The Indianapolis Radio Club Newsletter Founded 1914 “The oldest continuously operating Amateur Radio Club in the United States” November 2007 Newsletter Upcoming Meetings: December 14: Holiday Dinner Meeting, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra Speaker Note: IRC individual members paid up by the November meeting will be furnished one meal per membership. Paid up family memberships will be entitled to 2 dinners. January 11: Digital Television, and it's effect on Ham Radio, presented by Jim Rinehart, K9RU. Annual Chili Cookoff February 8: Legacy Radio. If you have any “old time” radio pictures, get them to Dave Miller, K9RTT, at the January meeting, so they can be scanned for the presentation. Highlights of the November 9, 2007 meeting: Introductions were led by club president, Tom Chance, K9XV. The club welcomed visitors from Florida, Ray & Daisy Crepeau, K1HG & KT4KW The slate of officers was presented for 2008. It is as follows: President: Tom Chance K9XV Vice President: Dave Miller K9RTT Secretary: Ken Bandy KC9GLQ Treasurer: Judy Gardner AA9GW Chief Operator: Steve Wendt KB9RDS Directors: Jim Rinehart K9RU Hank Wolfla K9LZJ Tom Price WB9UNG The floor was opened for nominations. None were made, the slate of officers was accepted as presented. Tom asked for refreshment committee volunteers. Peter Pauly, W0VLL, has been doing a great job of getting refreshments for the October and November meetings. Chuck Crist, W9IH, mentioned that Gerry Skoll is going to be delivering the sailing ship Arabesque to Antigua from Massachusetts, and is going to be attempting DX contacts from on board the ship. Point your browser to http://indyradioclub.org/kc9dtbsaildx2007.htm to get updates on his operation. Newly elected chief operator, Steve Wendt, KB9RDS, stated he had some plans for modifications to the radio room in the ITC. There are plans to start using the radio room for some contests and operating events. At this point, Dave Miller, K9RTT, introduced Harry Wiliford, WB9IIV. Harry started his presentation on Meteor Scatter, High Speed CW. He stated that this digital mode has been around for between 9 months and a year. Harry stated that Joe Taylor, K1JT, had authored WSJT software. There are currently 6 variations of the mode for different bands and types of conditions. For example, JT65A is used on .HF, around 14.076, 18.102, 10.139, and 7.076 MHz. The station set up does not need to be elaborate, basically the same equipment needed to operate PSK31 will do for the WSJT modes. The only exception is that the PC clock needs to be set accurately. It is possible to make good contacts under marginal band conditions. High power or elaborate antenna systems, are not needed. Harry normally uses a nominal 50 watts of power, and a vertical antenna. WSJT operation is OK in any of the digital operation areas of the bands. A WSJT signal is comprised of 6 tones. The WSJT home page is located at http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/K1JT/ A precision clock application is available at http://www.thinkman.com/dimension4/ The “Bozo's Guide” to WSJT is available at http://www.obriensweb.com/bozoguidejt65a.htm There is a “reverse beacon” application available from W6CQZ. This collects reports from stations all over the world. There is another variant of the mode available that is called JT2. It is comprised of only 2 tones, and is only 7 hertz wide! There is approximately a 1500 mile range available on meteor scatter mode using VHF. After Harry's talk, the door prizes were drawn by Dave Miller, K9RTT. Ham Radio News: INDIANAPOLIS VE Testing Schedule for the rest of 2007 The next VE testing session in Indianapolis will be Saturday, December 1st. Calling in advance to ensure testing availability is suggested but not mandatory. SPONSOR: Indianapolis Radio Club (W9JP) LOCATION: Indianapolis Training Center 2820 N. Meridian Street. CONTACTS: Liaison: Gale Wuollet, AA9WU (h) 317-849-8449 COORDINATING VEC: American Radio Relay League (ARRL) VEC, Inc. All testing at the Indianapolis Training Center starts at 9:00 am and the last test will be administered no later than 11:00 a.m. FOUR HOOSIER HAMS ARE TOP NOTCH Congratulations to four outstanding Hoosier Amateur Radio Operators who have been nominated for the prestigious 2007 IRCC Outstanding Amateur of the Year award. Each year the Indiana Radio Club Council selects one amateur who has recruited new hams, taught classes, volunteered to conduct exam sessions, participated in public service events and worked to advance amateur radio in the community. Four individuals have met that critieria and were honored in a special forum at the Ft. Wayne Hamfest November 17, 2007. Those recognized were: Gary Adams W9EEU of Terre Haute Bill Kennedy WY9T of Indianapolis (selected) congrats Bill! Tony Langer W9AL of North Judson Emery McClendon KB9IBW of Ft. Wayne Jack Parker W8ISH IRCC Chairman Editor's note: There is a nice article, complete with pictures on the award, especially for our own Bill Kennedy at http://www.indyradioclub.org/articles/w9ytirccaward.htm JOHNSON COUNTY GETS IMPROVED 2M COVERAGE Looks like Johnson County and southern Marion County hams are in for an upgrade of the 2m repeater system operated by the Midstate Amateur Radio Club. The MARC repeater went on the air location on Friday, November 2, 2007 from it's new home on top of the White River Fire Department Tower at Station #51, near the intersection of SR135 and Olive Branch Road. Current output is 7 watts, with plans for increased output power. With the new location, and increase in height, practically all of Johnson county should have coverage from this repeater. More details can be found on the MARC web site at http://www.midstatehams.org/ WRC-07 REPORT Following are some excerpts from IARU Secretary David Sumner, K1ZZ, regarding the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07): An unexpected highlight of the opening plenary was the announcement by Secretary-General Hamadoun Toure, at the end of his prepared remarks, that he had earned his Amateur Radio license. We seldom, if ever, have received such prominence during the opening ceremonies of a conference. Dr Toure's call sign is HB9EHT. The Amateur Services have been quite visible at the conference in other ways: * The special WRC-07 issue of ITU News includes an article under Larry Price's byline setting out Amateur Radio's aspirations for the conference. * An Amateur Radio emergency communications trailer brought from Germany was on display during the first 10 days of the conference, parked strategically on the walkway between the conference center and the adjacent ITU building. A full-color explanation of Amateur Radio's emergency communications capabilities and an invitation to visit the trailer was distributed in the delegates' pigeonholes by the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau, as well as some additional information about the Amateur Services, resulting in a steady stream of visitors. Progress on the agenda items of interest to the Amateur Services has been slow. The 4-10 MHz issue is bogged down, with opponents of HF broadcasting expansion holding fast to a position of "no change." HF BC proponents are not nearly as numerous as in 2003 and are mainly in Europe; they have backed off from an initial position of 350 kHz of expansion down to 200 kHz, but there has not yet been any movement from the other side. In the meantime work on the other 4-10 MHz issues, including the possibility of a 5-MHz secondary amateur allocation (which so far is supported by the European BC proponents), cannot progress. Even if the HF BC allocation could be settled quickly, which seems unlikely at this point, time is running out to complete work on the rest of these issues. INDIANA TRAFFIC NET TIME CHANGES QIN - The Indiana Section Traffic Net of ARRL NTS (QIN) after the switch from EDST to EST Sunday Morning will be as follows: In a nutshell, the only time locally that QIN will shift anything will be the evening net from 8:00 PM to 7:00 PM, and locally, all the region and area nets will meet as they did before the time shift. ================================= The more detailed explanation in relation to UTC (or Zulu (z) time) follows: QIN morning net will stay meeting at 9:30 AM locally but that means for UTC it will meet at 1430z instead of 1330z. QIN evening net will stay UTC at 0000z but that means that locally it will meet at 7:00 PM instead of 8:00 PM. For those involved in assignments to 9RN (Ninth Region Net) the times will be as follows: 9RN/Early will meet as before at 8:45 PM locally, but that will be 0145z now. CAN (Central Area Net) will meet as before at 9:30 PM locally, but that will be at 0230z now. 9RN/Late will meet as before at 10:30 PM locally, but that will be at 0330z now. MOTOROLA TO ACQUIRE 80% OF VERTEX STANDARD Motorola USA has announced its intention to launch a tender offer to acquire a controlling interest in Vertex Standard Co, Ltd. Vertex Standard is the parent company of Yaesu. Motorola will own 80 percent of Vertex Standard; Tokogiken, a privately held Japanese company, controlled by current president and CEO of Vertex Standard Jun Hasegawa, will retain 20 percent, forming a joint venture. The total purchase price for 80 percent of the outstanding shares on a fully diluted basis will be approximately US $108 million. A NOTE FROM INSIDE VERTEX STANDARD Friends, By now, many of you may have heard that Vertex Standard Co., Ltd, (Vertex Standard USA's parent company) announced that they have agreed to form a collaborative joint venture with Motorola, Inc. I personally believe the most important words in this sentence are "collaborative joint venture“ a business relationship that indicates a far different outcome intent than the demise of one of the venture partners. Since Yaesu is the Amateur Radio Division of Vertex Standard, I am sure you are just as curious as me, a Yaesu employee with a job at stake, to know what this business transaction will mean to all of us in the hobby. Predictably, I see that the news about the pending new Motorola relationship with Vertex Standard, hence Yaesu, is giving life to all sorts of misinformation and "doomsday". Internet postings by the usual cast of characters who always seem to know so much more about things than the rest of us mere mortals. After studying public announcements and considering the internal information that is made available to me in my role as the leadership individual for North American sales at Yaesu, I would like to offer the following FACTS about this exciting development. Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) will launch a tender offer to acquire a controlling interest in Vertex Standard Co., Ltd. (JASDAQ: 6821). Upon successful completion of the tender offer and subsequent restructuring process, Motorola will own 80% of Vertex Standard and Toko Giken, a privately held Japanese company, controlled by Jun Hasegawa, current president and CEO of Vertex Standard, will retain 20%, forming a joint venture. On 5 November 2007, the Board of Directors of Vertex Standard expressed their support of the tender offer. Yaesu, of course, as one of the Vertex Standard operations, will be included in this exciting development. I want our Yaesu customers and concerned others to know the following about the proposed merger: Vertex Standard (meaning Yaesu to us in the Amateur Radio hobby) will remain a separate, global organization with distinct resources governed by the Board of Directors comprised of four Motorola representatives and one Toko Giken representative. Toko Giken is a privately held J apanese company, controlled by the founder's family. It currently holds 29.2% shares of Vertex Standard. Mr. Jun Hasegawa (my boss), son of Sato Hasegawa JA1MP, the founder of Yaesu will continue to take part in the management of Vertex Standard in his capacity as the Representative Director, President and CEO of Vertex Standard after the Tender Offer. The day-to-day management of the joint venture will be the responsibility of Mr. Hasegawa and his senior leadership team, who are also expected to continue. Count me as one of those who will continue with Yaesu. Our business will continue to be operated as is, and we will continue to actively develop new products and operate the business as a leading manufacturer of amateur radio, marine, land mobile, and airband radios. The Vertex Standard brand of equipment (Standard brand in Japan) will continue to exist. The current Vertex Standard brand strategies are highly respected by Motorola and will be continued. Since Motorola appreciates our Yaesu brand strategy, there will be no change to it. There will NOT be a Motorola brand of Amateur Radio equipment replacing or competing with Yaesu. Yaesu customers can expect to see positive benefit from the fact that: Vertex Standard has an experienced engineering team that, combined with Motorola's extensive engineering talent, will develop new innovative products. Personally, I cannot wait to see what this joint engineering effort will bring to Amateur Radio! Cost synergies will be realized through the use of Motorola's buying power to reduce the joint venture's costs for raw materials. Hams are known to enjoy seeking out the best buy for their hard earned money - expect to see Yaesu products remain highly competitive and providing excellent value for your investment. Because Mr. Hasegawa will continue to manage the day-to-day operations of Vertex Standard, we do not expect to see changes in the existing Yaesu dealership, pricing and rebate philosophies as a result of the joint venture. These are historic exciting times for Yaesu, our customers, and Amateur Radio. The future is bright and the potential for incredible technological advancements for Amateur Radio are immense. We are glad you will be there with us as the positive affects of the Vertex Standard / Motorola joint venture unfolds. 73, Dennis Motschenbacher K7BV k7bv@vxstdusa. com W1AW 2007/2008 Winter Operating Schedule Morning Schedule: Time Mode Days ------------------- ---- --------- 1400 UTC (9 AM EST) CWs Wed, Fri 1400 UTC (9 AM EST) CWf Tue, Thu Daily Visitor Operating Hours: 1500 UTC to 1700 UTC - (10 AM to 12 PM EST) 1800 UTC to 2045 UTC - (1 PM to 3:45 PM EST) (Station closed 1700 to 1800 UTC (12 PM to 1 PM EST)) Afternoon/Evening Schedule: 2100 UTC (4 PM EST) CWf Mon, Wed, Fri 2100 " " CWs Tue, Thu 2200 " (5 PM EST) CWb Daily 2300 " (6 PM EST) RTTY Daily 0000 " (7 PM EST) CWs Mon, Wed, Fri 0000 " " CWf Tue, Thu 0100 " (8 PM EST) CWb Daily 0200 " (9 PM EST) RTTY Daily 0245 " (9:45 PM EST) VOICE Daily 0300 " (10 PM EST) CWf Mon, Wed, Fri 0300 " " CWs Tue, Thu 0400 " (11 PM EST) CWb Daily Frequencies (MHz) ----------------- CW: 1.8175 3.5815 7.0475 14.0475 18.0975 21.0675 28.0675 147.555 RTTY: - 3.5975 7.095 14.095 18.1025 21.095 28.095 147.555 VOICE: 1.855 3.990 7.290 14.290 18.160 21.390 28.590 147.555 The W1AW Operating Schedule may also be found on page 96 in the November 2007 issue of QST or on the web at, http://www.arrl.org/w1aw.html. WELCOME, NEW MEMBER David Parrish, KC9MHB FEEL FREE TO SHARE OUR NEWSLETTER If you belong to any other radio groups, please feel free to share our newsletter with them. They can also sign up to be on our mailing list by filling out the form available at http://www.indyradioclub.org/rqstnewsletter.htm. SEND ME YOUR HAM RADIO NEWS If anyone has any items for the newsletter, please send them to Ken Bandy at kc9glq@arrl.net Signals from the Past: >From the March, 1950 Indianapolis Radio Club Amachewer: The ultimate in this modern push-button age has been experienced by the INDIANAPOLIS RADIO CLUB, at last. Gerald Lucas, W9APJ, the club’s popular (and efficient) secretary, arrived at a recent meeting with his newly acquired wire recorder, took his place at the officers table, and plugged it in. The meeting was opened and when the president called for the reading of minutes of the last meeting, Lucas flipped the switch on the recorder and leaned back and assumed the look of the cat who had just swallowed the canary, as the machinery did his work for him. Hi. Upcoming Area Radio Events: * Evansville Hamfest Saturday, November 24, 2007, 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Central Time. Go to http://w9ear.org/ for more info. Current IRC Officers: · President: Tom Chance, K9XV - ..EMAIL k9xv@arrl.net · Vice Pres.: Dave Miller, K9RTT - ..EMAIL dmiller@ivytech.edu · Secretary: Ken Bandy, KC9GLQ - ..EMAIL kc9glq@arrl.net · Treasurer: Judy Gardner, AA9GW - ..EMAIL aa9gw@juno.com · Chief Operator: Dave Craig, N9QVO - ..EMAIL slough@svs.net · Dir. at large: Bob Osterhous, W9PSE - EMAIL rosterhous@iquest.net · Dir. at large: Tom Price, WB9UNG – EMAIL pricetr@comcast.net · Dir. at large: Hank Wolfla, K9LZJ – EMAIL hwolfla@insightbb.com