Rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently Asked Questions

Part 2 - Amateur Radio Organizations, Services, and Information Sources

------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Questions discussed in Part 2: (dates indicate last modification)

**  Where can I find Ham Radio information with a computer? (11/92)

    * The rec.radio.* newsgroups (2/94)

    * The ARRL e-mail server (1/93)

    * The KA6ETB e-mail "HAM-server" (2/94)

    * The Internet File Transfer Protocol (FTP) (2/94)

    * Access to FTP archives via electronic mail (1/93)

    * World-Wide Web, WAIS, and Gopher (2/94)

    * The Ham-Radio mail list: rec.radio.amateur.misc by mail (9/93)

    * Telephone BBS's with Ham-related information (9/93)

    * Callsign servers and geographical name servers (1/94)

    * FTP access to FCC Part 97 and FCC Amateur Radio question pools (1/94)

    * Lists of radio modifications and extensions (2/94)

**  Can I send ARRL or W5YI electronic mail? (11/92)

**  "Why doesn't the ARRL do...?" (11/92)

**  What magazines are available for Ham Radio? (pre-4/92)

**  How do I use the incoming and outgoing QSL bureau? (11/92)

**  Are there any news groups for CAP? (11/92)

**  What's the name of the QRP club that issues QRP numbers? (9/93)

**  How do I become a 10-10 member? (9/93)

**  How do I join MARS? (9/93)

**  How do I join RACES? (pre-4/92)

**  What organizations are available to help handicapped hams? (pre-4/92)

**  I am looking for a specific ham, can anyone help me find him? (6/93)

**  Can I post my neat new ham related program on rec.radio.amateur.misc?

    (pre-4/92)

**  Where can I get ham radio software for my computer? (9/93)

**  Are there Dialup News services or BBSs for Amateur Radio? (4/92)

**  Where can I find VE sessions in my local area? (9/93)

**  Why isn't XXX available electronically? (1/94)

**  I'd like to volunteer to help ham radio through electronic

    information services like those mentioned in this FAQ list.

    Where should I start? (2/94)



--Rec.radio.amateur.misc Frequently-asked Questions------------------Part 2--



**  Where can I find Ham Radio information with a computer?

	This question has many answers spanning several electronic media

	including UseNet, electronic mail, the Internet, dialup bulletin board

	systems (BBS) and others.  Various electronic information sources are

	summarized under the subheadings that follow.



	All electronic mail addresses listed are in Internet format.  If your

	site is not connected to the Internet and does not support Internet-

	style mail addresses, you will need to contact either your system

	administrators or a local "guru" to find out how or if you can send

	mail to the sites listed.  Ask them, "how can I get mail to the

	Internet?" and show them the address you're interested in.



    * The rec.radio.* newsgroups

	The primary distribution mechanism for this FAQ is UseNet.  There

	are several newsgroups dealing with Amateur Radio and other aspects

	of radio.  The full list is as follows:



	rec.radio.amateur.misc (*)     Ham Radio - misc/general topics

	rec.radio.amateur.antenna      Ham Radio - antenna construction/theory

	rec.radio.amateur.equipment    Ham Radio - manufactured equipment/mods

	rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc Ham Radio - digital radio modes: packet/

				AMTOR/RTTY/etc (formerly r.r.a.packet)

	rec.radio.amateur.homebrew     Ham Radio - radio experimentation, kits

	rec.radio.amateur.policy       Ham Radio - policy & regulation

	rec.radio.amateur.space        Ham Radio - satellites, EME, shuttle/MIR

	rec.radio.broadcasting         public broadcast radio

	rec.radio.cb                   Citizens' Band Radio

	rec.radio.info (*)             periodic info from all rec.radio groups

	rec.radio.noncomm              misc non-commercial radio topics

	rec.radio.shortwave            Shortwave Radio

	rec.radio.scanner              Utility Radio above 30Mhz

	rec.radio.swap                 radio equipment wanted and for sale



	Country- or region-specific newsgroups include the following:

	aus.radio                      Australia (misc radio topics)

	aus.radio.amsat                Australia (amateur satellites)

	aus.radio.packet               Australia (packet radio)

	de.comm.ham                    Deutschland/Germany

	fj.comm.ham                    Japan

	uk.radio.amateur               United Kingdom

	in.ham-radio                   USA, Indiana

	sbay.hams                      USA, CA, South Bay Area/Silicon Valley

	triangle.radio                 USA, NC, Research Triangle area



	This FAQ is cross-posted to the newsgroups marked with asterisks (*).

	It is also cross-posted to rec.answers (the archive for FAQs in the

	rec.* newsgroups) and to news.answers (UseNet's general repository for

	FAQs.)  These should be the first places to look for new current

	copies of the FAQ.



	Most of the rec.radio newsgroups have their own FAQs as well.



    * The ARRL e-mail server

	ARRL is the American Radio Relay League, representing and promoting

	Amateur Radio in the USA.  They have established an automated file

	server which responds to information requests via electronic mail.

	To use the server, send mail to info@arrl.org with any number of

	one-line commands in your message.  Valid commands are as follows:



	help	sends more detailed instructions about the e-mail server

	index       sends a list of the files currently available

	send file   sends a file (replace "file" with the file's name)

		    several files are referenced by name in parts of this FAQ

	quit	ends command processing - use it if a signature will be

		    appended to your message



	The server program will respond to the commands, each in a separate

	message.  Among many other informative files, a current copy of the

	FAQ (updated monthly) can be obtained from the ARRL e-mail server.

	Other parts of this FAQ refer to specific files on the ARRL server.



    * The KA6ETB e-mail "HAM-server"

	Steve Harding KA6ETB has an e-mail server on his 386 PC at home with

	over 40 megabytes of Ham Radio-related files (at the time of this

	writing.)  You can request any of those files with an e-mail message

	to the HAM-server at ham-server@grafex.sbay.org.  This site

	has a mostly-different selection of files than the ARRL, though some

	overlap is unavoidable.  The HAM-server seems to have more emphasis

	on MS-DOS programs and binary files though there are many plain-text

	articles as well.



	Use these commands to send requests to the KA6ETB HAM-server.

	HELP        instructions and info about the HAM-server

	INDEX       list of files available from the system

	GET <file>  send a file (see the HELP notes for more info on

  	            getting binary files in uuencode or xxencode format)

	NEWFILES <date> list of new files since the given date

	PING        used for testing your path to the HAM-server, it just

	            sends a simple reply so you can look at the path data

	QUIT        makes the HAM-server stop reading the message (so it

		   won't try to read your .signature)



    * The Internet File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

	Sites connected to the Internet can access large amounts of data

	almost anywhere in the world, often at high speeds.  One common way

	to transfer the data you want is FTP.  Some sites offer a service

	called "anonymous FTP" which allows remote users to access a set of

	public files without requiring a password.



	Perry Rovers coordinates a fairly definitive list (formerly

	maintained by Tom Czarnik) of anonymous FTP sites, their IP

	IP numbers, time zones, general contents, and access policies

	which he posts to several newsgroups, including comp.archives,

	comp.sources.wanted and news.answers.  It is itself available

	via anonymous FTP (how about that?? :-) from (among other places)

	rtfm.mit.edu under directory /pub/usenet/news.answers/ftp-list. 



	For specific information about exact locations of files by name, 

	the Archie database server may be of help.  First check if anyone has

	installed the "archie" program on your machine and use it.  Archie may

	also be accessed by telnetting to one of many sites.   The list

	of archie sites is numerous and growing fast.  For a current

	list of sites, telnet to archie.sura.net (login "archie"), then

	please use the one closest to you to conserve network bandwidth.



	For those without telnet capability, the database may be accessed non-

	interactively via mail server.  Send E-mail with the word "help" to 

	archie@host where host is one of the Archie sites above. 



	The above two resources (the FTP list and the Archie server) are 

	extremely powerful tools for finding out "what's out there" at various 

	FTP sites around the world.  *PLEASE* exhaust their capabilities 

	before posting requests to the net. 



	The following is a brief summary of major ham-related FTP sites and

	places where you can obtain a current copy of this FAQ:



	ftp.cs.buffalo.edu

		(submissions to this ftp site should be made to

		bowen@cs.buffalo.edu) - Contains many ham radio files, 

		including the FAQs, Elmer list, SWL and scanner info, Packet

		FAQ, examination opportunities, information on various

		regulations, information on commercial radios (i.e. GE or

		Motorola), SSTV (slow-scan TV), HTs (handheld transceivers).

		Recently, the rec.radio.amateur Working Group (rra-wg,

		see below for more information about their mailing list)

		has started to encourage archivers of radio modification

		instructions to mirror them at this site.  In this way,

		maintainers may come and go but the collection of

		mods will remain continuously available (and undergo 

		constant positive growth).  This FAQ is updated monthly

		here.

	grivel.une.edu.au

		This site contains a mirror of ftp.cs.buffalo.edu's Ham Radio

		archives.  It provides a shorter distance if you're in

		Australia or if Australia is a shorter net.path for you than

		New York.

	nic.funet.fi

		This is one of the largest FTP sites in Europe and maybe the

		most popular.  There are many directories of Ham-related files

		in /pub/ham.  /pub/ham/info contains a mirror of Buffalo.

		Other topics available here include amiga, antenna, HF, packet,

		satellite, scanners, program sources, VHF and others.

		This site is also one of the article archives for the

		rec.radio.info newsgroup.

	ftp.uu.net

		A large FTP site in the USA - UUNET contains sources and

		binaries for many different types of computers.

	wuarchive.wustl.edu

		A "mirror" of the files that were on the now-defunct

		wsmr-simtel20.army.mil FTP site, plus a *LOT* more.

		If you are on a Unix box locally, see if your system

		administrator will "NFS-mount" these files for faster/

		easer access.     

	ucsd.edu

		The "home" site (with the most recent versions for the largest

		number of different computer platforms) of the KA9Q TCP/IP 

		Network Operating System (NOS), other ham-related software, 

		and the archives for the Info-Hams, Packet-Radio, Ham-Policy, 

		Radio-Info and TCP-Group digests. 

	vixen.cso.uiuc.edu

		cd pub/ham-radio - This site contains the HyperCard Hamstacks 

		written by Diana Carlson as well as ASCII readable ham radio 

		question pools. 

	ftp.apple.com

		cd pub/ham-radio - Ham software and information, especially

		Macintosh software

	wolfen.cc.uow.edu.au

	athene.uni-paderborn.de

		ham radio files and software for the Amiga computer system 

	rtfm.mit.edu

		cd pub/usenet/news.answers - all participating FAQs and

		periodic informational postings are archived here, including

		those from the rec.radio.* newsgroups which can be found in

		pub/usenet/news.answers/radio.  Participating FAQs are

		automatically archived here when they are posted on UseNet.

	ftp.amdahl.com

		cd pub/radio/amateur - the most up-to-date copy of the FAQ

		(updated nightly when changes are made)

	world.std.com

		This site contains many ham radio related programs and 

		documents.  It also is the only FTP-able site containing

		up-to-date copies of the files also available via e-mail

		on the ARRL's information server.



	See also the file FTP-INFO on the ARRL e-mail server.



	If you experience difficulty connecting to the above FTP sites, some

	troubleshooting hints are shown below.  The unfortunate situation here

	is that Netnews is far more prevalent than direct Internet hookups,

	accurate name servers, smart mailers and routers, and of course,

	telnet and FTP client services.  What this means is that your trouble

	may be caused by MANY factors.



	Here's some hints to check what's wrong:

	* It may very well be that your newsfeed and email are via dialup line

	  and UUCP (Unix-to-Unix copy) in the wee hours of the morning.  If

	  this is the case, then you have no direct connection to the Internet

	  and thus cannot use real-time interactive services like FTP and

	  telnet.

	* If you are at a college or university, your host (ie, the computer

	  you are logged onto) may be on the Bitnet network, which has an

	  email gateway to the Internet, but no direct connect capability.

	* If you do have a direct connection to the Internet, does your host

	  have telnet and/or FTP client programs?  (ie, if you type "ftp" or

	  "telnet" at your command prompt, do you get anything?)  Many hosts,

	  particularly IBM mainframes not running Unix, do not support these

	  services!

	* Can you telnet to other hosts and get a login prompt?

	  It may very well be that some hosts are "not recognized" due to

	  misconfigured connections and inaccurate host tables/name servers

	  (*.mil computers are *NOTORIOUS* for this!)

	* If you get "host not in host table" or "host unknown" or similar

	  error, try telnetting via the IP number, a set of four 1-3-digit

	  numbers separated by periods (eg, 198.137.220.1).  The exact IP

	  number for the site can be obtained via the nslookup utility, if

	  your computer supports it.  (The FAQ does not print IP addresses any

	  more because they change so often.)  Your system may not recognize

	  the "fully-qualified domain name" (like callsign.cs.buffalo.edu),

	  but it should ALWAYS recognize an IP number if their network is

	  reachable from yours.

	* If you get "network unreachable" check with some more knowledgeable

	  users if your site is actually connected to the Internet.  If it is,

	  a link in the network may be temporarily disconnected for maintenance

	  (or by accident.)

	* In the case of telnetting to a non-default port (as in the case

	  with the callbook servers), if telnet <host> <port#> doesn't work,

	  but you can telnet to the default login port (ie, no qualifiers),

	  then the manner at which the port qualifier is entered may be

	  system dependent.  Also, at many education sites, it is common

	  practice to block telnet connections above TCP socket 1000 or

	  so in a somewhat misguided attempt to block usage of 

	  "recreational" TCP socket applications such as Multiple User

	  Dungeons (MUD's) or Internet Relay Chat (IRC).  In most cases,

	  a polite word to the system administrators, pointing out

	  the worthwhile services available on sockets 2000 and 3000

	  will get telnet service unblocked, at least for those ports.

	* Syntax for telnetting from different operating systems differ.  

	  Some common command syntaxes are:  (angle brackets are for 

	  readability, do not type these in literally)

	  Berkeley Unix or VMS with Wollongong TCP/IP uses syntax:

		telnet <host> <socket#>

	  Other possibilities to try:

		telnet console <host> (for 2000 port)

		telnet <CR> open <host>:<port#>

		telnet <host>/<port#>

		telnet <host>/port=<port#> (for Multinet on VMS)

	* Compression techniques are different for different operating systems.

	  However, these hints should help:

	    foo.sit needs Macintosh UnStuffit to unstuff

	    foo.hqx needs Macintosh BinHex to uncompress

	    foo.tar needs Unix or GNU tar utility to extract archived files

	    foo.Z needs Unix 'uncompress' to uncompress or VMS

	       compress_vms.exe (on gatekeeper.dec.com) will work too.

	    foo.z needs the GNU gzip utility (from prep.ai.mit.edu) to

	       uncompress it.  gzip will also uncompress *.Z files.

	  If more than one method was used,

	  like for foo.hqx.Z, start at the outside and work in (so uncompress

	  on Unix with 'uncompress' first, transfer to MacIntosh, then 

	  uncompress with BinHex to get uncompressed file).

	* There is an excellent introduction to FTP and archiving software

	  regularly posted to comp.binaries.ibm.pc and news.answers.

	* If all else fails, ASK your system administrator or check system

	  documentation.



    * Access to FTP archives via electronic mail

	ANY BITNET, EARN, or NorthNET site can access the Princeton mail 

	server.  It will be most efficient if you know the complete path

	and filename for anything you wish to transfer, but you can use 

	'cd' and 'ls -l' commands to move about and browse the remote site's

	directories.  The Archie database server may also be useful to search

	for files and their directory locations on FTP sites around the world 

	(see below).  Please be patient when using non-interactive mail 

	servers such as BITFTP as each request may take several hours (or 

	longer) to be fulfilled. 



	For access to the FTP server, send email to bitftp@pucc.bitnet (for 

	BITNET, EARN and NorthNET users ONLY!).  Subject doesn't matter.  

	The text of the email is the FTP commands one after another.  For 

	example, suppose you wanted to access the FTP site lcs.mit.edu:

	    FTP lcs.mit.edu

	    USER anonymous

	    PASS yourname@yoursite	(not required)

	    ASCII

	    CD telecom-archives

	    GET filenames

	    BYE

	A help file is available giving detailed instructions by putting

	the single word HELP into the text of the email.



	For nonBITNET users, there is also a FTPMAIL server at 

	ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com.  Commands include:  REPLY <mailaddr>,

	CONNECT [HOST [user [pass]]], ASCII, BINARY, COMPRESS, COMPACT,

	UUENCODE, BTOA, LS <directory>, DIR <directory>, GET <file>, QUIT,

	HELP.  Get the help file for more information by sending mail with

	the single line "help".  The ftpmail site may complain if you try 

	try to get more than 1 file per email request.  Here is an example of 

	a request: 

	    reply your_name@your_site

	    connect vixen.cso.uiuc.edu

	    binary

	    uuencode

	    get pub/ham-radio/extra-pool.txt

	    quit



	A note on the use of FTP mailservers:  If you want to use FTP

	mailservers, like FTPMAIL, please be considerate of any systems that

	your mail must pass through.  The quickest way to find yourself cut 

	off from the world is to make the admins of sites that pass your mail

	pass 60Mb of X11 graphics system source.  If you need large amounts

	of information from a mailserver, contact your admin for help -- it 

	may already be available, or he may know a better way to get it.



    * World-Wide Web, WAIS, and Gopher

	A new generation of information retrieval tools exploded into great

	popularity on the Internet in 1993.  They are the gopher protocol,

	wide-area information server (WAIS) and World-Wide Web (WWW).  They

	are indeed complete topics of discussion unto themselves which can

	be found, among other places, in the following newsgroups:



	   comp.archives

	   comp.infosystems.announce

	   comp.infosystems.gopher

	   comp.infosystems.wais

	   comp.infosystems.www



	Please read those newsgroups if you have questions about the software

	or how to use it.



	At the current rate of growth, we can never hope to list all the

	servers.  We would like cooperation from people who assemble WWW

	servers to add references to other useful Ham Radio information

	available at other WWW, gopher, WAIS, and FTP sites.  That way the FAQ

	can direct readers to servers that can reference more servers with

	more information than we can include on a periodic UseNet posting.



	Some useful URLs (uniform resource locators) which can be used with

	WWW are as follows:

	file://ftp.cs.buffalo.edu/pub/ham-radio      Buffalo FTP files via WWW

	file://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/radio/ham-radio   Ham Radio FAQs & info

	wais://rtfm.mit.edu/usenet/radio                 all radio FAQs & info

	http://www.acs.ncsu.edu/HamRadio          NC State HamRadio WWW Server

	http://gluon.imsa.edu/~scott/hamradio.html       Experimental WWW Page



	Although still very much works-in-progress, the last two URL's

	are excellent examples of WWW servers with numerous references

	to other resources.



    * The UCSD Ham-Radio mail list: rec.radio.amateur.misc by mail

	You can use rec.radio.amateur.misc even if your site has no NetNews

	feed.  To subscribe to rec.radio.amateur.misc, send email to:

		Ham-Radio-Request@ucsd.edu

	In the body of the message, write:

		subscribe Ham-Radio

	If your local e-mail software does not provide a valid return address

	(i.e. Bitnet, many Milnet sites, and many non-Unix e-mail packages)

	you can provide your return address between the "subscribe" and the

	name of the mailing list (i.e. "subscribe myname@here.org Ham-Radio".)



	Similarly, to subscribe to some other rec.radio.* newsgroups, use

	the following directions: (all addresses here are @ucsd.edu)

	Request address         List address    Newsgroup

	Ham-Radio-Request       Ham-Radio       rec.radio.amateur.misc

	Ham-Digital-Request     Ham-Digital     rec.radio.amateur.digital.misc

	Ham-Policy-Request      Ham-Policy      rec.radio.amateur.policy

	Ham-Equip-Request       Ham-Equip       rec.radio.amateur.equipment

	Ham-Ant-Request         Ham-Ant         rec.radio.amateur.antenna

	Ham-Homebrew-Policy     Ham-Homebrew    rec.radio.amateur.homebrew

	Ham-Space-Request       Ham-Space       rec.radio.amateur.space

	Radio-Info-Request      Radio-Info      rec.radio.info



	IMPORTANT NETIQUETTE NOTE: never ever send a request to subscribe

	or unsubscribe from *any* mail list to the list itself.  Always use

	the REQUEST address.  Otherwise you'll end up broadcasting your

	request to everyone on the list and getting lots of people angry at

	you.  (Seriously - this is a completely avoidable mistake and it

	does irritate a lot of people.)



	TO UNSUBSCRIBE, follow directions above, changing the command word 

	"subscribe" to "unsubscribe"

	   DON'T POST TO THE NEWSGROUP ITSELF!  USE THE REQUEST ADDRESS!

	Help is available by using the command word "help".  Note that command

	words MUST be the first word on each line of the message.



	You can post to rec.radio.amateur.* by sending your posting email to

	the mail list addresses at ucsd.edu.  Since rec.radio.info is a

	moderated newsgroup, requests to post to it may be sent to Radio-Info

	but they will be mailed to the moderator,

	rec-radio-info@ve6mgs.ampr.ab.ca, for posting.

	

	All of the Amateur radio newsgroups are archived for FTP on ucsd.edu

	under subdirectory mailarchives/{mail-list-name}.  However, Radio-Info

	is not archived at UCSD because almost everything is either on one of

	the other lists or in the news.answers archives at rtfm.mit.edu

	(see also funic.funet.fi above).



	To subscribe to rec.radio.shortwave, send email to 

	listserv@cuvma.columbia.edu, message is "subscribe swl-l (your name)"



    * Telephone BBS's with Ham-related information

	Among many, a large one is WB3FFV.  Use 8/N/1.  The phone numbers are

	(410)-661-2475 1200-38400/MNP5/V32bis/V42bis

	(410)-661-2598 1200-38400/MNP5/V32bis/V42bis/PEP

	(410)-661-2648 1200-19200/MNP5/V42bis/PEP

	Login is bbs, no password.  This BBS is also available via UUCP,

	login is uucpanon, no password.  For a list of available files, try:

	uucp wb3ffv!~/FILES /usr/spool/uucppublic



	Another one is N8EMR at phone 614-895-2553, login hbbs.  Data settings

	are 8 bits, NO parity, 1 stop bit.  N8EMR has a comprehensive list of

	other ham-related BBS's on-line.



	ARRL has a BBS called "HIRAM", named after the League's founder.

	The number is 203-666-0578.  More information can be obtained from

	the file ARRL-BBS on the ARRL e-mail server.



	For a more complete list of Ham Radio BBS's, see the file BBS on

	the ARRL server.  See also the file BBS_LIST.TXT on the KA6ETB

	HAM-server.  Also see many of the FTP sites listed earlier in this

	section.  There is now way to keep a list like this anywhere near

	up-to-date so giving you a lot of sources is the next-best thing!



    * Callsign servers and geographical name servers

	We know of online callsign servers for the USA, Canada and UK.



	If you are at an Internet site you can connect using telnet to the

	following callbook server (covering the USA and Canada):

	callsign.cs.buffalo.edu



	There is also a general geographical name server at 

	martini.eecs.umich.edu



	For the UK, you can use a WWW client to access the following URL:

	http://www.mcc.ac.uk/htbin/callbook



	The callbook server sits on port number 2000 and the geographical

	name server sits on port 3000.  These are different port numbers

	than what telnet usually defaults to. So if you just telnet to these

	machines, you will get a login prompt instead of the server. How you

	tell your telnet program to connect to port 2000 or 3000 instead of 

	the default port is operating system dependent but it is usually done 

	with a line like



	telnet callsign.cs.Buffalo.edu 2000



	If this doesn't work, check the telnet/FTP troubleshooting hints

	above or consult your local systems guru for the proper command string.



	The interactive servers are designed to be somewhat self-explanatory

	and they support fairly detailed help facilities. The first command 

	you should execute when connecting to one of these servers is "info". 

	This will list general info about that server and how to use it. You 

	should then type "help" to list the various commands available. 

	Typing "help" followed by a command name will give you a little more 

	detail about that command. Servers allow searches by call, last name, 

	zip code or city and also provide regular expression filters to trim 

	your searches so you get a reasonable amount of output.



	Both these servers are built from a database distributed by Rusty

	Carruth, N7IKQ. This database currently contains US and Canadian 

	callsigns and it does not contain club calls. A new version of the 

	database is sent around approximately once a year.

	

	There is also an email callsign server at callbook@sat.datapoint.com

	(The UUCP address is ...!uunet!dptspd!callbook).  In the body of the 

	text, say "lookup" followed by callsigns you want to look up.  If 

	your mailer appends signature files, you should put a line "quit" at 

	the end of your request (before the signature file).  If you want 

	help, put the word "help" on a line by itself.  Here is what a 

	request might look like:

		help

		lookup kc1sp wn4bbj

		lookup n0fzd

		quit



	There is another email callsign server at callbook@n8emr.cmhnet.org.

	The subject line is the list of callsigns to lookup.  All other lines

	are ignored.  This same callsign server can be accessed with packet

	radio via cbook@n8jyv.#cmh.oh.usa.na.  The body of the message should

	include "REPLY n8jyv!HOME_BBS!CALL" (where HOME_BBS is YOUR home BBS,

	and CALL is YOUR callsign), carriage return, "CALL call1 call2 ..."

	(where call1 call2 .... is space separated list of callsigns you want

	to lookup).



	If you are a packet radio station, callserver data is available from

	REQQTH@WA4ONG.VA.USA.NA, subject line should be up to 5 US callsigns,

	separated by spaces.  For Canadian calls, use the callserver at

	REQQTH@VE3JF.ON.CAN.  Body of message is ignored.  The server is an 

	OS interface to the MBL packet BBS using the Buckmaster CD-ROM 

	callsign database.



	The FCC "call sign hotline" at 717-337-1212 is available for those

	who wish to listen to the call signs allocated in each group for each

	district.  This requires only a touch-tone telephone to use.



    * FTP access to FCC Part 97 and FCC Amateur Radio question pools

	Part 97 is part of the FCC regulations and only applies to the USA.

	As of 1/94, a current copy can be found at ftp.cs.buffalo.edu in

	the /pub/ham-radio directory.



	An ASCII copy of the question pools are available by ftp from 

	the ARRL e-mail server.



    * Lists of radio modifications and extensions

	[see also rec.radio.amateur.equipment]

	The largest collection of mods data that we know about is kept at

	ftp.cs.buffalo.edu in the /pub/ham-radio/mods directory.  The

 	maintainer of this archive strongly encourages all existing

	archivers of mods to mirror their collections on this site.

	in this way, maintainers will come and go, but the collection

	of mods will remain stable and accessible.



	There is a packet radio Mods Server.  To get the directories, send

	a packet as follows:

		SP REQFIL@N2IMC.NJ.USA.NA

		Subject:  MODS\Dir.1

		/EX

	To get the mod, send to same place, with Subject MODS\Filename.ext.



	REMEMBER that any modification is likely to void your warranty and

	that these mods are NOT guaranteed to work.  This list is supplied

	here because it is a frequently-asked question on the newsgroup.



**  Can I send ARRL or W5YI electronic mail?

	Several ARRL HQ staffers can be contacted via the net.  Their e-mail

	addresses are available from the ARRL e-mail file server in the

	file called "EMAIL".



	ARRL requests that you include your postal address (the slow kind) in

	case they need to send you nonelectronic material in answer to your

	request.



	W5YI, a large VEC, can be reached at the following address:

	Fred Maia, W5YI	                       3511297@mcimail.com



**  "Why doesn't the ARRL do...?"

	If you want the ARRL to do something, tell them!  Direct input from a

	concerned member (or, actually, any concerned Ham) carries a lot more

	weight than hearsay from any source.  Their e-mail addresses are

	available from the ARRL e-mail file server (see above).  They want

	direct input - that's why those addresses are available.



**  What magazines are available for Ham Radio?

	Your local ham store may have some, but here's some popular ones

	(this is NOT a complete list!):

	QST, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 - basic projects and 

		contesting

	CQ The Radio Amateur's Journal, 76 North Broadway, Hicksville, NY 

		11801 - beginner ham radio articles

	73 Amateur Radio Today, WGE Center, Forect Rd, Hancock, NH 03449,

		FAX (603) 525-4423, email: COMPUSERVE 70310,775 or Internet

		70310.775@compuserve.com - more technical ham radio articles

	QEX, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 - more technical projects

	WorldRadio, 2120 28th St, Sacramento, CA 95818, (916) 457-3655.

		Subscriptions to 201 Lathrop Way, Ste D, Sacramento, CA 95815,

		(800) 365-SUBS - lots of special interest columns, like QRP, 

		ATV, YL, etc.

	W5YI Report, PO Box 565101, Dallas, TX 75356, 1-800-669-9594 - 

		up-to-date information on Amateur Radio happenings, including

		VE information and statistics



**  How do I use the incoming and outgoing QSL bureau?

	To use the outgoing QSL bureau, you must be a member of ARRL.  In

	general, you send a bundle of foreign (not States!) QSL cards to

	the outgoing bureau in Newington, Connecticut, along with a label

	off of your QST magazine (which shows ARRL membership), along with

	$2 per pound of cards (approximately 150 cards) or $1 for 10 cards

	or less.



	To use the incoming QSL bureau, you do NOT have to be a member of 

	ARRL.  Send one or more Self-Addressed Stamped Envelopes (size 5x7 

	or 6x9, NO BIGGER, NO SMALLER) with one ounce of postage attached 

	and with your callsign in 3/4" letters in top left hand corner where 

	the return address label would go.  If you expect a large quantity

	of foreign QSL cards, attach extra money or postage with a paper

	clip; do NOT affix extra postage to envelope.  Send the envelopes to 

	the QSL bureau for your callsign area.	If your callsign is xx3xxx/5, 

	you would send it to the 3rd call area, NOT the 5th call area.  

	Addresses for QSL bureaus are listed in QST and on the ARRL e-mail

	server (see below); if you don't have access to a QST magazine, ask

	another ham.  IMPORTANT:  BE PATIENT!  Turnaround time for a US QSL

	bureau, not considering foreign QSL bureaus, is about 3 months.

	Foreign QSL bureaus and hams can be as fast as 2 months or as slow as

	TEN YEARS, while average is about 6-12 months.



	Addresses for the US incoming and outgoing QSL Bureaus are available

	from the ARRL e-mail server in the files called "QSL-IN" and "QSL-OUT".

	See the question above



**  Are there any news groups for CAP?

	There is no news group just for Civil Air Patrol discussions.  However,

	rec.aviation.misc is appropriate for CAP aviation discussions and for

	CAP radio information, these rec.radio.amateur.* groups are available.

	CAP-related files are also stored on the FTP site

	sunburn.cps.udayton.edu in pub/capital.



**  What's the name of the QRP club that issues QRP numbers?

	QRP Amateur Radio Club International, c/o Bill Harding K4AHK,

	10923 Carters Oak Way, Burke, VA 22015.



	See also the file QRP-ADDRESSES on the ARRL e-mail server.



**  How do I become a 10-10 member?

	10-10 is simply an organization to sponsor the use of the 10 meter

	band.  It was first conceived when propagation was poor on 10 meters,

	as a method to get more hams to use 10 meters.  The past few years

	have been great for 10 meters worldwide.  However, "the bands are

	closing down" again, and 10 meters will once again be limited more

	for local communications, except for sporadic band openings, until

	the next sunspot cycle.



	To join 10-10, work ten 10-10 members and LOG each 10-10 number, call

	sign, operator's name and location.  Send the list to your numeric

	call sign or DX area manager (as shown below), with $5.00 U.S. new

	membership registration fee ($6.00 for foreign addresses). 



	10-10 International Area Managers:

	USA 1 - Al Kaiser N1API,       194 Glen Hills Rd, Meriden,     CT 06450

	USA 2 - Larry Berger WA2SUH,   9 Nancy Blvd,      Merrick,     NY 11566

	USA 3 - Chester Gardner N3GZE, 9028 Overhill Dr,  Ellicott Cty,MD 21042

	USA 4 - KY, TN, FL, VA, NC, SC only

	        Rick Roberts N4KCC,    7106 Ridgestone Dr,Ooltewah,    TN 37363

	USA 4 - GA, AL, Puerto Rico only

	        Jim Beswick W4YHF,     112 Owl Town Farm, Ellijay,     GA 30540

	USA 5 - Grace Dunlap K5MRU,*   Box 445,           LaFeria,     TX 78559

	        *summer addr Jun-Oct   Box 13,            Rand,        CO 80473

	USA 6 - Dick Rauschler W6ANK,  4371 Cambria St,   Fremont,     CA 94538

	USA 7 - Willie Madison WB7VZI, 10512 W Butler Dr, Peoria,      AZ 85345

	USA 8 - John Hugentober N8FU,  4441 Andreas Ave,  Cincinatti,  OH 45211

	USA 9 - Jim Williams N9HHU,    240 Park Rd,       Creve Coeur, IL 61611

	USA 0 - Debbie Peterson KF0NV, RR 1 Box 35,       Duncombe,    IA 50532

	All DX- Carol Hugentober K8DHK,4441 Andreas Ave,  Cincinatti,  OH 45211



	For more info, see the file 10-10-INFO on the ARRL e-mail server.



**  How do I join MARS?

	To join MARS, you have to be 14 years or older (parental consent 

	required under age 17), be a US citizen or resident alien, possess a 

	valid Amateur Radio license, possess a station capable of operating

	on MARS HF frequencies, and be able to operate the minimum amount

	of time for each quarter (12 hours for Army and Air Force; 18 hours

	for Navy-Marines).  Novices must upgrade to Technician within 6 

	months, else be dropped from MARS.  No-Code Techs can apply, provided

	they have transmit and receive HF capability for MARS frequencies 

	(they don't need transmit capability for Amateur HF frequencies).  For

	application forms contact:  



	Chief, Air Force MARS

	HQ AFC4A/SYXR

	203 W. Losey St.  Room 1020

	Scott AFB, IL 62225-5219

	(618)256-5552   Fax:  (618) 256-5126



	Chief, US Army MARS

	HQ USA Information Systems Command

	ATTN:  ASOP-HF

	Ft. Huachuca, AZ 85613-5000

	800-633-1128



	Chief, Navy-Marine Corps MARS

	Naval Communication Unit

	Washington, DC   20397-5161



**  How do I join RACES?

	Contact your nearest Civil Defense or Emergency Management Agency.

	The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service is a part of a municipal,

	county, or state government.  This does not mean, however, that 

	every such government has a RACES program.  If your government does

	not have a RACES, ask them to refer you to the nearest jurisdiction

	that does have a RACES program.



**  What organizations are available to help handicapped hams?

		Courage Center

		Handihams

		2915 Golden Valley Rd

		Golden Valley, MN  55422

		(612) 520-0515

	ARRL has a Handihams information package (get it by requesting it

	through 2155052@mcimail.com) and a book called "The ARRL Plan for

	the Disabled", available at no charge from the ARRL Regulatory 

	Information Branch.



**  I am looking for a specific ham, can anyone help me find him?

	Rather than sending out a message on Usenet, you might first try the

	"Radio Amateurs on Usenet" listings, maintained and posted by Mark

	Salyzyn VE6MGS.  The articles can be found monthly on rec.radio.info

	and rec.radio.amateur.misc.  If the copy in your news spool has

	expired for some reason, you can look up an entry in the list by

	sending an e-mail to reqnet@ve6mgs.ampr.ab.ca with either of the

	following commands in the body of the message:

	  lookup keyword keyword keyword ...

	  return user@machine.subdomain.domain

	(Fill in the proper info for the search keyword or e-mail address.)

	An automated server program will reply to your message.



	If you have his/her callsign or name, you should also try one of the

	on-line callservers shown above.  This works in most cases. (!!!)



	Also try directory assistance from the phone company or the locator

	service provided by the Salvation Army.  A Salvation Army post in your

	local area may be able to help you.  Also, the Quarter-Century

	Wireless Assn maintains a collection of callbooks going back to "the

	beginning of time".  Their address is: 1409 Cooper Drive, Irving, TX

	75061.  Also, the Callbook has a dial-in line for accessing new ham

	callsigns.  Try (1-708-234-8011) at 2400 baud.



**  Can I post my neat new ham related program on rec.radio.amateur.misc?

	This is really not a good idea, since many of the readers receive

	these newsgroups as mail digests.  Posting is also a one-shot thing.

	If you post and someone missed it, it is gone.  A better way would be 

	to announce the existence of your program here, along with 

	information on how to obtain a copy of your program.  You can also 

	submit it to one of the FTP archive sites, which will allow the world

	to access it without you having to mail it to each requestor.  If you 

	just GOTTA post it somewhere, post it to more appropriate groups, 

	like comp.sources.unix or alt.sources or comp.binaries.ibm.pc.



** Where can I get ham radio software for my computer?

	See the information about Anonymous FTP, e-mail servers, and

	ham-related telephone BBS's above.  For PC-clones, see the KA6ETB

	HAM-server.  For Macintosh computers, see the file SOFTWARE-MAC on

	the ARRL e-mail server for locations to look.



**  Are there Dialup News services or BBSs for Amateur Radio?

	There are two major news services for ham radio.  Both are run by

	volunteer hams and provide bulletins of specific interest to amateurs,

	hence they are perfectly legal to rebroadcast on ham bands according

	to FCC Regulation 97.111B(6).  To lessen the load on the dialup lines,

	consider getting your local repeater operator to rebroadcast it, or 

	tape record it to play at your favorite HF net.  



	RAIN (Radio Amateur Information Network) is produced by Hap Holly,

	KC9RP, located in Illinois.  The news is typically updated 8am CST

	Fridays.  Phone numbers are 1-708-299-INFO (299-4636) and 

	1-708-827-RAIN (827-7246).



	NEWSLINE is another, produced by Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF.  Donations

	for NEWSLINE are accepted at Newsline Support Fund, c/o Dr. Norm

	Chalfin K6PGX, Pasadena, CA 91102.  Phone numbers are:  

		Chicago		1-708-289-0423

		N.Florida	1-407-259-4479 

		West Palm Beach	1-407-965-1234

		Los Angeles	1-805-296-2407 (Instant Update Line)

		Los Angeles	1-213-462-0008

		NYC		1-718-353-2801

		Ohio		1-513-275-9991

		Seattle		1-206-368-3969



**  Where can I find VE sessions in my local area?

	VE sessions are often announced in the local newspapers, but more

	often, they are announced by local radio bulletin boards.  The 

	local packet BBS will most likely have a monthly updated schedule

	for VE sessions.  ARRL or W5YI can generally be called and asked for 

	local VE sessions as well.  Don't forget that you will need the 

	following when you go in for an upgrade:  a copy of your current 

	Amateur license; your original Amateur license; any CSCEs (duplicate 

	not required), if applicable and less than a year old; a picture ID, 

	preferably a driver's license, passport or visa; and the VE test

	fee (approximately $5 right now).



	Bart Jahnke, KB9NM, the ARRL VEC Manager (bjahnke@arrl.org) posts a

	listing of VE exams indexed by state (and some overseas sites, usually

	at embassies and military bases) to the net every 6 weeks or so.  The

	same list can be obtained from the ARRL e-mail server under the file

	EXAM-SCHEDULE.  Another file of interest is EXAM-INFO.



	The ARRL list is the definitive list for ARRL VEC sessions.  There

	are other smaller VECs around the USA.  ARRL includes their schedules

	when the info is available.  The other VECs phone numbers are listed

	with the ARRL info so you may wish to give them a call to check their

	schedule if they didn't provide it to ARRL.



**  Why isn't XXX available electronically?

	This is a theme for a lot of common questions.  For the "XXX" above,

	substitute any of the following:

		Callbooks

		DX QSL Lists

		Radio station lists

		various publications

		and more...



	Except for the Callbook (via callsign servers), these are not available

	because of any of several reasons.  Either there are copyright restric-

	tions, royalty fees, or the source just may not have done the work.

	Also, not everyone that has information has reliable UseNet access.



**  I'd like to volunteer to help ham radio through electronic

    information services like those mentioned in this FAQ list.

    Where should I start?

	This FAQ would not be complete without a reminder that useful

	resources on the net do not grow on trees, they are the work of

	many dedicated volunteers.  The rec.radio.amateur.* newsgroups

	are very fortunate to have quite a number of such volunteers

	providing everything from FAQ lists to telnettable callsign

	servers.  This doesn't mean, however, that there isn't room for

	more information and services from additional volunteers. One 

	such service would be more detailed FAQ lists for the recently-

	-created special-interest rec.radio.amateur.* newsgroups (such

	as those for antennas, homebrew electronics, equipment and

	ham radio in space) to supplement this general FAQ. 



	Recently an electronic mailing list for amateur radio FAQ

	maintainers, archive custodians, service providers, and other

	volunteers was set up.  It is the rec.radio.amateur.* Working

	Group (rra-wg).  Anyone with a sincere interest is welcome to

	subscribe by sending E-mail to rra-wg-request@amdahl.com.  The

	readers of that forum would be more than happy to provide advice

	and guidance with regard to an existing information project, or

	even suggest a new one to fill a currently-unmet need.

