Watch for more information in the Fall 2001 PHI or check out the Auction 2001 page on the club web site (www.wara64.org).

On June 27, 2001 the WARA Club meeting will be held at Prospect Hill Park in Waltham, MA. This is the site where the 146.04/64 repeater is located and you’ll get an opportunity to visit the site as well as to meet many of the club members and friends. There will be an informal meeting and cook out before the club meetings break for the summer.

The Waltham Amateur Radio Association has it’s own email list which can be used to communicate with members and friends of the club through and over the internet.

You can get to it, to check it out, through the club web site and there’s no cost or obligation to join and use it.

There are three ways to get mail from the list server. You can have each individual message forwarded to your regular email address. You can set it up to send you one batch of messages per day OR you can choose to simply check onto Yahoo Groups when you have time and desire to read the posted messages at your leisure. Also, you can un-subscribe VERY EASILY at any time should you decide that the list isn’t for you.

It’s that simple. So why not log onto the club web site and check it out today!

Just a note for existing members of the list! The list started out as eGroups and was acquired by Yahoo. Since then the email address to send mail to the list server is:

If you have information, which you’d like to communicate to many club members and friends and don’t happen find them on the repeater systems, this is a great alternative for everyone; and one message sent goes to all list members!

Well, the weather is now improving and it’s nice to see the snow, ice and cold gone away. I think it was starting to get on my nerves!

I thank all that worked on the 64 auction, last November. It certainly was a success! It was well attended and the many volunteers made set up and clean up easier. This year’s auction date has been set and flyers will soon, I’m sure, be available to pass around. If you can take some to an event you plan to attend, please contact Eliot (W1MJ) or Jim (K1QJS).

WARA had a table at the Hoss Traders event; this past May to raise funds to purchase a new antenna for the 6 meter repeater. Any cash donations to this cause will, also, be greatly appreciated.

We have had some excellent speakers at the meetings, this year, and look forward to a few more for the remaining meetings before summer. In June, the meeting will be held at the site of the "Great Repeater" with a picnic being planned as well. If you plan to attend, bring a dish to share and let Rich (N1JDU) know that you will be attending so enough hot dogs and/or hamburgers will be available. Please plan on joining us for a FUN NIGHT!

Remember that the club meetings are held on the last Wednesday of each month except July and August at 7:00PM at Artisan Industries in Waltham. All are welcome!

73, Ann, KA1PON

Everyone is welcome to join us for this great annual event which is for members and friends families of the Waltham Amateur Radio Association.

This is a "kids ‘n dogs affair" so bring the kids, dogs, wives, girlfriends (both if they get along!) or any significant other you’d like to share the event with. ALL are welcome and encouraged to join us.

Mike and Jeannie will supply paper plates, plastic dinnerware, condiments, ice tea, watermelon and the like; coolers for soda; yard games for kids (young and old); two grills (both gas so no need to bring fire!).

You should bring lawn chairs for yourselves; something for the table to share with others; your own brand of drink; whatever "meat" you’d like to burn on the grill for your own group; musical instruments, bubble machines, singing voices and great attitudes ready for a GREAT TIME!

Talk in will be on ’64 as well as on ’52 direct when travelers get close ‘nuf.

This is a "RAIN OR SHINE" event and there’s NO rain date because there’s plenty of room inside if it gets wet.

Directions are on the club web site

If you have an extra space and plan to attend; please think of our "vintage" members and friends and invite one or more to join you. Remember, they may not be able to make it on their own but will surely love to be invited.

John passed away a few years back but he was one individual who will never be forgotten. John was blunt, to the point and never failed to make us know how he felt and where he stood on issues, technology or the "progress" of amateur radio. He was then and will always be remembered as one special and unique ham.

John Stacy, W1KIM (SK) was the man who invited an open group of amateur radio operators to gather together over lunch, on a regular basis, to enjoy each other’s company, to swap stories and to carry on open discussions about amateur radio and related topics of interest.

Following John’s passing, several of the original and later participants decided to continue the tradition.

On May 12, 2000 the gathered members agreed to form an organization in memory of and to honor John.

The primary purposes of "JSTARS", consistent with the FCC rules, are to:

1. Share fellowship and discussion on issues relating to amateur radio, technology and humanity.
2. Promote technical competence among amateur radio operators.
3. Provide special assistance to fellow amateurs in need.

"JSTARS" meets Thursdays at noon in the lounge of the Doubletree Guest Suites Hotel, 550 Winter Street, Waltham, MA.

In case you’re confused… these guys are known on ’64 as "The Bad Guys"!

The membership of this organization is open to all licensed amateur radio operators and includes the following founding members:

WC1A, Jon

W1CBI, David

KD1D, Alan

The current club license trustee, designated by the Senior Member with the consensus of the founding members is KD1D, Alan Hicks. Alan is a licensed Extra Class Amateur Licensee; to which John would have said, on many an occasion, "Hmmm, he must be an Extra!"

What reminds you more of John? It could be his glib comments on ’64 (such as the above, or "Packet?") or, how many of you remember the orchids? Does anyone really know if it every rains in Weston?

They may be known as the "Bad Guys" but these guys; gathered together by one John Stacy, are some of the finest amateur radio operators and just plain people (men and women) you’ll ever know.

President – Ann Weldon, KA1PON

V. President – Kip Shustack, N1AUP

Clerk & Treasurer - Andy Donovan, WA1GEP

Asst. Clerk – Jim Finlay, N1HCF

Asst. Treas. – John Antes, KB1EB

Publisher – Eliot Mayer, W1MJ

Editor – Ron Perry, N1USS

Production – Steve Gilbert, K1SG

Circulation – Ann Weldon, KA1PON

You can send things in via e-mail or snail mail. Text should be plain text (ascii) like an e-mail message or in Microsoft Word format (preferably) and photos should be in JPEG or GIF format. If you don’t have these formats, email N1USS to see if he can convert from other formats.

They are in need of ham radio volunteers to assist o either or both days with communications. The event starts at the "Crack of Dawn" at Marina Bay in Quincy, on June 30^th. The first day ends at the Mass. Maritime Academy in Buzzards Bay, with a big cook-out. Then it starts all over again, from the Mass. Maritime Academy at or around 6 AM and ends in Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod.

If you are interested you can sign up or just get more details on the internet at:

Public service work is something which a lot of amateur radio operators do, year round and this is one great opportunity to get out in the open, fresh air of Cape Cod, have a great expience with public service and just plain have a GREAT weekend.

Medical professionals are needed for this event, as well, and can get information by sending an email to gmgmedical@aol.com MD’s, RN’s, . EMT’s paramedics, lpn’s are needed.

HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

There are a couple of hundred backbone node sites in the connectable network ranging from Erie, PA to Montreal to Baltimore to Boston. These sites make up the backbone of the packet network. The nodes are connected via dedicated point to point ham radio links on 51 Mhz, 223 Mhz, 420-450 Mhz and higher frequencies.

This article isn’t about what exists now. It’s about what is happening to it. In short, we’re going to be using a new software package to run our network node sites.

Up until 3 years ago the network nodes were all running a software package called TheNET. TheNET sits in a TNC. That’s the same TNC that makes up a home packet radio station. A TNC is a rather dumb device compared to the state of the art desktop computer. Heck, a TNC is a rather dumb device compared to a desktop computer of the early ‘80’s! TheNet suffers from the limitations imposed by the tiny amount of memory and computing power available in a TNC.

In the late 1980’s a German ham Gunter Jost, DK7WJ, created FlexNet along with what is now know as "The FlexNet Group". FlexNet is much more powerful than TheNET. In the U.S. we run FlexNet on 80386 based PC’s using the TNC’s as dumb modems, a task they are well suited for. FlexNet is compatible with current packet stations and will require only a minor amount of learning on the part of the users to take full advantage.

FlexNet allows many more sites to be in the network and to be visible from the other sites than TheNET. It makes connections much faster than TheNET and when a connection is not going to work, makes it much more obvious much sooner. This improves the user experience. FlexNet automatically performs routing and chooses fallback paths so the network survives outages better. Powerful features are available including Polling user ports, route tracing, searching for users across multiple nodes, and even HTTP when used with MSWindows95. TCP/IP operation over FlexNet is much easier and takes no intervention on the part of the node operators to add users.

1. We’ll do our absolute best to not lose any connectivity on or throught he site at all, at any time.
2. We’ll try to make it easier, not harder, to use the network for all users and all services.
3. There will be a node in the TheNET network called FXWNDM:K1TR-13. From there you can reach the K1TR FlexNet node. Use the I command on FXWNDM to find out how.
4. Connecting to K1TR-1 on 145.07 will get you into K1TR node. Once K1TR-1 is converted to FlexNet, you will get a welcome text that gives clues to other late breaking information including how to connect to K1XX DX Cluster.

For more information on FlexNet, packet radio networking in general, technical and user information, point your web browser to

You can connect to my packet station on 145.07 or from the K1TR node. Beep wildly but not after 10:00 PM. Thanks.

73 de Tadd/KA2DEW

Amherst, N.H.