Today I went to meet up with some local Ham Radio operators to test the HSMM (High Speed MultiMedia) setup and test functionality of phone use. We gathered at the Homer Twp park near Midland, across from the Fire Dept.
Keith, KB8SOE setup a laptop running a PBX server into the a HSMM router to handle and direct all of the calls. He was able to simply add new phones and users in under a minute and have them in the system and ready.
I ordered a POCSAG Paging transmitter and receiver system Ebay from a seller back a few months ago and have been playing with it on/off for a while. My idea is to setup a Ham Radio Paging system. The idea isnt new at all. Lots of ham operators have been wanting to do it for a while and I keep hearing about small projects and tests popping up here and there,m but never anything fully running and operational. I would love to see more Hams get involved in it. Its a really neat mode of operation and has tons of possibilities.
The unit I got was a commercial band UHF Transmitter. Ive been testing it with a UHF stubby dummy-load type antenna.
The unit was made by WaveWare and I dont think its made or sold anymore. Its sad, since the POCSAG encoder board inside is really useful for my needs.
My idea is to pull the transmitter from the unit and use my own VHF transmitter. This will allow me to use the freq that I want and use higher power. I have an older Alinco VHF mobile radio and also use an external high power amp. I will post updates once its setup and working on the new radio.
KC8GRQ-1
This is my main digipeater. The callsign is KC8GRQ-1.
The system runs an older, but rugged Azden PCS-4000 mobile radio. I got the radio for $5 at a local swap, because the mic audio didnt work. It turns out it was just a bad mic element. It didnt matter since I dont need the mic anyways.
Its on a small 2.5 amp power supply, which is enough for the 10w output power that I have it set at.
My idea for assigning CAP Codes for Ham Radio pagers is pretty simple.
Since most people Ive talked to have wanted them for multiple uses, there needs to be a way to setup “Group” and “Individual” codes.”
Group CAP Codes
These are codes that would be general info, and sent to a group of people. Anyone would be able to get these messages.
My Ideas for Ham / Amateur Radio paging.
This is going to be a rough idea “note pad” that I will edit as my plans evolve and improve.
Nothing in here is final yet.
This is kind of a notepad for me to remember ideas, share and keep track of my plans.
My neighbors were throwing out a broken big screen TV.
I went across the street to check it out. It was in great condition, and only a few years old, so I decided to grab it and see if I cold fix it.
I loaded it up in my kid’s wagon and wheeled it across the street. I plugged it in, and i didnt turn on, but t went into Protection Mode.I opened it up, found a smoking filter capacitor in the power supply section. I clipped one leg and tried to turn it on again. BINGO! It worked. The bad cap was getting hot, smoking and throwing it into safety protection mode. I need to order the capacitor, but it works great without it for now.
Montcalm County Mi NOW LIVE!
I found a great deal on Craigslist for 13 computers and 11 LCD 19″ monitors.
The computers are Dell Dimension 2350 [9] and Dimension 3000 [4]. I got 11 of the 13 working. They all need hard drives and memory, as it was pulled from the business.
The monitors all need internal power supplies, since they were left on 24/7 and the caps went bad. I guess the company was going to have the power supplies replaced, but never did. They are all missing. They are only $33 on Ebay, so its not too bad.
Overall I got a great deal. Ill only use 2 or 3 of them for myself and the rest ill sell soon. I might keep some for scanner audio feeds also, but after upgrading my existing computers, I might just use those, since speed isnt an issue for streaming audio on the net.
When you but the Harbor Freight 45 watt solar panel kit, it comes with 2 12 volt, 5 watt fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs come with standard light bulb holders and 1/4″ phono plugs to be used with the charge controller.
I personally didnt like the way it was setup for use (at least MY use).
They would work great for a garage or shed or some area where you need a simple light to run off Solar Power or battery power. I wanted a cleaner look.
I went to Home Depot and picked up a standard 120volt wall outlet for something like $0.40 each, plus a wall box and basic white cover. Everything was under $2. I had some cheap old speaker wire laying around (im a pack rat for electronics), so I decided to use that to hookup the bulbs.
The 12volt bulbs are a standard lightbulb thread. I simply screwed them into my floor light, that has a area light and a directional light.
Then you need to wire up the 120volt wall outlet to the 12 volt controller.
Simply Wire your POSITIVE (+) to the HOT/ Black Wire side of the plug (small slot side) . Note: I used a BLUE wire for my Positive in the pics.
Wire the NEGATIVE (-) to where the Neutral / White wire would go (large slot side).
Then you can install it into the wall box and put on the cover.
Simply wire the other end of your power cord to the controller, and turn on the lights, and Enjoy!
Now for a safety note:
DO NOT FOR ANY REASON PLUG THE LAMP INTO AN ACTUAL 120VOLT WALL OUTLET! DOING SO WILL CAUSE THE 12VOLT BULBS TO LIKELY EXPLODE AND MAY CAUSE A FIRE!
Just use common sense. Mark the plug on the lamp or something so you dont forget.
Now for a review of the bulbs.
I honestly didnt really like them at 1st. They werent bright enough for me at my desk when Im working at night. However, during writing this entry, they have gotten brighter in the 1st 2 min and are now tolerable for me. I took some pics to show what they look like at 3am in my completely dark house.
Just like anything with going green or using alternate energy, it will take a little change getting used to, but no big deal when Ill be saving $$ each month. Who cares if I have to wait 2 min for full brightness. I still have my other standard 120volt fluorescent lights in my living room if I need it brighter.
I went from TWO 23 fluorescent watt bulbs (aprox 60 regular watt brightness) to these 5 watt bulbs. I really only used 1 bulb at night, but with the 12volt 5 watt bulbs, Ill need both.
At night i was using AKA PAYING FOR 23 fluorescent watts on a standard bulb. Now I have 2 bulbs at 10 watts total that I pay $0.00 /month for and they give me about 50watts of brightness compared to a standard incandescent bulb.
