Amateur Radio Newslineâ„¢ Report 1371 - November 21, 2003

Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1371 with a release date of Friday,
November 21, 2003 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a Q-S-T. Australia says goodbye to the Morse code and
the FCC says hello to a new way to regulate interference. Find out the
details on Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1371 coming your way
right now.


(Billboard Cart Here)

**

RESTRUCTURING: AUSTRALIA GOES CODE FREE

Australia is joining the no-code revolution. Q-News Graham Kemp, VK4BB
is down-under with the details:

--

The Australian Communications Authority (ACA) is reviewing regulatory
and licensing arrangements for the amateur service. A discussion paper
was released in August 2003, and public meetings were held in 10 cities
around Australia. As a result of this extensive public consultation
process, the ACA has decided to discontinue the Morse code proficiency
requirement for the amateur service.

Background: Article 25 of the Radio Regulations of the International
Telecommunication Union sets out the international arrangements for the
amateur service.

The World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC) held from 9 June to 4 July
2003 in Geneva fundamentally changed Article 25. The changes to Article
25 have provided the ACA with an opportunity to review and simplify the
current regulatory and licensing arrangements for the amateur service.
In August 2003 the ACA released a discussion paper that looked at the
changes made to Article 25, as well as exploring future options for the
amateur service in Australia.
Morse code proficiency requirement to be removed As a result of an
extensive public consultation process, the ACA has decided to
discontinue the Morse code proficiency requirement for the amateur
service. This decision was made considering public comments at the
meetings and initial analysis of submissions to the discussion paper.

The ACA will make interim changes to legislative instruments which will
immediately allow access to privileges previously available only to
those satisfying Morse code proficiency requirements. The ACA is in the
process of amending the amateur radio licence conditions specified in
the Radiocommunications Licence Conditions (Amateur Licence)
Determination No. 1 of 1997 to reflect this decision. The amendments
will give holders of Intermediate and Limited Amateur licences access to
the same frequency bands as Unrestricted Amateur licensees; and holders
of the Novice Limited Amateur licence access to the same frequency bands
as Novice licensees.

The interim arrangements are expected to come into force on 1 January
2004.

I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB, of Q-News Australia for the Amateur Radio
Newsline.

--

More on this in future Amateur Radio Newsline reports. (Q-News: Note:
Print version is expanded from audio report)

**

RADIO LAW: FCC LOOKING AT NEW INTERFERENCE STANDARD

Turning to regulatory news here at home, word that the FCC is looking at
another way of determining what it calls acceptable interference levels.
Termed "interference temperature," the Commission says that this is a
new model for addressing interference that takes into account the actual
cumulative R-F energy from transmissions of spectrum-based devices. It
would also set a maximum cap on the aggregate of these transmissions.

To test the potential usefulness and applicability of this approach the
agency has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. FCC docket item 03-
289 seeks comment on various technical rules that would establish
procedures and use the interference temperature model on a limited basis
in the 6525 to 6700 MHz and portions of the 12.75 to 13.25 GHz bands.

According to the FCC, the "interference temperature" approach may
facilitate more intensive use of the radio spectrum, creating the
opportunities for new services and improving the predictability of any
interference to existing services. The current approach for managing
interference focuses on specifying and limiting the transmit powers of
individual spectrum based devices. What impact the adoption of an
"interference temperature" standard might have on Amateur Radio
operations has yet to be determined. (CGC Communicator, ARNewsline(tm),
other published reports)


**

REGULATORY NEWS: FCC APPROVES WIRELESS INTERNET IN HAM SPACE BAND

The FCC has turned down an ARRL request to keep so-called wireless
Internet connections out of the 5.650 to 5.670 Gigahertz to avoid
interference with the Amateur Satellite Service. This, as the regulatory
agency makes another 255 MHz of spectrum available for Wi Fi use. Bill
Pasternak, WA6ITF, reports:

--

In a Report and Order in ET Docket 03-122 released on November 18th, the
FCC says it was taking action to alleviate crowding in existing wireless
Internet allocations. Also, that it wanted to align wireless Internet
connectivity here in the United States with the rest of the world.

Amateur Radio has a secondary allocation from 5.650 to 5.925 Gigahertz.
That includes a 20 Megahertz wide satellite downlink segment from 5.830
to 5.850 Gigahertz.

An ARRL Bulletin says that back in September the League expressed
concerns about the potential for interference from these wireless
devices to Amateur Radio space operations. But in releasing its
decision, the FCC says that its dynamic frequency selection and
transmitter power control requirements should be adequate to protect
amateur operations. This, even though the FCC admits that they are not
specifically designed to do so.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, in Los
Angeles.

--

In rendering its decision the FCC said that it was not persuaded that it
should either add to or modify its proposed rules as requested by ARRL.
The Federal government itself is the primary user of the entire band.
(ARRL Bulletin, FCC)

**

RADIO LAW: FCC COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE CLARIFIES HER "BROADBAND NIRVANA"
REMARKS

The office of FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy has expressed regrets
that her remarks in a September speech may have failed to make her
concerns about potential interference from Broadband over Power Line
sufficiently clear. Responding to complaints from the ARRL and
individual amateurs, Abernathy's Senior Legal Adviser Matthew A. Brill
said that her office is sorry that the Commissioner's remarks may have
been interpreted as suggesting an absence of concern over harmful
interference.

The ARRL Letter says Brill has assured the League that ensuring that B-
P-L and all new technologies avoids causing harmful interference to
licensed R-F users is important to Abernathy. Brill termed it as a
bedrock position for the Commissioner.

Last September 22nd, in a speech to the United Powerline Council's
annual conference Abernathy expressed personal enthusiasm for B-P-L
calling it a Broadband nirvana. That position was quickly challenged by
the ARRL and others in the ham radio community. (ARRL)

**

Break 1

From the United States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline,
heard on bulletin stations around the world including the W3UU repeater
of the Harrisburg Radio Amateur Club serving Harrisburg Pennsylvania.

(5 sec pause here)


**
BREAKING NEWS: EARTH HIT BY SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM

A severe G-4 class geomagnetic storm is in progress as we go to air.
This, due to the arrival of coronal hole mass ejections related to the
returning sunspot group 484, now numbered 501 astronomers.

Thomas Hood, N-W-7-U-S, is the Propagation Editor for C-Q Magazine. In
a November 20th posting to the V-H-F Reflector, Hood says that some
reporting stations show a K index of 9. The current planetary K index
is 8 and the Aurora index is 10. This means that there could be visual
Aurora is possible at low-latitudes.

What does this mean to ham radio operations? During the storm HF
conditions are poor. So will those on the Medium Wave broadcast bands.
But in the world of 50 Mhz and above anything could happen and usually
does. Keep your ears open, your radio on and enjoy it while you can.

Now long will this geomagnetic storm last and are more sunspots on the
way? Ongoing information is in cyberspace at http://prop.hfradio.org
and on the W6YX VHF Reflector.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF. (VHF
REflector)

**

ENFORCEMENT: HAM ACCUSED IN WISCONSIN INTERFERENCE CASE

A peason described by authorities as a Wisconsin ham has been arrested
and charged with some high tech interference to public service
communications. Amateur Radio Newsline's Bruce Tennent, K6PZW, has the
rest of the story:

--

The Wisconsin State Journal reports that a ham radio operator is being
accused of interfering with emergency radio channels in the city of
Madison over the past nine months. According to the Journal,
authorities charge that twenty-five year old Rajib K. Mitra, a
University of Wisconsin Madison student, may have broadcast audio from
pornographic movies over the Madison Police Department airwaves.

The news article describes Mitra is a ham radio operator with a degree
in computer science. He was arrested Thursday November 13th after police
showed up at his apartment with a search warrant looking for radio and
computer equipment and pornographic audio.

According to a Madison police spokesperson, the interference usually
left the radio system dead for stretches from a few seconds to about 20
minutes but never on a regular schedule. Al Schwoegler, the Madison
Communication Operations Supervisor said that this intermittant
operation added to the difficulty of tracking the source.

The interference came at times when police were dispatched on calls.
Authorities believe that the person jamming may have monitored police
radio traffic.

Helping to track down Mitra was Ralph Pellegrini. The newspaper article
identified Pellegrini is a ham operator and technician for Sprint PCS
who assisted police. Authorities approached Pellegrini for assistance
when they thought the interference might be coming from a Sprint
cellular tower. Pellegrini in turn gave a lot of credit for Mitra's
capture to those he termed as the Madison radio guys. He notes that
they were able to hunt down Mitra in a city R-F environment that's
pretty bad.

Mitra was in the Dane County Wisconson jail as of Friday November 14th.
He has been tentatively charged with 16 felony counts of computer crimes
and could also face federal charges, according to Madison police.

For the Amateur Radio newsline, I'm Bruce Tennant, K6PZW, reporting.

--

Authorities hope that Mitra's arrest will end months of frustrating
interference to their radio communications system. The complete story
is on-line at
http://www.madison.com/wisconsinstat...ocal/61321.php (Wisconsin
State Journal, QRZ.com, others)


**

ENFORCEMENT: SKYWARN INTERFERENCE

The FCC has told an Indiana ham that he is to stay off of a 2 meter
repeater dedicated to emergency alerting operations. This, in a letter
to Christopher Smith, KC9CAU, of South Bend.

In the note, the agency says that it has received a complaint about
Smith's on the air operation on a repeater system participating in the
St. Joseph County Skywarn system. The complaint alleges deliberate
interference and harassment to the repeater and refusal to refrain from
attempting communications on that system.

The FCC's letter tells Smith that it expects him to abide by any demand
that he stay off the repeater, as well as any other repeater where such
request is made bya repeater control operator or the system licensee.
Smith was given the customary 20 days from the date of the FCC's letter
to reply. (FCC)

**

ENFORCEMENT: ECHOLINK EXPLANATION SOUGHT

A Florida ham has some explaining to do for comments made over a linked
repeater system. The FCC's Daryl Duckworth, NN0W, explains:

--

Duckworth: "An inquiry went to WA3QCV, Timothy Horvath, of Flagler
Beeach, Florida, concerning operation on two repeaters: WB2IXR at
157.015 Mhz and KG4IDD at 145.47 Mhz that are linked through the
Echolink system. The inquiry involves alleged threats and obscene
language."


--

The FCC also gave Horvath 20 days from the date of its letter for him to
respond. (FCC)

**

RADIO LAW: ANTI-PIRACT BROADCAST FLAG APPROVED

The government has approved a new anti-piracy system that will
theoretically make it harder for computer users to illegally distribute
digital TV programs on the Internet. This, with the goal is to speed the
transition to higher quality digital broadcasts and ensure such
programming remains free.

The five-member FCC voted unanimously to allow a "broadcast flag" to be
added to digital programming to block broader distribution on the
Internet on November 4th. Broadcasters and the movie industry had urged
the Federal Communications Commission to take such action, while
consumer groups said it will force some people to purchase new
electronics. (FCC, others)

**

ON THE MOVE: HF NET RELOCATING TO IRLP

Call it a sign of the times we live in. This as Tom Mc Glinn, KO6HA,
reports over QRZ.com website on big change for a long established high
frequency net that's taking to a different way to communicate.

Mc Glinn says that due to the urban lifestyle of many of the members of
the USS Hornet Amateur Radio Club, the group has decided to move its
weekly Net from 80 Meters to repeaters that are interconnected using I-
R-L-P. That's the Internet Radio Linking Project which permits the
world wide interconnecting of repeaters over the World Wide Web.

According to Mc Glinn, the net has been conducting tests and they have
worked out most of the bugs involved with such a move. Once completed,
the U-S-S Hornet Net will hold the weekly gathering in the San Francisco
Bay Area using the facilities of the 147.210 repeater in near-by
Oakland. Those outside the area we will be linked in using the I-R-L-P
Western Reflector.

Mc Glinn adds that anyone on the planet who has I-R-L-P access to link
to the Western Reflector Subchannel 1, node 9251, on Mondays at 2030
Pacific time is invited to check in on the Net. He says that you do not
need to be a member of the club to take part. (QRZ.com)

**

CONFERENCES: CSVHFS IN ONTARIO CANADA NEXT JULY

The Ontario VHF Association and the Toronto VHF Society will be hosting
the 38th annual Central States VHF Society Conference. The dates are
July 22nd to the 25th at the Delta Meadowvale Resort and Conference
Center in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

2004 marks only the second time that this conference has been held
outside of the USA. More information and a registration form will be
available shortly in cyberspace at www.csvhfs.org and www.ovhfa.com
(VHF REflector)

**

HAMVENTION 2004: AWARD NOMINATING PERIOD OPENS

Meantime, the planners of Hamvention 2004 say that the nominating period
is now open for its Radio Amateur of the Year, Technical Excellence and
Special Achievement awards program. The Radio Amateur of the Year is
described as that special person who has made a long term commitment to
the advancement of amateur radio. A well-rounded individual who has
contributed most of his or her lifetime to our hobby in some very
outstanding way.

A nominee for the Technical Excellence award should be a person who has
made an outstanding technical advancement in the field of amateur radio.
Something like a revolutionary new equipment design or mode of operation
that has impacted positively on the day to day operation of many hams.

Last but by no means least, a nominee for the Hamvention's Special
Achievement is the kind of special person who has made an outstanding
contribution to the advancement of amateur radio. This award is usually
given to a respected amateur who spearheaded a single significant
project.

Documentation is beneficial. Magazine articles, newsletters, newspaper
clippings, videos, etc. will better inform the Awards Committee of your
candidate's accomplishments. All materials become the property of the
Hamvention and cannot be returned.

The nomination deadline is January 31 2004. You can fill out the on-
line form found at www.hamvention.org by clicking your mouse on the
words award nominations. Printed nominations go to the Awards
Committee, Hamvention 2004, PO Box 964, Dayton Ohio, 45401.

And oh yes. The deadline for all submissions is January 31st, 2004
(Dayton Hamvention)

**

BREAK 2

This is ham radio news for today's radio amateur. From the United
States of America, We are the Amateur Radio Newsline with links to the
world from our only official website at www.arnewsline.org and being
relayed by the volunteer services of the following radio amateur:

(5 sec pause here)

**

NAMES IN THE NEWS: KB2GSD VS. WJMK - PART 2

A follow up to an earlier story involving retired CBS newsman Walter
Cronkite, KB2GSD, and a Florida television production company that he
says misled him and tarnished his reputation. This, when it persuaded
him to appear in videos that promoted prescription drugs and other
products.

The company, WJMK, filed suit last September after Cronkite tried to end
a contract he had signed to appear as the host of a series of videos,
including some called American Medical Review. In their legal brief
responding to the WJMK action, Cronkite's lawyers say WJMK had assured
him that the videos would be educational and would not promote corporate
products. These are claims that his lawyers say Cronkite subsequently
learned were false.

An attorney representing W-J-M-K, says that Cronkite's charges had no
merit and that Cronkite's lawyers were trying to disparage the other
side in the media. Meantime, KB2GSD has filed a counter claim seeking
$25 million in damages from WJMK. (Published news reports)

**

NAMES IN THE NEWS: LONG TO AMSAT JOURNAL

Ed Long, WA4SWJ, is the new Editor in Chief of the AMSAT Journal. A
licensed amateur since 1970, Ed holds a BSEE from West Virginia
University and an MBA from Duke. He is currently employed by SPX
Process Equipment in Delavan, Wisconsin. He can be reached by e-mail to
(AMSAT-NA)

**

EMERGING TECHNOLOGY: SAFETYCAST BROADCAST TO YOUR CAR

Police or fire engines may soon be able to override the radio in your
car. This, as Jacksonville Florida based SafetyCast announces that it
will soon test a new mobile alert system. One that will allow a police
officer or ambulance driver to take over a car radio within a distance
of about 1000 feet and broadcast a brief alert tone and warning message.

Emergency services officials are praising the development. They claim
that there is a warning crisis because motorists in today's sound-
proofed vehicles can't hear sirens, or just aren't paying attention.

But the CGC Communicator reports hearing from one engineer who's worried
about the Special Temporary Authority the FCC gave for the trial. He
says his studios and E-A-S receivers are located 100 feet from a highway
and one block from a hospital. He feels that SafetyCast might jam an
Emergency Alert System messages that are coming in. (CGC Communicator)

**

SPACE: FRENCH AND RUSSIAN LAUNCH ACCORD

France and Russia approved an accord intended to pave the way for the
eventual launch of Russian rockets from a French launch pad in South
America. The agreement, signed on November 11th is the first of its
kind between Russia and a European Union country and is a step toward
the launch of Russian Soyuz-ST rockets from the E-S-A Kourou launch pad
in French Guyana. Most ham radio satellites are orbited from the Kourou
facility. (Published reports)

**

INTERNATIONAL - HOLLAND: RADIO NETHERLANDS BROADCAST CHANGE

Radio Netherlands says that its shifting the frequency of its Dutch
language transmission to the Far East, East and Southeast Asia at 1300
U-T-C. This broadcast can now be heard on 7 point 380 MHz. The reason
for the change is to avoid interference to the transmission. (Media
Network)

**

DX

In D-X, word that ON4LAC, is active portable 3B8 from Marutius through
November 23rd. His activity has been mainly on 20 and 15 meters using
SSB and PSK, but is expected to be on RTTY as well. He will leave
Msrutius and head to Reunion Island to be active as FR5 stroke ON4LAC
during the period of November 26th and December 15th. After this
activity, he will head back to Mauritius and will be active again
between December 17th and 27th. QSL direct to his home callsign.
(OPDX)

Also, K5LB has announced that he will be going to Swaziland next March
and is looking for several operators to tag along. His plans include a
trip through the Kruger Game Park. If interested, contact him at
(OPDX)

**

THAT FINAL ITEM: VOLUNTEERISM AND THE NYC MARATHON

For the last two weeks New York City Marathon Communications Coordinator
Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML, has been sharing with us the behind the scenes
story of how 411 hams move the race along. In our final part in this
series Henry Feinberg, K2SSQ, takes a look at the volunteers that make
it all hapen:

--

The ham radio communications effort for the New York City Marathon is
volunteer driven. And, as with any event, volunteers do come and go.
We asked the lead volunteer, Steve Merndelsohn, W2ML, to explain how
this situation gets covered:

--
Audio only. Hear the newscast in mp3 at www.arnewsline.org
--

It's primerally the local clubs that supply the volunteer ham radio
communicators. W2ML says that he has a special way of introducing them
to what Marathon communications is all about:

--
Audio only. Hear the newscast in mp3 at www.arnewsline.org
--

And speaking about volunteers, we asked Steve what about his own role in
all this. How much of his life does he devote to setting up this all
volunteer communications effort? His answer may astound you:

--
Audio only. Hear the newscast in mp3 at www.arnewsline.org
--

And there you have it. An insiders look at the massive all volunteer
ham radio communications network that literally runs the New York City
Marathon. It's a view that only someone who has been there every year
since Amateur Radio has been involved, can give.

For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Henry Feinberg, K2SSQ

--

Our thanks to Steve Mendelsohn, W2ML, for sharing his experiences with
us, and with you.

**

NEWSCAST CLOSE

With thanks to Alan Labs, AMSAT, the ARRL, the CGC Communicator, CQ
Magazine, the FCC, the Ohio Penn DX Bulletin, Radio Netherlands, Rain,
the RSGB and Australia's Q-News, that's all from the Amateur Radio
Newsline(tm). Our e-mail address is newsline @arnewsline.org. More
information is available at Amateur Radio Newsline's(tm) only official
website located at www.arnewsline.org. You can also write to us or
support us at Amateur Radio Newsline(tm), P.O. Box 660937, Arcadia,
California 91066.

For now, with Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, at the editors desk, I'm Don
Wilbanks, AE5DW, saying Happy Thanksgiving, 73 and we thank you for
listening." Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2003. All rights
reserved.