Author: Tommy

I've finally got back on the air in the HF bands. After over 6 months of not having my radio reach any further than the local 2 meter repeaters (maybe 20mi away max), I finally have an antenna that lets me talk outside the state.

I bought a used Bilal Isotron 40 meter antenna from W6KIP off eham.net. I received the antenna after over a week-and-a-half long trek through the incredibly slow USPS shipping machine. That was on Friday, February 3. I assembled it and began thinking exactly how I wanted to mount it. I finally decided to mount the short "mast" (if you'd call it that) on one of the 3 vent pipes on the roof. I'll post a picture of it soon.

Part of my reason for using Isotron was the small size (only 22" wide). Looking at the antenna, you wouldn't even know it was an antenna, it looks more like a weather vane or birdfeeder. Being on campus, I didn't really want a very conspicuous antenna if I could help it. I haven't quite finished fine tuning the antenna, but I can do that as soon as I get my hands on one of the local ham's antenna analyzer.

I haven't made any contacts on it tonight due to an overwhelming amount of static on the 40-meter band. I've listened to a couple of nets, one on 7.2335 said that this is the worst noise they've had all month - what luck!

Update: Well, it turns out the noise isn't just on the band, although that particular night was particularly bad. It seems that the high level of noise (aka static) that I'm receiving is due to a local area thing. Most likely due to the power lines nearby. If I can pinpoint the source of the interference, the power company is obligated to resolve the harmful interference.

Update #2: It turns out it must be the power lines, I was able to go to the front of campus, shove the antenna in the ground and it received beautifully (for an antenna shoved in the dirt). Now, to find that pesky power line pole.

Update #3: Wow. So I called the power company and, not surprisingly, the service rep didn't have a clue what I was talking about. She tried to tell me that the power company has "the right of way" and that I just had to accept the interference. As politely as I could, I told her I didn't and that it was the power company's responsability to at least investigate the interference. She asked what kinda of amateur radio antenna I had, as if it mattered. She asked if any of my neighbors were experiencing problems on their radio. (wtf?) I told her I'd like to hear back from someone that understands about radio interference and what causes RFI on power lines. We'll see...

Update #4: The power company did send a guy out today. He called before he visited. I told him I'd be in class. After explaining the issue to him, he said he knew where my apartment was, and that if it's the powerlines I described to him, they belong to the university, and not Swepco. I had to get to class, but he said he'd leave me a note on my door. He came out, and it wasn't their powerlines. (I'm pretty sure he was right about the university being in control of the lines in question...) Now, to find the person in charge of the campus powerlines and go about getting them fixed in a way that won't get me evicted.

I recently got a BASIC Stamp microcontroller project board from Parallax, Inc.. Microcontrollers (µC) have been my latest interest. I've wanted to get my brain wrapped around how they work for some time, and I used some money I got for Christmas to buy one.

For those of you that don't know what a microcontroller is, it's simply a chip that acts as a self-contained computer which you program to your liking and hook into a circuit you've constructed. The BASIC Stamp µC is about the size of a postage stamp and the code is written in BASIC (hence the name). BASIC is used over assembly (like the PIC and AVR micocontrollers) because of its easy syntax. It allows a much shorter learning curve and gets you up and going with the basics of µC use.

The particular setup I got is a complete kit from Radio Shack (which they're going to stop carrying soon) which includes a BS2 chip on a programming board, with a breadboard area, 9V battery hookup and a serial port. The kit came with the serial cable, a copy of the "What's a Microcontroller?" book, software, and a bag of basic electrical components to experiment with. The book steps you through lessons (designed for those with zero knowledge of electronics or electric theory). It also explains simple programming concepts and walks you through several projects. My only regret is that the board's µC is built into the board. To create a µC-based project, I will either have to use this entire board with its connections, or purchase a separate Stamp (~$30) and a programming board for it. However, this is not a big problem at the moment since I'm still learning.

If you're interested in getting into this field of electronics/computers I recommend considering the Parallax line for its ease of use and great instructional material. (Not to say I won't move back to the AVR after some time, but the Stamp is much easier to learn on).

I just received a copy of Running Linux, 5th Ed. (ISBN: 0596007604) to review. So far, I think it's an improvement over 4th edition. I always preferred 3rd Edition to the 4th. Geez, what's the difference? Glad you asked. In 3th edition, the author(s) covered most aspects of the GNU/Linux operating system, independent of any specific distribution. Everything was covered from the command line, and a bit was covered over the use of X, the graphical user interface for linux.

4th edition took it a step further (too far, in my opinion). With the rise of linux's popularity, many users hopped on board and stayed with the GUI. That same crowd may have felt overwhelmed with the introduction of the command line (many users aren't used to dealing with a command line at all!). 4th Edition covered more GUI-related aspects and approached most system processes and daemons from their GUI perspective for users that could care less about the command line. I didn't feel this really helped the new user truly understand what was going on in their system.
I feel to truly use the system to its full potential, you must understand the system from the command line (after all, that's where all the action is). It seems that 5th edition has a delicate balance of the two. It covers the GUI portions of the system to get you up and going and also covers command line functions for reference once you figure out how to actually use your linux system and want to know more.
Of course, this book isn't the end-all solution for your linux needs, but it will definately get you up to speed and explain much of the system's operation to the newbie.

I cut my teeth on Running Linux I took it with me everywhere I went, when I had a moment, I was reading another page in the popular linux introduction book. For anyone wanting to "get into linux", this is the book. With 5th edition's updates for the newest developments in the linux arena, O'Reilly is sure to win over more converts to the GNU/Linux OS.

Click here to buy the new 5th Edition of Running Linux.

I got Call of Duty 2 for Christmas from my parents. I didn't get a chance to install it until I got home after New Year's. It was worth the wait.

Finally a great game that wasn't (at least to me) overhyped. I didn't hear much about it other than a commercial or two on TV, and it's release on the Xbox 360. I thought it looked nice on the Xbox demo in stores, but that's what demos are for, to look nice.
I was surprised to find the gameplay still very much like that of Call of Duty 1. They took some aspects of CoD 1 and United Offensive out, like sprinting and "cooking" grenades.
The weapon sounds are a bit different, for better or worse? I can't tell yet. The voiceovers are great, much more realistic sounding. Havoc says that the EAX support is much better than any game he's had. (I wouldn't know since I don't have a SB card)
The graphics are phenominal. Imagine that, a sequel that improves graphics and doesn't require a video card upgrade! (BF2, *cough*, *cough*)

The game is super impressive. I'm very pleased.
As with any sequel, there are a few minor differences that players might like to have back, like sprinting and cooking grenades, but the game overall is an excellent release without any glaring bugs or major flaws so far.

Oh yeah, and single player is just as fun as Call of Duty 1.

It's that time of year, time for exchanges and stuffing ornaments and lights in storage boxes. It's also time to show off your new goods, those treasured gifts you received for Christmas.

This Christmas, I got the following:

a new Sanyo 27" TV

a new HP ze2308 laptop (which we got a great deal on...)

VR3 MP3 Player for the car

a "Hovercopter"

Call of Duty 2 (for PC)

Mark Farina - Mushroom Jazz Vol.5 (CD)

Wireless Hacks by O'Reilly

an Atmel microcontroller project board

and an HO-scale electric train set

...just to name a few. Probably one of the best list of Christmas gifts I've had in a while.

What all did you get?