Fallbrook Amateur Radio Club Bulletin

THE BROKEN NEXTEL 800 MHz REBANDING PROCESS

June 27 marked the second anniversary of the FCC's three-year project to protect public safety communications from harmful interference by reconfiguring the 800 MHz radio band, and yet no NPSPAC licensee has moved or scheduled a move to new frequencies.

Mobile Radio Technology columnist Donny Jackson notes that there is plenty of blame to be spread among Sprint Nextel, the Transition Administrator, equipment manufacturers, consultants and the licensees themselves, but believes now is the time for the FCC to admit that rebanding won't be completed on schedule, and take the necessary steps to speed up the process.


LIGHTNING STRIKES AND PERSONAL ELECTRONIC DEVICES = BAD NEWS

Emergency room physicians have documented cases in which lightning strikes have caused disabling injuries to those using various electronic devices including iPods and cellphones. The devices do not attract lightning, but appear to make injuries worse if you take a secondary (minor) lightning hit. Ruptured eardrums and ongoing auditory problems are common. But if you take a primary lightning hit, you probably won't have any worries whatsoever.


DELANO SHORTWAVE FACILITY TO BE SHUT DOWN IN OCTOBER

The International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) will stop shortwave broadcasting from Delano, California, at the end of October according to Radio World. The facility will be converted to "cold storage standby status" but some equipment may be moved to other locations in the IBB network.

The Delano station began shortwave broadcasts to the Pacific Theater of World War II in 1944. Delano is located about 140 miles north of Los Angeles.


FCC TESTS UNLICENSED DEVICES IN THE TV BAND

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin recently said that within a week the FCC would release the results of tests of several remote-sensing unlicensed devices that would potentially be allowed to operate in the so-called "white spaces" between DTV channels. The FCC has already said it plans to allow fixed devices in the band subject to testing and other safeguards to make sure the devices do not interfere with TV reception.


SOME IN CONGRESS FEAR DISASTROUS OUTCOME OF DTV CUTOVER

What will happen on February 18, 2009 when tens of millions of analog television sets receiving over-the-air signals receive nothing but noise? With only $5 million allocated to educate the public about how the new digital signals can be received, many on Capitol Hill fear the outcry will focus on them unless TV broadcasters can achieve what the government has so far failed to do: make the viewers aware.


S.D. COUNTY OPTS FOR NEW ALERT SYSTEM TO REPLACE REVERSE 911

Encouraged by the success of a 12-year association with the Reverse 911 alert system, San Diego County supervisors have approved a new contract with a different vendor for technology that is faster, less expensive, more flexible and Internet-based to satisfy the need to alert residents when evacuations are necessary. The new vendor is Twenty First Century Communications, and use of the system will be made available at no charge to all cities and local agencies within the County.


METAL THEFT - A NATIONWIDE PROBLEM

Whether it be copper radials, stainless steel beer kegs, manhole covers, air-conditioning units, power cables, catalytic converters, light poles or aluminum bleacher seats, metal thieves continue in their quest to profit from valuable metals being sought by unscrupulous recyclers. Some states and local governments are tightening ordinances to discourage the practice by holding recycling companies accountable, but the thefts continue as some foreign nations rush to satisfy their need for raw materials.