This time they’re doing a package with an AnyTone D578UVIII mobile rig and more:
If you hold a valid amateur radio license go here and enter.
So a co-worker took an interest in the fact I have a handie talkie in my backpack. Even the HT thing he’s interested in.
So I explained, he could get a radio like my Anytone or TYT or what have you. And he could listen. But to transmit he’d need to be licensed. Pointed him to the ARRL’s web site at http://www.arrl.net- showed him how to locate testing sessions, how to download question pools etc.
Just proves the value of bring the radio with you.
I’m now wondering why I didn’t get on DMR sooner. Dear non-existent deity – was talking to a station in the Netherlands the other night. The Netherlands on a handie talkie. Of course this isn’t your NORMAL handie talkie.
I’m seriously loving this AnyTone AT-D878UV. The battery is the 3100 extended so I can run it most of the weekend without having to charge it.
And the fact it has Bluetooth as well as APRS and other things – for example it syncs up just fine with my Avantree Audition headphones. And get this – the headphones will also sync to both the handheld and the phone. So I can play my music and when the radio goes off it’ll override and put the music on pause. How fucking awesome is that?
I just couldn’t resist. You see I own 70cm DMR radio but in RI there was precious little 70cm DMR. But then I saw I could pick up an AnyTone AT-D878UV. It’s a Dual-Band handheld radio transceiver or as we hams call them Handie-Talkies.
Friends of mine had recommended the AnyTone and I must say I’m impressed. It has Bluetooth, GPS, and a whole raft of features including a full color display. Plus the keys are nicely backlit. For $238 it came with the programming cable, plus a bluetooth PTT button, and charging stand. Really nice.
It doesn’t play nicely with Windows 7 but I hooked it to my work machine which is running Windows 10 and it picked it right up.
And I went to radio.id an downloaded the user contacts for Atlanta, Marietta, DeKalb County, Fulton County and Cobb County, even as far down as Savannah. I mean come on I’m really enjoying it here in the great state of Georgia. I should have moved here years ago. I mean it. The people, the medical people, the people in general black, white, or what have you. All great people. Even the politicians are getting to know me.
And of course it involved the usual UPS snafu – they were SUPPOSED to deliver it yesterday. Then today I scheduled it between 2PM and 6PM and it showed up around 7PM. I suppose me emailing UPS a little nasty-gram did the trick. If I had to go their facility to pick this radio up I told someone that they’d get the full ration of shit from me. I cannot stand UPS. I’ve shared their nickname of Shit Wrapped in Chiffon around here and people love it.
So one of the things we hams to is to make our locations somewhat cryptic. For example when I lived in RI my grid square was FN41GT. Now I’m in EM73XR. And lo and behold I found out Google Maps doesn’t know grid squares
I got my first amateur radio license in 1992 – it was the no-code Technician class. I’d studied the Gordon West books found at Radio Shack back then. In fact my Tech and General I used those books.
For my advanced class license I used the ARRL Study books. The one I used took a deep dive into theory which I loved. Loved it until a buddy pointed out the pattern in phase angles.
For my Extra class license I drilled on the question pool. You can download them for free if you search on the web.
It can be done. You just need to know the passcode to get into programming.
Press the green key on the left. Press the down arrow twice to get to Utilities.
Press the green key again to Confirm.
Press down arrow twice to get to Program Radio.
Press the green key again to Confirm
The passcode is 00000000 – that’s eight zeroes.
Now keep in mind you’re modifying the memory channel you were on when you first went to program the radio. Everything is pretty self explanatory. Just know that CTC is CTCSS codes for non-digital repeaters.
I love my little TYT MD-380. It’s the 70cm version and I’ve got a different antenna on it. It’s shorter than the stub duck that comes with it.
Plus there’s precious little DMR here in RI. But I do have the New England Code plug installed on the radio so when I travel into Boston I’ll have to see how DMR plays.
If I can I try to have one amateur radio contact per day. That’s what a QSO is. I also like operating QRP – low power. My QTH is Providence, RI. FN41GT which is my grid square location.
So there you have it amateur radio speak.
You end up on a lot of roofs. I was mentioning how we’d been up on top of Bradford House in Providence (It’s known I believe as Sister Dominica Manor) and on top of a college building putting up repeaters.
So we were asked if we’d like to see the setup on the roof. A picture was snagged of course I’m the 2nd from the right facing toward the church tower. The gentleman in the striped shirt he does the national weather service announcements you hear on 162.400MHz in these parts.
Spewing Truth in the face of Lies 