By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
ARRL Contributing Editor
It was a nasty night, with heavy rain and howling wind. I was down in my shack, overseeing three Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) nets: our weekly voice net, a short net in which we practice receiving formal traffic and a packet net. I’m the manager for all of them.
After I wrapped up the nets, I went upstairs to start doing the paperwork. My wi…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
Contributing Editor
Some years ago, my wife Nancy and I dabbled at putting together electronic kits. Our efforts weren’t entirely successful, so we drifted on to other interests. In the back of my mind, I always had the notion that we would return to kit-building, but we never did. Recently, however, an opportunity presented itself, and once again I found myself squinting at…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
ARRL Contributing Editor
Many years ago, my grandfather used to build radio sets and sell them to his neighbors. Somewhat later, just after World War II, he and my father installed radios in cars for Western Auto. They saved up their earnings and eventually started Hoffman Radio-Television Sales and Service, which was the premiere TV shop in Savannah, Georgia for a number of…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
Contributing Editor
Kerchunk, kerchunk. You know what that noise means, right? That was the sound of me “testing my radio” when I first got my license. Bet you did it, too. Oh? You claim you never did anything so impertinent as to key up and unkey, just to convince yourself that you were transmitting? Okay, if you say so.
That first instance of me beaming radio waves to myse…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
ARRL Contributing Editor
Got an Amateur Radio item on the list you wrote to Santa this year? Of course you have. But if you’re like me, you don’t really expect to get it. First, what we want (well, what I want, anyway) is way too expensive. Second, it’s probably too heavy for Santa’s sleigh (or for Mrs Santa to carry out to the SUV). And third, Santa can’t just go to the ma…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
ARRL Contributing Editor
I was sitting in my shack, fuming over my latest failure. I was a computer professional for more than 40 years and I still couldn’t penetrate digital modes. Or understand the menus on modern transceivers. Or figure out why the heck my newest radio beeped at random times. I guess it’s because I’m an old fossil who never owned an X-this or i-that.
I kn…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
Contributing Editor
“Who did you say you were again?” the receptionist asked. “Gary Hoffman,” I said. “I’m with the Amateur Radio Emergency Service. I’m supposed to run a test on your Amateur Radio equipment.”
I was patient, even though I knew that the SET (Simulated Emergency Test) was supposed to start right at that very moment. They had kept me at the reception desk of the…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources
By Gary Hoffman, KB0H
Contributing Editor
I cleaned my shack this morning. Okay, that might not even be physically possible, but I certainly made a serious dent in the clutter. I removed everything that was keeping me from opening my file cabinets. I extracted a bunch of junk from behind them and moved them back so that there was more space in the shack. I untangled the mass of cables and wires t…
American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources