Aop Handbook

MARTS Information Sheet

FM/VHF STANDARD OPERATING GUIDE

Welcome to Amateur Radio! It is a fascinating hobby with many facets that can be practised by all amateurs alike. All the different things that make up this hobby culminate in contacting other persons with the same basic interest and, above all, the contacts made will contribute towards friendship and goodwill to each other. In these times of stress and strife, we all need to make friends more than ever before, and we can only promote goodwill by being on our best behaviour whenever we pick up the microphone, the Morse key or use a computer in Amateur Radio. Politeness is the key to good operating. In the same way that we have Traffic rules for road usage, and the Law of the Land for the good of the community, so there are Regulations and Operating Procedures governing our hobby, designed for us to obey, in order to make it easier to live with our fellow man. The Regulations are the Law, and the Operating Procedures mutually agreed "rules". Both are designed to make our hobby such a pleasure. Amateurs are heard not only by ourselves but many non-hams, shack visitors, folks on scanners, authority monitoring department etc. We need to keep it from sounding like the CB band and keep a professional approach to our communication skills. Insult, jamming, disparaging comments with no ID, swearing, heated exchanges and calling another a ‘xxx’, really have no place on the repeaters. Good natured jibing is self evident and humor is in order, but grim enemies have been made on the repeaters – bite ye olde tongue, keep cool or stop transmitting. Don’t stomp on new comers or any other comers for poor operating practice – a gentle reminder or better to discuss it off the air. Never talk about Politics, Race, Religion, Sex or any other matter which may be offensive to the person to whom you are talking or to other persons. These are argumentative subjects and can cause problems. This FM/VHF Standard Operating Guide (SOG) is intended to assist new amateur assignment holders in figuring out what FM/VHF and repeater operation is all about. The best approach for all new hams is to do a lot of listening when they first get their equipment. Try and figure out what the standard operating norms are in your location. Make sure to try to emulate the best quality operating practices and avoid the poor practices that are often found on the ham bands. (Note that "old timers" are often just as guilty or more guilty of sloppy operation.)

CODES FOR A HAM RADIO OPERATOR The ham is considerate. He/She never knowingly uses the air (radio waves) in such a way as to lessen the pleasure of others. The ham is loyal. He/She offers his/her loyality, encouragement and support to his/her fellow hams, his/her local clubs. The ham is progressive. He/She keeps his/her station (radio equipment) abreast of science. It is well-built and efficient. His/Her operating practice is above reproach. The ham is friendly. Slow and patient sending when requested, friendly advice and councel to the beginner, kindly assistance, co-operation and consideration for the interests of other; these are the mark of the ham spirit. The ham is balanced. Radio is his/her hobby. He/She never allows it to interfere with any of his/her duties he/she owes to his/her home, his/her job, his/her school or community-and lastly his/her knowledge and his/her radio station are always ready for the service of his/her country and his/her community

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MARTS Information Sheet

A.

FM/VHF STANDARD OPERATING GUIDE

REPEATER OPERATION

PURPOSE OF A REPEATER: In the strictest sense, the purpose of a repeater is to extend the range of handheld and mobile stations. Base stations with reasonable antennas often don't need the extended range afforded by a repeater. However, it is common practice for all types of stations to make use of repeaters. We need to think of the repeater as a valuable resource (especially wide coverage repeaters). A repeater is a shared resource. It takes a considerable amount of time and money to keep a repeater up and running and there are many people who use the ‘OLD LADY’ (slang for old repeater or old repeater system) or ‘YOUNG LADY’ (slang for new repeater or new repeater system). Thus, courtesy is the order of the day. Yield the frequency to someone who needs it. Also, try not to interrupt another conversation on the repeater needlessly. Cooperate with other assignment holders to keep the repeater operation fun and useful. Think about the content of your repeater conversations since many other assignment holders and non-licensed individuals are usually monitoring the frequency. If you've run out of useful things to say, it's probably time to sign off! The most important three things to remember about repeater operation (for that matter, any amateur radio operation) are common sense, courtesy and spirit of goodwill. Repeater operation is a little bit different than other forms of amateur radio communication. Usually the signals are strong and clear so some of the practices used on the other bands are not necessary. Therefore there are special rules governing repeater operation and they are as follows: 1. Listen is the 1st rules. The strongest reason for listening before transmitting is to ensure that you wont interfere with anyone already using the frequency and to catch on to the swing of things. Make sure your volume is on! 2nd reason for listening is that it may tell you a great deal about the condition of the bands. Although a band may be dead by popular consent at a particular time, frequent openings occur which you can take advantage of if you are listening at the right time. 3rd reason for listening is that you you can’t hear ‘em you are not likely to work ‘em. Several short calls with plenty of listening spells will net you more contacts than a single long call. If you are running on QRP (low power) you may find it more fruitful to reply to someone else’s CQ rather than call CQ yourself. Repeaters are party-line. Lots of people use them on and the one you’ve selected may be busy with another conversation. So listen for a minute or two. 2. Courtesy. Adding to the impolite operation does not improve ham radio. 3.

Keep contacts short. Three minutes is the generally accepted maximum length for an over using a repeater.

4. Don’t willfully interfere with other Amateur transmissions. Wait your turn. If you have something to offer to the conversation in progress, then join in properly using your Call Sign. 5. Use simplex wherever possible freeing the repeater for necessary uses. If you are talking with someone who is within simplex range, go ahead and switch over to a simplex frequency and free the repeater up for other people to use. This is especially true if you are going to ragchew for quite a while. 6.

Leave a pause between over’s. This is to enable week stations with emergency traffic to make contact. Three seconds is the accepted break.

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7. Don’t tune up on a repeater’s input frequency. You should make tune-ups as short as possible with no long dead keying. Always identify yourself. 8. Most repeaters have a time-out timer and a “courtesy beep" of some sort which forces stations to wait for a short time between transmissions. If they don't wait, they run the risk of timing out the repeater and having your QSO temporarily ‘cut-off’. MARTS East Coast repeaters have a standard 1 minutes timer. 9. Long CQ’s ( calling CQ CQ ) are not necessary or desirable on VHF/FM or UHF frequencies. It is HF band stuff and should never used on repeaters. Just report that you are monitoring the frequency. Either they are listening or they are not. If anyone is listening and wants to contact you they will respond to your brief call. When using CW, "CQ" is a lot shorter than "calling any station". SIMPLY KEY UP AND SAY YOUR CALLSIGN OR ASK IS ANYONE ON THIS REPEATER. Make sure you don't "double", (talk at the same time), in any circumstances or band!! 10. Speak clearly into the microphone. It is a good idea to adjust your speaking distance from the microphone and audio gain control to obtain the best results. If you change your microphone or transceiver, repeat the process with the new equipment. It is often better to talk across the microphone instead of into it. 11. If conditions are difficult, use standard phonetics to spell words. The standard phonetics is used and understood by all operators and will get through far better than any other phonetics you may invent. 12. Do not monopolise the repeater as others may want to use it. 13. If your signal is very noisy into the repeater, or if you are only opening the repeater squelch intermittently, finish the QSO and try later when you are putting a better signal into the repeater. 14. Do not keep triggering the repeaters (press the PTT) to make sure that it is there. This annoys the other people who monitor the repeater and it is not a good operating practice. If there is kerchunking, it is very hard to know if it is an ungrateful ham or a malfunction of a repeater. A better way to announce your presence is to call and request a signal report from someone who may be monitoring the repeater. This may also result in an interesting and unexpected contact. 15. NEVER-NEVER-NEVER transmit without giving your call sign! Not even a test! If you need to test then say, “ This is 9W2xxx testing”. It is considered poor form to just “key” the repeater to listen for the courtesy tone to make sure your radio is working or you are reaching the repeater. You will hear it happen, but it is poor amateur practice. If you need to test a radio, go to simplex frequency that is not in use, but not the national Simplex Calling Frequency ( V40 – 145.500 ). Don’t work on your radio on the repeater. If you need a response to see if you are getting out, call another operator on a working radio, or on the telephone and ask them to listen for you on the simplex frequency. Any testing done on a repeater should be EXTREMELY SHORT. 16. On voice repeaters voice procedures should be used. This also applies to all voice frequencies within our amateur bands. The use of "Q" codes (e.g., QSL, QSO, QTH, QRT, etc.) should be reserved for CW conversations and CW nets. It is much easier to say what you really mean in the first place.

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AIRWAVE OWNERS, REPEATER FAIRIES, AND RATCHET JAWS. No one owns the airwaves. There is no frequency that you have a right to over any other amateur radio operator. Occasionally you will find one or more hams out there who think they own a particular frequency. They don’t. Neither do you. It is customary in Ham radio to allow other ham operators in on your conversation. If your conversation is so private or personal that another ham cannot enter into it, you probably should not be holding it on ham radio. It is also customary to not join a conversation in progress unless you have something reasonable to contribute to it. Breaking in, just to be transmitting is bad practise. There are no repeater fairies. Repeaters do not magically appear out of thin air and maintain themselves. Someone has to pay for the repeater and its maintenance. If you use a repeater on a regular basis, you should contribute to its support. Ragchew. Rachet jawing has two connotations in Amateur Radio – one good, one derogatory. The good form is also known as a “rag chewer” these are individuals who enjoy carrying on long conversations about noncontroversial subjects with other hams, above and beyond the normal communication of signal reports and equipment reports. These individuals may carry on a long QSO, but use good press-to-talk type technique. Not carrying on in long monologues, letting the other stations frequently have a turn. The derogatory form of ratchet jawing is also known as broadcasting. This is poor amateur practice. No ham wants to get known as a “broadcaster”. This is the ham who is in love with listening to his own voice and listening to himself rattle. He will ramble on for long periods not turning the conversation over to other stations. You don’t want to be this kind of ratchet jawer.

CHECKING INTO THE REPEATER: If you are out ‘running around in your jalopy’ (or just hanging around the ham shack) and want to talk to someone, flip to the repeater frequency and see if anyone is around. It's not necessary to give a long call on FM/VHF. Most stations indicate their availability for a call by transmitting and saying: If you are not sure if the repeater is in use, just give your callsign and ask: Is the repeater in use, this is (your callsign); etc This will avoid interrupting a conversation (QSO) or an emergency. If the repeater is quiet, you can say: (your callsign) monitoring ; or (your callsign) mobile ; or (your callsign) listening ; or (your callsign) listening – anyone on frequency; etc If you want a quick ‘radio check’ to see if you are accessing the repeater adequately: Anyone on frequency, (your callsign) request for a radio check please; or Anyone on frequency, (your callsign) request for a signal report please; etc If somebody answers, you have a contact! (your callsign) standby; or Contact (your callsign); or First contact from (your callsign); or Contact perdana dari (your callsign); etc To call someone: 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx (twice) this is (your callsign). Are you in the frequency?; or 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx (twice) this is (your callsign) calling and standby; or 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx (twice) di sini (your callsign) memanggil and standby; etc To respond/answer: 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx this is (your callsign) returning…….. [continue your QSO]; or 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx di sini (your callsign) kembali…….. [continue your QSO]

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Hints: Do not interrupt Calls. Many poor operators in Amateur Radio interrupt another station that is starting to make a call. For example : “ 9W2xxx, 9W2xxx this is 9W2zzz calling” ( then while 9W2zzz is waiting for a return call from 9W2xxx, the poor operator station jumps in and tries to start a contact with 9W2zzz, or calls 9W2zzz.) Don’t do this , this is very poor operating procedure, and under regulations constitutes deliberate interference, which is illegal. WAIT. After the calling station ( 9W2zzz ) is finished calling, in the event that 9W2xxx does not answer him, 9W2zzz will say “9W2zzz clear”. Once the calling station clears, you may call that station.

IDENTIFICATION: MCMC regulations require an amateur assignment holder to identify themselves at the beginning and the end of a series of transmissions. The rationale to identify your station when you first come on the air is to lets other stations know who you are right from the start. And also you are the valid licence holder! BREAKING: Breaking in on a conversation is similar to interrupting someone else when they are talking. A repeater is a shared resource, so we should expect that other people may have a need to use the repeater while we are on the air. No one has exclusive rights to the frequency and repeater. The best way/good time to break into or joining a conversation is to simply give your callsign in during the ‘pause’ between transmissions. Some assignment holders use the word "break" which is somewhat controversial. You will hear some Hams say: ‘break’ meaning ‘I want to join in’. ‘break break’ meaning ‘ I have important traffic’ ‘break break break’ meaning ‘I have a dire emergency’ In some circles it is perfectly acceptable, while in others it is reserved for emergency communications. Usually, if you have time to squeeze the word "break" in, you can just as well squeeze in “your call sign”. Using your callsign instantly identifies yourself to the stations using the repeater. Eg: (your callsign); or Contact (your callsign); or (your callsign) joining in; or (your callsign) nak bagi info; or (your callsign) waiting for my turn; or (your callsign) nak bagi traffic report; etc If someone ‘break’ in on you, GIVE PRIORITY TO THEM. Let them transmit RIGHT NOW. You should respond: Go ahead breaker; or Go ahead (breaker’s callsign); or Go ahead contact; etc Iniiating and terminating a QSO: ( different between QRU, QRX, QRT ) 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx this is (your callsign) signing off and clear, 73; or 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx this is (your callsign) signing off and listening for your final, 73; or 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx di sini (your callsign) QRT, 73. To change frequency: 9M2xx / 9W2xx / 9W2xxx this is (your callsign) signing off and QSY to ……….

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All hams should announce why they are breaking – it would make repeater life a lot more organized. The exeption is WHEN SOMEONE ANNOUNCES AN EMERGENCY. All stations should then CLEAR THE REPEATER IMMEDIATELY AND DO NOT TRANSMIT! The station who declared the emergency has the frequency, unless they ask for your help or they obviously do not know how to handle the situation. Do not reply to an emergency call if you cannot provide the service requested. No hard rules can be laid down in this regard but YOU MUST USE YOUR COMMON SENSE AND TREAT EACH CASE ON ITS MERITS. Once again if you are not in a position to go to the assistance of the emergency caller directly, leave the call to a station that has a telephone available or other facilities available. Time taken up when you cannot be of useful assistance may cost a life.

SLANG AND JARGON: While the use of “ham slang” is fairly common, in radiotelephone (voice) communications it is poor operating practice. Most FM repeater operations can be done with a minimum of slang and jargon. Plain language works quite well. Try to avoid the overuse of Q codes, phonetics, etc. such as "Roger roger, Gang, I QSL your QSL and thanks for the QSO from your QTH, standing by, over." Some ham jargon/slang (just for reference) : 73 – best wishes / best regards 88 – Hugs and kisses DX – Talking to stations very far away Dxpedition – A trip to a (usually) remote place to operate ham radio Elmer – An experiences ham helping a newcomer Handy, HT – Hand held tranceiver ( not portable! ) Homebrew – Home made equipment Jalopy – Old vehicle Lid – An inconsiderate operator OM, Old Man – Any male ham (regardless of age), husband Over – “it’s your turn to talk, I’m listening” Rag chew – Shooting the breeze, just chatting Rig – ham radio equipment Saltmine – Workplace, office SK, Silent Key – When referring to a ham, it means they died Tail gating – Transmitting quickly after another transmission Ticket – Amateur radio license Wallpaper – Awards and certificates, QSL cards Work – Make contact with XYL – Wife YL – Young lady – Any female ham, regardless of age

Some jargon/slang which not exist at all!! : Tango-tango Oscar Cangkulan Cenopy

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FM/VHF STANDARD OPERATING GUIDE

SIMPLEX OPERATION

Simplex operation is direct station-to-station radio communication without the use repeater. The range is much more dependent on antenna type, antenna height and power output but significant distance can be covered. Two mobiles having a QSO on flat land can typically cover 15 to 20 miles. If one station is on a hill, the range can be much longer. If you happen to be standing on top of Genting Highland (at 6,000 feet about sea level), you can contact someone 50 to 60 miles away. Simplex operation can be fun. It is a challenge to see how far your signal can go (yes, without some powerful repeater extending your range). So don't forget about simplex. Some of the best contacts have been ever had were on simplex. One of the reasons is the challenge of seeing how far your signal will go. The other factor is that there are fewer people listening on simplex. There is less of the "party line atmosphere" that can exist on a repeater where everyone within repeater range will hear every word of every station. (Also, you are not tying up the precious resources of the repeater.) Often, this leads to a longer and more meaningful discussion between you and other station on the other end.

C.

MAKING CONTACT

Sometimes new hams find that no one answers their call. So they try again. Again, there is no answer. After a few days of trying this, they figure that the local stations are ignoring them, probably because they have a "new" callsign. Yeah, they've heard about the old-timers being rude to the newcomers. So they assume that's happening to them. Well, they may be right, but maybe not. Keep in mind that, hams who have been on the air for a long time often view their radio as a means of accomplishing certain things...like talking to their buddies or checking into their favorite nets. The thrill of meeting new, unknown people may be gone. So they become reluctant to grab the mike to answer every new call. But they aren't out to get you. Chill out. Don't put a chip on your shoulder if people don't flock to respond to your call. You've just walked into an electronic cocktail party and sometimes it is difficult to strike up a conversation. Listen for when someone else checks in on the frequency and call them instead. Make sure you have something interesting to say besides: "The rig here is a Kenwood hand held running 5W into a melted rubber duck antenna." Try to find other people that have interest which are common with you. Another strategy is to attend one of the local eyeball sessions and get to know a few people. Volunteer for club activities, attend Field Day and, in general, be willing to help out. Once you get to know people face to face, the on-the-air contacts are more frequent and meaningful.

D.

TRANSMITTER TESTING

Try to keep test transmissions off the air by using a good dummy load instead. Be aware that even a slight amount of radio energy leakage from a dummy load may activate a sensitive repeater. Use a transmit frequency other than the repeater input even when testing with a dummy load. Some tests must be performed on the air, such as tuning an antenna for best match. Use a repeater frequency that is not used in your vicinity or a not-too-popular simplex frequency. If your intent is to key the repeater to see how strong its signal is, don't kerchunk it/press the PTT. Remember, ‘kerchunking’ is annoying to the listeners. Instead, transmit and say: (your callsign) testing; etc

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FM/VHF STANDARD OPERATING GUIDE

INTERFERENCE

Most repeaters is blessed with very few malicious interference problems. If you do hear this sort of thing (jamming, foul language, etc.), NEVER acknowledge it on the air. Giving the person some kind of response only encourages such behavior. Also keep in mind that interference may not be intentional. Most stations have at one time or another accidentally press the PTT, switch off the mike or have mistakenly left the receiver volume turned down and transmitted on top of someone. Assume good intentions until proven otherwise.

F.

PROPAGATION

2 Meters normally exhibit line-of-sight propagation. This means that the signal travels to the optical horizon (and perhaps a little farther). Increased Height Above Average Terrain (HAAT) increases the distance to the horizon and propagation distance. This is why repeaters are located on the top of mountains or tall buildings. Propagation characteristics of 144 MHz and 440 MHz are similar, with 440 MHz more susceptible to the shadowing effects of hills and other obstructions. On some occasions, VHF and UHF propagation enhancement occurs and signals propagate significantly further than line-of-sight. These propagation modes include tropospheric ducting, sporadic E-skip and meteor scatter. Most of the long-distance VHF/UHF work is done using single-sideband or CW on the low end of the bands. G. SIGNAL REPORTS Signal reports are often given in terms of ‘receiver quieting’. A strong signal will ‘fully quiet’ an FM receiver, while a weak one will be ‘quite noisy’. A "Full quieting" report is given to a signal which exhibits no background noise or hiss. Signal reports are often given in terms of "percent quieting" to give the transmitting station a better idea of the signal quality. When using a repeater you do not give RST reports. It is important to realise that you are listening to the repeater's transmitter, relaying whatever signals it can hear, be it yours or someone else's. You are not hearing the mobile station directly, so it is no good giving a signal report in the usual way. Reports are limited to estimating how strong the mobile is at the repeater's receiver. The Input. There are three levels: :" you are clear, readable and full quieting" meaning that there is no background noise, "Smooth noise" meaning that there is a little hiss on the signal, and "Rough Noise" meaning that it is difficult to understand the station because of background noise. These reports are only useful, however, if the repeater has a strong signal with you. When using a repeater there are two communication paths at work -- the path from the transmitting station to the repeater and the path from the repeater to the receiving station. Either one of these paths can exhibit noise due to a weak signal. If the receiving station has a strong S-meter indication but the transmitting station sounds noisy, the transmitting station is probably weak into the repeater. Remember that the signal strength indicated by your S meter is due to your distance to the nearest repeater and not the transmitting station. Another one heard on most repeaters " Man, what did you do, you are loud on me , looks like you are putting a 5 & 9 ' on me!" NO.... Both stations through the repeater are hearing the repeater, not each other directly. THERE IS NO WAY TO TELL A STATION WHAT THEY ARE "PUTTING ON A REPEATER" as far as signal strength. They may be able to tell the other station that "white noise", ( static), is heard on their signal or that they are "picket fencing", ( clipping in and out) , but without being at the repeater receiver with an S-meter hooked to the repeater receiver you cannot tell what signal strength the repeater is receiving. A frequency modulated transmitter used on the VHF/UHF amateur bands should be set for a maximum frequency deviation of 5 kHz with full modulation. Unlike SSB transmitters, the signal strength of an FM signal is independent of modulation level. That is, a dead carrier produces just as much power as a fully-modulated signal. Excessive modulation of an FM transmitter does not improve the reception of the signal and often degrades it. On the other hand, inadequate FM deviation causes weak received audio. The level of audio heard on the receive end is

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relatively independent of received signal strength. This means that changing transmitter power does not affect the loudness of the audio at the receive end. Use only enough power to access the repeater you are using well. The RST system of signal reporting is based on a scale of: 1 to 5 for readability/audio 1 to 9 for signal strength 1 to 9 for tone in the case of CW reports (for the purity of tone)

Give honest reports at all times. Do not try to make the other fellow feel good by giving an inflated or incorrect report.

H.

STANDARD INTERNATIONAL PHONETICS

The use of standard international phonetics is highly recommended. ( They were created so that all stations would have a STANDARD to go by when passing traffic in bad conditions. ) It is of good practice to always use the proper phonetics in identifing our callsigns and handles, this is to facillitate listening/monitoring station to identify us clearly and without confusion. It is rather troublesome to keep repeating the callsign phonetically over and over again but it is necessary especially in repeater usage as there are many listening/monitoring stations that maybe be at the border of the repeater coverage who may not get a clean audio. Many nets specifically request the use of standard international phonetics to make it easier to operate the net control. Avoid using Phonetics for telling name of places such as Kilo Bravo for KB, Kilo Lima for Kuala Lumpur! Remember there are many listener out there! KB maybe mean for Kota Bharu, Kuala Besut, Kuala Balah etc. and KL for Kok Lanas or Kedai Lalat instead of Kuala Lumpur! Use PLAIN LANGUAGE eg. Kota Bharu unless when spelling it : Kilo Oscar Tango Alfa separation Bravo Hotel Alfa Romeo Uniform. The Standard International Phonetics are: Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliet, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-Ray, Yankee, Zulu

I.

Q-CODES

Amateur Radio has its own unique lingo. Amateur Radio is a much older radio service than many other radio services. Its lingo developed from older military and commercial (primary ship navigation) radio. The 10-code system used in business and civil government (police, fire, ambulance) communications. While there is nothing wrong with the 10-code, it is not part of normal Amateur Radio lingo and should not be used. Q-codes are normally NOT REQUIRED and SHOULD NORMALLY BE AVOIDED on repeater operations, especially on VHF/FM repeaters. ( They are created for and from CW and ssb traffic nets. ) Many new Radio Amateurs start with telephony (Phone) yet use the Q-code which is meant for Morse Code (CW) use, and not for Phone or voice operation. On phone there is little point in saying "there is some QRM on your signal" instead of simply saying "there is some interference on your signal". Many new Licensees seem to think that they should use the Q-Code simply because they are Radio Amateurs.

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However, they are part of the amateur radio culture and are used on the air. Sometimes, the use of Q-codes helps to keep the QSO short and sweet but try NOT to use Q codes when communicating in Phone Mode unless there is a language difficulty. The following are some of the common Q-codes frequently used on VHF/FM repeaters: QRA QRK QRL QRM QRO QRP QRT QRU QRV QRX QRZ QSA QSB QSD QSL QSN QSO QSP QSY QTH QTR

Your station name/handle or address What is the readability of my signal (R1 to R5) Busy Are you being interfered with? or interference from other station Shall I increase power or high power Shall I decrease power or low power Stop sending or close down or closing down station Have you anything for me? or I have nothing for you or that’s all from me Are you ready? or I am ready Temporary stop (will come back on freq.) or I will call you again at (time) or standby or when will you call me again Who is calling me? or you are being call by (callsign) on V….. What is my signal strength? (S1 to S9) Are my signal fading? or your signal fading or fading Bad sending or bad transmission Can you acknowledge receive or receive and understand or verification or copy or confirmation Did you hear me? or I hear you Radio contact or conversation Will you relay to….? or I will relay to ….. or relay message Change to another freq. What is your position? or Where are you now? or what is your current location? What is the correct time? or the time now is….

If you ever do CW , you will find that sending QTH for " my location " is much shorter. Speaking in voice, especially on FM using Q signals, would make me ask," WHY DO YOU HAVE TO USE "Q" SIGNALS ??? Because it sounds "cool" ? Why would you say, " What is your QTH, you have a lot of QRN, QUA Jim lately? QSL?"All the tech licensees are sitting there saying " what the heck is he talking about?" Or why would you say " Hi , Hi " on voice ( CW .... .. .... .. = H I H I for humor intended) ??? Oh , by the way, coded transmissions ARE NOT ALLOWED ON VOICE! Here is "q t h " in CW compared to "my location";--.- - .... compared to -- -.-- .-.. --- -.-. .- - .. --- -.here is 7 3 compared to best regards;--... ...—compared to - ... . ... - .-. . --. .- .-. -.. ... That should explain it! Even if you dont know CW, you can see the difference in how many dots and dashes are used in each term ! Many control operators dont say anything at all about users because there are not that many users anymore and they are afraid they will ' run somone off ' . Did they ever think that maybe that is the reason there are not that many people on repeaters, due to listening to all the LID's using CW lingo on voice ? It is better to have a few "good operators' than 70 bad ones like on some repeaters in the larger cities. There are courteous ways to mention these things to newer operators "on the air". Here is one of them, " Hey, you dont have to say all that Q stuff because you are on FM phone, just use it just like you're on a telephone, (remember kids are listening)..... PLAIN ENGLISH! All you are required to do is be courteous and say your callsign every three minutes as the repeater ID's, and use it when you sign off....." Use PLAIN LANGUAGE! Plain language should be used, and cliches and jargon should be kept to a minimum. In particular, avoid the use of ‘QSY’ when ‘go to’ is meant, ‘cangkulan’ or ‘oscar’ when ‘working’ is meant and ‘tango-tango’ when ‘eyeball’ is meant. Taken individually each is almosts harmless, but when combined together give a false-sounding “radioese” which is actually less effective than plain language in most cases.

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Using Q-signals too often is bad form. Although Q-signals have a very valuable place in Amateur Radio, they are not universally accepted on F.M. voice channels. Using them during EVERY TRANSMISSION is really annoying. •

Recommendation: use Q-signals sparingly. Once in a while. Not very often.

Q code, Phonetic alphabets should only be employed when they are necessary to clarify the spelling of a word or callsign.

J.

EMERGENCIES

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) considered the international use of radio communication in the event of natural emergencies/disasters. Administration/Regulator of every country are to provide the needs of international disaster and emergency communications within their statutory. In the event of natural emergencies/disasters, normal communications systems may be overloaded, damaged or completely disrupted and the rapid establishment of communication to facilitate worldwide relief actions is essential. As the amateur band are not bound by international plans or notification procedures, they are well adapted for short term use in emergency situations and is vital in meeting this need until normal communications are restored. It is stated that the frequency bands allocated to the amateur service specified in the ITU Radio Regulations may be used by Administration/Regulator to meet the needs of international emergencies/disasters communications. Amateur involvement is limited to the duration of the emergencies/disasters and to the specific geographical area of the emergencies/disasters, as defined by the responsible authority of the affected country. Emergencies/disasters communications will take place within the emergencies/disasters area, between the emergencies/disasters area and the permanent headquarters of the organization providing relief. Any communications shall be carried out only with the consent of the administration/regulator of the country in which the emergencies/disasters has occurred. Relief communications provided from outside the country in which emergencies/disasters has occurred shall not replace existing national or international amateur emergencies/disasters networks. Close cooperation is desirable between amateur stations and the stations of other radio services, which may find it necessary to use amateur frequencies in emergencies/disasters communications. International relief communications shall avoid, as far as practicable, interference to the amateur service networks. Radio amateurs have a long history of helping out when emergencies occur. These emergencies tend to fall into two categories: 1) Disaster situations 2) Short-term emergencies that a single amateur station happens upon. Radio amateurs are urged to participate in their society/local club activities that may provide simulation exercises to enable them to be fully prepared for the real emergencies/disasters. Some things that you need to think about in a short-term emergency: * What kind of emergency? Give specific answers * Where are you? What is the nearest mile marker, intersection or landmark? * Are there any injuries? One of the most important things the authorities want to know is whether to dispatch an ambulance or not. • In an emergency, it is often better to have a station to make the phone call through their handphone. This gives the authorities a number to call back for further information. Also, at the scene, you may get distracted just when the dispatcher asks for information. If there is no coverage by handphone, then it is better for the station to go on the air and seek for help. In such cases, the responding station, should ideally be one working from his base station. Handphones sometimes have the notorious habit of failing when you need it most.

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* With the full-duplex nature of the telephone system, the dispatcher may expect to interrupt you and put you on hold. Keep your transmissions short. Tell the dispatcher that you are calling via "amateur radio relay", but don't bother passing along your callsign or other unnecessary information. * Refrain from dialing 999 for non-emergency situations such as disabled vehicles, non-functioning traffic lights, etc.

K.

ANTENNAS FOR HANDHELD RADIOS

Almost everyone routinely uses a "rubber duck" antenna for handheld radio/handy talkie. This antenna is essentially a quarter-wave which is shrunk down to about 1/4 of its usual length. Think of this antenna as a leaky dummy load, because its effectiveness is not much better than that. Its short length and the lack of a ground plane (which is required for a 1/4-wave style antenna) makes its performance quite poor. Only the high sensitivity of FM repeaters make handheld radio/handy talkie with rubber duck antennas so useful. For hiking, public service events, and other activities where radio range is important, a longer antenna is very helpful. Although there are full-size 1/4-wave and 5/8-wave models available, experience has shown that one of the most effective handheld antennas is the end-fed 1/2-wave. The telescoping 1/2-wave antenna with a BNC connector on the end is available from several manufacturers. This type of antenna can easily make the difference between having an unreadable signal and being full-quieting into the repeater. When a good antenna is attached to handheld radio/handy talkie, the receiver often exhibits problems due to the much strong signals present. Strong signals (typically paging transmitters) will come blasting through the receiver and interfere with the desired signal. Radio amateurs usually refer to this as "intermod", short for "intermodulation". In reality, intermodulation has a specific technical definition that describes only some of these noise and interference problems. Independent of the name, the end result is that the handheld radio/handy talkie receiver is overloaded by these strong signals. One solution to the problem is to use an external filter to block out signals outside the ham band. This type of filter will also block police, fire, weather and other non-ham signals, too. L.

AMATEUR STATION LOGBOOK

It is a good practice to maintain a logbook at your base station. It provides references on when you had last used your station, or when some visitors had last used your station under your supervision. It also contains information of the people you had made contact with, the date and time of the contact and on which frequency. This logbook shall be available for examination at all reasonable times by the MCMC.

EXCERPTS FROM THE DRAFT SRSP FOR AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE 8.0

CONDITIONS FOR THE OPERATIONS OF ASSIGNMENT

8.1

An assignment holder is permitted to establish, install or work any of the following stations: • Base station; • Mobile station; • Portable station; • Earth station;

8.2

An assignment holder is permitted to establish any number of stations but is not allowed to work at two or more locations simultaneously. ARS Assignment issued to special event stations are exempted from this condition.

8.3 A station may be operated at any time provided that no period of uninterrupted transmission in frequencies below 30 MHz shall exceed ten minutes and three minutes for frequencies above 30 MHz.

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8.4

The station shall in all cases be operated by a ARS Assignment holder or by another person in the presence of the ARS Assignment holder, or, in the case of a training institution or club by its members in the presence of and under the supervision of the station master/control assignment holder.

8.5

An assignment holder, upon switching on his apparatus is required to listen on the frequency for at least two minutes to confirm if there are other assignment holders using the frequency. If there are other assignment holders using the frequency, to grasp the call-signs of the assignment holders on that frequency. The assignment holder can interrupt the communication during the “3 second pause” requirement as mentioned in the next para 8.6 by stating his assigned call-sign. The use of the word ‘break’ to interrupt the transmission is only to be used in cases of emergency.

8.6

An assignment holder is required to provide a three-seconds pause within the audio message being transmitted as often as possible. At least one occasion of a three seconds paused should exist in a message of one minute duration. Video and data transmission are not required to provide a three seconds pause within the transmission. However, a five seconds pause is required at the end of each single transmission. This guideline is MANDATORY when messages are transmitted through a repeater. This is to allow for interruption, in case there is a need to transmit emergency, urgent or safety messages.

8.7

On shared frequencies with other radio system users, when listening upon switching on the apparatus and found to be occupied by other radio system users, the assignment holder is required to switch to another frequency which is not occupied to avoid interference.

8.8

In simplex operations, an assignment holder communicating with another station shall transmit its assigned call-sign in the initial transmission and at least once in every ten minutes of transmission in the frequencies above 50 MHz. In repeater operations, an assignment holder communicating with another station shall transmit its assigned call-sign in the initial transmission and at least once in every three minutes of transmission in the frequencies above 50 MHz.

8.9

When operating in the frequencies below 50 MHz, an assignment holder when communicating with another station shall transmit its assigned call-sign in the initial transmission and subsequently, at least once in every ten minutes of transmission.

8.10

The letters of the call-sign shall be spelt out using the international phonetic alphabet and figure code as contained in Appendix A.

8.11

When operating through a repeater, certain stations have priority against other stations. The order of priority is as follows: i. stations relaying/transmitting emergency, distress messages ii. low powered and hand-held stations iii. mobile stations iv. base and high powered portable stations

8.12

The following conditions shall apply to messages transmitted by an assignment holder: •

messages may be exchanged with any other amateur station except where the Commission after consultation with the Society, has prohibited communication with stations of a specific administration;

•

messages relating to business, religion, politics and racial issues are prohibited;

•

messages containing profane, offensive or obscene words of any language are prohibited;

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•

messages shall be sent in plain language and shall relate solely to the Assignment holder’s experiments, the Assignment holder’s personal affairs, the personal affairs of the person with whom the Assignment holder is communicating or general matters relating to the radio amateur service;

•

the use of apparatus for sending news, advertisements, communications of a business or nonexperimental character, messages for pecuniary rewards, or messages for and on behalf of a third party, is expressly prohibited.

•

the use of apparatus for malicious intent such as disrupting the usage of the frequency and other similar acts is expressly prohibited.

MAKE YOURSELF A GOOD OPERATOR AND BE PROUD OF IT !

References: MCMC – Guidelines For Amateur Radio In Malaysia ( 1st Edition, 2004 ) MARTS information sheet – FM/VHF Standard Operating Guide ( 9M2SQ, 9M2LAW, 9W2ZU – ver 3, Jan’04 ) Ham Radio! Good Operating Practices And Procedures For The Ham Bands ( Tim @ AJ4D ) Basic Operating Procedures for the New “HAM” ( Panhandle Amateur Radio Club – W5WX ) Operating Practices For Radio Amateurs ( SARL )

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GLOSSARY AMATEUR RADIO SERVICE (ARS) - a radio communication service for the purpose of self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations carried out by amateurs, that is, by duly authorised persons interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest. AMATEUR STATION - one or more transmitters or receivers or a combination of transmitters and receivers, including the accessory equipment, necessary at one location for carrying on radio communication in the amateur radio service. BASE STATION - an amateur station located as per the address in the Assignment certificate. BREAK - the term used to interrupt a conversation, normally reserved for priority or emergency traffic. COURTESY BEEP - the audible beep (or other signal) that occurs at the repeater's pre-set duration. Repeater users should pause between transmissions to let this reset occur and to let others break in. CTCSS - Continuous-Tone-Coded Squelch System, subaudible tones used for accessing some repeaters. These tones are in the frequency range of 67 Hertz to 250.3 Hertz. MARTS repeaters have a standard CTCSS of 203.5 Hertz. DIGIPEATER - a digital packet repeater for retransmitting packet radio signals. DTMF tones - Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency tones which are produced by pressing a telephone or radio keypad (otherwise known as Touchtones, which is an AT&T trademark). DUPLEX - operation using a pair of frequencies, one for transmit and one for receive, as when using a repeater. FM - Frequency Modulation. Modulation technique which places information on a transmitted signal by modulating (varying) the frequency. FULL QUIETING - a received signal having no noise in it. INPUT FREQUENCY - the frequency that a repeater listens on (and the frequency that a repeater user transmits on). ‘KERCHUNK’ - to key a repeater without identifying your station. MOBILE STATION - an amateur station intended to be used while in motion or during halts at unspecified points. ‘OLD LADY’ - slang for old repeater or repeater system. OUTPUT FREQUENCY - the frequency that a repeater transmits on (and the frequency that a repeater user listens on). PORTABLE STATION -an amateur station commission or set-up at a specific point which is other than the address as per the Assignment. REPEATER - an unmanned station that is capable of receiving a signal on one frequency and simultaneously transmits (repeats) it on another frequency.

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STATION MASTER - an amateur station assignment holder of a club or society who is responsible for the conduct and use of its station. SIMPLEX - radio communications using the same transmit and receive frequency (as in communication between two stations without the use of a repeater). TRANSMIT OFFSET - the difference between the repeater user's transmit and receive frequencies. This offset is either + or - 600 kHz on most 2-meter repeaters. ‘YOUNG LADY’ - slang for new repeater or repeater system.

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APPENDIX A : STANDARD INTERNATIONAL PHONETICS

A B C D E F G H I J K L M

1 2 3 4 5

Alfa Bravo Charlie Delta Echo Foxtrot Golf Hotel India Juliet Kilo Lima Mike

N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Unaone Bissotwo Terrathree Kartefour Pantafive

6 7 8 9 0

November Oscar Papa Quebec Romeo Siera Tango Uniform Victor Whiskey X-ray Yankee Zulu

Soxisix Setteseven Oktoeight Novenine Nadazero

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APPENDIX B : BAND PLAN FOR FM/VHF 144.000 CW

144.000-144.250 144.050

Moonbounce

145.3250

V26

CW calling frequency

145.3375

V27

145.3500

V28

145.3625

V29

145.3570

V30

145.3875

V31

145.4000

V32

144.150 SSB and CW only

144.500

145.4125

V33

All modes

145.4250

V34

non-channelised

145.4375

V35

145.4500

V36

145.4625

V37

145.4750

V38

144.800 Digital

144.9000

Packet Digipeater

144.990

145.4875

V39

145.5000

V40

145.5125

V41

145.0000

RV48

145.5250

V42

145.0125

RV49

145.5375

V43

145.0250

RV50

145.5500

V44

145.0375

RV51

145.5626

V45

145.05000

RV52

145.5750

V46

145.0625

RV53

145.5875

V47

FM REPEATER

145.0750

RV54

INPUTS`

145.0875

RV55

145.6000

RV48

145.1000

RV56

145.6125

RV49

145.1125

RV57

145.6250

RV50

145.1250

RV58

145.6375

RV51

145.1375

RV59

145.6500

RV52

145.6625

RV53

145.6750

RV54

SIMPLEX

Not to be used at this time

145.600

145.1500

RV60

FM REPEATER

145.1625

RV61

OUTPUTS

145.1750

RV62

145.6875

RV55

145.1875

RV63

145.7000

RV56

145.7125

RV57

145.2000

CHANNELS

Calling frequency

145.2000

V16

145.7250

RV58

145.2125

V17

145.7375

RV59

145.2250

V18

145.7500

RV60

145.2375

V19

145.7625

RV61

145.2500

V20

145.7750

RV62

145.2625

V21

145.7875

RV63

145.2750

V22

145.800

145.2875

V23

Satellite service

145.300

V24

146.000

145.3125

V25

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