Amateur Radio

Amateur radio is, essentially, using a radio to chat with other people who have radios, and we usually chat about radios. And antennas. Actually, a lot about antennas. I imagine it's a lot like a car club where people talk pretty exclusively about turbos and road rules.

But for me, it's about still being able to communicate regardless of catastrophe. A couple of years ago some isolated places in Victoria were cut off from communication with the rest of the world because, during some pretty horrific bushfires, a couple of phone exchanges burned. It was impossible to send for help because it was impossible to send a message.

I'm particularly keen on digital modes of transmission, which may be useful in these circumstances.

Getting licensed

In the before-time, when there was no Plague, I joined my local radio & electronics club because they were running the courses necessary for the 'Foundation' level of amateur radio license. When The Plague was in full flight and we were all stuck at home, the club worked out a way to deliver the training remotely (a natural thing for a radio club to do!) and assessors came up with a way of supervising exams using popular but shit video conferencing applications. If you're stuck on how to get going with radio yourself then you're most welcome to get in touch with me and we can check it out together.

Foundation License

This is the lowest level of license in Australia, and permits me to transmit on almost all the amateur bands, but I'm not to exceed 10w of transmitting power. The more advanced the license, the more you're permitted to do, with the most permissive license (at the moment) allowing 100w of transmitting power. Soon I'll document my rig, usual hangouts, and the parks and mountains I like to 'go portable'.

Related Gemlogs

Gemlogs related to radio are found here:

Thu 21 Sep 2023 - Submission for October's ^Zine