Good Morning this is VK2ATZ, the official station of Westlakes Amateur Radio Club located at Teralaba, Lake Macquarie. Your reader of this morning's local news is Greg VK2CW. There should be a HF simulcast on 3.565 MHz this morning courtesy of Warren VK2UWP which will be repeated at 7 pm this evening. Westlakes local news is read each Sunday on this repeater, VK2RTZ, at 9am local. Following at 9:30am is a relay of the Australia wide amateur radio news from the WIA.
VK100WIA news. Richard VK2FRKO advised yesterday that the 3-day operation with the special call sign by Port Stephens Amateur Radio Club last weekend resulted in 686 contacts. Also the Port Stephens operators notched up the 15,000th contact with the special call. It was well-known amateur, Martin Luther VK7GN. PSARC had an excellent result, made all the better because "day one" was a rotter - wind, rain, storms and lightning. 686 contacts will take some beating by Westlakes on its 3-day turn at the end of October.
The storeman, Aly VK2AFZ continued to flog solar panels yesterday. So much so, that all eighteen of the 20 watt panels are gone - there are no more available. But hope springs eternal - perhaps another batch could be ordered? That question has been asked but the answer at this stage is,
"We don't know".
Yesterday morning, the 1109th edition of the "Stone the Crows" went to air at 6am. There were 13 starters. A quick calculation reveals that this net has been running every Saturday for over 21 years with Edward VK2UI at the helm. That must be some sort of record. Another quick calculation
Reveals that episode 1111 (remember that silly poem about racehorses) will go to air on Saturday week.
Coming up next Saturday night, the 18th September, is the 2010 Westlakes Cup. This contest has as a prize, two engraved cups that are awarded and retained by the winning Standard/Advanced and Foundation licence holders the contest only runs for one hour and the rules appeared in the August Amateur Radio Magazine and in the September Westlakes Magazine. So don't forget this year's Westlakes Cup - Saturday 18th September, from 10.30 UTC to 11.30 UTC, only on one band and then only between the frequencies of 3.535 to 3.620 MHz.
Now some overseas news that sounds like a breakfast cereal. Google has announced an improvement to its Internet search engine called "Google Instant". The search results change what you are shown as you type. The technology giant claims the new feature will reduce the time spent on search by two to five seconds per request, saving its more than 1 billion weekly users about 350 million hours a year. ‘Google Instant,' is available to all users on google.com in English in the US, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Russia and the UK. It will be available here in six weeks. The only visual change to the familiar multi-colour Google screen and logo will be the additional word, "Instant." 66 per cent of computer owners world-wide currently use Google.
Still overseas and the RSGB reports that computer experts are warning that the Internet may "collapse" At some point within the next decade. They claim that the Internet routing method that connects any two computers in the world is severely stressed and cannot sustain another 10 years as millions more users pile onto it. Well, there's something to think about before you rush out and buy a new computer.
Next time you visit the club, take a peek in the canteen. Arriving next Thursday will be the club's brand new oven. It's a sort of silvery /stainless steel thing with a fan blower and goodness knows what else. Handpicked by the canteen manageress, Gloria, it is certain to please.
A squid pole antenna was raised in the club grounds yesterday. The main purpose was to check the veracity of a report by vk2CW of a near 1:1 SWR on 40 metres all the way from 7 to 7.3 MHz.Barry VK2BZ attacked the coiless, trapless antenna with his deluxe antenna analyser which measures
Everything from Ohms to phases of the moon. Sure enough, Barry's device agreed with the SWR meter in the attached QRP FT817 radio - around 1:1.3 right across the 40 metre band. I told you so!
Yesterday's meat tray raffle result. In an effort to break the hold on the meat tray by the troglodyte inhabitants in the Westlakes store, a vegetarian, John VK2EV, was asked to draw the winning ticket. You guessed it - it belonged to the store troglodyte number four, Ken VK2KJ,
And finally, the club's deluxe wooden sign, carved, painted, varnished, and erected by Mal VK2VON, is still affixed to the building and remains unharmed after a week despite predictions that, "it won't last 5 minutes." Any bets on another week?
Well that's all the local news we have this week.
Now to wind up. Westlakes Amateur Radio Club Inc. is located in York Street and is open on Saturday Afternoons from around 12 noon until everyone goes home. Also on a Tuesday evening from around 6pm again until everyone goes home. Although a Radio Club, we are on the telephone.
Try dialling (02) 49 581588. An answering service operates after hours. Visitors are always welcome at the club. We have plenty of tea, coffee, and long-life milk. Plus, there are biscuits too.
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