Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com Sun, 29 Jun 2008 15:57:10 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en Welcome! http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=17 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=17#comments Wed, 21 May 2008 23:55:50 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=17 If you are studying for one of the FCC GROL General Radio Operator License elements or preparing for the Amateur Radio (Ham) Ticket this site is for you!
All of the questions asked on the FCC tests are taken from a pool of published questions.
That means no surprises!
Our quizzes have the official questions and answers provided by the FCC and are organized to mimic the FCC tests as closely as possible.
We are in the process of updating our site and will be adding all the elements for the GROL and Ham Radio Tests.
We welcome your comments and suggestions

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=17 Awesome Electronics Workshop http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=58 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=58#comments Sun, 08 Jun 2008 05:01:41 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=58 Make Your Own Printed Circuit Boards on a Laser Printer.

Introduction to Oscilloscopes

Basic Stamp

LCD and GPS

Playing with RF Modules

Intro to Breadboard Electronics

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&page_id=58 ARRL News Feed http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=49 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=49#comments Sat, 07 Jun 2008 03:49:48 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?page_id=49 American Radio Relay League


American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources: The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is the national association for amateur radio, connecting hams around the U.S. with news, information and resources.

Robert Macedo, KD1CY, ARES SKYWARN Coordinator and Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator, provided this report on the afternoon of Friday, September 3:

The following is a situation report from the Eastern Massachusetts ARRL Section on Hurricane Earl. The good news is that Earl has weakened to a Category-1 hurricane. The other good news is that its track remains on target with …

 The Air Force Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) organization has a new “interim” Chief. Outgoing USAF MARS Chief Allen Eiermann, K3LSR, retired at the end of May and was replaced by TSgt Jason E. Sandifer. Sandifer is a systems manager stationed at the Air Force Network Integration Center (AFNIC) at Scott AFB, Illinois. AFNIC is the headquarters of the national Air Force MARS organization…

Over this past week, four new sunspot groups appeared. Group 1101 was already in place since August 24, and 1102 emerged on August 29. On September 1, two new sunspot groups — 1103 and 1104 — appeared, and on September 2, sunspot group 1105 arrived. Through August 26-September 2, the daily sunspot numbers were 23, 11, 11, 25, 28, 27, 51 and 52 and these same eight days saw the relative total …

By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor

This week, Surfin makes plans for emergency communications of the hurricane variety.  

As I write this, Connecticut and the Northeast are looking down the barrel of Hurricane Earl. It looks like my neck of the woods will only receive a glancing, but powerful blow, but points south and east of us will not be so lucky.

Having lived through direct hits fro…

Hurricane Earl — once again a Category 4 storm — is currently aiming for North Carolinas Outer Banks. At 11 AM (EDT), Earl is located about 300 miles south of Cape Hatteras and 765 mles south of Nantucket Island, just off the coast of Massachusetts. Earl is now moving north at a speed near 18 MPH, and is expected to turn north-northeast with an increase in forward speed on Friday. The center…

The ARRL Lab has installed a D-STAR (Digital Smart Technologies for Amateur Radio) repeater in the Lab at the ARRL Headquarters building. Operating with an output of 147.390 MHz, positive offset, the W1HQ D-STAR repeater is a local repeater with a modest footprint covering the Hartford-New Britain, Connecticut area. The antenna is on the roof of the Headquarters building with the repeater locat…

On August 30, Hurricane Earl intensified into a Category 4 hurricane — sustained winds 131-155 MPH — before leveling out back into a Category 3 storm. But even as a Category 3 hurricane, Earl is still a major storm with hurricane-force winds extending outward up to 90 miles from the center, and tropical storm force winds extending outward up to 200 miles. According to the National Hurricane C…

ARRL Headquarters will be closed in observance of Labor Day on Monday, September 6. There will be no W1AW bulletin or code practice transmissions that day. ARRL Headquarters will reopen Tuesday, September 7 at 8 AM Eastern Daylight Time. We wish everyone a safe and festive holiday weekend.

Compiled by S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA
ARRL News Editor
news@arrl.org

This feature — including convenient Web links to useful information — is a concise monthly update of some of the things ARRL is doing on behalf of its members. This installment covers the month of August.

ARRL Sections along the Atlantic Coast are watching and monitoring the progress of Hurricane Earl, with many assisting WX4NHC…

The winner of the QST Cover Plaque Award for August is James Garland, W8ZR, for his article “The StationPro Master Station Controller.” Congratulations, James! The winner of the QST Cover Plaque award — given to the author or authors of the best article in each issue — is determined by a vote of ARRL members on the QST Cover Plaque Poll Web page. Cast a ballot for your favorite article in the…

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&page_id=49 ARRL Announces New DeSoto Cup Winner http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=48 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=48#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:11 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=48 The ARRL’s DXCC Desk announced June 3 that Fausto Minardi, I4EAT, is the winner of the 2007 DXCC Challenge DeSoto Cup. According to ARRL DXCC Manager Bill Moore, NC1L, Minardi achieved this honor with 3129 band points. Bob Eshleman, W4DR, placed second with 3124 band points; Leif Ottosen, OZ1LO, holds the third place spot with 3119. The DeSoto Cup was first presented in 2000 to Eshleman; he has received the award each year since. The 2007 race saw the closest point spread — five points — since the DeSoto Cup’s inception in 2000.

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=48 Get Ready for the ARRL June VHF QSO Party http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=39 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=39#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=39 June is here, and according to ARRL Contest Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, that means the VHF bands are starting to get some steam. "If you’ve never experienced the fun of VHF+ operating, the ARRL June VHF QSO Party is a great place to start. With many HF radios now offering at least 6 meter SSB/CW capabilities — and some offering 2 meters and 70 cm as well — any amateur with a Technician class license or higher can experience long-haul communication on the VHF bands," he said.

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=39 Station Locator Service New for Field Day 2008 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=40 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=40#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=40 This year, for the first time, the ARRL has put together a Station Locator to help amateurs or those interested in Amateur Radio find a Field Day site near them. According to ARRL Field Day Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND, many amateurs have been asking for something like this for many years.

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=40 More Field Day T Shirts On the Way! http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=41 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=41#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=41 During the last couple of weeks, a surge of demand for 2008 ARRL Field Day T shirts had exhausted the supply much earlier than previous years. "It’s clear that this year’s Field Day logo and slogan — Ride the Waves — is a big hit!" said ARRL Sales and Marketing Manager Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R. "We want to assure our valued members and clubs that more shirts are on the way. Until today, we weren’t certain we could restock the shirts in time for delivery before Field Day. But our manufacturer has promised to re-supply the shirts as early as next week." ARRL Field Day is June 28-29. To order Field Day T shirts, participation pins and other items, as well as information on this year’s Field Day, including the Field Day Locator Service, please go to the ARRL Field Day Web page. The ARRL regrets any inconvenience with order delays. Inderbitzen added, "Since February, we’ve encouraged clubs to place their orders early. But this good news means there’s still time to Ride the Waves!"

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=41 ARRL Continuing Education Online Course Registration http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=42 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=42#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=42 Registration remains open through Sunday, June 22, 2008 for these online course sessions beginning on Friday, July 4, 2008: Technician License Course (EC-010), Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency Interference (EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog Electronics (EC-012) and Digital Electronics (EC-013). Each online course has been developed in segments — learning units with objectives, informative text, student activities and quizzes. Courses are interactive, and some include direct communications with a Mentor/Instructor. Students register for a particular session that may be 8, 12 or 16 weeks (depending on the course) and they may access the course at any time of day during the course period, completing lessons and activities at times convenient for their personal schedule. Mentors assist students by answering questions, reviewing assignments and activities, as well as providing helpful feedback. Interaction with mentors is conducted through e-mail; there is no appointed time the student must be present — allowing complete flexibility for the student to work when and where it is convenient. To learn more, visit the CCE Course Listing page or contact the Continuing Education Program Coordinator.

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=42 Morse Code Returning to MARS Toolbox http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=43 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=43#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=43 After more than a dozen years, Morse code will soon be returning to Military Affiliate Radio System (MARS) nets. In the mid-1990s, the Department of Defense (DoD) did away with CW operation across the board — including MARS nets — as automatic systems such as the Internet, SATCOM, cell phones and e-mail became available and the payroll cost of manual operators escalated.

]]> http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?feed=rss2&p=43 The Amateur Amateur: Tipping the Mast, Topping the Hill http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=44 http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=44#comments Thu, 05 Jun 2008 05:38:10 +0000 Steven Marcotte http://www.stevenmarcotte.com/?p=44 The mast I ordered was a Penninger Tipper. I ordered it because the mast can tip over, making it easier to raise and lower than my current tripod-mounted mast. The bottom of the new mast connects to a base which allows it to swivel up and down.

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