The Brass Pounders Quarterly

Volume II Issue 3
Copyright 2008 by The ARRL National Traffic System

Contents

Editor's corner
NTS news briefs

General articles: Improving the listenability of your phone station: acoustic shaping
NTS Training: op notes: When Where and How
NTS outreach: The message fair, new tricks for old dogs
How to submit an article
Where to get BPQ

This electronic newsletter is free to all who may wish to receive it. You may upload it to bulletin board systems; ftp sites etc. so long as no fees are charged for access to it. Individual articles retain the copyright of the author.

Editor's Corner

Ain't dead yet!

I put fingers to keyboard composing this on August 29, the 3rd anniversary of the landfall of Hurricane Katrina on the gulf coast.  This day holds some special significance for me.  I was there.

I wasn't there as a resident who refused to evacuate for no reason.  I was there as I'd volunteered to move a little closer to the affected area. I was a volunteer communicator, along with my XYL, at University Hospital New Orleans.  Many of you already know this.

Yesterday morning with my first cup of coffee I was reading the recently released ARRL club news letter.  Many of the points it makes are valid.  Indeed the internet has done some wonderful things for amateur radio.  However, there's a statement the author makes therein which provides some evidence of misunderstanding and I will address them here.  Originally I'd intended to publish an editorial on testing the reliability and accuracy of NTS, as had been attempted a few years ago.  After reading the publication referenced above I thought that the originally scheduled editorial could wait, as this issue is important to most regular traffic handlers I know.

In this most recent ARRL club news the author states:

"Being able to transmit digital information via radio and then inject it into the internet electronic mail system has allowed radio amateurs to move messages much faster than was possible using the antiquated relay system."

On the surface this would appear to be true. I recall when working at that hospital looking into the possibilities of such "digital transfers" of messages.

It was suggested we look at TelPack, in other words, utilizing the internet directly.  NOT an option.  If the internet is down, TelPack would have done us no good whatsoever.

VHF Winlink access: Again, a nonstarter.  The closest VHF Winlink node would have been a good 50-70 miles distant from New Orleans.  If the band opens we're in good shape.

HF would have required an expensive pactor III capable TNC.  Yes we could have spent some grant money for one, but chose to spend it elsewhere. Not my decision to make.

However, there are other problems I have with the writer's assertion.

For many purposes, such as transferring lists of needed supplies, persons at a shelter, etc. Winlink and other similar tools are the right tool.  However, there are times when a short tactical message won't get it, and sending an email in the blind won't either.

There were times at that hospital after Katrina when I needed to arrange for a MedEvac by helicopter or other means for a patient whose condition had taken a turn for the worse, or could not be served by our institution with what we had available.  During those times, it was very helpful to send that formal radiogram to an actual human operator on the other end, and to know that he would either deliver it or move it onward rapidly. Sending an email that might not be read for a few hours wasn't going to make the grade here at all.  Lives were at stake.  There are many reasons that I might wish to send a formal radiogram instead of an email.  For the perpetual internet pushers let me list a few of them.

That radiogram I send has a built in "audit trail" which can facilitate the achievement of actual communication.  A station unable to find a relay within a reasonable period of time can send a radiogram back to me alerting me to problems.  If I requested notification of delivery that can be easily accomplished as well.  The message number is easily referenced by the originating station, and any intervening relays. this allows one to quickly ascertain which message is being referenced.  That cryptic bounce message I might get from an internet host isn't going to provide me this information as quickly.

Then there's the matter of knowing the proper email address.  An NTS leader within central area complained that he was aware of no NTS operations in support of comms for Hurricane Gustav. I know he was notified, I sent him at least two messages regarding planned NTS activities.  One bounced.  Did I have the wrong email address in my notification list?  Maybe, I don't know. The other did not bounce however.  Some folks seem to change email addresses as often as others change clothes. I maintain some automated lists for such things as notification of NTS officials and regular participants to make the task of getting the word out and calling up the troops easier.  There's a good possibility that this certain list did not get updated.  The person I'm referencing is on at least three of those automated lists here. One for net reports, another for distribution of this newsletter, and the "call out the troops" list.  Did I miss one?  Quite possibly.

Then there's the matter of knowing, or not knowing a valid email address.  People change jobs and careers. If I'm responding to a communications agency in an emergency or disaster I might need to make contact with a person such as a supply officer or other such person. Then it's the title and job duties that are as important as the name of the person.  If Frank Jones was the contact person in this position last I know, but Mr. Jones has moved on and now Pete Smith is the person I should be contacting I might, or might not be aware.  If I've got an email address for Mr. Jones and send it I've just sent a message to digital limbo. Even if I get the cryptic bounce message from an internet host that doesn't help me to know that I should be addressing Pete Smith now.

Contrast this with the radiogram.  A courier can deliver the message in person if the recipient can't be reached by phone.  In our above example the delivering operator delivers it to the appropriate agency where it eventually filters through to Mr. Smith, as Mr. Jones is no longer employed there.  Mr. Smith responds to my request for supplies and in so doing alerts me that Pete Smith is now the appropriate person, not Frank Jones.

This is why, when the stuff hits the fan, I'm more inclined to send a radiogram, at least initially. I can utilize the radiogram to verify proper email addresses, etc. Then I can ship that long document with lots of information to the proper party, at the correct email address.

There are going to be times in our emergency and disaster communications work when the skills taught and fostered by this "antiquated system of relays" are going to be sorely needed.  Anyone who is truly interested in serving their country and community as an emcomm volunteer should learn and practice these skills on this so-called "antiquated system of relay stations" also known as NTS.

Yes the modern tools we have at our disposal are handy, and quite useful.  However, we cannot afford to cast aside tried and true methods if we really hold ourselves out to the public and the response agencies as being ready and able to serve them. If we do, we short change them in the long run.

Other facets of our life show ample evidence of casting away tried and true skills and techniques.  Getting qualified people to repair electronic equipment is nearly a thing of the past in this throw away world. Finding a local machine shop to fabricate a single part is nigh on impossible. Our landfills are full of otherwise useful tools and electronic devices because we lack the skilled people to restore them to operational condition. As emergency communications volunteers we cannot afford to allow useful skills to atrophy due to neglect.  After all, we hold ourselves out as providing "communications solutions" to the served agencies and the public. There are going to be times when the appropriate communications solution is the tried and true "antiquated system of relays" using voice and cw.

There are still dedicated NTS operators willing to facilitate the training of newcomers in this still vital set of skills and techniques. Chances are pretty good that you're one of them, or you wouldn't be reading this. Help spread the word and pass the torch to the next generation of ham radio operators. As the quotation above shows, education is much needed.  When members of our national association suffer from such misconceptions we have ample evidence that we have a lot of work to do.

Hurricane Gustav Operations

National Traffic system circuits geared up for Gustav beginning a health & welfare net for outbound traffic on 7280 kHz, the regular frequency of 5th region daytime at noon central time on Monday September 1.   Operation continued on 7280 daytime, 3850 nights until Wednesday morning.  Some unaffiliated networks also extended operational hours to handle the extra load.

Although much of this was handled directly by cell phone traffic handlers were available to provide this service to evacuees and those who chose not to leave their homes.  The tactical operations net utilized 3873 kHz exclusively during this operation as it provided best coverage whereas 40 meter paths were quite long.  This writer heard plenty of traffic which required formal radiograms.

Lanny Pritchard, K5WLP, who is a fairly new ham got his baptism by fire as acting net manager and did an excellent job keeping the circuit manned with high quality net control stations.

Coming next issue:
Your friendly editor takes the position that reliable methods of testing the effectiveness of the system need to be developed, and such testing performed occasionally to address operator training and quality control issues.  Also, a review of the continued relevance of the radiogram in our training section.  Although this won't be telling you anything you didn't already know, it may be helpful for you when designing training for local ARES groups, etcetera.

Your editor is still hoping one of the pactor and/or digital gurus will work up a good overview of NTSD for the newcomer.

Your submissions are always welcomed and appreciated.  See the submission guidelines later in this issue.
 

Improving the listenability of your phone station: acoustic shaping

A big part of what we do in our shacks is listening.  Some acoustic treatment can benefit just about anyone who enjoys amateur radio.  The DXer, contester, or serious cw op will find he or she can listen longer without ear fatigue and doesn't have to resort to grabbing the headphones as often.  For the public service phone operator who chooses the desk microphone there are even more benefits. Cleaner, clearer transmitted audio.  Acoustic treatment cuts down on unwanted room reflections which has benefits both for transmitting and receiving.

Plan your shack so that cooling fans aren't easily picked up by the microphone.  Small homebrew baffles will still allow airflow around your electronics but diminish the sound emanating from the fans.  Consider how your car's muffler works. The exhaust comes from the manifold into the muffler where it is directed through a circuitous path in and around baffles which dissipate it before finally exiting the tailpipe.  The gases travel through fine but the sound is greatly reduced.  Gear with fans can be positioned so that the airflow is still adequate but the fan's sound isn't directly projected into your microphone or reflected back at it by nearby surfaces such as walls.

The main problem with working a mike from a distance is room acoustics.  Even if you don't have extraneous fan noises or a family in the house many small rooms don't have pleasant audio characteristics.  If your shack is like mine you're relegated to one of the smaller bedrooms or a corner of the basement.  If you've ever seen commercial radio production facilities you'll notice that small booths for isolation of on mike talent are usually quite dead acoustically.  Small rooms accentuate frequencies which don't help audio quality, especially on SSB.  What happens is your voice hits the microphone directly as well as from reflection. The wall in front of you bounces the sound off the wall behind you and into the microphone. Your operating table is also a reflector of sound waves.  We call this multipath on VHF and UHF.  In audio this is known as comb filtering.  Small rooms often suffer from little flutter echoes which the microphone picks up.

How to solve the room problem:  Break that sound up! Bookcases and boxes of gear help.  Draperies and tapestries also soak up high frequency bounce. Carpeting on the floor can be helpful as well.  Once you soak up high frequencies you may create other problems but these shouldn't be of great concern to the average ham and the job he expects his station to do.  Try a bookcase behind you filled with your ham radio literature and texts you wish to have handy to your operating position.  Irregular surfaces where sound is likely to bounce works best.  Visualize how a rubber ball would bounce from your operating position if tossed in front of you.  Make these surfaces irregular with a bookcase full of books, When your small rubber ball would strike this surface its bounce couldn't be as accurately predicted.  The same holds true for sound waves.  A pegboard with regularly used items hung from it, egg cartons or just about anything else you can find will accomplish this as well.  Consider all the surfaces in your shack---the floor, ceiling and all walls.  Don't forget your operating bench or table.  Some short pile indoor/outdoor carpeting on your bench might help. The carpeting also helps keep small parts where you put them as they don't roll or bounce as easily.

To keep the mixing console from reflecting sound back at the audio engineer in an undesirable fashion many set it at an angle, or low enough that sound from the monitor speakers won't bounce off it into the mixer's ears.  A nonreflective surface on your operating bench will serve the same purpose for your desk microphone.  On the same principle, a cork bulletin board will help soak up sound and is a handy place to mount QSL cards and other awards you wish to display.  Some old carpet pieces hung on the walls can help as well.  Remember to visualize the bouncing rubber ball. Carefully study the surface in front of you when you're seated at your operating position.  Is it a solid smooth surface? Break it up, make it irregular. Your small room can often sound boxy, and these little flutter echoes can be quite problematic. The treatments I've listed above will help tame that flutter echo.

The major problem you find with these treatments for small rooms is their attenuation of higher frequencies. Most folks doing home studios discover this the hard way when they treat a room and find they still have an annoying bass rumble but no top. Other diffusion techniques and tube traps can work for bass frequencies, but for ham radio purposes you shouldn't have to treat at the level most home recordists need.  Just a little can go a long way in helping you get clearer audio to your microphone.  A side benefit is the improvement in receive audio you'll realize from treating your shack's acoustics. Unless you use headphones your receiver audio is subject to the same problems as your transmitted signal.  A little acoustic treatment can improve the listenability of your radio equipment manifold.  You'll need less volume which helps combat ear fatigue on long operating sessions.  If you're a DXer or contester consider some room treatment just for the added benefits you'll realize on receive.  Sure headphones work, but they can be tiring during long sessions.  For the CW op a little acoustic treatment might be helpful as well. One year I was working the late night field day station for my local radio club.  I recall working a station from Idaho.  The lady operating the station had a big boomy echo behind her.  I asked her about it as I found her rough to copy.  She explained that they'd borrowed a semi trailer to use as the shack for their field day operations.  Forty foot trailers are handy things for hauling cargo, but devoid of a load they're big empty boomy boxes.  On the other hand, our station got high marks for good audio from numerous stations that year.  We were using a small camping trailer.  There were still potential problems in the camper trailer.  The trailer was provided with a window air conditioner which was also running off our generator.  I found it preferable if the mosquitoes weren't a big problem and the night was reasonably cool to turn off the air conditioner and crack the door open.  Otherwise I found headphones were the rule for copying stations among the piles of folks working field day.

Still during the heat of the day I heard numerous comments about our station's good clean clear audio.  The air conditioner was positioned (quite by accident I might add) so that it wasn't blowing directly into the microphone.  It hindered my ability to hear more than it hindered the intelligibility of our transmitted signal.

If you're a new ham setting up your shack, now's the time to ponder these issues and take them into account when designing your shack.  It's easier to treat the acoustics of your operating space now before you fill it with gear and develop an operating pattern which you'll have to change later.  If public service is your bag, be sure to plan your shack so that you can read from written copy and still address the microphone properly.  It will save you eye and neck strain after a long operating session.

For more information on room acoustics find a copy of H. Alton Everest's Master Handbook of Acoustics and be prepared for a lot of theory discussions and equations.  Even the users of headsets or other close microphones will find that a little room treatment might help their listening environment.

OpNotes: When Where and How

So far we've confined our training modules in BPQ to parts of the message preamble that are not well understood.  Since the remainder of the radiogram is self explanatory we'll proceed now to the next most commonly misunderstood part of a message, and the only part of a radiogram which is truly optional. these are operator's notes. These are called opnotes.

When are opnotes a good idea?  When you wish to convey additional information to stations to whom you will be sending the message an opnote allows you to include this information without modifying the original, a definite faux pas. so, with that in mind let's have a look at where they should go.

An operator's note regarding addressing and contact information should go right after the addressee information and before the text. Such an opnote might advise operators on down the chain of custody that you believe the address or phone number of addressee to be erroneous and provide what you believe to be the correct information.  The text of the opnote is not included in the group count of the message, of course, as it was possibly appended by other than the originator of the message.  It's also a good idea to provide your call sign with an operator's note.

Other operator's notes that you might wish to append to a message in transit would be placed after the signature block.  An example of this sort of operator's note might be appended to a message addressed to my wife.  Since she has no listed telephone or contact information than her P.O. Box address as shown in the licensing database an operator might note the lack of a phone number.  However, an operator somewhere along the chain of custody might wish to append an operator's note advising a station attempting to effect delivery that her husband NF5B can often be found on vhf/uhf repeaters in the Memphis TN area, or that he is active on NTS nets.

The operator's note in the example in the previous paragraph would be appended after the signature.  This probably brings you to asking why this is so.  The operator who might wish to append such an opnote doesn't wish to correct possibly erroneous information,  He just wants to assist stations who might be trying to deliver this message by helping them to find an outlet for it where otherwise none might appear to exist.

You might think that such an operator's note as described above should go after the addressee block in the preamble.  This could be considered a gray area.  I would place it at the end of the message as it isn't really addressing contact information directly, just suggesting an outlet for the message.  A traffic handler I know of sends messages to family and places an opnote after the signature indicating that leaving the text of the message on the recipient's answering machine or voice mail is acceptable to him.  As we all know, most often such methods of delivery are not considered acceptable.

So then, to recap, the operator's note allows you to convey additional information along with a message which could otherwise not be transferred reliably.  Once you append an opnote to a message it travels the rest of the way through the chain of custody with that message.  Chances are good it won't be conveyed to the recipient, but it could be of value to those handling the message in transit.


The message fair, new tricks for old dogs
By Richard Webb, NF5B

Manager: Central area net cycle two

This article originally appeared in Volume I issue 1.  Since Christmas is a good time for this activity and the next issue won't be out until after the Holidays are winding down I thought it might be worthwhile to reproduce it here, especially in light of my editorial comments.

An additional note: Many HF nets offer the youngsters an opportunity to talk directly with Santa Claus.  Pick one and combine it with a message fair, or have a local ham play Santa for the little ones on vhf or uhf and take it from there.

In days of old when ham radio was demonstrated at a booth for a fair or trade show the "send a free radiogram" booth was a staple of these demonstrations and displays.

These days with cheap or free long distance calling and the ubiquitous cellular phone a lot of people probably won't show much interest.  At least, on the surface that's how it looks. Yet you'll catch plenty of interest if you follow some of these guidelines and your display will definitely be memorable.

First: Push the emergency communications angle.  Set your display up as you might a type two arct. or emergency field station if you're not familiar with the term.

Now before we even get started, forget the laptop computer and the winlink modem for the public display part. Here's why:

If you don't, folks might have doubts that their messages are really going over radio at all, and think this is just a gimmick.  You're going to let them see, if possible, and hear their messages being transmitted via radio.

Set your display up so that a counter person takes their message.  If working a fair or other event some canned text about the event is a good starter.  Messages of course should be brief, a total of 25 words or less including your canned text.  The counter person should get first and last name of recipient, address including zip code and telephone number. We'll get back to the counterperson's duties in a moment.

If you can set your display up so as to have a glass partition between the counter person and the radio operator that will be sending your message (using voice or cw only from the display) set your operator up on the other side of this partition where the outside noises will be minimized as much as possible. This will keep the transmitted noise down and make it easier for the receiving station that will relay the message(s) on the first leg of their journey.

Your radio op at the display site should be using headphones in either case. If he's isolated from the onlookers behind a partition so much the better.

Isolation not possible? Here's a new wrinkle. Bring out your local ham with a fast scan amateur TV setup. Have him set up the receiver in the public area near the counter person. set up the transmit end of the link in your emergency communications van or at a nearby site.  Use this site for your sending station.  Now equip your booth with a good receiver to listen to your sending operator's transmitted audio, and possibly the audio of the receiving station as well.  This lets the viewers hear their messages transmitted on the first leg of their trip.

A couple of runners can be employed to run messages to your actual operator's position in that communications van trailer or back room.  In fact having a few runners available can help you have
adequate people to talk to that interested party who comes by the booth and maybe recruit a new ham or educate that emergency services person.  If these runners are also licensed operators they can take their turn at the sending position and get some practice too.

If you employ an amateur fast scan TV link in your demo be sure to tell the public about it.  Provide good signage that tells the folks passing by what's happening at your display.  Then have your counter person ready with plenty of message forms.

The ARL numbered radiograms are perfect for these setups.  Let's say for our example you're working the Podunk county fair. You can use the venerable ARL fifty one in your text.  This is three words which translate as:

"Greetings by amateur radio. This message is sent as a free public service by ham radio operators here at the Podunk county fair. Am having a wonderful time."

Now John Q. public comes to your booth and wants to say happy birthday to his aunt.  Your text can easily add an ARL forty six and have a nice compact message that says a whole lot to his aunt in just a few words.   Make sure your radio operators counter minders and others know how to use these or have a quick reference available.

Now we've talked about how to provide some new wrinkles to that venerable old message fair.  So the question comes up where to target for these displays.  Of course your county or state fair's a good place.  The local shopping mall during holiday season's a nice one as well.  However think about a few nonstandard places such as the gun and outdoor sports shows; conventions; local festivals etcetera.

You'll have a lot of fun, get the word to the public and provide some great training for your local ARES/RACES volunteers. Look for an opportunity and give it a try!


How to submit an article

Send a file attach of a straight ASCII file to the editor at elspider@bellsouth.net for inclusion.

Brief items for our news section should be sent as a regular plain text email.

Again, attachments of plain ASCII files preferred.  If using MS Word choose the save-as option to save as plain text, possibly called dos text.  Check your favorite word processor's documentation on creating ASCII files.

No graphics files, pdf, etcetera please!  This electronic newsletter is intended to be machine readable.  This newsletter may be distributed on packet and other radio systems where system operators and relay stations wish to closely monitor content of transmissions. It is intended to be platform independent which is not possible with graphical file formats.  Even the operator with the old commodore or Apple II should be able to read this newsletter, or the fellow using the old dumb terminal.  Text to speech systems, etcetera, should have no problems reading this newsletter.

If possible use a file extension of .art for your article.  If it fits one of these categories use the category name as the file name.  Regular categories for which we seek articles are as follows:

General : articles of general interest to traffic handlers.  Use a file name of general.art

Training : articles regarding training hints and tips.  As above, use training.art if possible.

Outreach : articles on ways to reach out to the public and promote NTS and amateur radio message handling capabilities.  As with the above examples, outreach.art.

Using these naming conventions allows your editor to automatically process your article.

Type the title twice, the first time at left margin preceded by a * character.  The second time centered as you'd like it to appear.  The line with the * will be used to automatically build a table of contents and the asterisk removed. Your article will then appear with title centered.

Immediately below the centered title please place your name and call sign so that folks will know who authored the article.  If you have an email address please provide it as well. Though often these can be looked up the information provided in call sign databases is often incorrect.  If you are a net manager or hold an ARRL field organization position please provide this information as well.

If possible keep line lengths to 70 characters or fewer.  Again remember that we are attempting to be platform independent.  Many of our readers will wish to view this on their screens instead of printing it out.

If you cannot save your article as plain text paste the text into an email and send it.  Your editor will do his best to format it properly for display on most computer systems.  If you do this state in the subject line that text enclosed in email is an article for BPQ.

Although you retain the copyright on your work, submission of any articles implies permission to publish them in BPQ and distribute said work electronically without remuneration to you or BPQ.  No fee may be charged to receive BPQ.


Where to get BPQ

http://home.earthlink.net/~bscottmd/bqp.htm
http://home.wx4j.com
http://home.mindspring.com/~1_qnc/w4zjy/

Many fine internet connected bulletin boards also carry BPQ in the hamnews file area as a zip file using the same naming conventions as the text files within them.  These files are distributed by the ham-fdn and the International Filegate Project. Visit www.filegate.net/

FidoNet: Many fine bulletin board systems available via telnet www and dial-up can link to the ham-fdn described above.  If you don't see it on your favorite fido board ask the sysop to link to the hamnews area through his/her regular files link.

The headquarters of the ham-fdn can be accessed as follows:

Waldo's place USA. modem 12am-6pm EST. (919) 774-5930
telnet://bbs.wpusa.dynip.com
http://www.wpusa.dynip.com/
ftp://ftp.wpusa.dynip.com


RADIO RESCUE NET OPERATIONS BBS
Modem only 0600-1200 UTC 28.8 kbps n81 (901) 465-9921

If you are the system operator of a BBS (either landline or radio) and cannot get BPQ through your regular links it can be sent you via email as either regular email or a file attach.  Send an email to bpq.distro@116-901.ftn.wpusa.dynip.com

Provide your email address in the text and tell us how you'd like to receive BPQ. Also tell us what kind of BBS system you operate, its frequencies of operation if a packet board or its dial-up/telnet info etc. Also, please give us your callsign.

We wish to keep the email distribution list fairly small, so look to your favorite internet dial-up or packet connections first if at all possible.

Thanks for reading and 73,
Richard Webb, NF5B


Send correspondence to the editor via email using the following email address:  elspider@bellsouth.net OR using plaintext only to:  bpq.editor@116-901.ftn.wpusa.dynip.com

All file attached article submissions should be sent to the bellsouth address . See the earlier section on how to submit an article.

Place BPQ feedback or similar text in the subject line so that it receives proper attention from the editor.

Reproduction of articles in club newsletters is permitted so long as BPQ and the original author are credited.

For more information contact the editor.

BRASS POUNDERS' QUARTERLY

Published by traffic handlers for traffic handlers

Copyright ARRL National Traffic System, electronic distribution encouraged.
 

 Last modified:  November 13, 2009 09:07 PM