I'm thinking of getting an amateur radio license (and learn MORSE over the summer). What is the very basic equipment that a beginner should get that will still keep him on the excitement curve ?
Duncan, Go to http://www.arrl.org/. Look under "Hamfests" (in the upper-left box), and find a fest in your area. A Hamfest is a flea market for amateur radio folks. Go to that fest, talk to folks, and buy stuff. Get there early on the opening day, as stuff goes quickly. Nothing can beat that face-to-face contact. I got my ticket some years ago, but I've never used it. I decided that the internet had killed most of ham radio. The hams are still out there, though, and maybe you can make some great friends. Good luck.
I got my amateur license but have yet to do anything with it. I have a key, but never learned MORSE. I've got some plans for my near future I guess!
The trick to learning code is being able to decipher it on the fly. Try listening to it while you commute or just as background in the house. Eventually it will become as natural as typing became for you. After learning the code hammering it out on a key (try a paddle as well, but I personally prefer a key) is MUCH easier. I got up to 20WPM very quickly, but I doubt I could manage 5WPM right now.
my father had a radio with which he talked with people all over the world.they also used to send him post cards with their radio number.i dont know what type of radio it was,i was very young.as regards Morse code,do you not think its a bit antiquated now.its the only thing they had then,but i can remember our old black and white television.would i go back?.no!
I took my morse test for Tech+ and then general class just before the code reqirement was lifted. Late '98. Strange that they wanted everyone for years to know how to do proper code, but the worst operators were on voice talking like CB'ers from the 70's, in spite of having been trained to use proper operating practices on voice. You can also look up on youtube or any qrp-related site about how to become a radio amateur. The info is abundant. Good luck!
A friend is encouraging me to enroll in an upcoming technician license prep class. He says it's a great way to make friends. I used radios all my working life, but that was all business. Without a bleeding body in front of me, I don't think that I'd have anything to talk about. BTW: the FCC has dropped the Morse Code requirement; you don't need it to get licensed.
I actually got an FCC CB radio licence back in the day when they required those. And we were required to identify as our call sign. It wasn't long before handles became a thing and that got so popular that enforcement became overwhelming. So they dropped the licensing requirement. Power to the people. I had a SSB base station in my bedroom as a kid and an RG-8 to a 5/8 vertical on the roof of my parents house. Thinking back, I didn't even ask them, I just did it. I don't remember getting any pushback. But at night it was possible to communicate with others halfway across the country. Just listen, and every now and then send out CQ DX, callsign, and a reply would include S-meter reading. We didn't have the cards remote contacts mail after connections. But it was uplifting for me then. If you'd asked us back then about what technology might bring within our lifetimes, as far as we've come we would have thought impossible. 73's
