eupher61 wrote:Problem is, I have no radio, and really don't need to afford it right now...
Is EchoLink a viable alternative to start??
I suppose, especially if there are people you want to talk to. But echolink violates, in my thinking at least, the underlying fun of being a ham, which is to talk to people without borrowing or renting any intervening infrastructure.
By the way, congratulations on getting your ticket.
Advice: Join your local club. My enjoyment of ham radio would have been soured by the idiots who discuss it online had it not been for the guidance I received from local guys. Some of them are a bit crusty, but many will jump at the chance to show you the ropes if you act like you care to receive instruction (I know I don't have to give advice like that to you, Steve). Most cities have more than one local club, so find the one that has the most fun.
Further advice: When you talk to the local guys, profess to be learning Morse code. Even if your learning program is as haphazard as mine has been, keep saying it. It will keep you out of trouble, heh, heh.
If your club puts an effort in a contest (or even a pretend contest like Field Day), be sure to participate. Other people will bring equipment and you'll get a chance to operate high-end stuff with high-end instruction. Plus, it's lots of fun. It's the geek equivalent of a fishing trip.
But amateur radio is a million miles wide, and everyone has to find their own niche. Some are into DX (making contact with people from other countries). Some are into emergency communications. Some are into contests, and there are a zillion of them. Some are into public-service events, like working parades, bike rides, marathons, and so on. Some get out there on the fringe, and you might find them on a mountain, having thrown a wire over a tree and trying to make DX contacts using CW at 5 watts under battery power. Some are into building their own stuff, and don't even care to operate much. Others would only hurt themselves with a soldering iron. Try a little of it all before you start getting pushed into a narrow definition of ham radio.
My advice is to avoid making a common first mistake: Do not buy a handheld radio as your first rig. You will find that the combination of low power and lousy antenna will make it hard to get into the local repeaters unless you're standing right under them. My HT was my fourth or fifth radio, and still I only use it at club events.
The second common mistake is to participate in the forums at eham.net and QRZ.com. Don't do it. You will be punished for having an opinion by people who will punish you solely because of what they read about you in the ULS. At its worst, Tubenet is nothing but sweetness and light compared to QRZ on its best day. Read it if you want, but those forums are cesspools of negativity. I could not hang on for more than a few months, and I'm glad I ran away while I still could.
By the way, new 2-meter rigs from Yaesu and Icom can be had for under $160. Plug a $35 MFJ 2m/.7m magnet-mount antenna on the roof of the car, and you'll have a working rig you can use to keep up with the local club guys. That's where most new hams start. At 50 watts and with an acceptable antenna, you won't have the limitations of an HT, and it will be cheaper, too. In fact, ask around that local club--you might scare up something used, or even a loaner, until you're ready to spend a little money. When you start buying more serious radios, email or PM me. There are ways to get super quality stuff for far less than what most people thing.
Start studying for General. Unless you are only into emergency communications, or rag-chewing with the local truckers, you'll want to be able to play in the HF bands.
Rick "KR9D" Denney
They're obviously into ES, but they do a lot of community work and just plain CQ too. I went to Field Day in June, had no clue as to what was going on but was extremely impressed with the club's rigs. Very cool...they do a lot of weather work around here too, being in tornado country. And, they both said code is not their strength by a longshot...
