H. P. Friedrichs (AC7ZL) Homepage
Tucson, Arizona U.S.A
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News!
Our new pavers were in and the entrance to the house looked beautiful... that is, until night fell. In the darkness, a step becomes treacherous, a cactus, dangerous, and the mood, uninviting. We could have purchased and installed some off-the-shelf landscape lighting, but after some research and a little bit of experimentation, I combined century-old telegraph insulators with modern white LEDs to create an eye-pleasing yard lighting solution. Read about my "Steampunk" landscape lighting here!
I have updated the article, Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum: HF Weather Radio, to correct a minor error with regard to the "A" code, which appears in weather reports. Thanks to H. Gravitt for finding this error and providing the right interpretation.
Cell phones are great... when they work. Unfortunately, there are a lot of circumstances and a lot of places when and where they won't, and this always seems to happen when you need them the most. Amateur radio operators understand this, but because cell phones are so common, even we can become complacent. A recent adventure in an Arizona desert inspired me to purchase an HT (handy talkie) and to fashion a set of accessories that will assure my ability to communicate in the future, whether my cell phone works or not. Read about it here!
I have updated the schematic associated with my article, A Flat Response Mike and Channel Amplifier. Special thanks go to A. Ratnam for emailing me and bringing to my attention an unintended ground in the original schematic.
If you have a basic understanding of how electronic parts work, you can probably assemble a handful of them into something useful. But, if you understand the physical principles underlying the design of those parts, it's sometimes possible to apply them in ways far beyond their intended purpose. In this article, I describe a "hack" where a common display device is used as an electronic amplifier... and a pretty good one at that. Read about it here!
Mysterious sounds, encoded in the signals that crackle on the shortwave bands, sometimes contain interesting weather reports, storm information, and even pictures! With simple equipment and inexpensive or even free software, this information can be captured, decoded, and interpreted. D'you wanna try it yourself? Read about it here!
Introduced in 1959, the Titan missile was part of the war machinery that would help to assure a peaceful, if uneasy, balance between superpowers for almost four decades. The silos in which these weapons were based were slated to be decomissioned in the 1980's, but one remains intact and can now be visited by the general public. Even better, the site offers a special treat for those of us with an interest in radio. Read about it here!
If you have an engineering mind and you've ever handled any kind of surplus military hardware, you can't help but see a certain beauty in the purity of its design. Reliable function trumps every other concern. Recently, I set out to build some power supplies, both fixed and mobile, for my TR-VP-13 transceiver- a French military rig. My goal was to capture the look of military hardware. This spawned a number of construction and design ideas, and resulted in some very useful, attractive, and rugged equipment. Some of those ideas are likely to be of interest to anyone who likes to build their own communications equipment, particularly if that gear is intended for emergency or field use.
It Isn't About Politics!
The members of our military have volunteered to put their lives into jeopardy, and the lives of their loved ones on hold, simply because their country asks them to. If this kind of sacrifice is not worthy of gratitude and appreciation, then nothing is.
Some people are upset about American foreign policy...fair enough, there's plenty of room for different opinions. But the next time you see a man or woman in uniform, don't forget to tell them "thanks."
(Last website revision 05/19/2009