Thoughts on FT8 Hate

Posted on by KC8JC

As a newbie to the world of ham radio, some things have been pretty obvious to me that might be missed by those who are steeped in its traditions. One of those is the love/hate relationship between computers and ham radio operators. I think most who are even mildly interested in keeping a log appreciate…

IC-705 WLAN with WSJT-X

Posted on by KC8JC

With the usual tip of the cap to OH8STN I dug in on the v1.24 firmware of the IC-705 to rid my field setup of yet another cable. I think I’m about as close to field nirvana as I’m going to get. So what did I do and what did I learn? First off, I…

mAT-705 – Accessory Detour

Posted on by KC8JC

Antenna tuners are a thing to have, right? If you’re going to use a less than adequate antenna or just a random piece of wire, a tuner is going to come in handy. At home, I have an attic dipole that’s strung from one side of the attic to the other. I usually use my…

IC-705 – Part 3: GPS

Posted on by KC8JC

I’m slowly stepping my way through all that the IC-705 has to offer. I still consider myself quite a new ham, so there are features that I know little about that I’m starting to have a lot of fun with. But for a moment, I’m going to indulge something that I’m really getting geared up…

More Bags

Posted on by KC8JC

OK, OK, OK… My wife tells me that I have a “Bag Problem.” I like to think of it as having the right tool for the job. That said, I’ve been playing around with a million different configurations of my existing collection to find a good solution to the problem of how to carry the…

Carrying Things Around

Posted on by KC8JC

I love bags. I really do. I have different shapes and sizes for a number of applications. I skew toward Kelty for backpacks for camping because they seem to fit me well. I have a Maxpedition sling that I like for grab and go applications. I also have some no-name bags that I take kayaking…

Radio UI/UX Thoughts

Posted on by KC8JC

I’m taking a lot of notes on the IC-705 as I get acquainted with it. I did this when I got my TH-D74 and it served me well. I keep a little notebook around or throw bits and pieces into my notetaking software with tags so that I can find it later. What is emerging…

Be Prepared

Posted on by KC8JC

“Be Prepared” is the Scout Motto. It’s not the slogan. The slogan is, “Do A Good Turn Daily.” The difference is important. Both are important, but it’s hard to do a good turn if you aren’t prepared. I’ve done the Jamboree On The Air with my kids for the last 2 years. We never really…

IC-705 – Part 2: FT8

Posted on by KC8JC

The adventures with the IC-705 continue! This week, I installed the most recent release candidate for FT8. It contains a listing for the IC-705 so it doesn’t have to be spoofed. The application ran fine for me on my Windows 10 laptop. The radio did exactly what it should do and I got my first…

Computers: An Aside

Posted on by KC8JC

Working closely with technology for an extended period of time has colored my views on computing. I’ve gone from full-on, build it all myself or die to using whatever works reliably and jettisoning anything that fails. I can trace the completion of that transition to the point where I had a little baby boy to…