ULS Still Down (to the surprise of nobody familiar with government)

In case you weren't aware, the FCC took down the ULS site for upgrades and it was expected to be offline for the extended labor day weekend, but, since this is the federal government we're talking about, it turned out about as well as you would expect.

From the ARRL:

“Over Labor Day weekend, a dedicated FCC team worked day and night to complete major IT upgrades,” the FCC’s Chief Information Officer David A. Bray, said in a statement. “This work included physically moving more than 200 different legacy servers out of FCC's headquarters to a commercial service provider.” This move — a cost-saving measure, Bray explained — ran into trouble when it was determined that additional cabling was needed to complete the transition. “Unfortunately, this delayed completion of all of the system upgrades — even with the FCC team working around the clock throughout the holiday weekend,” Bray explained.

For now, attempts to log in to the ULS to look up callsigns (or apply for a vanity callsign for free!) is met with "page cannot be displayed" errors or a continuous "loading" action which will eventually time out.

It should be back online today, but I'm not holding my breath for it.

Only time will tell.

1965 Ham License Answers

Novice:

1. Question #9: What method of frequency control is required to be used in the transmitter of a station licensed to the holder of a Novice Class License? The frequency must be crystal-controlled.
2. Question #13: What is the maximum permissible percentage of modulation of an amateur radiotelephone station? 100%
3. Question #17: What is the relationship between a fundamental frequency and its second harmonic; its third harmonic, etc.? The second harmonic is twice the frequency of the fundamental, the third harmonic is three times the fundamental frequency, and so on. A harmonic is always related to its fundamental frequency by an integral multiplier; i.e., 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc.
4. Question #23: How is the actual power input to the tube or tubes supplying energy to the antenna of an amateur transmitter determined? The input power is determined by measuring the direct-current plate oltage and the d.c. plate current to the tubes in the final stage in the transmitter. The power input is equal to the plate voltage multiplied by the plate current in amperes.
5. Question #27: What is meant by a "parasitic" oscillation? A parasitic oscillation is one not essential to the operation of the equipment and usually occurring on a frequency considerably removed from the operating frequency.

General:

1. Question #1: Name the basic units of:
   • electrical resistance - ohm
   • inductance - henry
   • capacitance - farad
   • current - ampere
   • electromotive force or potential difference - volt (electromotive force is a fancy term for "voltage")
   • power - watt
   • energy - joule
   • quantity - coulomb
   • magneto-motive force - gilbert
   • frequency - cycles-per-second, or cycles (nowadays known as "hertz")
    
2. Question #10: What is the principal reason for using a filter in a plate power-supply system? The principal reason for using a filter in a plate power-supply system is to smooth out the a.c. ripple component in the output and make it "pure d.c."
3. Question #19: What undesirable effects may result from operation of an unneutralized triode r.f. amplifier in a transmitter? Self-oscillation may result, with consequent radiation on undesired frequencies, possibly outside an amateur band.
4. Question #69: What is meant by a "doubler" stage? A vacuum-type circuit in which the output circuit is tuned to twice or doube the frequency of the input circuit.
5. Question #71: What is the reciprocal of resistance? Conductance, measured in mhos ("ohms" spelled backwards)
6. Question #106: What precaution should be taken to protect filter capacitors connected in series? Resistors having a value of approximately 100,000 ohms should be shunted across each capacitor to equalize the d.c. voltage drops and thus prevent breakdown of the individual capacitors.

Extra:

1. Question #4: What factors determine the core losses in a transformer? Core losses are one of two types, hysteresis and eddy-current losses. Hysteresis losses vary with the type and volume of iron or steel used in the core and with the operating frequency and magnetic flux density. Eddy-current losses vary with the volume and resistance of the core material, the thickness of the laminations, and frequency and the flux density.
2. Question #7: In a Class-C r.f. amplifier, what ratio of load impedance to dynamic plate impedance will give the greatest plate efficiency? The highest possible load impedance will give the greatest efficiency, since the ratio of the power in the load to power lost in the plate becomes larger as the ratio of load impedance is increased. However, under these conditions, the power output is relatively small.
3. Question #12: During 100 percent sinusoidal amplitude modulation, what percentage of the average output power is in the sidebands? 33 1/3% The average power output would increase 50% with such modulation; i.e., a 100-watt unmodulated carrier output would rise to 150 watts. Sidebands carry the excess of 50 watts, which is 1/3 the total.
4. Question #25: What are synchronizing pulses as used in television transmitters and receivers? Synchronizing pulses used in television transmitters and receivers are pulses of extremely short duration which ensure that trace lines across the face of the picture tube in the receiver are synchronized with the trace lines in the television camera.
5. Question #34: What determines the operating frequency of a magnetron oscillator? Its dimensions and the electric and magnetic field intensities; also, the associated circuit constants.
6. Question #46: If the conductors in a 2-wire r.f. transmission line are replaced by larger conductors, how is the surge impedance affected, assuming no change in the center-to-center spacing of the conductor? The surge impedance is lowered.
7. Question #63: What is the purpose of the mosaic plate in a television camera? To what item of photographic equipment is it similar in function? To store an electrical image corresponding to the visual image focused upon it, for later scanning by an electron beam to translate the electrical image into a television signal. Its function is similar to that of the film in a photographic camera, which similarly stores the image for later development.
8. Question #92: What are the "Baudot" and "Seven Unit" codes? How are they used? Both are used in teleprinter operation. Baudot used with synchronous printers, 7-unit with start-stop printers. Each transmitted character has assigned to it a fixed time interval divided into units, 5 for Baudot and 7 for 7-unit teletype. A particular character is distinguished by a unique combination of mark and space units in that particular codes being used in all cases.
9. Question #120: What is the meaning of the term "frequency swing" in reference to frequency-modulation transmitters? The peak difference between the maximum and minimum values of the instantaneous frequency.
10. Question #136: What is the ohms per volt of a voltmeter constructed of a 0-1 d.c. milliammeter and a suitable resistor which makes the full-scale reading of the meter 500 volts? 1000 ohms per volt.
11. Question #181: What is meant by low-level modulation? That applied to an early or intermediate stage of a transmitter (instead of to the final amplifier) i.e., at a point where the power level is comparatively low.
12. Question #204: State where antenna impedance is usually measured. At the point where the antenna is fed. The value so measured is frequently converted into an equivalent value at a current loop.
13. Question #219: Define a "back-wave" and explain what causes it. A signal emitted during key-up conditions. In make-break keying, it may be caused by energy from unkeyed exciter stages leaking through a keyed amplifier (because of improper neutralizations, etc.) or by parasitic oscillation. In frequency-shift keying the "space" signal in the back-wave.

Could you pass the 1965 Ham License exam?

1965 ARRL FCC
License Manual

I was at an estate sale a couple of weeks back and came across a couple of books that got my attention, The Radio Amateur's License Manual and How to Become a Radio Amateur. Unfortunately I didn't get to find out the callsign of whoever it was that had the books.

The license manual covered all of the classes of licenses available at the time: Novice, Technician, General, Conditional (same as General but test taken by mail), Advanced (not available to new applicants), and Extra.


As I scoped out the book, I found some interesting rules that the FCC enforced at the time:

• If you wanted to take the test or renew, you paid $4, and it was good for 5 years. If you changed your address, it was $2.
• Callsigns must be transmitted at the beginning of each transmission, every 10 minutes, and at the end of each transmission (currently hams don't need to identify at the beginning).
• Novices retained their callsigns for a year and must upgrade.
• Hams violating FCC rules faced a $500 fine per day during which the offense occurs.
• Logs were kept of each QSO and must show:
  •  Date & time of transmission  
  •  Signature of each operator
  •  Call of the station contacted
  • Power
  • Frequency
  • Emission type
  • Location
  • Message traffic handled

• Hams had to notify the FCC Engineer-in-Charge if they intended to operate mobile longer than 48 hours.
• If an applicant failed an exam, they had to wait 30 days to re-take the exam.
• The book cost 50 cents, and included the FCC Part 97 rules and regulations.

The other manual
I bought

Some rules have obviously changed. 

What struck me even more was that many of the questions from the Novice/General/Extra questions were pretty tough. Even with my electronics education and background, it was amazing how intricate many of the questions were. Unlike today's question pools, the 1965 pool did not include multiple choice answers with the wrong answers included, but the exams were multiple choice. It also wanted the reader to draw out certain circuits.

So here are some sample questions in the Novice, General, and Extra class exam pool. See how many you can answer. I'll post the correct answers in 24 hours:

Novice:

1. Question #9: What method of frequency control is required to be used in the transmitter of a station licensed to the holder of a Novice Class License?
2. Question #13: What is the maximum permissible percentage of modulation of an amateur radiotelephone station?
3. Question #17: What is the relationship between a fundamental frequency and its second harmonic; its third harmonic, etc.?
4. Question #23: How is the actual power input to the tube or tubes supplying energy to the antenna of an amateur transmitter determined?
5. Question #27: What is meant by a "parasitic" oscillation?

General:

1. Question #1: Name the basic units of:
   • electrical resistance
   • inductance
   • capacitance
   • current
   • electromotive force or potential difference
   • power
   • energy
   • quantity
   • magneto-motive force
   • frequency
    
2. Question #10: What is the principal reason for using a filter in a plate power-supply system?
3. Question #19: What undesirable effects may result from operation of an unneutralized triode r.f. amplifier in a transmitter?
4. Question #69: What is meant by a "doubler" stage?
5. Question #71: What is the reciprocal of resistance?
6. Question #106: What precaution should be taken to protect filter capacitors connected in series?

Extra:

1. Question #4: What factors determine the core losses in a transformer?
2. Question #7: In a Class-C r.f. amplifier, what ratio of load impedance to dynamic plate impedance will give the greatest plate efficiency?
3. Question #12: During 100 percent sinusoidal amplitude modulation, what percentage of the average output power is in the sidebands?
4. Question #25: What are synchronizing pulses as used in television transmitters and receivers?
5. Question #34: What determines the operating frequency of a magnetron oscillator?
6. Question #46: If the conductors in a 2-wire r.f. transmission line are replaced by larger conductors, how is the surge impedance affected, assuming no change in the center-to-center spacing of the conductor?
7. Question #63: What is the purpose of the mosaic plate in a television camera? To what item of photographic equipment is it similar in function?
8. Question #92: What are the "Baudot" and "Seven Unit" codes? How are they used?
9. Question #120: What is the meaning of the term "frequency swing" in reference to frequency-modulation transmitters?
10. Question #136: What is the ohms per volt of a voltmeter constructed of a 0-1 d.c. milliammeter and a suitable resistor which makes the full-scale reading of the meter 500 volts?
11. Question #181: What is meant by low-level modulation?
12. Question #204: State where antenna impedance is usually measured.
13. Question #219: Define a "back-wave" and explain what causes it.

My new ham radio "bling"

After my unexpected, less-than-friendly departure from the Pigeon Forge Titanic Special Event because of a lack of having my license upon my person, I made a photocopy and laminated it for my wallet (which soooooo many hams were soooooo polite to inform me of what a wallet-sized ham license looks like) so that this issue, should it ever occur again, will not prevent me from operating.

But I couldn't stop there. I needed to go deeper into being the smartass I can be.

I needed to make my license readily available so that I didn't have to go through the painstaking burden of reaching into my back pocket and pulling out the license. I needed something even more convenient.

Close up of my new necklace!

A coworker of mine has been making pendants using parts from a hobby store and clear acrylic, and one morning while we were talking about his latest creation (a OUIJA board) it dawned on me to have him attempt to do the same thing with my ham radio license. I obtained the parts needed, mainly the pendant, and he began work on the project. I sent him a scanned copy of my license and he was able to reduce it down to the dimensions of the pendant. 

Once he had it reduced, he took it to Walmart and had it printed on photo-quality paper. After snipping it down further, he positioned it and poured the acrylic atop it.

Quarter for scale

After a couple of days to set, he brought it in Wednesday morning me to look over. I couldn't be happier with it.

So now I not only have my official wallet-sized license to whip out on demand, I can also brandish this new piece of "bling" to amaze and impress. The wife and daughter like it and I'm going to have their licenses made into this as well. Amber, the little one, she wants one, too, and she's studying up already.

So next time before you ask me for my ham license, look around my neck for this new piece of hardware!

The next step? maybe something along the lines of Flavor Flav and his giant clock, perhaps?  YEEEEEEAAAAAHHH boyeeeeee!

And by the way, if you're interested in getting one of these using your license, let me know.

How to lose friends and influence righteous indignation

I've been a ham going on 20 years.  Back when I got my license, there was no "internet" as we know it today. We did not surf the web, e-mail, blog, or Google. And cell phones? If you were a celebrity or a doctor, you got the privilege of owning one, which might have been a 20 pound battery with a handset strapped to the top of it. & frget txt msging LOL :)

Remember these things?

We also didn't get our ham radio licenses in just a few days. I waited nearly 10 weeks to get my license in the mail. Once I got it I finally knew what my callsign was (at the time KE4HSM) and got on the air, and got the ball rolling.

My, how times have changed. I mean, now we can do all those aforementioned things and then some and even do it in the palm of your hand. Heck, with electronic licensing, we don't have to wait around until the postman delivers our mail in order to get our callsign, we just check the FCC database and once it's in there, we're on the air! Am I Right?

So last Saturday night I made my annual pilgrimage to Titanic in Pigeon Forge, TN to assist in operating the ham radio special event to commemorate the anniversary of the sinking of the ship. I've operated there the last 2 years, brought my kids along and let them operate, and they both tagged along this year. It was late but they wanted to operate for a while then crash in the car while I stayed for a bit longer, that's how it's been done in the past. It's never been a problem.

My, how times have changed.

So we arrive and there's only one operator there and he's working the 80m station. We make small talk for a a couple of minutes and Amber grabs a headset from another radio and I turn it on and tune to 20m where I start to hear some chatter. Just as I start to fine tune the signal, Amber tugs at me and asks "where's your license?". 

I didn't understand the gist of her question until the operator said "You need your ham radio license to operate here".

I said I didn't have it on me (I checked my wallet to be sure) and he said I was not allowed to transmit without my license in hand. 

Now understand, I don't know this guy from Adam. In fact, I didn't catch his call because either I didn't hear it or he didn't tell me, even after I introduced my kids and myself, and I think it was the latter. He was using the special event club call (W4S) when he was on the air. So I don't know his realm of knowledge with all things ham radio, but he berates me for not having a license in my possession when I know for a fact one is no longer needed to be in possession in order to transmit on ham radio, one just has to have an active callsign. And here is this guy trying to school me on what an FCC ham radio license looks like. I advised him I didn't need one to operate a station thanks to electronic licensing, but he was having none of it.

I could have gotten belligerent with him but 1) I had the kids with me, and 2) I've learned to keep my mouth shut when it comes to speaking before thinking, especially when said thoughts are about what to do, where to do it, how to do it, and with whom to do it. I didn't say another word, other than telling the girls "let's go," and heading for the car.

Needless to say after 2+ hours and 80 miles of my life I won't get back, I'm pissed off. Royally. What good would it have been to argue my case, justifiably so, if it only creates a negative air and hostile tension between what's-his-face and myself? The kids are disappointed, I'm irate, and we are ready to have the day over with and done at this point.

When I get home I get on Facebook and let the guy in charge have it. His response was basically that due to events last year, there was a change in the rules and "it was in the notice". The specific rule in the notice says:

Non Members Must Present A Valid FCC License to operate the event stations !

Okay, fine. I honestly didn't read all of it. I didn't think I needed to because 1) I've done this event every year they've had it and nothing's changed except the location around the museum, and 2) it was buried at the tail end of the "notice" on the Facebook page, where few would catch it unless they were attentive. So screw me, right?

But basically this is a statement covering a lot of people. "Non-members" also includes the general public, as in non-hams. So what we have is a PUBLIC service club operating a PUBLIC event at a PUBLIC location not allowing the PUBLIC a chance to operate the equipment in order to make the PUBLIC demonstration hands-on. So what's the point of even having the damned thing if you prevent people from participating, maybe even getting some interested in ham radio and creating new licensees? Is this club going to instill this "rule" for Field Day, the biggest publicity event of the year?

But so be it, if this is how they want to operate, that's their prerogative. It's mine not to participate in the future with the event or this club, since obviously they feel "non-members" run such a serious risk to others. And this proves another example as to why I don't do clubs anymore.

Sometimes common sense fails miserably when trying to have a good time on the radio.

My, how times have changed, indeed. Now if you'll excuse me, I apparently need to make a photocopy of my license in the event some overbearing individuals need to see proof I know what the hell I'm doing.

So this qualifies as a "Civil Defense Message"...

Some people watching KRTV in Great Falls, Montana got a startling message on their TV screens last Monday, as an Emergency Alert System, or EAS alert came on their TV screens and then a deep-sounding voiceover cautioned that "Civil authorities in your area have reported that the bodies of the dead are rising from their graves."

The message advised listeners to tune in to "920AM" and that the TV station they were watching was going to go off the air (after advising viewers to "follow the on-screen instructions").

The KRTV video is below:

KRTV also reports that several stations across the country were also hacked and similar messages were broadcast.

This one was at a TV station in Michigan (garbled audio):

WNMU-TV in Northern Michigan was also affected, and kids watching Barney got a surprise message as well. No video yet that I can find.

At first I thought the National Weather Service's system was hacked and that these messages were broadcast over NOAA weather radio, however it appears that hackers outside the US were able to get into the sites of the stations themselves and then use "default passwords" to get into the EAS equipment and send out the alerts of the undead.

While the whole incident is, at least to some, hilarious, the FCC, however is not showing their sense of humor about the whole brouhaha, even issuing an advisory (.pdf) to all TV stations using the EAS equipment that was the center of the hack to change their passwords immediately.

As more reports of the undead alerts surface, I'll try to post them, and the videos if they arise from the grave.

Medical devices get FCC approval for 400 MHz

Via Bloomberg BusinessWeek:

Medical devices designed to help paralyzed patients move won U.S. regulators’ approval to use a block of radio spectrum for transmitting wireless signals to incapacitated limbs.

The Federal Communications Commission adopted rules that give access needed by so-called advanced microstimulator devices that use implanted electrodes to stimulate muscles with the help of a wireless controller worn outside the body.

While the devices may be a medical breakthrough, using spectrum that amateur radio has (on a secondary basis) ranging from 413-457 MHz (amateur radio uses 420-450MHz) puts at risk the use that amateur radio employs for public safety and service on the 70cm band. Besides, there is plenty of spectrum available for these devices. Since UPS isn't using the spectrum they asked for from 220-222MHz, why not give it to these devices?

The ARRL has more detailed info, which you can read here.

FCC Upholds $17,000 Forfeiture Order to Tennessee Ham

Ham radio is one of the more diverse groups in any hobby. From janitors to jockeys, most anyone and everyone can be a ham operator. Among the ranks you will often find the most courteous and polite and respectful operators around.

And then, there's this guy...

In March 2009, the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL) in the amount of $17,000 to David Edward Perka, KA3PRB, of Lewisburg, Tennessee. The FCC alleges that Perka "willfully and repeatedly violat[ed] section 301 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, by operating without a license in the Maritime Radio Service and willfully violat[ed] Section 333 of the Act by maliciously interfering with the United States Coast Guard on the International Distress, Safety and Calling Channel in Annapolis, Maryland" Perka, who admitted to the findings, requested a reduction in the forfeiture amount, based on his inability to pay, but in a Forfeiture Order released by the FCC on September 21, 2011, the Commission refused to lower the amount.

What's the frequency, Kenneth???

Off and on I've been trying to find a way to listen to the meteor showers that frequently hit the Earth. The idea is that as a meteor hits the ionosphere, it scatters said ions and radio frequency signals that normally would just radiate into space are instead reflected back towards earth. Hams frequently use this method when making contacts via meteor scatter. 

There are web sites set up for people to listen to the NAVSPASUR (Air Force Space Surveillance System) transmitters on 216 MHz. I've not been able to hear the transmitters even though I live close to the facility in Alabama.

I've tried to listen to the meteors using a "poor man's" method of listening to TV signals from stations in other cities like Chattanooga and Bristol, TN. That idea went out the window when the FCC kicked TV stations off the analog frequencies in 2009. I've tried listening to FM radio stations using this method, but the dilemma I have is that, with Knoxville being such a big radio market, practically every available frequency from 88-108 MHz is taken locally.

So now I'm left trying to find any good radio frequency that would work for me to listen to meteors "pinging" the atmosphere. It needs to be outside the Knoxville area, constantly transmitting, and with a high enough power to be heard distinctly when the meteors pass overhead.

If anyone can assist with this quagmire, I'd be most appreciative.

How close are we to losing 440?

If you've been paying attention to some of the news items this week, legislation is now introduced (by Pete King of New York) that would force amateur radio operators to give up the popular 70cm (440MHz) band by selling the spectrum off to commercial interests that would offset lost revenue from reallocating first responders' frequencies in order to streamline communications. This comes in light of a review by the 9/11 Commission which recommended a more integrated network of communicating with the different agencies to prevent the communications issues that arose during the attacks on September 11, 2001.

The frequencies given to the first responders is the freed up spectrum from the conversion of TV from analog to digital.

Bill HR 607 has now been referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which handles telecommunications legislation. It's one of the beginning steps that is taken to get an act passed through into law. A long ways to go, but when it comes to raising money through a bake sale method, Congress finds ways to move it through in expedited fashion.

There are a couple of obstacles that could get in the way, in the form of two members of Congress who are hams. One is Greg Walden, W7EQI, who made headlines in December when he tweeted in morse code on Twitter that he was going to chair the House Communications Subcommittee. This may be the biggest ally ham radio has, and he's in a powerful position to force the bill back in to revision.

The other congressional ham operator is Representative Mike Ross, WD5DVR of Arkansas. He is a Democrat (Walden is Republican) so the potential for getting support of the opposition of this Bill in its present form on both sides of the aisle is greater.

Another potential ally is Congressman Billy Long of Missouri, who co-sponsored the Bill. He's gone on record in USA Today stating he's willing to come to an amicable solution to ensure that neither the first responders or hams are affected by this spectrum selloff, so we need to hold him to that promise.

The ARRL has a video on the bill.

I can understand the need to raise "bail money" considering the debt we're getting ourselves into, but doing so at the cost of one the best resources for emergency communications is a grave misstep. Besides, there's some spectrum down in the 220 band that was sold off awhile back and look how that turned out. Why not give that to the first responders? Or give it back to the amateur operators who would use it more than it's being used now.

Lauren's got a new callsign

Well less than 2 months after my daughter Lauren passed her ham test, she decided that KJ4QNH was not for her. Something about the letter "Q" she didn't care for.

So we applied for and got her a new callsign through the Vanity system.

She is now K4LRN. The suffix "LRN" is short for her name, something she liked when we looked at what callsigns were available.

I checked late Thursday evening and it was still pending, so either yesterday or today it went through.

Merry Christmas, Lauren!

EDIT: The expiration is on Christmas Day of 2019, so it did come into effect on Christmas Day.

My Christmas present to you: How to renew your ham license for FREE! *

If you've been licensed for over 10 years, chances are you've received notices from companies offering to renew your license for a "minimal fee".

Well, I'm about to save you some money, because you don't have to pay a dime if you do it yourself*.

All you need to do is to go to the FCC's Universal License System (ULS) site and renew online.

A few "quick notes":

• *If you have a vanity callsign (like I do) you will need to pay the vanity fee (currently $13.40 as of the posting of this article). This fee can also be paid online.
• You cannot renew until it is 90 days before the date of expiration and up to 2 years after the expiry. If you wait to renew after the expiration date, you CANNOT transmit on amateur radio frequencies from the date of expiration until it appears in the ULS as renewed! If you wait until after the 2-year grace period, it cannot be renewed, you will need to take the Technician Class exam to get re-licensed.
• This whole renewal process will NOT be instantaneous, it may take several days to process, so the sooner you fill out the renewal request during the 90-day window, the sooner it will get processed and you will not have to chance an interruption from using ham radio.
• If filing online is still not for you, then you can still print and fill out the Form 605 and file via snail mail. That's free as well. Also, the ARRL will do it free for members, but Vanity calls are $13.40 + $5 for processing.

Find your FRN

You will need to know your FRN (FCC Registration Number) in order to renew. Don't know it? Don't worry, all you need to do is look it up on the ULS search page.

To search for your FRN:

1. Go to the ULS main page.
2. Under the "Search" area, click "Licenses".
3. In the search page enter your callsign.
4. Locate your callsign. Under the "FRN" column (in the center) is your FRN that you will need to log in and renew your license. Write it down!

If you already know your FRN and password, go to the login page, sign on, and wait for me down below. Otherwise, continue on...

Chances are, you've never had to use ULS before, since either you've been a ham for less than 10 years, or renewed it before ULS online renewal was enacted, let someone else do it for you, or you got a new callsign (due to vanity request or license upgrade) and the 10-year term was reset upon the issuance of the new callsign. Therefore when you get back to the ULS sign-on page, click "Register".

When you get there, you will have 3 options, click "Update" in the middle.

Personal Security Question

Now, if this is your first time using ULS, you probably have not set your Personal Security Question. If you have previously set up your Personal Security Question, skip to the next paragraph. If you have NOT set up a Personal Security Question, you will need to fill out an online request form and someone with the FCC will manually set this question and email you once complete. This may take a couple of days! To get to the request page, click the link that takes you to https://esupport.fcc.gov/password.htm.

On the next page, click "Set your Personal Security Question" and the next page is where you fill out the Personal Security Question you want to set.

You will need your FRN, enter your contact info, and provide a current email address, then set whatever you want for your Personal Security Question. You can either choose a preset question from the dropdown menu, or set one up that you alone will know.

Again, someone contracted with the FCC will set the question and answer you chose so once again write it down!

Reset your password

Once you have received your email from the FCC that the Personal Security Question has been set up (or you already know it and skipped the previous paragraph) you will need to set your FRN password.

• From the ULS main page, click "Login", then go to the link to contact tech support, then click the link to reset your password.
• Enter your FRN (you did write it down, didn't you?).
• Answer the Personal Security Question you set up.
• Enter your new password (minimum 6 characters, combination of letters, numbers, and special characters (I highly recommend you do NOT use your callsign (if it was a 2X3).
• Once your password is reset you may get a notification from the FCC advising that your password was reset.

Time to Log in to the ULS

Hopefully you haven't given up hope and are not shilling out $5-10 for someone else to renew your license at this point. We're almost there, I promise!

You've gone through setting up your Personal Security Question and/or password, so now it's time to log in.

• From the ULS main page, click "Login".
• Enter your FRN (again, you did write it down somewhere?) and password.
• You should now be viewing your information (callsign, address, etc.):
• On the menu to the left, you will see a link to renew your license so click the link.
• The next page will show your callsign in a box on the left (you should have "Eligible" selected above the box with your callsign). Click you callsign to highlight it, and the select the "Add" button in between. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click "Continue".

• Follow the remaining instructions to finish the registration and submit once you are ready.

If you have a Vanity call, you will be prompted to pay the fee associated with renewing a Vanity callsign once the renewal application has been successfully received. It will be in a "pending" mode until the Vanity fee is paid. I plan cover that process in a later posting.

And that, my friends, is what they're charging you for. So now, if all has gone through successfully, you will be placed in the queue for renewal. It shouldn't take more than a couple of business days to get updated in the ULS but give it up to 10 business days before attempting to contact the FCC for an update. Check the ULS for your callsign and note the expiration date should now read 10 years from now. You should also receive an email confirmation.

I admit for some this may be too much, but if you stuck with it this far, you hopefully saved a bit of money. If not, then you're not out an incredible amount of money if you let someone else do it for you. But still, why pay someone else to do a job that you should be able to do on your own for free?

I'd love to hear from anyone who followed these directions and get some feedback one way or the other. Also, if you could proved additional screenshots (especially if you have to renew your Vanity) I would appreciate it, as I never thought to grab screen captures while renewing mine, but then again, this idea didn't occur to me until after the fact. If you have a sequential callsign that's due for renewal, I can try to help if possible. My email is gregk4hsm at gmail dot com.

Meet my daughter, KJ4QNH!!!

Nearly a year ago, I posted that my daughter Lauren was studying to be a ham. Unfortunately, with school, life, girl scouts, and basically everything else getting in the way, we were limited to 1/2 hour Q&As once or twice a week on much of what she already studied, and a few sample tests on QRZ, most of which she missed passing by a couple of questions.

As summer approached, I was looking forward to sitting down with her and studying, but she would lose interest (or rather, she was wanting to play with her friends, watch TV, play her Nintendo DS, etc.) or I would not be able to help her due to household "honeydews" that were never-ending.

I was determined not to force her in to doing this. I didn't want to pressure her, and only wanted her to get her license because she wanted to do it, not because I (or my wife) wanted her to. I walked a fine line between encouraging her and making her. I figured if I forced her in to studying, it would only discourage and block her from wanting to get her license, but I would often remind her that she needed to study.

I would occasionally ask her "are you still interested in getting your license?", and she eagerly replied she was determined to get it.

We continued to study together whenever possible and even my wife (Jessie, K4RLJ) was occasionally helping. Her biggest stumbling blocks were the frequencies allocated to Technician class licensees, what bands belonged to what frequencies, and the questions relating to Ohm's Law.

Then I remembered that on occasion ham groups have all-day classes followed by exams that same day. I was listening to a local net and caught some guys talking about one that had just occurred the Saturday prior and decided to email some folks and ask if there was any more such groups that were going to take place anytime soon. I was met with 4 different groups conducting such classes, but none were here in town. One was 2 hours south in Chattanooga, another in Kingsport, and yet another in North Carolina.

I then got an email from a friend who was a VE for W5YI and was going to have a class in my wife's hometown of LaFollette (about an hour north of here) and checked with Lauren and we decided we would do that one.

I gathered that this would be the key to Lauren's passing her test. There wouldn't be any TV, internet, or other distractions and she could focus completely on the task at hand. Plus she had been studying off-and-on for over a year, so my wife and I were confident she would focus her efforts and possibly pass the test. We didn't expect her to pass, but we didn't expect her to fail, either.

I did this once before with my sister-in-law when she was about 13. That one was an all-day session, where one person read off all the questions, and the correct answer, and they moved on to the next question. They then took the exams the next morning. Unfortunately she failed her test.

She did eventually get her ticket after studying and my wife took her to an exam session in Lafollette scheduled just for her. She did not, however get much more involved and her license has expired. If she wanted to get her license, she'd have to re-take the test and get a new callsign.

This session was different from my sister-in-law's. We met at Paradigm Church, which was located at a small shopping center on the far end of town. There, they gave her the questions and correct answers on a study sheet and they let everyone study at their own pace, without reading the pool aloud.

There was one person who was blind, and while Lauren was studying, several of us who were sitting around with nothing to do decided to help him and went into another room and read the questions and answers to him. His father who wasn't licensed either helped out as well.

They would study for 45 minutes and then take a 15 minute break. There was a 90 minute lunch in between.

The guys there were very nice about providing pizza for everyone and a few drinks to pass around. It was small, but quiet, and Lauren was concentrating like I've never seen before.

The study session was scheduled to last until 4PM, but Lauren had already gone through the pool by 11AM. She wanted to take the test right then, but there wasn't enough VEs to administer the examination. I quizzed her on several parts and she would miss one or two, and I would have her go back and re-study those portions. Finally, as the afternoon went on, the VEs arrived and started to fill out the Form 605's for her to get her exam when they asked for her picture ID...and guess who forgot to pick up her picture ID...

I suddenly entered a panic mode. I called Jes and proceeded to freak out asking for anything with her picture on it. Her school had picture IDs produced for those times when they might (god forbid) get lost or missing and I fortunately had one in my wallet. They asked for a photocopy. And guess who didn't have a copier in his back pocket...

I then scoured the town for someone...ANYONE...with a copier handy. The local pharmacies didn't have them anymore. For once, Walmart didn't have what I needed. All the check cashing places with copiers and faxes were all closed. Fortunately there was a rental place open at the local mall and I was able to coax the person behind the counter to photocopy the ID.

By the time I got back (30 minutes later) the other two who were studying alongside Lauren were in the middle of their tests, and Lauren was waiting on me with the photocopy.

We filled out the paperwork, handed over her $14 application fee, and away she went. It was hard not to stare at her while she was taking the test, but I fought the urge as best I could.

20 minutes later, she turned everything in. And we waited.

And waited...

Aaaaaaand waited...

I couldn't get any kind of yea/nay from the VEs one way or the other. We sat there patiently while they graded the other tests and hers. I would see them mark the test and pray it wasn't hers they were bleeding red ink all over.

They told one of the others that she had passed, but hadn't told us if Lauren passed. The longer it went on, the less confident we felt that she had passed.

Finally, the VEs called her up to sign her name on the CSCE. "So she passed?" I asked. "Well heck yeah she did!" was the reply, and Lauren smiled as bright as she possibly could.

We called Jes, her grandmother, some friends, and I posted her success on Twitter and Facebook and the kudos came in from hams the world over.

She missed 7 of 9 questions she could miss and still pass the exam. It took 11 days to get her callsign as the FCC was slow to process the paperwork and Veteran's Day also had an effect on the delay.

Earlier this evening, she had her first QSO with Jim, KQ4AB, who was the man who was overseeing the test session. At first I thought I would be her first QSO, or maybe Jes, or a couple of friends of ours who have kids that are hams, but I thought that she should check in to his net and have a quick QSO with him. He got a kick out of it and I recorded it on my cell phone. Here's the video.

So now, I have a wife and daughter who are hams. Just one more daughter to go. And she's cracked open the book and begun her journey. It may be a couple of years (she just turned 8) but she's determined to be like her sister.

I couldn't be happier.