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ARRL Letter

 

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 24, No. 45
November 18, 2005
***************

IN THIS EDITION:

* +League asks FCC to regulate by bandwidth instead of mode
* +String of tornadoes prompts Amateur Radio response
* +ISS commander entertains, educates, inspires via ham radio
* +ARRL announces director, vice direction election results
* +Toys pouring in for 2005 Holiday Toy Drive
*  Solar Update
*  IN BRIEF:
     This weekend on the radio: Get on for the ARRL NOVEMBER SWEEPSTAKES
(SSB)!
     ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration
    +"Ham Aid" funds available to help replace storm-damaged emcomm systems
    +Revised restrictions on 70 cm bear repeating
     UK radio amateurs don't want lifetime licenses, poll indicates
     Deadline is December 31 for WRTC 2006 applicants
     TAPR announces election results

+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
===========================================================
+ NOTE: ARRL Headquarters will be closed Thursday and Friday, November 24
and 25, for the Thanksgiving holiday. There will be no W1AW bulletin or code
practice transmissions on those days. Next week's editions of The ARRL
Letter, ARRL Audio News and the DX and propagation bulletins will be
distributed Wednesday, November 23. ARRL Headquarters will reopen Monday,
November 28, at 8 AM Eastern Time. We wish everyone a safe and enjoyable
Thanksgiving holiday!
===========================================================

==>ARRL FILES REGULATION-BY-BANDWIDTH PETITION WITH FCC

The ARRL has formally asked the FCC to adopt the League's plan to segment
the Amateur Radio bands solely by emission bandwidth rather than by mode.
The Petition for Rule Making, filed November 14, recommends what the ARRL
called "a shift in regulatory philosophy" that would encourage and
facilitate the development and refinement of digital techniques and advanced
technologies. At the same time, the League said, accommodating new
technologies would not come at the expense of current operating modes,
including double-sideband AM phone.

"This petition seeks for the Amateur Radio Service the flexibility to
experiment with new digital transmission methods and types to be developed
in the future," the League's petition said, "while permitting present
operating modes to continue to be used for as long as there are radio
amateurs who wish to use them." The ARRL said the changes it suggests will
also update the FCC's rules and eliminate the need for "cumbersome
procedures" to determine whether a new digital mode is legal under Part 97.

The ARRL's regulation-by-bandwidth plan is far from a done deal. In order
for it to be adopted, the FCC first must put the League's Petition for Rule
Making on public notice and invite formal public comments. A subsequent
Notice of Proposed Rule Making would kick off a further round of formal
comments. Ultimately, the FCC would have to issue a Report and Order putting
the changes into place and setting an effective date.

The League conceded that its regulation-by-bandwidth regime would place
increased responsibility on the amateur community to establish workable,
accepted band plans, but it expressed confidence that such an effort would
be successful.

The petition filed this week has been in the works for some time now. The
ARRL Board of Directors adopted the petition's guiding principle in 2002 and
invited comments from the Amateur Radio community in the summer of 2004. The
proposal reflects expert input from the ARRL Ad Hoc HF Digital Committee as
well as from ARRL staff. Comments from League members and an ARRL Executive
Committee review led to further fine tuning.

The ARRL wants the FCC to replace the table at §97.305(c) with a new one
that segment bands by bandwidths ranging from 200 Hz to 100 kHz. Unaffected
by the ARRL's recommendations, if they're adopted, would be 160 and 60
meters. Subbands in other bands below 29 MHz would accommodate maximum
emission bandwidths of 200, 500 or 3.5 kHz, with an exception of 9 kHz for
AM phone.

The League's petition "seeks to facilitate and encourage the development,
refinement and use of new digital technologies without the regulatory
remnants developed at a time when the principal emissions used in the
Amateur Radio Service were Morse telegraphy and single- or double-sideband
amplitude-modulated telephony." Part 97 rules need to permit higher data
rates between 1.8 and 450 MHz to encourage development of digital multimedia
technology, "which has great promise for improving and fostering more
effective emergency and disaster relief communications," the petition
asserted.

"This petition does not favor one mode at the expense of another," the ARRL
concluded in urging FCC adoption. "It merely allows expansion of the
repertoire of options that amateurs may pursue compatibly."

ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, discussed the subject of regulating by
bandwidth in three "It Seems to Us . . ." QST editorials: "Regulation by
Bandwidth" in September 2004, "Narrowing the Bandwidth Issues" in April 2005
and "Self Regulation" in October 2005.

The text of the ARRL's Petition for Rule Making is on the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/bandwidth/Bandwidth-Minute-64-Petit
ion-FINAL.pdf>.

==>AMATEUR RADIO RESPONDS AS STORMS SPAWN RASH OF TORNADOES

Just weeks after assisting in hurricane relief efforts along the Gulf Coast
and in Florida, Amateur Radio volunteers responded in the wake of yet
another weather emergency. Strong thunderstorms resulting from a clash of
cold and warm fronts in the nation's midsection spawned tornadoes in several
states. The nearly three dozen twisters reported November 15 in Kentucky,
Indiana, Tennessee, Illinois and Missouri came a little more than a week
after tornadoes killed more than 20 people in Indiana and days after another
string hit Iowa, resulting in one death. Some 8000 customers were left
without electricity in the affected states, but Kentucky appears to have
been the hardest hit.

"Nets for SKYWARN were activated all across the affected areas," Kentucky
Section Emergency Coordinator Ron Dodson, KA4MAP, reported November 16. "We
also had the state EOC [emergency operations center] on the air on 3.993 MHz
last night as we were trying to get emergency information into and out of
the affected areas." Dodson told ARRL Headquarters that WX4NWS at the
Louisville National Weather Service (NWS) office was active during the
afternoon and evening of November 15 as forecasters tried to keep up with
the rapidly developing weather.

One person died in the Marshall County town of Benton, where a tornado
severely damaged a mobile home park. Upward of two dozen other people were
hurt, Dodson added.

Kentucky Area 2 District Emergency Coordinator Nick Bailey, KG4URI, said a
tornado ripped through the southern end of Madisonville. He estimated that
up to 30 ARES and RACES volunteers deployed throughout Hopkins County. Baily
reported "a lot of damage" but no deaths.

On November 16, three ARES teams equipped with APRS and GPS accompanied
search-and-rescue (SAR) teams going door-to-door. "Amateur radio provided
mostly SAR communications as the police repeaters were still up," Bailey
added.

According to Bailey, preliminary estimates had 35 to 40 homes severely
damaged or destroyed in the Madisonville area and possibly 10 in Earlington.
At least two dozen people were reported injured in Hopkins County, and the
count was expected to rise. A confirmed touchdown also occurred in Sharps.

Steve Morgan, W4NHO, an ARRL Great Lakes Division assistant director,
reported a tornado was tracked from Dawson Spring through Owensboro and into
southeastern Indiana. "I spoke with the deputy EMA director in Hopkins
County, Frank Wright, KA4IGR," he said at mid-week. "Amateur Radio is the
only reliable communications they have at the moment due to power outages."
Telephone service also was reported out in parts of Kentucky.

Indiana's latest encounter with tornadoes was not nearly as severe as that
of November 6. In the November 15 outbreak, one person was reported killed
in Hancock County when a car went out of control after running into water on
the pavement. Indiana SEC Dave Pifer, N9YNF, said property damage this time
was largely "hit and miss" across the state.

"I know the SKYWARN programs were hopping yesterday as we tracked the storms
through the area," he said. "At one point they would only take
tornado/funnel reports and significant damage reports because there was so
much going on."

Illinois SM Shari Harlan, N9SH, says her section seems to have largely
escaped the tornado outbreak. "It appears that while some straight line
winds toppled some structures in the Wabash, Edwards and Lawrence county
area, they escaped the afternoon round of storms," she said. She did note
one report of definite rotational echoes, however.

Iowa SEC Jim Snapp, NA0R, said Amateur Radio volunteers responded after a
series of eight tornadoes within a few hours hit central Iowa November 12.
The twisters hit parts of eight counties, he said, and one person was
killed.

"Homes, business and farmsteads were damaged or destroyed as the tornadoes
rampaged through the Iowa countryside and in some small communities," he
said. According to Snapp, K0DMX at the NWS Des Moines office started getting
reports of hail and tornado activity around 3:45 PM CDT. "Amateur reports as
well as other sources of storm information enabled the NWS staff to send out
updates to the storms activity and its path to the public," he said, adding
that a dozen hams contributed reports to the SKYWARN net.

==>STUDENTS IN ITALY, ENGLAND ENTERTAINED, EDUCATED VIA HAM RADIO

Students in Italy and England spoke via Amateur Radio November 9 with
International Space Station Commander Bill McArthur, KC5ACR. The Amateur
Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program arranged the QSOs
with the Francesco Negri Comprehensive Institute in Casale Monferrato,
Italy, and with Furtherwick Park School on Canvey Island in Essex, England.
Speaking via the space station's NA1SS, McArthur shared with the students in
Italy how it feels to be living in space.

"I feel very humble, I feel like I'm a very small person from a planet with
many billions of people and that I'm very fortunate to represent human
beings--mankind--in space," McArthur said. He and crewmate Valery Tokarev
will be aboard the ISS until next April.

McArthur said he and Tokarev have been conducting experiments focused
primarily on how people can live and work during long periods in space. He
also said microgravity was "very, very comfortable," and meant the crew
never had to sit down. In all McArthur managed to answer 20 questions during
the nearly eight-minute contact.

The contact took place over a teleconferencing circuit via Nancy Rocheleau,
WH6PN, in Honolulu, because Italian radio regulations do not permit
unlicensed individuals to speak over Amateur Radio.

A little more than seven hours later, McArthur was back at NA1SS, this time
for a direct contact between NA1SS and GB2FPS at Furtherwick Park School,
where 16 students took part in the event. In answer to one student's
question, McArthur said the Amateur Radio station was one of the systems
available to keep in contact with Earth if the primary and back-up
communication systems ever went down.

The ISS commander also allowed that he enjoyed a broad and eclectic range of
music, from classical to country.

"I like classical--Mozart, Beethoven, Bach. I like contemporary music--Jet,
Dispatch. I like country-and-western music--Garth Brooks, Robert Earl Keen
are my favorite singers there. I like older music--I'm a big Beatles fan,"
McArthur said.

"As a matter of fact," McArthur continued, "we're going to have live music
aboard the station Sunday morning from one of Sir Paul McCartney's concerts
out in California." Indeed, on November 13, McCartney provided a live wakeup
call from Earth to the ISS crew during a first-ever concert linkup.

Several of the Furtherwick Park students' questions were more scientifically
oriented than those typically put to ISS crew members during ARISS school
group contacts. Replying to a question on whether microgravity affects the
distribution of bodily fluids, McArthur answered in the affirmative.

"The fluid tends to shift down from our legs, our feet, lower extremities to
the upper part of your body," McArthur explained. He said there's not much
astronauts can do to prepare for this occurrence, and the body responds by
reducing the amount of fluid in the body.

He told another student that it would be difficult to maintain a candle's
flame in microgravity because the convection needed to supply oxygen to the
flame requires gravity. Convection keeps a candle's flame generally vertical
on Earth, McArthur explained. Microgravity also influences how substances
mix, he said.

ARISS is an international educational outreach with US participation by
ARRL, AMSAT and NASA.

==>WINNERS ANNOUNCED IN CONTESTED ARRL DIRECTOR, VICE DIRECTOR RACES

A new face will occupy the Atlantic Division Director's chair on the ARRL
Board of Directors starting January 1, but it will be a familiar one.
Incumbent directors won new three-year terms in two other divisions. One new
and one not-so-new Vice Director candidate also emerged victorious. Ballots
in contested elections for ARRL Director and Vice Director seats in the
three divisions were counted November 18 at ARRL Headquarters. Incumbent
directors and vice directors in two additional divisions ran unopposed and
have been declared elected.

IN THE ATLANTIC DIVISION: Current Atlantic Division Vice Director William C.
"Bill" Edgar, N3LLR, will be moving into the Director's spot. He overcame a
challenge from ARRL Western New York Section Manager Scott J. Bauer, W2LC,
by a vote of 2404 to 1527. Edgar takes over from Bernie Fuller, N3EFN, who
did not seek reelection. During the campaign, Edgar stressed his five years
as Vice Director and pledged to continue Fuller's leadership example. He
previously served as Western Pennsylvania Section Manager.

Elected to succeed Edgar as Vice Director was ARRL Maryland-DC Section
Manager Thomas J. "Tom" Abernethy, W3TOM, who outpolled Thomas G. Valosin,
WB2KLD, 2335 to 1579. An SM since 2001, Abernethy, cited his section's
leadership role in providing Amateur Radio's response to the 2001 terrorist
attack on the Pentagon as well as to two devastating tornadoes and several
successful BPL and antenna regulation challenges. Abernethy and Edgar ran a
joint campaign for their respective positions and had Fuller's endorsement.

IN THE GREAT LAKES DIVISION: Incumbent Director James E. "Jim" Weaver, K8JE,
was elected to a second term. By a vote of 3505 to 883, he held off a
challenge from Neil Sablatzky, K8IT. Weaver focused his campaign on having
kept promises he made when he ran three years ago and on acting in accord
with the wishes of his constituents. Among his accomplishments, Weaver
introduced the motion before the ARRL Board of Directors to establish the
ARRL Grassroots Legislative Action Program.

Returning to the back bench will be former Great Lakes Division Director and
Vice Director Gary L. Johnston, KI4LA, whom Weaver defeated in a three-way
race for Director in 2002. He outpolled Daniel M. Romanchik, KB6NU, 3033 to
1263. Johnston had served for about six months in the division's top spot
following the 2002 resignation of former Director George Race, WB8BGY.
Current Great Lakes Vice Director Richard "Dick" Mondro, W8FQT, did not run
for another term.

IN THE MIDWEST DIVISION: Incumbent Director Wade Walstrom, W0EJ, topped
challenger Harry S. Nordman, AB0SX, 1806 to 364, to gain a third term.
During his tenure, Walstrom--an electrical engineer and a radio amateur for
45 years--has chaired the Volunteer Resources and Programs and Services
committees and served on the ARRL Executive Committee. He also describes
himself as a "crusader against BPL."

Veteran Midwest Division Vice Director Bruce Frahm, K0BJ, was unopposed for
another term.

Elsewhere, Dakota Division Director Jay Bellows, K0QB, and Vice Director
Twila Greenheck, N0JPH, were unchallenged for new terms as were Delta
Division Director Delta Division Director Rick Roderick, K5UR, and Vice
Director Henry Leggette, WD4Q.

==>ARRL 2005 HOLIDAY TOY DRIVE SHIFTS INTO HIGH GEAR

Toys are rolling in as generous radio amateurs and others across the country
respond to the ARRL/The Salvation Army 2005 Holiday Toy Drive
<http://www.arrl.org/pio/toy>. The League has partnered with The Salvation
Army for this year's effort to bring some holiday cheer to children left
homeless or displaced in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Things got very busy this week at the Memphis, Tennessee, collection site,
where ARRL Delta Division Vice Director Henry Leggette, WD4Q, and more than
a dozen volunteers are struggling to keep up with the influx of toys. One of
the volunteer coordinators, Joe Lowenthal, WA4OVO, says November 16 was the
busiest day yet.

"We received 24 boxes with 319 toys from 12 individuals and 5 clubs," he
reported. "One individual sent 192 small toys." Shipments arriving the next
day brought the toy total in the Memphis warehouse to more than 800.

ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, says the toy donations will go a long way
to brighten the holidays for youngsters still reeling from the devastating
Gulf Coast storms. "I know we can't do everything, but it's something we can
do as a small token of what Amateur Radio's all about and in appreciation of
the troubles that people are going to be facing during the holiday season,"
Haynie said. "Our hearts go out to everyone displaced."

Lowenthal says Cascades Amateur Radio Society in Jackson, Michigan,
participating in the Holiday Toy Drive for the first time, sent more than
three dozen holiday gifts. Four boxes arrived recently from the volunteers
at WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio station at the National Hurricane Center.
Youngsters at Swanson Elementary School in Palmer, Alaska, sent a selection
of stuffed animals, many with personal notes or drawing for the recipients
attached.

Hams in Louisiana, which took the brunt of Hurricane Katrina, have stepped
up to the plate too, with a special toy collection at a recent hamfest. "We
are certainly glad to help with this and hope we get a good turnout," said
Louisiana Section Public Information Coordinator Dave Gore, W5DSG. "After
seeing and working with the hurricane victims, this project really hits
home."

Anticipating that activity will be even more hectic over the next few weeks,
Leggette estimates he'll need 30 or more volunteers before the December 10
collection deadline. As for more toys, Leggette says to bring 'em on.

Send new unwrapped toys for boys and girls aged 1 to 14 to: ARRL Toy
Drive/The Salvation Army, 1775 Moriah Woods Blvd--Suite 12, Memphis, TN
38117-7125. Include a QSL card or a card bearing your call sign.

Through its Jackson, Mississippi, facility, The Salvation Army will handle
distribution of the toys in hurricane-affected coastal communities of
Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana where the need is greatest. Said Maj
Sandra L. Defibaugh, general secretary of The Salvation Army's Gulf Area
divisional headquarters: "We are thankful for the selfless spirit of giving
and sharing demonstrated by the ham operators across the nation."

ARRL Media and Public Relations Manager Allen Pitts, W1AGP, says the Holiday
Toy Drive provides an opportunity for those who wanted to help out in the
response for hurricanes Katrina and Rita but were not able to. "Now there's
a way for hams all over the country to fulfill that desire though the ARRL
Toy Drive," he said.

Holiday Toy Drive national chairperson and country music artist Patty
Loveless, KD4WUJ, joined forces with producer Richard Lubash, N1VXW, to
develop radio and television public service announcements (PSAs) to promote
the drive. These are available on the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arl.org/pio>.

ARRL invites its members to send cash donations, if they prefer, to: ARRL
Toy Drive, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111.

==>SOLAR UPDATE

Ra the Sun god Tad "Sunshine of Your Love" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington,
reports: Just last week we saw no sunspots. Then on November 13 we saw
Sunspot 822 peek around the eastern side of the visible solar disk. By
November 15 we could tell it was a big one and should be squarely facing
Earth by the weekend. Since the interplanetary magnetic field is pointing
south, Earth is vulnerable to any solar flares from Sunspot 822.

The daily sunspot number rose from 26 on November 14 to 32, 58 and 62 on
November 17. This weekend is the ARRL November Sweepstakes (SSB) contest
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2005/novss.html>. Sunspot numbers and
solar flux both are expected to remain relatively high, with solar flux
remaining around 100 for the next week.

Geomagnetic activity is expected to remain low over the weekend, with the
planetary A index for November 18-21 at 5, 5, 7 and 12. Geophysical
Institute Prague predicts quiet conditions on November 24, quiet to
unsettled November 20, 22 and 23, and unsettled November 18, 19 and 21.

Sunspot numbers for November 10 through 16 were 0, 0, 11, 16, 26, 32 and 58,
with a mean of 20.4. The 10.7 cm flux was 77.9, 78.6, 83.1, 87.8, 92.4, 100,
and 94, with a mean of 87.7. Estimated planetary A indices were 2, 5, 10,
14, 10, 4 and 3, with a mean of 6.9. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were
1, 3, 7, 12, 7, 5 and 1, with a mean of 5.1.

==>IN BRIEF:

* This weekend on the radio: The BIG event is the ARRL November Sweepstakes
(SSB) <http://www.arrl.org/contests/rules/2005/novss.html>. Also on tap: the
NA Collegiate ARC Championship (SSB) that runs in conjunction with SS, the
LZ DX Contest, the EUCW Fraternizing CW QSO Party, the All Austrian
160-Meter Contest, and the RSGB Second 1.8 MHz Contest (CW) are the weekend
of November 19-20. JUST AHEAD: The CQ World Wide DX Contest (CW) is the
weekend of November 26-27. 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, November 20, for these ARRL
Certification and Continuing Education (CCE). Program on-line courses:
Emergency Communication Level 1 (EC-001) Antenna Design and Construction
(EC-009), Technician Licensing (EC-010), Radio Frequency Interference
(EC-006), Digital Electronics (EC-013) and Analog Electronics (EC-012).
Classes begin Friday, December 2. To learn more, visit the CCE Course
Listing page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact the CCE
Department <cce@arrl.org>;.

* "Ham Aid" funds available to help replace storm-damaged emcomm systems:
Thanks to a Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) grant
extension, limited ARRL Ham Aid funds are available to help cover the cost
of replacing hurricane-damaged Amateur Radio emergency communication
systems. This assistance applies to ARES group or club-owned open-access
repeaters, critical Amateur Radio infrastructure or other essential
communication backbone equipment damaged by hurricanes Katrina, Rita or
Wilma. The goal is to restore critical Amateur Radio emergency communication
systems in hurricane-prone areas, and especially in cases where equipment
damage has compromised Amateur Radio's disaster-response capability. Funds
will be dispersed on a first-come, first-served basis, and interested groups
or organizations should be prepared to document the loss and provide a
replacement budget. Contact ARRL Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart,
K1MMH <mhobart@arrl.org>;; 860-594-0397 for complete application details and
requirements. Hobart says Ham Aid funds also remain available to cover
limited out-of-pocket expenses for Amateur Radio volunteers who deployed to
the field during hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. Application guidelines
are on the ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/forms/cncs/>.
Time is of the essence! The grant extension expires December 31, 2005!

* Revised restrictions on 70 cm bear repeating: In 2004, a revised Footnote
US7 in Part 2.106 of the Code of Federal Regulations went into effect,
further expanding the 50 W maximum output power restriction in place for the
420-450 MHz band in the US Southwest. (The applicable Part 97 Amateur
Service rule is §97.303, which incorporates §2.106 by reference.) "In
talking to people at hamfests and other Amateur Radio meetings, I've found
that very few people are aware of this rule," says Bill Kauffman, W5YEJ, of
the New Mexico Frequency Coordinating Committee. While the previous version
of §2.106(a), essentially covered the White Sands Missile Range area of New
Mexico, language effective as of January 2004 expanded it to include all of
New Mexico and Texas lying west of 104° W. The 70 cm band is a shared
allocation in the US, and federal government users are primary. Amateur
Radio, as a secondary occupant, may not cause interference to primary
government stations and must tolerate any interference from government
stations. The 50 W restriction continues to apply to all of Arizona and
Florida as well as parts of several other states, including California,
Nevada, Massachusetts, Alaska, North Dakota, Alabama, Georgia and South
Carolina. Exceptions to the power limit must be expressly authorized by the
FCC after mutual agreement, on a case-by-case basis, between the FCC
District Director in the applicable district and the Military Area Frequency
Coordinator at the applicable military base.

* UK radio amateurs don't want lifetime licenses, poll indicates: The
majority of the United Kingdom's radio amateurs want to keep the existing
Amateur Radio licensing structure or have longer license terms rather than
switch to a license that's good for life. That's one conclusion of a MORI
poll commissioned by the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which regulates
Amateur Radio in the UK. The survey of 1572 hams also revealed that
two-thirds of the respondents believe the current licensing structure to be
"about right." The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) points out that the
poll does not represent the conclusions of Ofcom's still-pending
consultation into the future of Amateur Radio but "just one small part" of
the overall process. "Ofcom is keen to issue Amateur Radio licenses for
life," the RSGB said. "But 52 percent of respondents to the survey said they
prefer either the existing arrangement or an extended renewal period." The
RSGB said the lifetime license proposal was even less popular among its
members, with around two-thirds favoring the current arrangement or longer
terms. Of those who wanted longer license terms, 60 percent preferred a
five-year renewal period, the Society reported. Only 1 percent of the those
surveyed said they wanted to abolish the licensing arrangement altogether.
The full survey report is on the Ofcom Web site
<http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radiocomms/ifi/licensing/classes/amateur/morireport
/>.

* Deadline is December 31 for WRTC 2006 applicants: The application deadline
for those desiring to participate in World Radiosport Team Championship 2006
(WRTC 2006) is December 31, 2005. The competition of two-person teams from
around the globe will take place next July in the Florianópolis, Brazil,
area in conjunction with the IARU HF World Championship event. Coordinating
WRTC 2006 will be IARU member-society LABRE (Liga de Amadores Brasileiros de
Radio Emissão) and the Araucaria DX Group. Download more information and
applications from the WRTC 2006 General Rules Web page
<http://www.wrtc2006.com/html/web/en/regras.htm>. WRTC 2006 organizers
invited ARRL to name two teams to compete in the event. Because the
invitation came as a result of two previous WRTCs having been organized in
the Seattle and San Francisco areas, the ARRL Executive Committee recently
approved a staff recommendation to invite the Western Washington DX Club and
the Northern California Contest Club to name teams.

* TAPR announces election results: Dr David Toth, VE3GYQ, is the new
president of TAPR <http://www.tapr.org/>. He succeeds John Ackermann, N8UR.
"Dave will bring new energy and ideas to TAPR, and I look forward to working
with him in his new role," said Ackermann, who will continue as a member of
TAPR's Board of Directors. Re-elected at the TAPR Board of Director's
meeting held September 23-25 during the Digital Communications Conference
were: Steve Bible, N7HPR, vice president; Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, secretary,
and Tom Holmes, N8ZM, treasurer. Bible, Horzepa and Darryl Smith, VK2TDS,
were also re-elected to new three year terms as directors. Toth, a
physician, said he'd be looking to the membership for suggestions on we TAPR
be going and how to get there. "We want to create a fertile playing field
where folks can interact and exchange ideas," he said, and encouraged TAPR
members to contact him directly <ve3gyq@tapr.org>;.

===========================================================
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!):
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==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org
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==>ARRL Audio News: <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> or call
860-594-0384

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modification" to make selections effective. (NOTE: HQ staff members cannot
change your e-mail delivery address. You must do this yourself via the
Members Only Web Site.)

The ARRL Letter also is available to all, free of charge, from these
sources:

* ARRLWeb <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>. (NOTE: The ARRL Letter will be
posted each Friday when it is distributed via e-mail.)

* The QTH.net listserver, thanks to volunteers from the Boston Amateur Radio
Club: Visit Mailing Lists@QTH.Net
<http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/letter-list>. (NOTE: The ARRL
cannot assist subscribers who receive The ARRL Letter via this listserver.)



 

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.

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.

Back issues published since 2000 are available on this page. If you wish to subscribe via e-mail, simply log on to the ARRL Web site, click on Edit Your Profile at the top, then click on Edit Email Subscriptions. Check the box next to The ARRL email newsletter, the ARRL Letter and you will receive each weekly issue in HTML format. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!): letter-dlvy@arrl.org

Editorial questions or comments: John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, at news@arrl.org.

Plain-Text

The ARRL E-Letter e-mail is also available in plain-text version:

Outlook Express

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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