Chasing States

Sometimes, I just need a reason to get on the air. Specific operating goals can help with this, whatever form they take, including operating awards. One of the first awards I earned many years ago was Worked All States (WAS). The mixed WAS is not that difficult because you can use any of the HF … Read more

Erroneous Prepper Frequency Lists

Many “emergency frequency lists” showing up on the internet are a hodgepodge of frequencies scraped from various sources and assembled into what looks like a credible list. Most of these frequencies are not authorized for use by the general public. Some of these frequencies are useful, but too many are misleading and perhaps even dangerous. … Read more

The Future of Emcomm

Here comes Starlink! I’ve been reading a number of reports from the areas affected by the two major hurricanes (Helene and Milton). The North Carolina experience is particularly interesting because people have experienced the loss of communication and electrical service for several weeks. I can imagine this same thing happening in other parts of the … Read more

Should I Submit A Log?

Recently, I’ve been getting questions about whether a ham needs to log radio contacts, whether they need to submit a log, and how to do it. Logging is a complex topic that can require a long and detailed explanation, but I am going to focus on the questions I’ve been hearing lately. I’ll also provide … Read more

SOTA Signal Reports Using 2m FM

Everyone wants to know how their signal sounds on the air and often the best way to find out is a signal report from other ham radio operators. The standard signal reporting method for amateur radio is the RST (Readability-Signal Strength-Tone) system. See Practical Signal Reports on HamRadioSchool.com. When using 2m FM on Summits On … Read more