VECTOR September 2021 News

Posted in newsletter

Previous newsletters can be found in the archive.

Our next members' meeting will be held September 1 online using Zoom: guest speaker Gabriel Mora VA7GXM .

1. Coming Meeting | 2. News | 3. Learn | 4. On Air | 5. Notable | 6. Secondaries | 7. Meetings

1. Coming Meeting

Details attached to mailed version.

  1. When the Ground Really Shakes - Gabriel VA7GXM - 20 minutes
  2. Brief Practical Exercise - Radiograms - 15 minutes
  3. O&I Forum - Feedback Workshop, Logistics, Partnerships, September Basic - All - 55 minutes

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2. Community News

Guest Speaker: Gabriel Mora VA7GXM on When the Ground Really Shakes
Cozy fun using VHF Simplex - Simplex Relay Day
Share your feedback about VECTOR for our October session
When would you prefer we held the members meeting?
How comfortable are you using Winlink emails?
BCARCC needs your thoughts about making BC repeaters narrow-band
Send a radiogram to use in practices
Whom would you recommend for director?
Does VECTOR hold the values of “The Maintainers”?
50% support moving weekly net to Tuesday or Thursday
Test Loomio with us for steering VECTOR
COVID-19 Update
VECTOR seeks Techs, Devs, Helpers, and Teachers

When the Ground Really Shakes: Gabriel VA7GXM

  • Learn from his personal experience dealing with real world earthquakes
  • Discover details about the first 60 seconds of an earthquake
  • Dive into the first 60 minutes of the Emergency after the earthquake
  • What role does Internet and Wifi hubs serve in an emergency?
  • How do you work with sporadic communication links?

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Cozy fun using VHF Simplex - Simplex Relay Day

  • Cozy group spanned North Vancouver, Victoria, South Vancouver, and Kits
  • One pair of players noted ability to communicate using 0.5 W and 1.25 W in one exchange!

Details

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Making disaster prevention part of every day

  • Keiko H at Kerrisdale shared an interesting 30-minute video about disaster preparedness in Japan: Japanology Plus

  • Highlights: park features, water batteries, pocket jackets, folding hard-hats, disaster vests, and tastier emergency foods

  • Filmed 2021-05-13, Available until 2024-03-31

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Share your feedback about VECTOR for the session on 2021-10-06 (October)

  • Let’s hold structured open dialogue instead of inviting a guest speaker and holding an Operations and Intelligence Forum
  • Let’s explore important questions:
    • What have you liked about VECTOR in the last two years?
    • Where do you prefer to look to know what’s going on in VECTOR?
    • How do you wish VECTOR could help you to volunteer in the coming years?
    • What does VECTOR do that you feel is a barrier for you?
  • Can’t make it in October? Please add your thoughts using our survey

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When would you prefer we held the members session?

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BCARCC needs your thoughts about making BC repeaters narrow-band

  • Western Washington intends to make repeaters narrow-band to create room for more repeaters (30% more 140 MHz, and 50% more 440 MHz)
  • Western Washington Amateur Radio Association has a simple 10-year program (the slides)
  • How ready is BC to switch over to narrow-band repeaters?
  • What can you perceive from your spot? Share your concerns with Russell

20-minute Talk | Slides

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Send us a radiogram for this month’s practical exercise

  • This month we plan to spend time on a couple of radiograms
  • Unless you can send in a new example, we’ll use one from our practice deck (in the Members Area)
  • Attached TXT file shows a rough way to share your content ideas
  • Get an example message: send SMS message “rocky” to 778-401-2132

Practice Deck | Send a new one

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Whom would you recommend for director?

  • Members deliver VECTOR services (to each other and the community)
  • Directors handle risk, finances, and ambassadorship for VECTOR
  • VECTOR holds Directors and Officers Liability Insurance to protect you
  • Share your recommendation for future directors: message to Jesse'

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VECTOR cares about people that take care of systems

In the area of amateur radio, we share values with a social group called “the Maintainers”:

  • Care about those individuals who keep our world from falling apart; individuals who keep society’s systems running.
  • Foster and promote action research into maintenance, repair, infrastructure, and the mundane work that keeps our society going. Seek to nurture partnerships to connect researchers and practitioners who share the goal of putting experience, research, and evidence to work.
  • Build capacity to improve maintenance practices and to help Maintainers — as individuals and communities — share knowledge about common challenges and wise practices.

The Maintainers

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50% support moving weekly net to Tuesday or Thursday

  • Brief poll at weekly net on 2021-08-26, 14 responses
  • “If we moved the net, what day would you prefer – Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday?”
  • Expect similar question on September 1 about day for next 3 member meetings
  • Generally, most prefer Wednesday
    • Any day from Tuesday to Thursday 3
    • Wednesday 8
    • Tuesday 3
    • Thursday 2
  • Details
    • 7, Wednesday
    • 3, Any day from Tuesday to Thursday
    • 2, Tuesday or Thursday
    • 1, Wednesday or Tuesday
    • 1, Tuesday

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Test Loomio with us for steering VECTOR

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VECTOR COVID-19 Update - Stand Resolute for Autumn

Response (update) | Restart

  • Updated details – next checkpoint: September 13
  • Hold fast: keep using your mask indoors and tight spaces
  • Our sites remain restricted as noted previously with our work rules posted in the members' section of the website
  • Note 2 aggressive variants going around now: Delta and Lambda
  • Vaccine information updated August 27 - here

Use Jitsi for pop-up meetings when you need to share screens

Thank you for being a protector for people in our communities who could suffer from the impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, BC Provincial Health Officer:

“Be kind, be calm, and be safe.”

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VECTOR Seeks Technicians, Helpers, Devs, and Teachers

Give as much commitment as fits your life as a helper to finish jobs

Get advice | Help a team | Get the code |

  • Deploy updated computers in our on-site radio stations - ask Jesse VE7DET
  • Be an instructor for the Basic Amateur Radio Proficiency Course - ask Anthony VE7XAK
  • Free the ideas from our Brainstorming Session recording - ask Jesse VE7DET
  • Become an examiner for VECTOR - [ask Linda VE7LMP]((mailto:[email protected]?subject=Becoming%20an%20Examiner)
  • Help pack VPD spare amateur radio into a deployable kit - ask Jesse VE7DET

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3. Upcoming Training & Practice Opportunities

Review Learning Program | Dive into Exercises

Radio Skills | Tech Nights | Net Control

Level-up - Tech Night and Troubleshooting, September 07

Session Overview | Add to Calendar

  • Help each other solve someone’s latest communications problem
  • Come together monthly: September 7, 19:00
  • Get help with a problem that frustrates you

Level-up - become a Net Control Operator

  • Write an email to Andrew VA7YAA to join the list
  • First step: attend the introduction to the net control operator program on Zoom

Find more

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4. On Air Radio Activities

Local Nets | Program | Calendar | Jessé VE7DET | Team Page | Team Mail

Connect Casually Any Night - 19:05 nightly on VE7RVF

Time Estimate: 30 minutes

  • Members have run these nets for over 500 nights (since 2020-04-01) (except for 2021-07-25 when there was no net controller available)
  • Nightly Net Controller chooses a question or topic to inspire sharing (anything from radio to food to entertainment to no topic at all)
  • Connect to around 15 fellow operators (from 8 to 35 people any day)
  • Remember to identify your signal
  • You may take a shot leading as net controller, if you like!

Email Christin VA7WIE

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New VECTOR Winlink Gateway active - 441.025 MHz simplex

Time Estimate: 15 minutes

Tune your radio to 441.025 MHz and run your Winlink session to become more comfortable using Winlink email over radio. Finicky 440 reception means repositioning your antenna by as little as 10 cm can make a difference. If you still can’t connect, you can relay through various other Winlink nodes.

  • Added new Lenovo M90n after rack server hard drive packed it in

  • New Lenovo M90n running RMS, BPQ, and APRS-IS

  • VA7EOC-10, 441.025 MHz simplex

  • VA7EOC-1 active for APRS-IS

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Keep Formal Net Skills Sharp on Weekly Net - 20:00 weekly on Wednesdays, VE7TEL

Time Estimate: 30 minutes

Checking in on Wednesdays stretches a few less-used skills. Details below in 6. Weekly Nets.

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5. Announcements, Notables, etc.

Get to know other members on air

Nightly Check in and Chat | Monthly Exercises

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People are noticing our Frequency Table is Outdated

  • Share your thoughts with the team about how the frequency list is set up
  • Team aims to limit major changes to order
  • Major updates needed to align with latest repeater situation
  • Get involved: Frequency List in Logistics forum
  • See what it is: Work in Progress (please only view, post comments to the Logistics forum rather than edit)

Help Out | Logistics forum

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Nearly ready for Radio Auction

  • All information assembled and we have everything for 4 complete radios
  • Preparing a spot on the members section of the website

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September Tech Night Next Week - 2021-09-07, 19:00

  • This month starts with how to improve handheld antenna performance, any topic welcome
  • Second Tuesday: 2021-09-07, 19:00, VECTOR Zoom
  • Join the call to get involved

Details

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6. Weekly Net

Catch the weekly net at 20:00 every Wednesday on the VE7TEL repeater: VECTOR channel 2, 145.170 MHz -600 kHz.

Each week, a secondary net follows on a different frequency, providing opportunities for amateur radio operators to test radios using other bands and modes of operation.

Schedule for upcoming secondary net frequencies:
Date Channel Frequency Information
September 01 44 146.430 MHz
September 08 20 147.200 MHz +600 kHz T100.0 Hz
September 15 7 147.450 MHz T100.0 Hz simplex
September 22 4 146.580 MHz simplex
September 29 1 145.450 MHz -600 kHz T100.0 Hz

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7. Monthly Members' Meetings

VECTOR gathers on the first Wednesday of every month to keep its operations flowing. Connect in our Zoom virtual space unless otherwise noted.

The next 4 Monthly Members' Meeting dates:
  • September 01 at 18:30 - Guest: Gabriel VA7GXM - Being in Earthquakes
  • October 06 at 18:30 - Member Insights Special Session
  • November 03 at 18:30 - Guest: Kris H - VEMA
  • December 01 at 18:30 - Annual General Meeting

Connect with others before and after the main session:

  • Join early (15 minutes) at 18:15
  • Hang around after (20 minutes) until roughly 20:50
  • We’ll have breakout areas available

Please find the link to the Zoom online conference room in your email edition of the newsletter for joining remotely or on your BetterImpact homepage. You can sign up for upcoming members' meetings in BetterImpact to log your meeting time automatically.

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Tnx es 73,

VE7DET || Jessé Neri, President (he|him)
[email protected]

VA7DPO || Darryl Pogue, Director (he|him)

https://vectorradio.ca/members/discuss/
https://loomio.org/vector-vancouver/ https://keybase.io/team/helpingvector
Traditional and unceded territories of the Musqueam (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm), Squamish (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh), and Tsleil-Waututh (səl̓ilwətaɁɬ) peoples.