RADIO UNDERGROUND LOS ANGELES
RADIO UNDERGROUND LOS ANGELES
April 14, 2015
This was a great milestone for us.
A record 26 stations, 5 new radio operators and with the relay coming in from Catalina, we nearly doubled the reach of the net.
For those still unfamiliar with what we are doing....
For amateur radio operators, this is the purest form of radio communication. We don't use the repeater towers. We are communicating strictly radio to radio. That's what all of the various color lines are. If I cannot hear a station, but another one can, that station relays the checkin to me. Those are the blue lines.
Each operator is a licensed station, with various degrees of expertise, skill and equipment. We use what we have to communicate and to the farthest point possible and with as much coverage as possible.
I run what you call "Net Control." That's the person keeping the whole thing organized so that it's not just a bunch of people talking over one another.
But why do this? What's the point?
Well one, for radio geeks, it's fun. It's like hunting.
And two, in the event of an earthquake or other incident, this works. And it may be the only thing that works. Cell phones and internet would be out and there would be no way to communicate emergencies.
My initial goal was to cover downtown Los Angeles, but now we've grown it out to Chatsworth, out past West Covina and down to Irvine, Long Beach and now Catalina Island. What's cool is that it's now become kind of a Thing. Radio operators are joining us from all the various repeater networks to test their skill, be a part of something I trust will continue to grow and hopefully be of value when we need it.
And yes, I'm making art.
I just can't talk about it since I'm under an NDA.
But it's very cool and I'll share stuff as I get approval.
Unfortunately because of all of this, I can't join my hippo friends at Coachella like I planned. But I'm proud of them beyond belief....
RADIO UNDERGROUND LOS ANGELES
RADIO UNDERGROUND LOS ANGELES
April 14, 2015
This was a great milestone for us.
A record 26 stations, 5 new radio operators and with the relay coming in from Catalina, we nearly doubled the reach of the net.
For those still unfamiliar with what we are doing....
For amateur radio operators, this is the purest form of radio communication. We don't use the repeater towers. We are communicating strictly radio to radio. That's what all of the various color lines are. If I cannot hear a station, but another one can, that station relays the checkin to me. Those are the blue lines.
Each operator is a licensed station, with various degrees of expertise, skill and equipment. We use what we have to communicate and to the farthest point possible and with as much coverage as possible.
I run what you call "Net Control." That's the person keeping the whole thing organized so that it's not just a bunch of people talking over one another.
But why do this? What's the point?
Well one, for radio geeks, it's fun. It's like hunting.
And two, in the event of an earthquake or other incident, this works. And it may be the only thing that works. Cell phones and internet would be out and there would be no way to communicate emergencies.
My initial goal was to cover downtown Los Angeles, but now we've grown it out to Chatsworth, out past West Covina and down to Irvine, Long Beach and now Catalina Island. What's cool is that it's now become kind of a Thing. Radio operators are joining us from all the various repeater networks to test their skill, be a part of something I trust will continue to grow and hopefully be of value when we need it.
And yes, I'm making art.
I just can't talk about it since I'm under an NDA.
But it's very cool and I'll share stuff as I get approval.
Unfortunately because of all of this, I can't join my hippo friends at Coachella like I planned. But I'm proud of them beyond belief....