tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-230345402009-06-29T16:03:43.396-07:00If I'm thinking it, I'll write about it.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.comBlogger88125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-77586882251293565712009-06-28T17:17:00.000-07:002009-06-28T17:46:34.383-07:00

I participated in field day with the Foothills Amateur Radio Society this year. I was the GOTA captain. GOTA, Get On The Air. The site is great. It is at the Maryknoll seminary, which is very scenic. The GOTA tent is in the best location. It gets the most shade.The GOTA station is fun. Watching someone get hooked on HF or contesting is great. Some just getting to jump into HF might

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-88857840578726789802009-06-18T00:42:00.000-07:002009-06-18T00:49:48.409-07:00

Lance finally got his IC-735. We went to a park close to work in Palo Alto. I put up my buddipole, he hooked up his radio and he called CQ. He got 2 QSOs, one in San Diego. I hooked up my FT-857D and got one in Missouri.On 20M we had a S7 noise floor outside. We relized that there was a large electrical junction box where we set up.Operating the radio is like fishing. A bad day on the radio is

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-71215377417527576572009-06-18T00:30:00.000-07:002009-06-18T00:42:01.489-07:00

How often do you watch a you tube video, find it entertaining and follow the related videos? Worse, watch the related play list?I think I just over numa'd myself and lost 10 IQ points.I dare you.I double dare you.I triple dare you. Ok, Watch this one because she is hot.These are the guys to blame for this song. Incase you don't speak Romanian, here is their English verion. I think it looses

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-3521237068020927792009-06-16T13:04:00.000-07:002009-06-16T13:15:50.332-07:00

I live in the SF Bay area. There is a repeater, N6NFI, 145.230 pl100, that many people in the area use. Many of us who are active on the repeater also are active in our local emergency communications groups. I saw this come together this morning, 6/16/09.We have a net called the 9am talk net. It starts at 9am and runs for 1-3 hours Monday through Friday. This morning the regular netcontrol

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-36365213564314277812009-06-15T22:38:00.000-07:002009-06-15T23:20:51.783-07:00

I've finally dove into surface mount soldering, smt. I built a few kits. Mostly silly stuff.First I tried this basic SMT training kit that has a blinking red/green led.It had to get a second kit. Not sure what I did.The Executive Decision Maker by Elenco. It worked great. I did not do any rework.These first two kits I used a needle point soldering tip. It was just too fine.Then when I took a

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-60104512583439176032009-06-12T23:55:00.000-07:002009-06-13T00:05:42.278-07:00

I have a ft-857D and a buddipole. But I only get out once or twice a month.I have gained access to 2 stations that use the w5mq software. I have the software loaded on my home desktop, my asus eee and the work computer. One is in New Mexico that lets me work the US very well. I have just gained access to a station in Pennsylvania. Hopefully this will let me start making contacts in

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-14349004340163319592009-06-10T18:52:00.000-07:002009-06-10T19:04:12.453-07:00

Oy. It's been almost 2 weeks since the faire. The house is mostly put back together. My stuff is put away. But some comes back out for field day in 2 weeks.It went really well. Found out that many of the makers are hams. The volunteers all had fun. The ARRL is really happy with the results. The show organizers received positive feedback.One more club wants to participate. So we might have 4

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-65564391792730845292009-06-10T18:48:00.000-07:002009-06-10T18:51:58.060-07:00

I just read http://www.blackplasticglasses.com written by Evan Schnittman.Short well written entries. I have fallen into the trap of using twitter instead of making entries in this blog. Seeing Evan's blog kicked my in the pants. He has short well written 1 or 2 paragraph entries. Why aren't I doing this?

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-83415891122151972612009-03-07T16:33:00.000-08:002009-03-07T18:01:56.517-08:00

Oh man. I went and spoke at my first small hamfest. It was at the Moose Lodge in Monterey. I was speaking in the main hall about the make faire.I felt like a lounge singer in a third rate bar. I was in one corner giving my presentation. About a dozen folks paying attention or eating lunch in front of the stage. Then everyone else was milling about on the "show floor". I should have worn

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-85042889357560185692009-03-02T05:49:00.001-08:002009-03-02T05:53:16.508-08:00

Amateur Radio at the Maker Faire Sponsored by FARSWe need volunteers. Have fun. Get a free day pass to the Maker Faire. Get a free tee-shirt. Spend the day hanging out with fellow hams and talking to folks about Amateur Radio. Enjoy the unique experience of the Maker Faire.Those wishing to volunteer, please contact Michael Pechner, KI6QNZ, ki6qnz@arrl.net Friday 11AM-5PM for setup and

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-50792423434237977662009-01-27T08:23:00.001-08:002009-01-29T12:30:24.803-08:00

I started trying to get things going for the Maker Faire booth in July. As opposed to previous years I did not wait until a call goes out 2 weeks before again.The work has paid off. We will have an amazing array of Ham Radio demonstrations. We need to show the technology side of things. We need to encourage people in their 20's, 30's and earlier to take up the hobby. I'm 47 and feel like I'm

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-5943910681189369652008-08-28T12:28:00.000-07:002008-08-28T12:53:09.650-07:00

On the work front. Things are going really well at the stealth start up I work for. I am having fun.I think I have an original subtheme for my office. At least I've never seen any one do it. I have every flavor of Altoids that come in the normal rectangular tin.PeppermintCinnamonSpearmintWintergreenCreme de MentheGingerLiquoriceChocolate dipped peppermintChocolate dipped CinnamonChocolate dipped

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-32572551789542743402008-06-29T19:03:00.000-07:002008-06-29T19:18:51.994-07:00

Note: I was really going a little nuts with CW when I wrote my last post. It can be very frustrating.I was at the field day for Foot Hills Amateur Radio Society. I worked the GET-ON-THE-AIR (GOTA) station. With my lousy hearing, I think the station captain Ron was getting a bit frustrated with me. But I made about 30 contacts over the 3 hours or so I worked the station over the 2 days.I was

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-18214721485192018362008-06-10T23:35:00.000-07:002008-06-10T23:58:24.571-07:00

I am sitting at my desk tonight trying to listen to morse code. Then I thought WHY? I blog I twitter I IM, I use the slayer app on facebook. Do I really need another semi-anonymous method of communication? Klingon might be more popular with people my age.The only real open forums of communication in Ham radio are though nets and contests. I am never going to contest. I watched it. I'd rather

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-53384823936441114692008-06-08T08:37:00.000-07:002008-06-08T09:08:14.458-07:00

I did it. I crammed well. I spent the entire week studying. http://www.hamtestonline.com is the ticket. It so worth the $50. I spent 34 hours on hamtestonline and about another 8 hours reading.I missed one on my General and 6 on my Extra. Now that I've passed the tests, it is time to go back and learn the materials. I am very good with practical application, and can explain what I am doing.

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-23490361320148420652008-05-24T01:08:00.000-07:002008-05-24T01:14:30.810-07:00

Looks like I am finding a population of Ham Radio Operators on Twitter. If any Hams use twitter, use any of the following to get noticed. Use either "#CQCQ" or "#HAMR".I am personally tracking ARRL, CQCQ and HAMR.With the demographic of twitter, I might eat my words from a previous post. Hopefully some are Makers and we can do something good to draw attention at the Maker Faire in San Mateo in

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-30232433845677794112008-05-21T23:46:00.000-07:002008-05-21T23:48:59.245-07:00

I am KI6QNZ. I am tuned to Palo Alto,ca repeater N6NFI 145.230 most of the time. Sometimes 442.900 in San Jose.

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-51007598947182817792008-05-18T14:26:00.000-07:002008-05-18T15:06:43.629-07:00

It seems people are leaving amateur radio and this world faster than they are entering this hobby. I bought the May and June 2008 copy of QST, the main magazine for the American Radio Relay League, has a page called silent keys. It is the list of ARRL member who have died in the last month. The 2 month sample shows about 200 per month are leaving us. This matches what saw at the Ham Radio

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-31304458098727039252008-05-18T14:14:00.000-07:002008-05-18T21:08:05.030-07:00

I passed my Technician exam. 35 out of 35. I should have my call sign between Wednesday and Friday this week.One thing I've found is that being in my office, the small rubber duck antennae does not work. So the guys recommended a mobile magnetic mount antennae. I get both 2DB gain at 2M, and I can place it on the balcony rail.They did not sell a bracket to mount it. Since I live in a condo,

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-18461774594452939932008-05-13T23:13:00.000-07:002008-05-13T23:39:11.692-07:00

While I was at the maker faire, the ARRL guys convinced me that I should get an amateur radio license. When an emergency hits, it will be working. Cell service is taken down and used for emergency use only. Land line can be knocked out for a few days. But amateur radio will be available. I looked into it and found it was a simple read a book and pass a 35 question multiple choice test. I'll

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-28205430628035453152008-05-02T21:50:00.001-07:002008-05-02T22:04:46.870-07:00

Today was my last day at Webroot. I have 2 weeks to relax and get ready for the next job. This week I'll be bopping around. Makers Faire this weekend. I hope they have free WiFi. otherwise, I'll be using Jott to post updates on Twitter, http://twitter.com/mpechner, and I'll be posting pictures on flickr.Then Monday Geek out some more at Community One. I'm supposed to get to go to "the"

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-52424996418509218412008-05-02T21:50:00.000-07:002008-05-02T21:50:18.266-07:00

Small tip. Many times, you don't just execute a command. You build a command line. Always set that to a variable. Mostly so that you can print it, or examine it in the debugger before you run the command.When running a command, you have 4 ways of doing it.Using open(), backticks, system() and fork/exec. Truthfully, I have never tested the mechanisms for performance. So I do not know if one is

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-18046362668152025782008-04-17T22:40:00.000-07:002008-04-17T20:00:52.327-07:00

I worked with a guy named Dean back in 89-91 at Dupont that taught me a really simple trick. Most people use the variable names i, y or j for simple counters ( damn Fortran). I don't know about emacs, but in vi, a search for 'i' is painful. But searching for "ii" is much less painful.My counters are now always 2 letters for this reason.So if you are going to use simple non-descriptive

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-64931526281248424982008-04-16T20:53:00.000-07:002008-04-16T20:58:16.926-07:00

I carry the small cahier in my back pocket all times. It is great for quick notes. Ok, mostly honey do lists.I found one trick to it surviving a few months in my back pocket. Take a piece of heavy packing tape reinforce the binding with it.Because of my use, I wish the last pages where not perforated. I keep 1-2 index cards in the pocket for that.This was a quick one.

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23034540.post-52306109339312331052008-04-13T22:49:00.000-07:002008-04-13T23:07:06.710-07:00

I tend to write many Perl utilities. Some are just a few hundred lines. But the user needs to know how to use it. As is usual, written documentation is not well maintained and rarely read. But if the default behavior of a application is to print a small man page when there is an invalid parameter, then you have useful and used documentation.I make this a feature of everything I expect to be

Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06846269898790010412noreply@blogger.com0