Season's Greetings from Panama City ARC

PCARC,

I want to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and your families.

Have a safe and joyous holiday season.

Bob

WB8PAF

President PCARC

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Panama City Amateur Radio Club!

Beginner's Academy Talk: Why WSPR?

WSPR or Weak Signal Propagation Reporter was our topic at the December 13th Zoom meeting. WSPR is yet another interesting activity for ham radio operators. See the recorded talk below.

If you are a beginner or returning ham you are welcome to join us on Zoom. Use the contact form on this site to request an invitation. You may need to view the site in desktop mode to see the form on the right-side panel.

You may also be interested in the Saltwater Effect Experiment Talk below where WSPR was a key part of the study.

Beginner's Academy Talk: Why Try Contesting?

Our group discussed amateur radio contests at our Beginner's Academy Zoom Meeting on Nov 29th, 2021. You may want to be a casual or even a serious contester. See the recorded talk below.

If you are a beginner or returning ham you are welcome to join us on Zoom. Use the contact form on this site to request an invitation. You may need to view the site in desktop mode to see the form on the right-side panel.

Beginner's Academy Talk: Why QRP? Low Power Ham Radio

Our group discussed low power ham radio, QRP, at our Beginner's Academy Zoom Meeting on Nov 15, 2021. You may be surprised what a five-watt radio can do on the HF ham bands.

If you are a beginner or returning ham you are welcome to join us on Zoom. Use the contact form on this site to request an invitation. You may need to view the site in desktop mode to see the form on the right-side panel.

Why Ham Radio?

Josh Nass, KI6NAZ, of Ham Radio Crash Course talks about what ham radio is, and answers the question.... "Why Ham Radio?"  If you are interested in ham radio drop us a note on our contact form with your name, location, and callsign, if you have one.

 

Shameless Plug on Local Podcast

Ashley KO4CVX plugs our Ham Radio oriented Beginner's Academy Zoom on the podcast In The Beer Cave with Rob and Ashley. If you are interested in ham radio drop us a note on the contact form with your name, location, and callsign if you have one.

Popular Ham Radio Podcasts & Youtubers

 Here is a PowerPoint from the Beginner's Academy 9/13/21 Talk.

Beginner's Academy Talk: Launching a Pico Balloon with the WB8ELK Skytracker

This is a recorded talk from our Beginner's Academy Zoom Meeting on August 11th, 2021. I launched a pico balloon from Oklahoma on July 20th, 2021. It carried a Skytracker payload developed by Bill Brown W8ELK. I got APRS reports from it for ten days. It cruised above 28,000 feet and gave us much entertainment. This talk passes on my experience. I just had to follow Bill's instructions. Thanks to Keith Kaiser WA0TJT for joining our meeting. Boy, this pico balloon flight was fun! 73, Greg N4KGL

QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo Coming Soon Aug 14/15, 2021

Opens: August 14th, 00:01:00 UTC Go to https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/ to register

Attendees have the opportunity to:  

• Listen to and engage with 80+ internationally recognized ham radio luminaries.  We’ll have tracks on all sorts of subject areas including Emcom, Youth Activities, Expert electronics and design, satellite radio, and many ham radio subjects.
  

• ​Take part in Live virtual kit building workshops.  Kits will be available for purchase and delivered to you in time for the Expo so you can participate and build from the convenience of your home.
• Walkthrough our virtual exhibit hall filled with popular amateur radio suppliers. Watch new product demos and interact directly with booth staff. 
  
• Return over the next 30 days to listen to speakers you missed during the Live period, explore, and re-engage exhibitor offerings.

• Full Registration is $10.00 US - includes full access to the Expo, including presentations, 12 subject video lounges,  and to the 30-day on-demand period. 
• Full registration will increase to $12.50 at the door when the Expo opens. 
• Free Registration is limited to lobbies, exhibition hall, exhibitor booths, and prizes offered by exhibitors. 

Get Ready for ARRL Field Day 2021

The 2021 ARRL Field Day is June 26-27. ARRL Field Day is one of the biggest events on the amateur radio calendar. Read the Field Day rules. Operate in the field or at home. Note the following are temporary 2021 rule changes:

An aggregate club score will also be published, which will be the sum of all individual entries indicating a specific club (similar to the aggregate score totals used in ARRL affiliated club competitions). You are welcome to contribute your points to the Panama City ARC. Use Panama City ARC exactly as the club name.

Class D (Home) stations may work all other Field Day stations, including other Class D stations, for points.

This year, Class D and Class E stations will be limited to 150 W PEP output.

Here is a well-done video from ARRL HQ. Getting Ready for 2021 Field Day:

Beginner's Academy: ARRL Introduction

This is a recorded talk from April 28, 2021, Panama City ARC Beginner's Academy Zoom meeting. ARRL is the American Radio Relay League.

 

Primer On CHIRP Radio Programming Software by WX4BTZ

This recorded Zoom talk was given by Botz WX4BTZ on April 14, 2021, for our Panama City ARC Beginner's Academy.

Echolink is Live on the W4RYZ Repeater

Echolink is now available on the 145.210 W4RYZ Repeater. This will allow stations out of the repeater coverage area to talk on the repeater via the internet. The node is node name is N4KGL-R. 

An amateur radio license is required to use Echolink. Please download, install, and run the EchoLink software first. This registers your call with the system. Then, return to the Validation page to proceed with your callsign validation.

To use your smartphone, download the Echolink App from the App Store on your phone. 

To use a computer download the Echolink software from echolink.org.

Select Node N4KGL-R

The node-link is located at my QTH. If there are any issues email lanekg@gmail.com

Thanks,

Greg N4KGL

 

Beginner's Academy: Digital Hotspots by KK4DIV

This video is an introduction to digital hotspots for amateur radio by Bob Plank KK4DIV. It was presented for the Panama City ARC Beginner's Academy Zoom meeting on February 17, 2021.

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Operate Winter Field Day Jan 30/31

The Winter Field Day on-the-air event is January 30/31. The event is similar to the ARRL Field Day and is growing every year. You can operate indoor, outdoor, or at home. See the rules at https://www.winterfieldday.com/ 

The purpose of WFD is to foster Ham camaraderie, field operation, emergency operating preparedness, and just plain on the air, outdoor fun in the midst of winter for American, Canadian, and DX Hams.

This year due to COVID, operate under your own call, list your club as Panama City ARC in your entry, and our club score will be aggregated in the WFD results. Use the text Panama City ARC exactly.

HNY,

Greg N4KGL