DAREN of WV News May 9, 2010 (.930]
Kenneth Harris WA8LLM (304) 679-3470 wa8llm@yahoo.com
WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
P.O. BOX 3328, PARKERSBURG, WV 26103
http://www.wc8ec.org
DAREN News, are articles and information about the Digital Amateur Radio "Emergency" Network of WV, which operates on 145.69 MHz. Anyone having any information about DAREN, or Amateur Radio in general, and would like to share it with others, may send it to WA8LLM @ PKBGWV on 145.69 MHz, or to my E-Mail: wa8llm@yahoo.com. A State Wide DAREN NET is operated every Saturday from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm, and lately, before and after those hours. The DAREN Net Announcement, showing the MAIN NCS, ALTERNATE NCS, NODEs accessible to both, and the previous week's check-ins, are posted by Thursday on most of the Main county DAREN PBBS'. The DAREN News can also be found on the wc8ec.org website.
There's been very little news or other activities to write about lately. I don't have much of anything this week. Field Day will be coming up shortly; maybe I can get some information on where some of the groups will be operating and if they will be using any Packet Radio. Last year the Wood County Emergency Communications group made additional bonus points by sending ARRL RADIOGRAMs via Packet to E-Mail addresses through the K8KHW Winlink systems. Even thou the messages went to E-Mail addresses, they were started via Amateur Radio. All you need to do is get a Packet station set up, and get someone who is just sitting around to make up RADIOGRAM messages and send them out. If you send one to the West Virginia ARRL Section Manager, Ann Rinehart, KA8ZGY, you will get 100 bonus points. If you send a message to the West Virginia ARRL Section Emergency Coordinator, me, at wa8llm@yahoo.com, you will get another 100 bonus points. Your group can get 10 bonus points, up to 100 points, for additional RADIOGRAMs. That's an easy way of getting 300 bonus points.
The two meter band has been pretty strange this past week. I had problems connecting to several county NODEs and PBBSs. There were several stations that had trouble connecting into the State Wide DAREN Net. There are some PBBSs that I wasn't able to post the News or Net Announcement on, until late in the week.
There were 51 check-ins to this week's State Wide DAREN Net. Bill Bayless, KB8HEK, who's been participating in the net since February 27, 1993, has completed 400 check-ins, and will be receiving his certificate. Tom Martin, WW8TM, needs only one more check-in to make 650. I've got the certificates printed up for those who have been waiting for them. I have so many projects going on at the same time it like a Fireman, just going around putting out hot spots; I'm just trying to get caught up. With any luck, if you have been waiting for a certificate, you may have it be the time the next DAREN News is out, If not they will be going out shortly.