m0xhs

This week we’re looking forward to meeting several new people, most of whom are working towards getting licenced, so we’ll grab a corner of the room for introductions and chat about the licence exam, and we should have some radios set up so we can give demos and answer questions.

Everyone is welcome to bring their own equipment to show or test, but if it requires table space please drop us a line so we can coordinate what goes where, both in the room and outside. Please check with Dave or JJ before setting up your own equipment and operating because we’ve had some near misses working the same bands and even the same frequencies, and also problems with sound levels in the room.

The evening will run from 7:00pm until 10:00pm, but the room is usually available from about 6:30 onward if anyone wants to arrive slightly earlier (e.g. to set up any kit).

Anyone coming by car is encouraged to use the gated carpark (to avoid neighbours complaining about parking). The roads in the area tend to be very busy until at least 6:30pm, so don’t arrive too early.

To access the room (and car park) you will need to be let in through the security gates. Once you’re right outside the gate just summon someone using a handheld on 145.500MHz. If you can’t use a radio for entry then contact us in advance and we’ll provide a mobile number you can call instead.

Wi-Fi is available in the room (although it’s been problematic lately so we’ve had to rely on tethering), along with a toilet, a kettle if anyone wants hot drinks (you’ll need to bring your own cups & beverages) and you can bring your own snacks and drinks, alcoholic or otherwise.

Don’t forget that the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook, Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.

As usual check the Discord server for up to the minute info and chat. Email for an invitation link if you don’t have one.

The survey indicated a slight preference for Tuesday over other days, and for both meetings to be on the same day, allowing a more logical calendar, so going forward we’re going to be meeting online on the first Tuesday of the month and at the club room on the third Tuesday of the month. In the summer months (May, June, July) we’ll take advantage of the lighter evenings and instead of meeting online we’ll meet at the club room, which conveniently ties in with the RSGB monthly 2m contests.

So the first ‘new’ online meeting will be next Tuesday. Hope to see you there.

Link to be sent on the day as usual and also posted in the Discord group.

Keep an eye on the Events calendar as the school is currently unable to confirm meeting dates more than a few weeks in advance so we may have to change some dates as we move to holding two meetings a month at the school during the summer months.

Incidentally, the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.  The online meeting is easy to do manually but the meeting at the school is harder as it’s the second Wednesday (12 days) after the online meeting.  Setting up synchronisation will make it much easier.

As last year we’re going to meet for a few drinks and optional food in The Rutland Arms on the riverside walk just a few metres towards Hammersmith Bridge.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Furnivall+Gardens/@51.4906345,-0.2325792,17z

As usual check the Discord server for up to the minute info and email if you don’t have a Discord link.

This Friday’s meeting will start with a discussion about meeting dates and formats for next year.  The recent survey suggested two conclusions, that there was a strong preference for meetings to be on the same day of the week, and that Tuesday or Wednesday was preferred, but we can discuss this further on Friday, so please have a think about what you’d like next year.

Several of us went to the Martin Lynch open day so we can tell you what we found interesting.

Link to be sent on the day as usual and also posted in the Discord group.

And don’t forget the Christmas social in a pub somewhere in the Hammersmith area.  You can indicate preferred dates and times here: https://doodle.com/sign-up-sheet/participate/c98f3163-3908-4…

Next meeting, both online and real life, will be in January, but on days to be determined.  As ever check the Events page on the website and the Discord for more details nearer the time. The current Discord invite link (expires in 7 days) is https://discord.gg/639ZvmWZ

Keep an eye on the Events calendar as the school is currently unable to confirm meeting dates more than a few weeks in advance so we may have to change some dates as we move to holding two meetings a month at the school during the summer months.

Incidentally, the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.  The online meeting is easy to do manually but the meeting at the school is harder as it’s the second Wednesday (12 days) after the online meeting.  Setting up synchronisation will make it much easier.

This Friday’s meeting will start with the AGM which shouldn’t take long as there aren’t any major issues to discuss, but if you want to stand for a committee position or have anything to raise under Any Other Business please let Godfrey know by Thursday latest.  Friends are welcome for this part but cannot vote on any motions.

After the formal part we’ll have a general discussion about meeting days and formats for next year so please have a think about what you’d like next year. This is important as it’s your club!

Link to be sent on the day as usual.

The next real meeting will be on Wednesday 26th November at the school and in December we’ll do as we usually do and have an online meeting but no physical meeting as there’ll be too much else going on in that week before Christmas. And also, as previous years, we’ll organise a very informal get-together between Christmas and the New Year, usually something like a pub dinner but we’re open to suggestions for that.

Keep an eye on the Events calendar as the school is currently unable to confirm meeting dates more than a few weeks in advance so we may have to change some dates as we move to holding two meetings a month at the school during the summer months.

Incidentally, the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.  The online meeting is easy to do manually but the meeting at the school is harder as it’s the second Wednesday (12 days) after the online meeting.  Setting up synchronisation will make it much easier.

It was a very low turnout, with several members sending apologies due to illnesses and weather (and in fairness, those of us there got utterly drenched leaving the pub). Mindful of club funds we moved the meeting to a nearby pub that we’ve used a few times before and fortunately the school allowed us to cancel at no charge.  And Godfrey made a sensible decision not to come as it was indeed dry when he’d have been coming but the rain was horizontal as we were leaving.

But for those of us that made it, there was a lot going on:

I brought my £6 repeater that links two Baofengs or other radios with ‘K’ (Kenwood) connectors, although being in a public place and raining heavily outside we couldn’t really play with it.  But it will have uses, we just haven’t thought of them yet.  Also I flashed my two Meshtastic devices to MeshCore which Marrold tells me is what all the cool kidz use now.  We deed to find somewhere high up to leave a repeater.

Alistair brought a DigiPi hotspot he’d recently put together, which is a compact, all-in-one digital station for amateur radio. To use his words, it’s built around a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W running a lightweight Linux image, and connects to a transceiver via a USB soundcard and serial interface (he’s using a Digirig with his Lab599 TX-500 or connecting directly to his Icom IC-705). With a portable power source and connected to a phone or small tablet, it becomes a completely self-contained setup for digital modes. It runs popular software like WSJT-X, JS8Call, FLDigi, and APRS, allowing FT8, PSK, WSPR, and more without needing a laptop. Just power it up, plug it into the radio, and it’s ready to go. The whole point of the build is to make digital operation simple and portable, perfect for using on his boat, or a POTA/SOTA activation, or just running quietly in the shack. It’s small and surprisingly capable for such a tiny setup. The Pi Zero 2W and screen came to around £25 and more information about the Digipi can be found at https://www.digipi.org/

Greg brought some LoRa in an ultimately successful attempt to run AX.25 over LoRa @ 70cm, using the E22 400T30D Module made by EBYTE (max 1W). So far he’s have tested PacketRadio using LinPac software on Linux and IP over AX.25 communication (Ping and SSH). Using a minimum available power of 21 dBm it worked nicely between the ground and 8th floor of his flats (further tests to be made). The setup consists of USB-C to Serial TTL adapter, LoRa module and a few wires and elements on the universal board. Additionally after spending some time with Alastair, we made a connection using the modules at the pub (between his Linux laptop and Raspberry Pi)

We discussed putting together an order for some PCBs and parts to build LoRa “Hydra” module for Meshtastic (30dBm, 868 MHz LoRa modules made by EBYTE) but more on that soon.

For various reasons relating to collecting the school keys and Dave not being able to bring the club radio we’ve made the decision to move tomorrow evening’s meeting to The Rutland Arms on Lower Mall (the riverside walk between Hammersmith Bridge and Furnivall Gardens, where we’ve met a few times before). I’ll bring the £6 repeater and possibly my Meshtastic devices re-flashed to MeshCore, Alastair’s going to bring his DigiPi. Same time: 7pm-ish.

No particular focus for the evening other than perhaps to get out further than previously. If you have anything you’d like to bring a long please drop us a line so we can coordinate what goes where both in the room and outside and potentially schedule time for you to to present it.

The evening will run from 7:00pm until 10:00pm, but the room will be available from about 6:30 onward if anyone wants to arrive slightly earlier (e.g. to set up any equipment). Nothing special planned other than trying to get radios working better than at the last meeting but if you have any suggestions post them on the Discord meetings channel.

People coming by car are encouraged to use the gated carpark (to avoid neighbours complaining about parking). The roads in the area tend to be very busy until at least 6:30pm, so don’t arrive too early.

To access the room (and car park) you will need to be let in through the security gates. Once you’re right outside the gate Just summon someone using your handheld on 145.500MHz. If you can’t use a radio for entry then contact us in advance and we’ll provide a mobile number you can call instead.  (One planned task is to figure out how to mount a wireless doorbell near the gate so it’s subtly accessible but won’t be abused or stolen.)

Wifi is available in the annex, which also features hot drink making facilities (you’ll need to bring your own cups and ingredients), toilet, and you can bring your own beverages, alcoholic or otherwise.

Don’t forget that the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar. 

As usual check the Discord server for up to the minute info and email if you don’t have a Discord link.

Usual meeting with random chat about forthcoming events and club projects.

Link to be sent on the day as usual.

Keep an eye on the Events calendar as the school is currently unable to confirm meeting dates more than a few weeks in advance so we may have to change some dates as we move to holding two meetings a month at the school during the summer months.

Incidentally, the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.  The online meeting is easy to do manually but the meeting at the school is harder as it’s the second Wednesday (12 days) after the online meeting.  Setting up synchronisation will make it much easier.

No particular focus for the evening other than perhaps to get out further than previously. If you have anything you’d like to bring a long please drop us a line so we can coordinate what goes where both in the room and outside and potentially schedule time for you to to present it.

The evening will run from 7:00pm until 10:00pm, but the room will be available from about 6:30 onward if anyone wants to arrive slightly earlier (e.g. to set up any equipment). Nothing special planned other than trying to get radios working better than at the last meeting but if you have any suggestions post them on the Discord meetings channel.

People coming by car are encouraged to use the gated carpark (to avoid neighbours complaining about parking). The roads in the area tend to be very busy until at least 6:30pm, so don’t arrive too early.

To access the room (and car park) you will need to be let in through the security gates. Once you’re right outside the gate Just summon someone using your handheld on 145.500MHz. If you can’t use a radio for entry then contact us in advance and we’ll provide a mobile number you can call instead.  (One planned task is to figure out how to mount a wireless doorbell near the gate so it’s subtly accessible but won’t be abused or stolen.)

Wifi is available in the annex, which also features hot drink making facilities (you’ll need to bring your own cups and ingredients), toilet, and you can bring your own beverages, alcoholic or otherwise.

Don’t forget that the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar. 

As usual check the Discord server for up to the minute info and email if you don’t have a Discord link.

Usual meeting with random chat about forthcoming events and club projects.

Link to be sent on the day as usual.

Keep an eye on the Events calendar as the school is currently unable to confirm meeting dates more than a few weeks in advance so we may have to change some dates as we move to holding two meetings a month at the school during the summer months.

Incidentally, the Events calendar on our website https://www.m0xhs.uk/events/ has some links at the bottom that allow you to synchronise it with Outlook or Google or iCalendar so meetings will automatically appear in your normal calendar.  The online meeting is easy to do manually but the meeting at the school is harder as it’s the second Wednesday (12 days) after the online meeting.  Setting up synchronisation will make it much easier.