HAM Radio 101

HAM Radio 101

Hams You Should Know: Jean Shepherd, K2ORS, SK: Cowriter/Narrator of A Christmas Story

If you’ve ever lusted after a leg lamp or shouted, “You’ll shoot your eye out” to a bb-gun clad kid on Christmas morning, odds are you’re already familiar with ham […]

Ham radio Field Day Table Setup
Field Day / HAM Radio 101 / Technical Articles

Ham Radio 101: ARRL Field Day—The Importance of the Exercise

What is Field Day? It is an event where hams in the United States and Canada attempt to contact as many stations as possible on the 160-, 80-, 40-, 20-,15- […]

St. Charles Ham Radio Club
HAM Radio 101

Five Tips for Successful Field Day Public Relations (and Extra Points)!

Field Day is many things: a contest, emergency communications exercise, club social event, and a way to raise public awareness of ham radio. Regardless of which aspect you embrace, you […]

HAM Radio 101

Five Mistakes New Hams Make (Part 5): Not Immersing Yourself in the Culture

I have been very blessed to do medical mission work throughout Central America since I was 13 years old. After the first week of my first trip, I was having […]

HAM Radio 101

Five Mistakes I Made as a New Ham (Part 4): Having Unrealistic Expectations of My Abilities and Gear

I have always been the guy with big dreams and high hopes. Because of this, I also have high expectations. This is true of anything I have been involved in, […]

Joke Ohio Weather Forecast
HAM Radio 101

Emergencies with Spring Storms

With the arrival of spring, we know that severe weather is near. In my area, we had a few rounds before spring even began! Spring is the time of year […]

HAM Radio 101

Five Mistakes I Made as a New Ham (Part 3): Skimping on Quality Equipment

There is an old tale that states the origin of stranded copper wire resulted from two hams fighting over a penny found on the ground at a hamfest. I totally […]

HAM Radio 101

Five Mistakes I Made as a New Ham, Part 2: Having a Lack of Focus

Editor’s Note: Troy Blair, KE8DRR, DX Engineering customer/technical support specialist, enjoys sharing personal stories about his involvement in amateur radio so others can learn from his experiences in the true spirit […]

HAM Radio 101

Five Mistakes I Made as a New Ham, Part 1: Going it Alone

Editor’s Note: Troy Blair, KE8DRR, DX Engineering customer/technical support specialist, enjoys sharing personal stories about his involvement in amateur radio so others can learn from his experiences in the true spirit […]

screen grab of a software defined ham radio
HAM Radio 101

Ham Radio 101: Modes

What’s a “mode”? The term really has two meanings in ham radio, and the definitions overlap somewhat. An operating mode is a description of what you are doing to send […]