GRONK
Radio Network©®™Why
are we private?
The UHF community of Southern California in particular has evolved over many years as primarily a den of various private single-site or multi-site radio systems. Hence, this is in part a 'cultural phenomenon' of the area. There are reasons why this developed. Some of them extend to simple matters of FCC Rules. Repeater owners have the discretion to limit the use of a repeater to a private group of individuals. Auxiliary Station owners have no such choice. They must regulate the use of their stations to specifically authorized individuals per FCC rules. Anyone interested in reading the legalese should consult the FCC rulebook. The GRONK Radio Network consists of Remotely Controlled Base Stations, or 'Remote Bases'. These stations are not "repeaters", rather they are auxiliary stations. While they are capable of Mobile Relay operation, this is but one function of the station. This is much different than a typical single repeater or small linkage of 2-meter repeaters. So, not only are there legal concerns, lying beyond these are two major reasons why most larger and sophisticated UHF networks are private:
We put a lot of time, effort and money(!) into building and maintaining these radios. Most of us can't afford to support one without financial help. It is common to establish clubs or informal organizations and collect dues to finance operations. In the case of GRONK, it is a "benevolent dictatorship" owned and operated by a single individual. Dues are collected to finance site rental costs and site upkeep. Limiting network access to members provides an incentive for interested individuals to join the organization and help support it. We also like to know the folks using our radios. A radio system is somewhat like an extension of one's home, and therefore its inhabitants an extension of family. Not something to be taken lightly.
Nearly all of these networks (UHF and otherwise) require the use of function codes to activate links, use the autopatch, and operate remote bases. Improper use of the codes can put equipment into configurations that may cause harmful interference or result in illegal operation. Members of these groups are considered full 'control operators', which carries both responsibility within the group and legal responsibility as an amateur licensee. Such groups require their members to learn proper operating procedures and responsible equipment operation. Permitting unsupervised use of such systems would require constant monitoring by the owners, which of course is not practical - nor legal.
Years ago, access to these systems were "controlled" by requiring PL tones to activate mobile inputs. The frequencies and tones were closely guarded secrets in the era of crystal-controlled radios & one to four PLs per radio. Some groups even took crystals & channel elements from members' radios and filed off the frequency markings to prevent them from being known. Most handheld radios could only generate a handful of tones and were difficult to change, i.e. DIP switches or frequency-resonant reeds. The result was a fairly effective control mechanism. Fastforwarding to the present, every radio available now supports PL. Some also support its sister technology DPL (Digital Private Line). Mere seconds to a few minutes are required to determine the PL tone for any repeater these days. It's a very different world.
The UHF community of Southern California in particular has evolved over many years as primarily a den of various private single-site or multi-site radio systems. Hence, this is in part a 'cultural phenomenon' of the area. There are reasons why this developed. Some of them extend to simple matters of FCC Rules. Repeater owners have the discretion to limit the use of a repeater to a private group of individuals. Auxiliary Station owners have no such choice. They must regulate the use of their stations to specifically authorized individuals per FCC rules. Anyone interested in reading the legalese should consult the FCC rulebook. The GRONK Radio Network consists of Remotely Controlled Base Stations, or 'Remote Bases'. These stations are not "repeaters", rather they are auxiliary stations. While they are capable of Mobile Relay operation, this is but one function of the station. This is much different than a typical single repeater or small linkage of 2-meter repeaters. So, not only are there legal concerns, lying beyond these are two major reasons why most larger and sophisticated UHF networks are private:
We put a lot of time, effort and money(!) into building and maintaining these radios. Most of us can't afford to support one without financial help. It is common to establish clubs or informal organizations and collect dues to finance operations. In the case of GRONK, it is a "benevolent dictatorship" owned and operated by a single individual. Dues are collected to finance site rental costs and site upkeep. Limiting network access to members provides an incentive for interested individuals to join the organization and help support it. We also like to know the folks using our radios. A radio system is somewhat like an extension of one's home, and therefore its inhabitants an extension of family. Not something to be taken lightly.
Nearly all of these networks (UHF and otherwise) require the use of function codes to activate links, use the autopatch, and operate remote bases. Improper use of the codes can put equipment into configurations that may cause harmful interference or result in illegal operation. Members of these groups are considered full 'control operators', which carries both responsibility within the group and legal responsibility as an amateur licensee. Such groups require their members to learn proper operating procedures and responsible equipment operation. Permitting unsupervised use of such systems would require constant monitoring by the owners, which of course is not practical - nor legal.
Years ago, access to these systems were "controlled" by requiring PL tones to activate mobile inputs. The frequencies and tones were closely guarded secrets in the era of crystal-controlled radios & one to four PLs per radio. Some groups even took crystals & channel elements from members' radios and filed off the frequency markings to prevent them from being known. Most handheld radios could only generate a handful of tones and were difficult to change, i.e. DIP switches or frequency-resonant reeds. The result was a fairly effective control mechanism. Fastforwarding to the present, every radio available now supports PL. Some also support its sister technology DPL (Digital Private Line). Mere seconds to a few minutes are required to determine the PL tone for any repeater these days. It's a very different world.
Last edit: KGB - 01/16/2006
@ 0556H Pac
Copyright 2005-2006 ©
Matt Lechliter W6KGB. All Rights Reserved.