*Courage Kenny Handiham World Weekly E-Letter for the week of Wednesday, 19 June 2013* This is a free weekly news & information update from Courage Kenny Handiham System <http://handiham.org/>. Our contact information is at the end, or simply email handiham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for changes in subscriptions or to comment. You can listen to this news online. MP3 audio stream: http://www.handiham.org/audio/handiham.m3u Download the 40 kbs MP3 audio to your portable player: http://www.handiham.org/audio/handiham.mp3 Get this podcast in iTunes: <http://www.itunes.com/podcast?id=372422406> http://www.itunes.com/podcast?id=372422406 RSS feed for the audio podcast if you use other podcasting software: http://feeds.feedBurner.com/handiham <http://feeds.feedburner.com/handiham> ------------------------------ *Welcome to Handiham World.* [image: Allina Health Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute logo] ARRL Field Day is coming up this weekend, June 22-23. The Handiham-affiliated Stillwater Amateur Radio Association<http://www.radioham.org/>, is preparing the club Field Day in an accessible location where our members with disabilities can participate if they wish. Last week we told you that one of our projects is to consolidate equipment in such a way as to be easily stored and transported, then deployed in the field. [image: Rolling food cooler with Icom IC-718, a switching power supply, all power cables complete with Anderson Powerpole connectors, the microphone and instruction manual for the radio, and even a small antenna tuner.] *Today we have a photo of the first prototype rolling cooler HF station system. Believe it or not, there is an Icom IC-718, a switching power supply, all power cables complete with Anderson Powerpole connectors, the microphone and instruction manual for the radio, and even a small antenna tuner. This prototype was assembled by Dave Glas, W0OXB. I think Dave bought the rolling cooler at Target, but I don't remember for sure. As we test different methods of doing this project we will provide more details. * We hope that what we learn from Field Day can be used at Camp Courage at the end of July when Radio Camp setup calls for organization and efficiency! If you are going to be deploying a station in the field, perhaps as a response to an emergency, you cannot expect to waste valuable time looking for all of the various parts of the station while the clock ticks away valuable minutes. The equipment needs to be collected in advance and be ready to grab and transport at a moment's notice. Everything needs to be stowed in such a way as to make sure it will arrive undamaged. And of course the station must be complete; it does little good to have everything but the DC power cables! That is the idea behind this project, which will include at least a half dozen separate stations. Each station's inventory will be tracked and listed both in the cloud as a digital file and in the actual station container. The availability of voice frequency readout will be noted. Also being tracked are user notes as to things that don't work or are missing or showing signs of wear. That will allow our volunteers to pinpoint and schedule repairs. This Field day event is June 22 & 23, daylight hours only. SARA’s Field Day activities will be held at wheelchair-accessible Autumn Hills Park in Oak Park Heights (southwestern side of Stillwater, MN) again this year. This city park is a few blocks south of Highway 36 at Norell Ave. N. (same as Washington Ave.) and immediately west of Boutwells Landing. Details are available at: http://news.radioham.org/node/4505 Please stop by to observe or sit down and operate the stations for a while. Don't be concerned that you are not a practiced contester. This Field Day event has a different focus for us; it's about getting on the air and having fun. Setting up the stations is also a part of emergency preparedness practice, so arrive by 9:00 AM on Saturday if you want to help with or observe setup. If you have never seen wire antennas deployed in the field, this will be an educational experience for you. We plan to do the same thing at Handiham Radio Camp, where we will be operating a "Field Day" station outdoors part of the time. If you are into contesting and want to run an aggressive series of contacts, that option is also available. There will be jobs for people to assist with logging the contacts as well as other things necessary to keep the operation on the air. Do you have a favorite Field Day story? Maybe you will find one this year, and if so, you can share it with us. Patrick Tice, WA0TDA Courage Kenny Handiham Coordinator ------------------------------ Get your 2 cents worth [image: FCC round logo] Buried in a lengthy Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), the FCC is planning an increase in the vanity callsign license fee. The fee is now $15 for the 10 year license term. In the NPRM the FCC addresses fee increases across many different services, and the increase is in tabular form, so you have to locate the line "Amateur Vanity Call Signs" and then the column "Rounded New FY 2013 Regulatory Fee". Where the two intersect is the number 1.52. What that means is that the regulatory fee is $1.52 per year, or $15.20 over the 10 year vanity callsign period. In other words, a vanity callsign will set you back an extra two cents every year once this increase goes through. Talk about getting your two cents worth! If you've got way too much time on your hands and would like to look at the NPRM in PDF, you can find it here<http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2013/db0523/FCC-13-74A1.pdf> . The table with the new vanity fee is on page 25. Happy reading! ------------------------------ Bulletin Board [image: cartoon robot with pencil] WA0CAF suggests a link to the NFB Petition Supporting WIPO Treaty for the Blind and Print Disabled: The National Federation of the Blind and the American Council of the Blind urge all supporters of a treaty promoting exceptions and limitations allowing the production of accessible copies of copyrighted works and the cross-border sharing of such accessible-format copies to sign the following petition: https://nfb.org/civicrm/petition/sign?sid=2 Please read the petition and if you agree, sign and submit. You will be asked to confirm the submission via an email message. A little Q & A from a Handiham perspective: - Question: What does "WIPO" stand for? - Answer: The World Intellectual Property Organization<http://www.wipo.int/about-wipo/en/>(WIPO) is the United Nations agency dedicated to the use of intellectual property (patents, copyright, trademarks, designs, etc.) as a means of stimulating innovation and creativity. - Question: So what's the problem? - Answer: We're glad you asked. As we read it, the whole idea of the treaty is to "promulgate international norms for the promotion of exceptions and limitations allowing the production of accessible-format copies of copyrighted works and for the cross-border sharing of such accessible-format copies." - Question: Sounds good to me - who wouldn't want that? - Answer: Oh, just about any publisher with an interest in keeping their copyrighted content from being pirated. - Question: That sounds like a lot of stuff might be affected, right? - Answer: Yup. Where does the situation stand right now? Okay, so the NFB petition basically supports the concept behind the WIPO mission, which says: "Our mission is to promote innovation and creativity for the economic, social and cultural development of all countries, through a balanced and effective international intellectual property system." The problem for people who use assistive technology to access books is that simple, straightforward plain text digital content (which is easy to access) is seldom easy to find. The reason is that it is easy to copy and share, potentially costing the copyright holders a bundle. That means that there are two opposing interests: 1. Copyright holders: Lock down content to prevent illegal reproduction and sharing, thus protecting intellectual property. 2. People with reading disabilities: Open content to make it easy to access with assistive technology from day one of publication. The give and take between the two interests has traditionally been such that materials available to the general public can take months or years to become accessible to people who are blind or have reading disabilities. Back in the old days when type was set by typesetters and the printed page was king, turning ink on paper into something a blind person could read meant manually converting it into Braille or having a human read and record a spoken word audio version. Oh, sure - Technology did make scanning a printed page and converting it to computer text possible, but this technology was often only available at public libraries and was clunky and hard to use. When OCR became more common, it was still a scan and recognize process that assured that the user would get one heck of a workout while trying to "read" the same book anyone else could just pick up and read with their eyeballs. Of course these days any typesetters who are still around probably live in retirement communities. Today virtually every publication begins life as computer text. The obvious question that blind people began asking was, "Why can't the original plain computer text be used to make accessible versions of these books?" Well, that is a good question, isn't it? Amazingly, even though that plain text version is out there sitting on a computer hard drive at the publisher, the process of converting a book to an accessible format is still decades behind the times. Human readers must still record spoken word audio or printed pages must be scanned and recognized by OCR software, then proofed and formatted by humans before being converted into the current worldwide accessible standard, DAISY. This clunky process pretty much assures that blind users will be waiting months or years to read what their sighted friends can pick up off the shelf the day the book is released. That doesn't make much sense. Not today, when every book begins as text on the author's PC. One effect of keeping this text from legitimate organizations whose mission it is to produce DAISY versions is not often mentioned: If a book is not popular and in demand, it is too much trouble (and therefore too expensive and time-consuming) to produce a DAISY version at all with the old scan-the-paper-pages method. That means that some readers will NEVER have access to a particular publication they might want to read, simply because it deals with an academic or specialized topic and the demand is too small to justify the conversion expense. This, by the way, is also true for Braille production since text can be readily translated into Braille and embossed by computer, or directed to a refreshable Braille display. How hard would it be to create DAISY from the original computer text, assuming it would be made available? Not hard at all. For example, if you are a writer and know how to use the organizational features of Microsoft Word, you can create a DAISY-ready book with no extra effort, simply by using Word's built-in heading formatting. This can also help you stay organized, especially if you are writing a technical book. The headings are created for you if you simply type the text, click somewhere on the same line, and then click on the heading choice. In this case, Heading 1 has been selected and the text appears to a sighted user in a large font and blue color. The organization of the book by sections created through headings and sub-headings is seen in a tree in a pane to the left of the main document text. ARRL included the embedded accessible text in its original PDF document, making it easy to open the file in Adobe Reader and save it as plain text. [image: Screenshot of VE Manual text being organized with Word.] Once the plain text is in hand, the next step is to open the text file in Word and begin the process of creating the navigation tree by designating the sections and subsections of the book. For example, in "Section Two: During the Exam", you would find subheadings like "Conducting the Test Session", which in turn would have sub-subheadings like "The Candidates Arrive" and "Collecting the Test Fee". Creating this navigational structure is somewhat time-consuming, but it is necessary to make the book practical to use. A blind VE can use the navigational structure to find exactly the right part of the book to reference. We don't have the time to go into a complete description of how DAISY books work, but suffice it to say that the DAISY worldwide standard is the first technology that has the potential to allow blind readers to read a full range of titles and content as easily as sighted readers. DAISY qualifies as a special accessible format that can be sent via postal mail on Library of Congress digital cartridges. But will that content be available to make into DAISY in the first place? Will it be timely? Not if there is no breakthrough in how international copyright law is handled. That is why the NFB has taken up this cause to support the WIPO treaty. In an ideal world, publishers would make original text available to be turned into DAISY. Vendors whose products include on line publishing systems would have full text accessibility built in, perhaps with a key available to blind users in order to protect the content from pirates. Of course we are not there yet and there is much to be done in educating the general public, content producers and authors, and the publishing companies as to why building in accessibility from the get-go is the right thing to do. In the final analysis, there must be a reasonable compromise that makes content accessible while providing protection to copyright holders. We get that. But the world's population of users with reading disabilities or blindness must not have to go without, wait months or years for content, or jump through complicated ever-moving hoops to be included among the reading public. DE WA0TDA ------------------------------ Handiham Nets are on on the air. [image: TMV71A transceiver] *We are scheduled to be on the air daily at 11:00 USA Central Time, plus Wednesday & Thursday evenings at 19:00 USA Central Time. A big THANK YOU to all of our net control stations! What will Doug, N6NFF, come up with for his trivia question tonight? I guess we'll just have to tune in and listen! Tune in and see how you do with the question this week, or just check in to say hello. * *We maintain our nets at 11:00 hours daily relative to Minnesota time. Since the nets remain true to Minnesota time, the difference between Minnesota time and GMT is -5 hours. The net is on the air at 16:00 hours GMT. * *The official and most current net news may be found at: http://www.handiham.org/nets * ------------------------------ *A dip in the pool* [image: Pat shows off his new Plantronics USB headset!] It's time to test our knowledge by taking a dip in the pool - the AMATEUR RADIO question pool, that is! *Let's go to the Extra Class pool and examine a question about filters:* E6E01 asks, "What is a crystal lattice filter?" Possible answers are: A. A power supply filter made with interlaced quartz crystals B. An audio filter made with four quartz crystals that resonate at 1-kHz intervals C. A filter with wide bandwidth and shallow skirts made using quartz crystals D. A filter with narrow bandwidth and steep skirts made using quartz crystals With Field Day coming up this weekend, you may have occasion to use a filter to cut out some of the QRM on either side of the signal you are trying to copy. You probably knew that answer D, "A filter with narrow bandwidth and steep skirts made using quartz crystals", was the correct one. The ideal filter needs steep "skirts", a term which refers to the steep sides of the filter's response curve when it is graphed out. Gently sloping skirts would indicate that the filter would not attenuate nearby signals as effectively. Crystal lattice filters have the characteristic of steep skirts on either side of the desired frequency, which makes it easy to hear just the signal you have within the passband. The bands are crowded on Field Day, and hearing the callsign and exchange is easier with the right tools! Want extra credit? Look up the difference between crystal lattice filters and crystal ladder filters. Both are covered in the ARRL Extra Class License Manual. Please e-mail handiham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx to comment. * ------------------------------ This week @ HQW0EQO & W0ZSW are on line. [image: W0EQO station in the server room at Courage North.] * The remote base HF station at Courage North, W0EQO, went off the air this morning due to an unknown problem but has returned to service. W0ZSW remained on line. HF propagation conditions are predicted normal to good as of this morning. Enjoy both stations! - Remote Base operating tip: If you are interested in working PICONET on 3.925 MHz, W0EQO often works best because of its northern Minnesota location. In the summertime, there is a barrier between northern and southern Minnesota on 75 meters during the daytime. Up here in Minnesota, we call this "the iron curtain" because it seems to really block the north-south propagation. Most of the PICONET net control stations seem to be up in the northern part of the state, so you will hear them best on W0EQO. In the winter, with its shorter days, 75 meter propagation north-south returns to normal. **** Merger news: *Courage Center has merged with Allina Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute. The new organization is Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, which combines these two respected nonprofits. * - This week Nancy has been working on the new payment system, which will allow us to take membership dues on line. We expect it to be ready for use in July. *The June 2013 DAISY<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DAISY_Digital_Talking_Book>digest for our blind members is ready for use, and... Interested in the VE program and becoming a volunteer examiner? The new ARRL VE Manual 2013 version is available in beta Daisy format with complete text and audio<http://handiham.org//manuals/ARRL/VE_Manual/ARRL_VE_Manual_2013_Handiham_Daisy.zip%C2%A0>- Download 74 MB zip file and unzip to play on NLS digital player. * - CQ for June is now available for our blind members in the DAISY section. - QCWA Journal for JUNE 2013 has been added today in MP3. QCWA members may also access this audio from the QCWA website <http://www.qcwa.org/>. Just follow the link in the page header. - Our thanks to Bob, N1BLF, Jim, KJ3P, and Ken, W9MJY, for reading this month. Look for these DAISY materials in the members section. <http://handiham.org/drupal2/user> *Last call! Radio Camp application packets are still available. * 2013 camp dates call for arrival on July 28 and departure on August 2. We have confirmed that we will offer our campers who pass Technician at camp brand-new handheld radios. Radio camp will emphasize ham radio fun and getting on the air. *We will feature:* - Technician beginner small group class - Get your first license and get on the air! - General Class study group for those who need a quick review before taking the General exam. - Extra Class study group for those who need a quick review before taking the Extra exam. - VE session conducted by SARA, the Stillwater (MN) Amateur Radio Association, on Thursday, August 1, at 1:30 PM. - Operating Skills small group get on the air sessions and discussions - ARRL update - What's new at ARRL. - Extra Class seminar for those with Extra Class licenses who want to participate in more advanced technical projects and discussions - Several stations to operate, including maritime mobile on the camp pontoon boat with Cap'n Bill, N0CIC - Sailing with Skipper Bill, K9BV - Handiham Radio Club meeting and elections - Dining in the nearby newly-remodeled Woodland dining hall. - Fun in the sun during Minnesota's excellent summer season - at Camp Courage on beautiful Cedar Lake! For a Radio Camp application, email Nancy at hamradio@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or call her at 763-520-0512. *Digital mailers are important: *If you do mail a digital cartridge to us, please be sure that it is an approved free matter mailer. Otherwise it will quickly cost us several dollars to package and mail out, which is more than the cost of the mailer in the first place. We don't have a stock of cartridges or mailers and not including a mailer will result in a long delay getting your request back out to you. *DAISY audio digests are available for our blind members who do not have computers*, playable in your Library of Congress digital player. Handiham members who use these players and who would prefer to receive a copy of the monthly audio digests on the special Library of Congress digital cartridge should send a blank cartridge to us in a cartridge mailer (no envelopes, please), so that we can place the files on it and return it to you via free matter postal mail. Your callsign should be on both the cartridge and the mailer so that we can make sure we know who it's from. Blank cartridges and mailers are available from APH, the American Printing House for the Blind, Inc. <http://www.aph.org/> Digital Talking Book Cartridge Catalog Number: 1-02610-00, Price: $12.00 Digital Talking Book Cartridge Mailer Catalog Number: 1-02611-00, Price: $2.50 Order Toll-Free: (800) 223-1839. The Library of Congress NLS has a list of vendors for the digital cartridges: http://www.loc.gov/nls/cartridges/index.html Get it all on line as an alternative: Visit the DAISY section on the Handiham website after logging in. * ------------------------------ Stay in touch [image: Cartoon robot with cordless phone] Be sure to send Nancy your changes of address, phone number changes, or email address changes so that we can continue to stay in touch with you. You may either email Nancy at hamradio@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or call her at 763-520-0512. If you need to use the toll-free number, call 1-866-426-3442. Handiham Program Coordinator Patrick Tice, WA0TDA, may be reached at handiham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or by phone at 763-520-0511. Mornings Monday through Thursday are the best time to contact us. The Courage Kenny Handiham Program depends on the support of people like you, who want to share the fun and friendship of ham radio with others. Please help us provide services to people with disabilities. Call 1-866-426-3442 toll-free. -- Help us get new hams on the air. Get the Handiham E-Letter by email every Wednesday, and stay up-to-date with ham radio news. You may listen in audio to the E-Letter at Handiham Weekly E-Letter in MP3 format <http://handiham.org/audio/handiham.mp3> Email us to subscribe: hamradio@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx That's it for this week. 73 from all of us at the Courage Kenny Handihams! Pat, WA0TDA Coordinator, Courage Kenny Handiham Program Reach me by email at: handiham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Nancy, Handiham Secretary: hamradio@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ARRL is the premier organization supporting amateur radio worldwide. Please contact Handihams for help joining the ARRL. We will be happy to help you fill out the paperwork! The weekly e-letter is a compilation of software tips, operating information, and Handiham news. It is published on Wednesdays, and is available to everyone free of charge. Please email handiham@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for changes of address, unsubscribes, etc. Include your old email address and your new address. Return to Handiham.org <http://handiham.org/> *