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ARRL Letter

 

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 24, No. 35
September 9, 2005
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +Ham radio continues to fill communication gaps in hurricane zone
* +ARRL Headquarters mounts unprecedented response to Hurricane Katrina
* +2005 World Exposition in Japan hosts successful space QSO
* +ARRL opens "Volunteers Needed" clearing house
* +Three ARRL divisions set to elect directors, vice directors
* +League urges employer flexibility in leave time for volunteers
* +Maine ham's license renewal application set aside by FCC
* +AMSAT-NA cancels 2005 Symposium
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
     This weekend on the radio: The ARRL September VHF QSO Party!
     ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
     Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration
     Katrina radio public service announcement available!
     "When All Else Fails" graphic available
     Floyd Koontz, WA2WVL, wins August QST Cover Plaque Award
     DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit

+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>

===========================================================
==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
letter-dlvy@arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
===========================================================

==>AMATEUR RADIO VOLUNTEERS FILLING COMMUNICATION GAPS IN GULF REGION

Hundreds of Amateur Radio operators from the Gulf Coast and elsewhere in the
US continue to volunteer their skills and expertise as the Hurricane Katrina
relief effort heads into its third week. ARRL Section Managers (SMs) and
Section Emergency Coordinators (SECs) across and around the affected region
have been teleconferencing daily to keep their efforts on the same page. In
the field, Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and other volunteers are
assisting as needed to support communication for relief agencies as well as
for state and local government and even the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA). Louisiana SEC Gary Stratton, K5GLS, says Amateur Radio was
the only means for state officials at the state emergency operations center
(EOC) in Baton Rouge to communicate earlier this week with the so-called
"Florida parishes" above Lake Pontchartrain.

"We have had praise from one end of Louisiana to the other about Amateur
Radio operators," Stratton said. "There was a communication to the EOC in
Baton Rouge from FEMA that said, 'Ham radio is our prime communications with
you, and they should get anything they need,' so FEMA recognizes the
importance of ham radio." He also recounted how state officials arriving at
the EOC were using ham radio to get through to their hard-hit parishes.

A marshaling center has been established in Covington, Louisiana. ARES has
been continuing to support Red Cross shelter and Southern Baptist Convention
debris-clearing in St Tammany parish, as well as Baptist Men's Kitchen
canteen operations. In Washington Parish, ARES volunteers--including more
than a dozen from South Texas--have been providing critical communication
among hospitals and the parish EOC, among other functions. Field teams were
continuing to use HF to maintain communication with the EOC in Baton Rouge.

Stratton, who's temporarily handed over his SEC duties to former Louisiana
SM Al Oubre, K5SDG, said that while things are going along okay right now,
he foresees a need for additional operators down the road, once closed areas
are reopened. "One of the biggest problems we're going to have is relief for
the operators who have been down there [in the affected parishes]," he said.

"New Orleans is, of course, our next thrust, and we're going to have to have
to staff recovery efforts down there, but it'll be a different kind of
recovery effort," Stratton predicted. "We'll be supporting the EOC in Baton
Rouge with temporary communications until the National Guard can get in."

Stratton said Amateur Radio has even had to loan some government agencies
their communication gear because their own didn't function. "It's been an
eye-opener to me operating in the EOC down there how terribly their
equipment operates," he said.

In Mississippi, ARES operators have been helping to maintain communication
among hospitals, EOCs and shelters. ARES District Emergency Coordinator Tom
Hammack, W4WLF, reported operators were sleeping on the floor when off duty.
State RACES Officer and ARES DEC Ron Brown, AB5WF, was setting up a staging
area for Amateur Radio volunteers near the Mississippi Emergency Management
Agency in Jackson.

SECs in the US Gulf advise volunteers signing up for duty in the
hurricane-stricken zones to coordinate with their home SECs and, once given
the go-ahead, arrive as self-sufficient as possible. "If you need it, you
bring it," advised Alabama SEC Jay Isbell, KA4KUN. Volunteers have come from
all over the US.

Isbell said each Red Cross feeding unit was turning out 25,000 to 30,000
meals a day. "They still need communication," he said. Local amateurs in the
affected areas were handling some of the tactical communication on VHF.

A staging area in Montgomery, Alabama, continues to process and orient
Amateur Radio volunteers for American Red Cross and other duty in Louisiana
and Mississippi. Some volunteers will help support communication at Red
Cross shelters set up for evacuees, while others will provide tactical
communication for feeding stations or for emergency management. Alabama SM
Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, has been coordinating ham radio volunteers at the
Montgomery site.

Norm North Jr, WA1DBR, of Arkansas, was deployed to a Red Cross shelter in
Biloxi, Mississippi, where he managed to squeeze in some health-and-welfare
messages among the emergency traffic.

North says typical requests included pleas from mothers trying to find
missing children, youngsters looking for parents and other trying to get
word to families and loved ones that they'd survived the storm and were at
the shelter. "Many messages got through," North said, "and I received many
thanks and hugs."

As conventional telecommunications starts coming back to life, traffic has
been slowing on the major regional HF emergency net--the West Gulf ARES
Emergency Net on 7.285 MHz days and 3.873 MHz nights. As a result, the net
announced September 9 that it would secure routine operation at 0600 UTC
September 10. An open net will be maintained on 3.862 MHz after that.

West Gulf ARES Emergency Net Manager Lee Franks, N5FP (ex-AD5IS), says the
net passed traffic as recently as September 7 about a man trapped in an
attic in Arabi [Louisiana]. "We're still getting a trickle of messages like
this," he said earlier this week. "As communications are reestablished via
landline and VHF-UHF links in that area, there has been less demand on our
net--but I'd call it an absolute, tremendous success what we have done."

There's more information on Amateur Radio's Hurricane Katrina response on
the ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/>.

==>ARRL HEADQUARTERS RESPONDING TO HURRICANE KATRINA ON SEVERAL FRONTS

As the magnitude of Hurricane Katrina's devastation in human terms became
evident along the US Gulf Coast, activities at ARRL Headquarters ramped up
into crisis mode. The immediate challenges were many and seemed to multiply
by the minute. Under the leadership of ARRL Chief Operating Officer Harold
Kramer, WJ1B--an experienced Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES)
Emergency Coordinator--and Special Assistant to the CEO Dave Patton, NN1N,
ARRL staff members mustered to focus their energies on responding to the
needs of ham radio volunteers. Kramer says the overarching goal at ARRL
Headquarters has been to support its Field Organization of ARES and other
volunteers.

"Their main job is to support the served agencies, such as the American Red
Cross, The Salvation Army, FEMA," Kramer said. "Because this is over such a
widespread area, a lot of the Amateur Radio infrastructure in that area got
destroyed, so we're having to bring in operators from further out--as well
as equipment." With a lack of communication cited as the largest obstacle to
rescue and relief efforts, ARES members--with support from
Headquarters--began bridging the gap immediately.

The sheer size of the geographical region affected by the disaster and the
dearth of communication put ARRL Headquarters in the somewhat unusual role
of serving as a clearing house for various aspects of the response.
Activities include helping to recruit volunteers, coordinating equipment
donations, and working with regulatory agencies and the news media. A daily
conference call has brought together Headquarters personnel and Section
Managers (SMs) and Section Emergency Coordinators (SECs) from the affected
region to provide situation reports, compare notes and request any
assistance they need from ARRL Headquarters.

"We don't normally have to do that much support for the Field Organization,"
Kramer pointed out.

ARRL has been receiving donations and offers of equipment and services for
use in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort. Some two dozen members of the
Amateur Radio industry and individual radio amateurs have contributed gear.
The donations were made as gifts to ARRL, which is redirecting these
resources as needed to the disaster zone. Some donors have offered valuable
services and supplies.

"The ARRL would like to thank everyone who has generously donated Amateur
Radio equipment, accessories and supplies," said Kramer. Some of the
equipment already on hand has been or soon will be deployed to assist relief
agencies such as the American Red Cross as well as state and local emergency
managers, he said.

Key ARRL staff members have been meeting on a daily basis--including over
the Labor Day holiday weekend--to help keep track of events and
relief-related initiatives as they progress. Over the Labor Day holiday
weekend, ARRL Headquarters employees volunteered to staff Maxim Memorial
Station W1AW around the clock and to keep telephone (860-594-0200) and
e-mail communication open <katrina@arrl.org>;.

The activity at W1AW also provided a focal point for local news media. On
more than one occasion, TV crews showed up at HQ for a story about how
Amateur Radio was doing its part in the disaster. Major "media hits"
included a favorable article in the Wall Street Journal September 6. Another
turned up on MSNBC's Web site, and a third on the Computerworld Web site.

ARRL Sales and Marketing Manager Dennis Motschenbacher, K7BV, volunteered to
head into the hurricane strike zone. He checked in at the American Red Cross
ham radio support volunteer center in Montgomery, Alabama, on September 6.
Motschenbacher has a complete HF station as well as sufficient supplies to
stay in the field for a couple of weeks. He was expected to be deployed to
help in Mississippi.

ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP, also has headed
to Montgomery to coordinate with national news media there.

==>JAPANESE SCHOOLCHILDREN ENJOY SUCCESSFUL ARISS CONTACT

As some 150 people looked on, a group of Japanese schoolchildren spoke
September 2 with the International Space Station via 8N2AI, a station set up
at the 2005 World Exposition in Aichi Prefecture (near Nagoya). The
scheduled contact with NA1SS was arranged by the Amateur Radio on the
International Space Station (ARISS) program.

NASA ISS Science Officer John Phillips, KE5DRY, told the students that he is
able to see air pollution over large cities, forest fires in the US and
agricultural fires in Central and South America. Another student asked about
housekeeping chores around the space station. "We have air filter systems
that constantly clean the air," Phillips responded. "In addition, once a
week we use a vacuum cleaner and a wet cloth to make sure we clean up all
the dust."

Asked if he thinks there is life elsewhere in the universe, the astronaut
replied: "Yes I do. I base this belief on the enormous number of other
stars, many of which probably have planetary systems, but I've never
actually seen any evidence of life elsewhere."

Control operator at 8N2AI was Naoyuki Iso, 7L1FFN. Onlookers were joined by
reporters from eight newspapers and the official EXPO TV.

About 15 million visitors are expected at EXPO 2005, which runs through
September 25. The Japan Amateur Radio League is sponsoring 8N2AI. More
photos of the event are available on a Web site commemorating the event.

ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach
with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.

==>"VOLUNTEERS NEEDED" CLEARING HOUSE NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS

The Hurricane Katrina Amateur Radio Volunteers Needed Clearing House now is
live on the ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/agencies/>. This
database will be the primary means for relief organizations requiring
Amateur Radio volunteers for communication support to list their needs.
Additionally, volunteers looking to help may search the listings to match up
their capabilities with the various requirements.

"The purpose of this ARRL Web tool is to make it easier on both the agency
in need, and the Amateur Radio operator to find matches to fill various
requirements," said ARRL Special Assistant to the CEO Dave Patton, NN1N. "We
have rapidly learned that during regional and national disasters such as
that resulting from Katrina, bottlenecks and bureaucracy slow down responses
to aid requests. This tool should help the Field Organization cope."

Representatives of relief organizations or served agencies can post their
*communications* requirements on this site for Amateur Radio operators to
see. Patton asked organizations lacking a volunteer coordinator who is
familiar with Amateur Radio to indicate in the "needs" section that they're
looking for an Amateur Radio volunteer coordinator in addition to radio
operators.

Relief agencies seeking Amateur Radio volunteers will be asked to enter
basic information about their organizations and their needs, including
specific locations in the disaster area. The League anticipates making the
Volunteers Needed database available in the future when groups may need the
services of Amateur Radio volunteers to supplement or provide emergency or
public service communication.

"If you are an Amateur Radio operator wishing to volunteer, use the search
engine on the site to find listings of agencies that are looking for your
help," Patton added.

Thanks to the volunteer efforts of Joe Tomasone, AB2M, the League has been
using the Hurricane Katrina Disaster Communications Volunteer Registration
and Message Traffic Database he developed as its primary site for
prospective Amateur Radio volunteers to offer their services in the current
disaster. On behalf of the ARRL, Patton expressed appreciation for
Tomasone's prompt response to fill this need on short notice.

==>DIRECTOR/VICE DIRECTOR ELECTIONS SET IN THREE ARRL DIVISIONS

There will be contested elections for ARRL Director and Vice Director seats
in three divisions for terms beginning next January 1. In two other
divisions, the incumbent Director and Vice Director are running unopposed
and have been declared elected. Balloting for Director will occur in the
Atlantic, Great Lakes and Midwest divisions. Balloting for Vice Director
will take place in the Atlantic and Great Lakes divisions.

In the Atlantic Division: Current Vice Director William C. Edgar, N3LLR,
faces a challenge from Scott J. Bauer, W2LC, for the Director's seat. The
winner will succeed Bernie Fuller, N3EFN, who is not seeking reelection to
another term. Competing to replace Edgar on the back bench are Maryland-DC
Section Manager Thomas J. Abernethy, W3TOM, and Thomas G. Valosin, WB2KLD.

In the Great Lakes Division: Incumbent Director James E. Weaver, K8JE, is
being challenged for reelection by Neil Sablatzky, K8IT. Running for Great
Lakes Division Vice Director are Daniel M. Romanchik, KB6NU, and former
Great Lakes Division Vice Director Gary L. Johnston, KI4LA. Current Vice
Director Richard Mondro, W8FQT, has decided not to run for another term.

In the Midwest Division: Incumbent Director Wade Walstrom, W0EJ, is being
opposed for reelection by Harry S. Nordman, AB0SX. Vice Director Bruce
Frahm, K0BJ, is unopposed.

Both incumbent Directors and Vice Directors are unopposed in the Dakota and
Delta divisions. Dakota Director Jay Bellows K0QB, and Vice Director Twila
Greenheck, N0JPH, have been declared elected, as have Delta Director Rick
Roderick, K5UR, and Vice Director Henry Leggette, WD4Q.

Ballots will go out by October 1 to all full ARRL members on record as of
September 10, 2005, in the Atlantic, Great Lakes and Midwest divisions. The
deadline to receive completed ballots at ARRL Headquarters is noon Eastern
Time Friday, November 18, 2005.

Any member entitled to a ballot and who has not received one by November 1
should request a duplicate ballot from the Secretary, ARRL, 225 Main St,
Newington, CT 06111.

==>ARRL URGES EMPLOYERS TO BE FLEXIBLE IN LEAVE TIME FOR VOLUNTEERS

The ARRL is calling on employers of Amateur Radio operators who volunteer to
assist in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort to be able to take off from
work without penalty. ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, says volunteers need
some kind of assurance that they won't be jeopardizing their jobs if they
step forward to assist along the US Gulf Coast, where they could be deployed
for a week or longer. He said the League is urging employers that have not
already done so to take the opportunity to recognize the significance of the
emergency and the importance of what Amateur Radio volunteers are doing to
help alleviate suffering in the disaster zone.

"What we're asking employers to do is to have some compassion for the people
in the disaster area," he said. "If they've got an employee who has the
training and skills of an Amateur Radio operator, please allow that person
to take some time off to contribute to this relief effort."

Haynie further suggested that employers might contemplate offering their
employees who serve as Amateur Radio volunteers in the Hurricane Katrina
response either paid leave or compensatory time. "An employer can consider
this one way to make a contribution to the Hurricane Katrina relief
effort--if not monetary at least by letting those workers who are Amateur
Radio volunteers to contribute their time and talents in the field."

==>FCC SETS ASIDE MAINE AMATEUR'S LICENSE RENEWAL

The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB) has set aside its grant
of license renewal to Glenn A. Baxter, K1MAN, of Belgrade Lakes, Maine.
According to correspondence the FCC released recently, the WTB took the
action soon after it had granted Baxter's renewal application, received on
July 22 via the W5YI VEC.

"The application has been set aside for enforcement review," Associate Chief
of Licensing Operations Tracy Simmons told Baxter in a July 25 letter from
the FCC's Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, office. Simmons said the WTB took the
action in accordance with 47 CFR §1.113(a). That section says: "Within 30
days after public notice has been given of any action taken pursuant to
delegated authority, the person, panel, or board taking the action may
modify or set it aside on its own motion." Baxter's Amateur Radio license is
set to expire October 17, 2005.

In early June, the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture
(NAL) proposing to fine Baxter $21,000. In the NAL, the FCC alleges that
Baxter has violated several sections of the Part 97 Amateur Service Rules.
The list includes rules proscribing interference with ongoing
communications, transmitting communications in which he has a pecuniary
interest, failure to provide information the FCC requested, engaging in
broadcasting, and failure to exercise control of his station.

The FCC has not yet affirmed the NAL by issuing a Forfeiture Order. Baxter
has insisted in correspondence with the Commission that he has operated his
station in full compliance with FCC rules and regulations.

On July 31, Baxter responded to Simmons' setaside notification to assert
that the FCC has "intentionally violated my constitutional rights of due
process" by not renewing his timely filed renewal application. Baxter said
it's his "legal position" that he may continue to operate K1MAN
"indefinitely," until a final legal determination in the case.

==>AMSAT-NA 2005 SYMPOSIUM FALLS VICTIM TO KATRINA

AMSAT-NA has announced that it's canceling the 2005 AMSAT Symposium, which
had been set to take place October 7-9 in Lafayette, Louisiana. The AMSAT-NA
Board of Directors made the difficult decision during a teleconference
session September 6.

"We regret that Symposium will not be held this year," AMSAT-NA President
Rick Hambly, W2GPS, said. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims on
the Gulf Coast who are now relocated to Lafayette and surrounding states."
Hambly noted that thousands of Gulf Coast evacuees are now housed in
Lafayette for the near future. AMSAT now is processing refunds to those who
already registered for the event.

The AMSAT Board of Directors called on members to donate to the Hurricane
Katrina relief effort and expressed the wish that those who had planned to
attend will donate a portion of their costs of attending to one of the
organizations aiding the Gulf Coast relief effort.

Check the AMSAT Web site <http://www.amsat.org/> for additional information.

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Sol man Tad "Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying" Cook, K7RA, Seattle,
Washington, reports: The K7RA Solar Update

Sunspot 808 returned this week with a vengeance, releasing several powerful
X-class solar flares. The solar flare of September 7 was considered among
the largest on record. Although these flares were not aimed squarely pointed
at Earth, glancing blows could cause greater geomagnetic activity. This
week's flares came on the heels of a high-speed solar wind last weekend that
provoked geomagnetic instability--hence the high A index values--although
conditions quieted down after Sunday.

Currently the interplanetary magnetic field points north, which could offer
some protection. The forecast for the planetary A index for Friday through
Monday, September 9-12, is 25, 20, 10 and 20. Predicted solar flux for the
same days is 100 for Friday, September 9, then values around 110 for the
following week. A little higher sunspot activity is welcome for the next
couple of weeks as we head toward the autumnal equinox, usually a better
time for HF propagation.

Sunspot numbers for September 1 through 7 were 24, 28, 14, 12, 12, 12 and
11, with a mean of 16.1. The 10.7 cm flux was 79.2, 77.1, 74.2, 74.6, 75,
83.4, and 117, with a mean of 82.9. Estimated planetary A indices were 21,
33, 32, 26, 14, 9 and 15 with a mean of 21.4. Estimated mid-latitude A
indices were 11, 24, 20, 18, 9, 6 and 18, with a mean of 15.1.

__________________________________

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The ARRL September VHF QSO Party, the North
American Sprint (CW), the WAE DX Contest (SSB), the Swiss HTC QRP Sprint,
the Arkansas and Tennessee QSO parties and the ARCI End of Summer PSK31
Sprint are the weekend of September 10-11. YLRL Howdy Days are September
14-16. JUST AHEAD: The Emergency Power Operating Event, the North American
Sprint (SSB), the ARRL 10 GHZ and Up Contest, the SARL VHF/UHF Contest. the
Scandinavian Activity Contest (CW), the South Carolina QSO Party, the
Washington State Salmon Run, the QCWA Fall QSO Party are the weekend of
September 17-18. The 144 MHz Fall Sprint is September 19. See the ARRL
Contest Branch page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest
Calendar <http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.

* ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration:
Registration remains open through Sunday, September 11, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE) Program on-line courses: ARRL
Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), ARRL Technician Licensing
(EC-010), and ARRL Analog Electronics (EC-012). Classes begin Friday,
September 23. To learn more, visit the CCE Course Listing page
<http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact the CCE Department,
cce@arrl.org.

* Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration: Registration
for the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level II on-line course
(EC-002) opens Monday, September 12, at 1201 AM EDT and will remain open
until all available 86 seats have been filled. Classes begin Friday,
September 30, and Friday, October 28. Students must have completed Level I
before registering for Level II. Thanks to the United Technologies
Corporation (UTC), the $45 registration fee paid upon enrollment will be
reimbursed to students who complete the course requirements and are upgraded
by their mentor to "Passed" within the 8-week course period. During this
registration period, seats are being offered to ARRL members on a
first-come, first-served basis. Mail in registrations may not qualify for
reimbursement. To learn more, visit the ARRL Certification and Continuing
Education (CCE) Web page <http://www.arrl.org/cce>. For more information,
contact Online Course Coordinator Jean Wolfgang, <cce@arrl.org>;;
860-594-0200.

* Katrina radio public service announcement available! ARRL is making
available a 30-second radio public service announcement (PSA) to highlight
that ham radio has been on the air throughout the Hurricane Katrina crisis,
passing emergency communications when other systems failed. Dozens of
stations across the country already are playing earlier ARRL
"mini-commercials" for ham radio, and the numbers keep growing. You can help
by listening to, then downloading, the latest PSA
<http://www.arrl.org/pio/ARRLkatrina.mp3> from the ARRL Web site here onto a
CD and taking it to your local radio stations. To download the MP3 file,
right click on the above link and choose "Save Target." The latest 30-second
PSA was made possible by Johnny Donovan at WABC (770 AM) and Howard Price,
KA2QPJ, of WABC-TV (Channel 7), both in New York City.

* "When All Else Fails" graphic available: Responding to a member's
suggestion, ARRL is making available its graphic on the theme of "When All
Else Fails... Amateur Radio." The image is available in several sizes and
can be found on the ARRL Web site logos page
<http://www.arrl.org/logos/#waef>.

* Floyd Koontz, WA2WVL, wins August QST Cover Plaque Award: The winner of
the QST Cover Plaque Award for August is Floyd Koontz, WA2WVL, for his
article "Short Dipoles for 160 Meters." Congratulations, Floyd! 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 <http://www.arrl.org/members-only/QSTvote.html>.
Cast a ballot for your favorite article in the September issue by September
30.

* DXCC Desk approves operations for DXCC credit: The ARRL DXCC Desk has
approved these operations for DXCC credit: KH9/AH8H, Wake Island, for
operations in 2003 and 2004; TT8BZ, Chad, March 31-August 23, 2005; 5X1B,
Uganda, August 3-12, 2005. For more information, visit the DXCC Web page
<http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc/>. "DXCC Frequently Asked Questions" can
answer most questions about the DXCC program
<http://www.arrl.org/awards/dxcc/>. ARRL DX bulletins are available on the
W1AW DX Bulletins page <http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/dx/>.

===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American
Radio Relay League--The National Association For Amateur Radio--225 Main St,
Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259;
<http://www.arrl.org/>. Jim Haynie, W5JBP, President.

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential news of interest
to active amateurs. The ARRL Letter strives to be timely, accurate, concise,
and readable. Visit ARRLWeb <http://www.arrl.org/> for the latest news,
updated as it happens. The ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/> offers
access to news, informative features and columns. ARRL Audio News
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> is a weekly "ham radio newscast"
compiled from The ARRL Letter.

Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or
in part in any form without additional permission. Credit must be given to
The ARRL Letter and The American Radio Relay League.

==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
letter-dlvy@arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
==>ARRL News on the Web: <http://www.arrl.org/>
==>ARRL Audio News: <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> or call
860-594-0384

==>How to Get The ARRL Letter

The ARRL Letter is available to ARRL members free of charge directly from
ARRL HQ. To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your address for e-mail
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The ARRL Letter also is available to all, free of charge, from these
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The ARRL Letter

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly summary of essential news of interest to active amateurs that is available in advance of publication in QST, our official journal. The ARRL Letter strives to be timely, accurate, concise and readable.

Much of the ARRL Letter content is also available in audio form in ARRL Audio News.

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1. From the Inbox view, select the Tools menu and the Options selection.

2. Click the Read tab

3. Check the Read All Messages In Plain Text box.  When you open the e-mail, it will be in plain text without images. Other e-mail programs may be able to make a Mail Rule for e-mail received from the address memberlist@www.arrl.org so that the plain-text-only display is selected automatically.

Outlook 2007

Use the same procedure as for Outlook Express, although the global option is under "Tools/Trust Center/E-mail Security".

Thunderbird

Use the menu item "View/Message Body As/Plain Text" or "View/Message Source" options.

OS X Mail (Mac)

Use the "View/Message/Plain Text Alternative" menu item.

GMail

Use the "Message text garbled?" link in the drop-down menu at the upper right of the displayed message block. pine, alpine Set "prefer-plain-text" in your ~/.pinerc configuration file: feature-list=..., prefer-plain-text, ...

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