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NES Amateur Radio (HAM) Club
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![[grin]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/041.gif "Grin [grin]")
I bought that book back in the 80s
It's a good idea to get the latest Study book, As the question pool has been changed and new questions have been added or deleted.
73's
K1VQP
I bought that book back in the 80s
Actually, the book you bought in the 80s was probably "Tune in the World with Ham Radio". The title changed to "Now You're Talking" in 1991 with the dropping of the Morse requirement for the Technician license.
The first book I read was in my elementary school library in late 80s. The book however was from somewhere between 1964 and 1978, based on the licensing rules in it. I had a latent interest for years, but didn't act on it until I saw a sign for an exam session the next day in 2003. I crammed on the web that night and passed the exam the next day. I upgraded to Extra 2 months later.
I'm thinking the same thing. I'm also thinking I may sit for the test before the class, then taking the class anyway. That is, of course, if I can find a place to take it.
Looks like I can get a 25% discount through the volunteer instructor program. Once I set a date and give people some time to confirm and pay, I'll order the books. I'd be happy to let people come pick them up as soon as they come in.
If you want to try out the exam before the class, there are some online places to do so.
http://www.aa9pw.com/radio/ gives you the whole exam at once, and then gives you feedback when you're done. I like that one best for practicing before an exam. http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl tells you immediately after you answer each question whether you got it right. I like that better for studying.
For those that don't know, all of the questions are public. For the technician exam, there is a pool of 392 questions. They are divided into 35 groups by topic. An exam consists of one randomly chosen question from each group. You have to get 26 out of 35 correct to pass. It's certainly possible to pass simply by memorizing the pool.
If you want to spend the $14 to take a real exam, you can find one at http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml.
If you want to try out the exam before the class, there are some online places to do so.
http://www.aa9pw.com/radio/ gives you the whole exam at once, and then gives you feedback when you're done. I like that one best for practicing before an exam. http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl tells you immediately after you answer each question whether you got it right. I like that better for studying.
For those that don't know, all of the questions are public. For the technician exam, there is a pool of 392 questions. They are divided into 35 groups by topic. An exam consists of one randomly chosen question from each group. You have to get 26 out of 35 correct to pass. It's certainly possible to pass simply by memorizing the pool.
If you want to spend the $14 to take a real exam, you can find one at http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml.
Good for you. Actually, the sooner the better. The best thing to do is to study before the class so that you know what to ask the instructor when you get there.
Jar:
I am going to see if one of my clubs would be interested in helping with this project. I am not making any promises, but I know guys that have run 1 day and 2 day classes in the past. Maybe if I explain that there is a big group ready to commit to a class, they may offer their expertise. I probably won’t know until next week though.
/John
Have any of you hams used this prep software? It looks pretty good, I think. http://www.dauntless-soft.com/PRODUCTS/FCCTest/
Best of all, it's only $40.
Best of all, it's only $40.
I just passed the Technician Class written test in 7 minutes!
![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
Doesn't look like the material has changed that much. However, it looks like this is just a question pool memorization program -- it doesn't actually include lessons to teach you the underlying theory. That's fine to get into ham radio, and it'll probably work, just be aware of that.
BTW --if anyone wants to get right into it, you can get a sneak peek of the world of Ham Radio right away. Just go Here, and download the software. It's called Echolink, and although you can't utilize the software to transmit until you're registered with a callsign once you're licensed, I'm pretty sure it has a receive-only mode.
How it works is hams buy or build an interface box that hooks their radio gear to the internet, then these boxes are linked via the internet and the Echolink software. You can communicate with radio gear thru Echolink-connected stations, or even cooler, you can connect to these stations via a computer running Echolink, so you're essentially operating without any radio gear at all! So, once you're licensed, you can get to operating right away even if you don't have a station.
How it works is hams buy or build an interface box that hooks their radio gear to the internet, then these boxes are linked via the internet and the Echolink software. You can communicate with radio gear thru Echolink-connected stations, or even cooler, you can connect to these stations via a computer running Echolink, so you're essentially operating without any radio gear at all! So, once you're licensed, you can get to operating right away even if you don't have a station.
dwarven1
Lonely Mountain Arms
Somehow, this post seem to have been overlooked...
![[sad]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/004.gif "Sad [sad]")
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KB1PQE - FN42gc (Milford, MA) 2m/70cm HT
Never actually operated, except to check into a net one night... Just licensed late last year.
If you have any plans do to a General class, I'd be interested in that!
--EasyD
Never actually operated, except to check into a net one night... Just licensed late last year.
If you have any plans do to a General class, I'd be interested in that!
--EasyD
Here's another VOIP program that I've been using lately. Similar to Echolink, but more closer to actually operating on the air, you can tune around the different bands and see who is actually on. They do charge a fee to use the program and it's open to all licensed hams.
http://qsonet.com/
http://qsonet.com/
N1MPK - Southboro, MA
2m/70cm if I can find the charger for the HT.
Also, I have HF gear, but no antenna.
I haven't been on the air for a long time, but was a Tech Plus. I'm not sure what that got translated to when they dropped the code requirements (and haven't really had any need to research it).
2m/70cm if I can find the charger for the HT.
Also, I have HF gear, but no antenna.
I haven't been on the air for a long time, but was a Tech Plus. I'm not sure what that got translated to when they dropped the code requirements (and haven't really had any need to research it).
I'm all set!
I have been an extra class for many years.
73's
NP2FZ
I have been an extra class for many years.
73's
NP2FZ
![[dance]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/033.gif "Dance [dance]")
The only thing about that one is it doesn't involve radio at all -- it's basically a sophisticated chat room, although it's a good simulation and good for practice. Unfortunately, they require their users to actually have ham licenses, which is kind of absurd.
Where do I sign up? I will be in an outage at the time, but that may not preclude me studying and sitting for the test with some other folks.
The good thing is even if you don't completely understand 50% of it, initially, it's still not all that hard to pass the test. (Eventually, if you study the pool enough, you'll pass pretty easily because the questions all become familiar. )
Later on you'll learn stuff by doing, more or less. If you're good at tinkering with things, mechanical or otherwise, you'll probably learn a lot. There is a lot of science/engineering but there is also an element of just plain practical knowledge. A lot can be learned just by playing around with different things, reading books (or even just thumbing through them) websites, etc.
-Mike
Fortunately, you only need to understand 74.3% of it to pass. A one day class will pretty much only get you through the stuff you need to pass the exam. After the class, I'll be happy to teach some more stuff on an individual basis.
Actually, that just gave me an idea. Would people be interested in doing the class as a forum based correspondence thing? ie, everyone gets the book, we set a schedule for reading a chapter and then discussing it on the forum?
I'm still interested in running a traditional class, but perhaps a forum based class / study group could be a helpful supplement or alternative for people who couldn't make the class.
Actually, that just gave me an idea. Would people be interested in doing the class as a forum based correspondence thing? ie, everyone gets the book, we set a schedule for reading a chapter and then discussing it on the forum?
I'm still interested in running a traditional class, but perhaps a forum based class / study group could be a helpful supplement or alternative for people who couldn't make the class.
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