From time to time I read the FADCA archives just to get a different perspective. I have talked to a number of different groups around the country as well. There is no current interest in our state for any kind of packet network. We have an emergency packet yahoogroup but there have been only a handful of messages in the past few years. You need a critical mass of participants to get something to move in a positive direction. This is just not going to happen here because new hams seem to have no interest in this technology and older hams have gone through the packet radio experience of the 80's and have no further interest.
Our state EOC has an extensive radio amateur presence during normal working hours and has a moderate amount of equipment in place. The decision was made by the SEC to move digital communications to Winlink 2000. My expectation is that not much will happen in that area over the next few years. The other major initiative is to duplicate the existing linked repeater system with a new system owned and controlled by ARES/RACES, but that will be primarily as a back up for the loss of HF propagation and for the increasing numbers of technician class licensees who do not have HF privelege. Personally, my interest is in developing HF digital links, but there just are not many who want to support that. I still think that fixed stations operating on 160 or 80 meters can provide some very good coverage without having the damaging effect of losing a key node in a highly fragile VHF/UHF network. They could also do some cross banding from HF to VHF/UHF too. I am always looking for any information from other states that have had some luck with setting up this kind of network but maybe there aren't any. 73, Rick, KV9U Tim Gorman wrote: > Rick, > > Respectfully, you might want to clue your EOC in on the SEDAN network > and how > it works. Those folks have a lot of experience with tactical emcomm using > packet. > > What impressed me the most is that they have known for a long time that > forwarded messages, e.g. email, are not conducive to disaster operations. > There is no guarantee a message is forwarded, delivered, or read. > > This is of special significance with the testimony in front of > Congress in the > past couple of weeks of how poorly email worked for FEMA in gaining > attention > to the situation in New Orleans and in coordinating responses in a timely > manner. > > That is why I am designing our local network to use linux + jnos + > packet at > each node. It provides BBS operation where you can directly place > messages in > the bbs for someone and can check periodically to insure the message > has been > read. The packet allows direct keyboard-to-keyboard work between > emergency > personnel at the various sites when that is needed as well. In > addition jnos > will give you internet email access when that is absolutely needed. > I'm not > building that capability in but will have the capability to do so if > it is > needed at some point. > > Frankly, our State EOC has little use for amateur radio at all. The > station is > there primarily to provide first contact to places where other emergency > personnel may not be stationed and secondarily to provide liason to other > disaster response agencies like the ARC. They have relay racks of > military HF > radios and modems provided by the National Guard and if the emergency > is big > enough for the State EOC to be a player, they will have National Guard > dispatched to the site with communication gear hams can only drool about. > They have hardened fiber rings all over the state plus satellite links. > > The county EOC's are a different matter but, then, they don't have the > need > for long-distance communcations that HF radio will provide. A number > of the > county EOC's also have hardened fiber rings to strategic locations and > are > putting in satellite links as well. Even VHF Winlink isn't going to > give them > much they don't already have. The EOC's that even want amateur help > seem to > be looking more for help with manpower issues than anything. I know > one plan > being considered is having hams staff help volunteer induction centers > in the > case of a large scale disaster. Hams would be used to communicate between > emergency agencies and the induction center as well as inside the > induction > complex. Communication methods are being discussed for this. Packet > could be > of some use but VHF FM would probably be the primary tool. > > I know email over amateur frequencies has a certain "cachet" right > now, and > I'm sure it has its' uses, but I suspect a little more circumspection in > touting it's capabilities might be in order after how email worked for > FEMA. > > I've seen people touting its use for everything from sending digital > pictures > to some "glass house" somewhere to using it for sending huge lists of > victims > to some "glass house" somewhere. Well, anyone who watched the coverage of > Katrina knows that hi-res commercial grade videotape from a flyover > helicopter is worth a lot more for damage assessment than a few, > ground-level > still shots sent over amateur radio. And I still can't get anyone to > tell me > why you would want to send huge lists of victims to anyone for! It's > not like > anyone can do anything with them! > > FWIW I guess. > > tim ab0wr > Need a Digital mode QSO? Connect to Telnet://cluster.dynalias.org Other areas of interest: The MixW Reflector : http://groups.yahoo.com/group/themixwgroup/ DigiPol: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Digipol (band plan policy discussion) Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/digitalradio/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
