THE LOCAL OSCILLATOR - March 2009 NOTE: An HTML version is available at www.mvrc.qzxservices.com. A pdf file of the web edition is available at http://www.mvrc.qzxservices.com/pdf/LO0903.pdf. It will be easy to print that edition. If you do not have the free pdf reader, you can get it at http://www.adobe.com TABLE OF CONTENTS COMING EVENTS PRESIDENT'S CORNER BATAAN DEATH MARCH FEBRUARY 7 BUILDER'S GROUP CLUB HISTORY ARRL ROCKY MOUNTAIN DIVISION CONVENTION NEW CLUB STATION IN TOWN DUES FEBRARY TREASURER'S REPORT OFFICERS JOIN THE CLUB COMING EVENTS Sun Slow CW net 3.575 MHz 3:30PM Sun CW net 3.575 MHz 4:00PM M-F 6 m FM net 52.540 6:00AM Mon WTRA Swap net 146.88 8:00PM Wed Net 146.64 6:45PM MWF Informal get together Wal-Mart W (Valley) 10 AM TTH Informal get together Wal-Mart E (Walton) 10 AM Mar 3 Buiders Group 7 PM Club House Mar 7 Breakfast 8 AM Club House Mar 7 Business meeting 9 AM Club House Mar 11 Board Meeting 7 PM Club House Mar 18 Buiders Group 7 PM Club House Apr 26 Bean Feed Club House PRESIDENT'S CORNER KC5HFJ The usual breakfast and business meeting will be held March 7. BATAAN DEATH MARCH KD5OHA This event is Sunday March 29, 2009. If you can help I need your T shirt size, drivers license number, and your vehicle make, model, year, color, and license plate number. I need this information by February 24 if you want a the T shirt and security pass. If you are driving you must have one of these passes to get on the course. Also let me know if you want a meal. (Warning the meals will be MRE meals ready to eat.) If you are ex-military and like these that is fine. If you have never experienced them before I strongly suggest that you bring your own food and drink. NO ALCOHOL! I would like to have two people at each station. There are 12 stations. This is what I have so far. WP 1 2 people WP2 2people WP3/9 1 person WP4/8 1 person WR5 2 people WP6 1 person WP7 1 person WP10 1 person WP11 1person WP12 1 person. The sand pit only requires 1 person but 2 would be nice. In case you are not familiar with the Bataan Death March WP3/9 and WP4/8 are together. Last years event had over FOUR THOUSAND entries. If you can help please let me know as soon as possible. George 525-1958 FEBRUARY 7 K5XY February 7 was an unusually busy day for MVRC. First, breakfast at 8AM. The menu was Biscuits (not homemade, but OH WELL...) White pepper gravy with sausage and bacon crumbles Fruit salad with a yougurt/creme'fraiche dressing And, of course, pancakes. Price = $4 as usual. Next the business meeting at 9 AM. KI5FJ spoke on a digital soundcard interface to permit all kinds of digital transmissions. See the article below for more information on that interface. This was followed by participation in the NM QSO party starting at 11 AM. About 30 people participated with 20 operators. Something like 30 contacts were made. Results will be posted on the internet at URL http://pages.swcp/~n5xgt/nmqsoparty. Then at noon to 2PM there was a demonstration on how to hook-up a digital to analog set top converter box for the change from analog to digital TV. The demonstration was held even though the deadline for the modulation changeover was postponed. At 6 PM there was food for the contesters. For those who want to participate in the New Mexico QSO Party, K5KMC made chicken and andoulle gumbo with white rice on the side. Dinner started about 1800 hours local, but gumbo and rice stayed warm well. BUILDER'S GROUP K5XY The builder’s Group met at the club house Tuesday, March 3. at 7 pm. The digital sound card interfaces that had been ordered had come in and were distributed. The completely assembled units included two CDs loaded with programs, a RS232 to USB interface cable, and a custom made cable to interface the unit to your radio. The total cost was significantly less than the interfaces advertised in QST. Several club members had uses this interface and recommended it. Installation details were discussed. Three members of the group had brought their computers and radios so they had the interfaces completely installed that evening. It was mentioned that the usual frequency for PSK31 is at 14.07 MHz and stated that there would be activity in Las Cruses on 147.66 MHz. CLUB HISTORY K5XY There is available in the club house a lot of history of the club in the form of six fine blue bound volumes. The first volume covers from 1950 to 1960, but actually has information from some other years too. Some pages are formal history pages, others contain lists of members, the constitution, and some minutes. The next five contain mostly back issues of the Local Oscillator. Unfortunately all issues in this time span are not available. However these volumes, which cover the years from 1980 to 2005, are almost complete. In fact almost all the Local Oscillators from those years are contained in those volumes. All the Local Oscillators after those dates are no the Local Oscillator web site at URL http://www.mvrc.qzxwservices.com. Thus a more complete history and record of our club than most clubs is readily available. This information was collected, organized, and excellently presentd by AD5LJ, Bob Bennett. The club owes him lots of thanks. ARRL ROCKY MOUNTAIN DIVISION CONVENTION A little over THREE months remain until the 2009 Rocky Mountain Division Convention (May 29-31). Have you made plans to join up to many hundreds of Hams in beautiful Estes Park, Colorado...gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park? Registration is happening as we speak, and special hotel rates have been negotiated for convention attendees. Among the guest speakers: Riley Hollingsworth K4ZDH (retired Special Counsel for the Spectrum Enforcement Division of the FCC's Enforcement Bureau), Harold Kraemer WJ1B (ARRL Chief Operating Officer), Gordon Hardman W0RUN (2009 Desecheo Island DXpedition participant and chief engineer of Alpha Radio Products), Mike Gruber W1MG (ARRL EMC Engineer and contributor to "The Doctor Is IN" QST column), and Brian Mileshosky N5ZGT (Director, ARRL Rocky Mountain Division). There will be plenty of technical and non-technical forums, great meals, and one heck of a time meeting and greeting hams from all over the Division. A great event with a very fitting theme: "Amateur Radio: Resilient, Relevant, Ready" Please mark your calendars and visit the Division convention's website at http://www.hamconcolorado.org for more details, including registration information. Join us for a great time at an awesome venue. NEW CLUB STATION IN TOWN KI5FJ The Dona Ana Communicator's Amateur Radio Club has been issued club call sign, KE5ZFK. This call sign will be used at the DA County EOC. A licensed amateur radio operator must be present at the EOC and take responsibility as CONTROL OPERATOR. The License Class (Tech, General, Advanced, Extra) of the CONTROL OPERATOR restricts KE5ZFK operation to within the control operator's authorized band privileges. DUES KI5FJ The 2009 dues are due before 1 May, the earlier the better. As a reminder, please include the following info with your dues check: Call Sign(s) if FAMILY, Class, Name, Address, email address ARRL Member Y/N and optional PHONE Number. The reason I would appreciate your phone number is to clarify your email if it bounces. If you desire to pay CASH at the next meeting, please write down the above info as it will speed up the process... Please address your info to ki5fj@arrl.net FEBRUARY TREASURER'S REPORT KI5FJ INCOME BUDGET ACTUAL YTD Bean Feed 400.00 Breakfast & Drinks 600.00 214 Contributions 250.00 50.00 Dues 2000.00 1435 Education Classes 850.00 220.00 Equip Sales 1845.00 250 Bank Interest 30.00 Other 0.00 TOTAL 5975.00 2169.00 EXPENSES BUDGET ACTUAL YTD Bean Feed 300.00 Breakfast & Drinks 400.00 Clubhouse 400.00 43.84 Education Classes 850.00 249.31 Field Day 150.00 Insurance 1000.00 Misc 100.00 10.00 NM Emergency Fee 30.00 30.00 NM Tax Exempt Fee 10.00 PO Box Rent 60.00 Postage 100.00 President’s Fund 75.00 Property Tax 800.00 Repeater Maintenance 600.00 212.91 Electricity 450.00 107.83 Propane 500.00 19.96 Water 150.00 35.96 TOTAL 5975.00 709.81 AS OF 28 FEB 2009 INCOME 2169 EXPENSES 709.81 NET + 682.05 OFFICERS Pres Perry Welch KC5HFJ 373-9171 perrywelch@hotmail.com VPr Cash Olsen KD5SSJ 382-1917 kd5ssj@arrl.net Sec Jack Lemons N5PK 644-7207 jack_N5PK@hotmail.com Treasurer Joe Ostrowski ki5jf@arrl.net BOARD Communications Henry Schotzko AD5FE 526-1922 schotzko@comcast.net Education Special Events Kevin McNelis K5KMC 571-7326 kmcnelis@nmsu.edu Newsletter Alex Burr K5XY 522-2528 k5xy@arrl.net Clubhouse Bob Bennett AD5LJ 382-0148 rpbennett1@comcast.net Repeaters Robert Truitt KE5OFK 649-4173 robtruitt@zianet.com JOIN THE CLUB To join the Mesilla Valley Radio Club, renew your membership, or to support the repeaters, please complete the form below and send it with dues ($35 single, $45 family per year) to: Treasurer, MVRC, Box 1443, Las Cruces, NM 88004. Name: Address: Call: Class of License: Phone: E-Mail Address: ARRL Member? Yes? No?