 1 lb or not?
Station licenses are not the same as stations, anyway -
I have a license but no station unless you count the halogen
lamps at home. But nobody asked me whether I have a station.

And I won't get into quantity vs quality (feel free to do so).

Derek aa5bt, g3nmx

I gave you the URL for the source - The IARU
Why not ask them ??

--
Caveat Lector -- (Reader Beware)



"Derek Wills" wrote in message
...
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

How you interpret these numbers depends on how you define
a station, in part. Does it weigh less than 1 lb or not?
Station licenses are not the same as stations, anyway -
I have a license but no station unless you count the halogen
lamps at home. But nobody asked me whether I have a station.

And I won't get into quantity vs quality (feel free to do so).

Derek aa5bt, g3nmx

Although these raw figures show growth up until 2000, they produce a false
sense of a ham radio as a "healthy hobby".

First - it is not fair to consider 1960 to 2000 - 40 years!! Several
generations of technology have come and gone in that span - hardly an
accurate interval for measuring whether the hobby is "growing" or not. Let's
limit our scope to {roughly} the last decade: 1995 to 2005. These are the
years in which competing technologies - cell phones, computers and the
Internet - have grown by substantial double-digit margins every year while
ham radio remained comparatively stagnant.

- when compared to the global population counts, the percentage licensed
hams in the world versus population has declined.

- looking at the US figures (http://ah0a.org/FCC/Licenses.html) you will see
that US license counts peaked in April of 2003, and are now at a level lower
than they were in June 1997.

- consider the average age of licensed hams (
http://users.crosspaths.net/~wallio/LICENSE.html US figures are available
for comparison... we'll have to extrapolate that other nations are
experiencing a similar trend) the hobby could be seen as being terminally
ill, with very little fresh blood being infused by young hams.

I wish the statistics proved otherwise, but I think your celebration of the
IARU charts is a bit mis-guided.
--
-larry
K8UT
"Caveat Lector" wrote in message
news:BztLd.25649$xt.7545@fed1read07...
Not according to the IARU page at URL:

http://www.iaru.org/statsum00.html

Sez
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

I suspect the figures have increased since 2000
--
Caveat Lector

Good answer.....there seems to be a "purist" (i.e. butthead) in every
thread....

--

Charlie
Ham Radio - AD5TH
www.ad5th.com
Live Blues Music
www.492acousticblues.com




"Caveat Lector" wrote in message
news:OIxLd.26840$xt.22631@fed1read07...

I gave you the URL for the source - The IARU
Why not ask them ??

--
Caveat Lector -- (Reader Beware)



"Derek Wills" wrote in message
...
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

How you interpret these numbers depends on how you define
a station, in part. Does it weigh less than 1 lb or not?
Station licenses are not the same as stations, anyway -
I have a license but no station unless you count the halogen
lamps at home. But nobody asked me whether I have a station.

And I won't get into quantity vs quality (feel free to do so).

Derek aa5bt, g3nmx

http://www.iaru.org/statsum00.html

Sez
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

You have to be careful about these figures.

For example: in the UK the RSGB is well-known for telling lies about
their subscriber numbers. Ask them for detailed info on the subject
and they immediately refuse, claiming "commercial confidentiality" :)

And that's quite apart from the famous time they sent a "family
membership" form to someone's dog ...

.... I believe the owner actually filled it in and the mutt has been a
"member" ever since !


Young Nick

In article ,
(Derek Wills) wrote:
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

How you interpret these numbers depends on how you define
a station, in part. Does it weigh less than 1 lb or not?
Station licenses are not the same as stations, anyway -
I have a license but no station unless you count the halogen
lamps at home. But nobody asked me whether I have a station.

I don't want to draw any fire, but there is a point
to this -

Not all that many licensed amateurs in the United
States have the legal right to install an antenna
on their property.

I live in a neighborhood built in 1969, so there
is no deed restriction, but there is a city-wide
restriction (Tempe, AZ) of 35 feet height.

Even so, my neighbors send the "neighborhood
enhancement" (doesn't that sound ominous and
sort of nazi-like?) out regularly for various
imagined city code issues of which there has
never been a single violation.

Basically, there is an ad hoc legal ban on amateur
stations at residences built in the last 20 years,
at least in suburban settings.

The reasoning seems to follow that since antennas
are outlawed, only outlaws have antennas. :)

Remember, radios don't transmit, antennas do!

Brian
http://members.cox.net/bshort4/

Hmmm don't know what all this has to do with the original post, but my
comments inserted


"Brian Short" wrote in message
...

I don't want to draw any fire, but there is a point
to this -

Not all that many licensed amateurs in the United
States have the legal right to install an antenna
on their property.

Ah contraire -- There are thousands and thousands of hams that do have the
right and have installed outdoor antennas.
Just don't buy a home that has the restrictions.

Ah but you say -- I want a nice upscale neighborhood where all houses are
painted the same color and no one can park their car in the driveway, and
you can only have two pets, and flag poles are forbidden, et al.

Well ya can't have it all sez I.


I live in a neighborhood built in 1969, so there
is no deed restriction, but there is a city-wide
restriction (Tempe, AZ) of 35 feet height.

Move outta town! Get outta Dodge!
But if ya gotta stay -- A vertical at 8 feet or 35 feet will do well --- as
will a beam at 35 feet for the upper bands.
Use a vertical at the lower bands -- most do anyway.


Even so, my neighbors send the "neighborhood
enhancement" (doesn't that sound ominous and
sort of nazi-like?) out regularly for various
imagined city code issues of which there has
never been a single violation.

Just ignore em. Ms Snoop or Ms Clipboard abounds in all endeavors.


Basically, there is an ad hoc legal ban on amateur
stations at residences built in the last 20 years,
at least in suburban settings.

Not against the "stations" just outdoor antennas. If it was "stations" then
all the cell phone users are in violation.
Hey Junior -- knock it off with that RC car model -- the HOA is monitoring
(;-)
Here in Calif, there are lots of homes (even in the million dollar category)
with no restrictions.


The reasoning seems to follow that since antennas
are outlawed, only outlaws have antennas. :)

Ah stealth antennas -- can't keep a Ham off the air huh ?


Remember, radios don't transmit, antennas do!

Indeed

A final comment about HOA's -- Those that relinquish their essential rights
for the sake of protection -- shall receive neither.
--
Caveat Lector (Reader Beware)

you have a better source ??
--
Caveat Lector (Reader Beware)



"Young Nick" wrote in message
...
http://www.iaru.org/statsum00.html

Sez
In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

You have to be careful about these figures.

For example: in the UK the RSGB is well-known for telling lies about
their subscriber numbers. Ask them for detailed info on the subject
and they immediately refuse, claiming "commercial confidentiality" :)

And that's quite apart from the famous time they sent a "family
membership" form to someone's dog ...

... I believe the owner actually filled it in and the mutt has been a
"member" ever since !


Young Nick

On 01/02/2005 8:41 AM, Brian Short wrote:
In article ,
(Derek Wills) wrote:

In 1960 there were 399,000 Amateur stations world wide
In 2000 there were 2,789,720 Amateur stations world wide

How you interpret these numbers depends on how you define
a station, in part. Does it weigh less than 1 lb or not?
Station licenses are not the same as stations, anyway -
I have a license but no station unless you count the halogen
lamps at home. But nobody asked me whether I have a station.


I don't want to draw any fire, but there is a point
to this -

Not all that many licensed amateurs in the United
States have the legal right to install an antenna
on their property.

I live in a neighborhood built in 1969, so there
is no deed restriction, but there is a city-wide
restriction (Tempe, AZ) of 35 feet height.

Even so, my neighbors send the "neighborhood
enhancement" (doesn't that sound ominous and
sort of nazi-like?) out regularly for various
imagined city code issues of which there has
never been a single violation.

Basically, there is an ad hoc legal ban on amateur
stations at residences built in the last 20 years,
at least in suburban settings.

The same sort of thing has been going on in Canada, as well. It is my
understanding, though, that the federal government here has the sole
right to regulate antenna structures within Canada; provinces and
municipalities can create their own statutes and bylaws, but these have
no real jurisdiction over the use of antenna installations in Canada.
They can, however, institute laws and require permits to ensure that
their local concerns are addressed.

So, there may be permits and regulations and guidelines one must follow
to erect such a structure. The notion is that an amateur is entitled to
operate within the limits of that license anywhere within Canada, local
statutes and bylaws notwithstanding (ah, that most Canadians of words.)

Basically, Industry Canada encourages the local governments to
"regulate" within their jurisdiction, but retain the last word on what
is allowed, and can veto any such permit, bylaw or statute. The feds
have actually lined up the process you can use to state your case,
regardless of local government laws.

The whole thing is rather ill-defined, and there are no deciding court
cases to furnish us with a definitive answer. However, the notion is
that an amateur is entitled to a "reasonable" use of their license,
including being able to erect "reasonable" towers and antennas for that
purpose. Often all it takes is notifying your neighbours, tweaking the
design a bit to make it less offensive and ensuring it conforms to all
the necessary federal and local safety guidelines.

This last bit often requires a "permit" from the local government, but
my understanding (IANAL, obviously) is that only the feds can tell you
that you can't erect some sort of reasonable antenna installation, and
they have to have a pretty good reason to do so.

Basically, the law is set up to keep people from going crazy and setting
up a 200kW antenna farm in their backyards, while being hard for any
province or town to keep an amateur from erecting a simple, reasonably
high structure that complies with their license and local building codes.
--
clvrmnky

Heat up and unmunge email to reply.