CQ CQ CQ Ham Radio Thursday: ZedNet, my first pile up, and remote from GITMO and… Vatican City?

Just a reminder to any hams out there who might be interested in ZedNet.

ZedNet is a worldwide talkgroup – 31429

More HERE.   But quickly…

For you who are into this digital stuff, ZedNet still exists on the
Yaesu System Fusion (Wires-X) “room” 28598, which is cross-linked to Brandmeister (BM) DMR worldwide talkgroup 31429.  This gives world-wide multi-mode access to a common ham radio network.

Any fellow hams who have access locally to a Yaesu System Fusion
repeater, a repeater on the Brandmeister network, or a multi-mode hotspot
registered with BM can get on and have a rag chew.

WB0YLE gave me a Bill of Materials.  A list of what you need.  HERE

What are we doing with this?  Not much right now, but who knows.  And it’s fun to make it work.   When I was at GITMO I had my little hotspot using data from my mobile phone, and everything worked like a charm.  On Sunday I am off to Rome, and I will do the same there.  I might even take it “mobile”, since I could – feasibly – hook everything into a powerbank and then walk about.

Also, while I was at GITMO I operated remotely and – I was very clear that I was operating remotely – had a pile up when I said that I was physically at Guantanamo Bay.   My first receiving end of a pile up.  When I get to Rome next week, I suppose I could take my laptop over to St. Peter’s Square and operate from Vatican City… via the upper midwest!  I could tether my laptop to my phone.  It might be slow, but I could do it.  I’ll have to experiment before I leave.

I created a page for the List of YOUR callsigns.  HERE  Chime in or drop me a note if your call doesn’t appear in the list.

73

UPDATE:

Followup… I tethered my laptop to my mobile phone used as a wifi hotspot.  I had to use the low band width setting, but I was able to make a contact in Spain on my 2nd call in a pile up.  It is not instantaneous, but it worked!    You can see down in the bottom right that the laptop is connected to “Z’s 8”.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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7 Comments

  1. Julia_Augusta says:

    I am looking forward to your Rome photos: Food! Wine!

  2. JonPatrick says:

    I guess I’m a little confused as the top picture shows a Baofeng HT as the radio but on the bottom picture you have your laptop running Flexradio which I thought was an SDR using the computer as an interface (I am fairly new at this digital stuff). Maybe a block diagram would help.

  3. JonPatrick says: confused

    These are two different modes of operating.

    I use the little digital Baofeng RD-5R for ZedNet, though the Raspberry-Pi hotspot that connects to wifi.

    The laptop running SDR remotely operations a station which an EXTREMELY kind reader and fellow ham allows me to use. I have no way right now to put up an antenna, so this is a great alternative for me (and it’s a far far better rig than I could set up).

    I hope that helps.

    If you are at all into digital modes, you might give ZedNet a try! I believe the directions, above, should be sufficient. If not, I could get you in touch with the digital elmer who built mine for me.

  4. deaconjohn1987 says:

    I’m monitoring ZedNet 31429 most of the day, if anyone wants a signal report or a short chat. W2JPG Pocono Mountains, Pa. using a hotspot and a Radioddity GD-77 HT.

  5. My grandmother was into ham radio. Unfortunately, her license did not arrive until after her death on February 13, 1977 — my first bereavement. My grandmother and I were thick as thieves.

    I do not have an interest in ham radio, and it all looks too complicated for my blood, but these posts about your ham operation make me think of my grandmother and even pray for her soul. She would have gotten a huge kick out of the technological advances over the last 40 years.

  6. Mark Windsor says:

    I have the Yaesu FTM-100 in my car, but I can’t seem to find a repeater nearby that will work for this. Alas…

    I don’t have any of the computer connections for the digital systems, since my only digital radio is in the car.

  7. acardnal says:

    JonPatrick, there are a number of videos on YouTube that explain DMR (digital mobile radio).
    Basically what Father is doing is using a network that interfaces the world wide amateur vhf/uhf repeater network and the internet.
    By registering with Brandmeister,for example, (dmr-marc is another) you can talk with anyone/anywhere if you are in the same Talk Group simultaneously, e.g. deaconjohn1987 above.
    If you go to the Brandmeister website you can listen to conversations. Go to Hose line/talk groups. Select a talk group in drop-down list or listen to USA nationwide. Or go to Hose.brandmeister.network/31429 and IF some is talking, you can listen.

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