n2qfd wrote to All <=-

I'm curious where the general consensus is at these days about the
non licensed operators.
I've got an old co-worker who was talking about buying some baofeng
HT's and his kids and their cousins playing and enjoying them. I
remember doing this exact thing with CB radio when I was a kid but I'm
not sure they're not using amateur radio gear unlicensed.

I can't speak for others, and I might get 'shouted down' for this, but
I'll tell you my personal thoughts...

I used to geocache with a lot of friends. This was before smart phones.
It would have been nice to have a HAM license and to be able to
communicate as we were group hunting, etc. (We did a lot at night -
sometimes had a convoy of six or more cars going to another town.)

I mentioned HAM after I got my license and another cacher was NOT
interested in getting a license, but was interested in getting
some cheap radios to have in case of society collapsing. I told
him get them - listen in - you might want a license, but if not,
as soon as government collapses there will be no one to police
the airwaves - and that might be the only way you can communicate
remotely.

So that being said - I agree with you - in an urban area, yeah,
don't do it. Don't interfere and make trouble and you won't have
trouble. In a rural setting where no one is hearing them but
each other? What's it hurting?

Now having said all that, I am a Christian and I do believe in
following the law. I didn't TX until I got my ticket, but I
listened a lot while studying. If there's an emergency and
someone gets help by transmitting out of band or with no
license? Fine with me!

The old timers all said, "this will end up as
CB for taking down the challenges!"

I've heard that too - I don't see it though... Not around
here anyway...





... Hookd on foniks wurkd for mee!
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tenser wrote to n2qfd <=-

So, if people behave like that, why would a young person be
motivated to study for and then _pay money_ to get licensed?
Just to be verbally abused by some jerk on the air? No, thank
you.

One of my best friends was a scout leader when his kids were
still young enough to be scouts. One of them was interested
in HAM - at least interested enough to wonder about it. Turns
out that was all, but at least he was interested a little.

I took him out to my truck one day and showed him my mobile
unit and BRIEFLY explained repeaters. When I made my call,
I said I had a scout with me that was interested. I knew if
I didn't I'd either get crickets or just general "oh well"
stuff. Got a call back immediately with a dripping 'salesman'
sound. LOL

For people buying the Baofengs on Amazon and treating them
like souped-up walkie talkies, I can see why: you don't have
to put up with the asshatery, if you're even aware of the
licensing requirements in the first place. So if someone
buys a cheap HT and talks around the neighborhood, does it really
hurt anyone? Probably not. Are there hams who are going to
get seriously bent out of shape about it? Yes, absolutely. Do
I care about their opinions? Mostly no.

As you say below with Cell phones and video chat, it's not something
that is NEEDED (as long as the network is up at least). I had those
cheap walkie talkies as a kid and one of my brothers found out
(by accident) that if he turned his 23 channel CB to channel 17
he could TX and RX with me - if I was close enough to shout to
him anyway. LOL

So if I were a kid today and had a chance to have a $30 'walkie
talkie' that my buddy could get one like, and I was careful to
stay off any freq that local guys were using? Yeah - I'd probably
do it - and if I hear any of that on the air today I'll share the
fact that if they get licensed they can do this all around the
world, etc. etc.

that no one wants to upgrade and work HF. Why would they? I can
pick up a phone and call pretty much anywhere in the world for
no incremental cost over my usual service. I can voice and video
chat someone on the other side of the planet in real time over the Internet similarly. The niche that radio once held is gone, and

I use HAM for reasons that phone/internet can't do - to reach out
over the air and talk to people I don't know. People I do not have
a relationship with already.

Kinda like BBS's and echonets! Sure, it's not private, but I don't
care - that's part of the appeal. :-)





... Does the National Ballet travel by Tu Tu Train?
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n2qfd wrote to tenser <=-

So, I haven't even bothered with the local club. It's not that I don't value the things like having some nice digipeaters around for almost no-one to use APRS on! It's the role crazed jerks. Yellow Vest+Radio doesn't make you an authority any more than years in. And with just as interesting of avenues outside the license I can play radio with my Android, My WiFi gear heck even getting back to BBS and deciding to
start one here.

I joined the local right before getting my ticket. Actually took my
test with the club - but fell out as the monthly meeting confliced
with a family get together that started. Now that I'm getting BACK
into it, I might join again, but not high priority. Local traffic
is practically NIL so I'm currently moving a mobile inside and putting
an antenna on the roof to hopefully 'reach out' to areas where there
IS a lot of chatter...

I'm a young ham in my mid 40's now and I've buried most of my
friends. I sometimes check into a DMR net which is just VoIP with more steps. The conversation hasn't changes in 30 years and the
experimenters and the innovators don't seem to be there saying "hey I'm trying this with my gear what do you think?"
Is is disappointing? Maybe a little, but things change. I'm working
some fun digital modes we didn't have but even that seems like it's too much work for the many out there. >>Key up repeater|run down current times|willfully forget that what it was, wasn't always there either.<<

I haven't done anything with digital yet... I work in IT and when I get
on the radio it's to have an analog conversation - kinda like BBS but with voice. :-)

I do pop in to - oh what's it called - echolink? I almost said echonet but
knew that wasn't right. LOL




... Old immortals don't die, they just... don't.
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Blue White wrote to tenser <=-

The niche may be gone until there is an emergency of some sort. A few years back... well, 30 now, doesn't seem that long ago... we had an unusually heavy snowstorm for this area. The authorities had to turn
to the local HAM community for assistance as other forms of
communication were overwhelmed or not working.

Are you in Kentucky by chance? When I was getting my ticket 8 years
ago a local radio guy (not a HAM, but works for the place that
services the police and sheriff as well as fire) was telling me
about an instance in Kentucky where the lines were broken and
they couldn't even talk to the capitol without the HAM guys...






... Radioactive cats have 18 half-lives
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years back... well, 30 now, doesn't seem that long ago... we had

an

unusually heavy snowstorm for this area. The authorities had to

turn

to the local HAM community for assistance as other forms of communication were overwhelmed or not working.

Are you in Kentucky by chance? When I was getting my ticket 8 years
ago a local radio guy (not a HAM, but works for the place that
services the police and sheriff as well as fire) was telling me
about an instance in Kentucky where the lines were broken and
they couldn't even talk to the capitol without the HAM guys...

LOL, sure enough. ;) I was listening to the HAMS on my scanner to get
info about what was going on.



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Blue White wrote to jimmylogan <=-

years back... well, 30 now, doesn't seem that long ago... we had

an

unusually heavy snowstorm for this area. The authorities had to

turn

to the local HAM community for assistance as other forms of communication were overwhelmed or not working.

Are you in Kentucky by chance? When I was getting my ticket 8 years
ago a local radio guy (not a HAM, but works for the place that
services the police and sheriff as well as fire) was telling me
about an instance in Kentucky where the lines were broken and
they couldn't even talk to the capitol without the HAM guys...

LOL, sure enough. ;) I was listening to the HAMS on my scanner to get info about what was going on.

Very cool! What part of Kentucky? I'm just outside Dyersburg, TN and
can hit the repeaters in Union City - been trying to hit Cayce, Ky
just outside Hickman, but no one has responded...





... Lymph (v.), to walk with a lisp.
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Are you in Kentucky by chance? When I was getting my ticket 8 years
ago a local radio guy (not a HAM, but works for the place that
services the police and sheriff as well as fire) was telling me
about an instance in Kentucky where the lines were broken and
they couldn't even talk to the capitol without the HAM guys...

LOL, sure enough. ;) I was listening to the HAMS on my scanner

to get

info about what was going on.

Very cool! What part of Kentucky? I'm just outside Dyersburg, TN and
can hit the repeaters in Union City - been trying to hit Cayce, Ky
just outside Hickman, but no one has responded...

At that time, I was living in Louisville. I have been living near
Frankfort for 25+ years now.

Cayce was supposedly named after Casey Jones. ;)



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Blue White wrote to jimmylogan <=-

At that time, I was living in Louisville. I have been living near Frankfort for 25+ years now.

Cayce was supposedly named after Casey Jones. ;)

I've heard that! I played music at an old school a few years ago.
A local country/line dancing place.





... Teamwork is critical; it allows you to blame someone else.
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