CMSARA

Central Mississippi Amateur Radio Association

Archives for August 2015

CMSARA Upgrades AV Equipment for Meeting Presentations (updated)

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[dropcap]F[/dropcap]ocusing on the benefits of having good programs at each monthly meeting, CMSARA has begun upgrading the audio-video equipment assets owned by the Association. “Thanks to the donations by a CMSARA member,” said President Mike McKay N5DU, “we now have the start for a major enhancement of our capabilities for multimedia use by guest speakers. This will allow the Association or other individual members to donate equipment to further our capability to better enjoy the details of what a speaker has to say.” He added, “Since CMSARA is a registered non-profit with 501(c)(3) status, donations of equipment or money qualifies as a possible tax deduction for donors.”

New Push-Up Screen

CMSARA now has an 80″ Inch 4:3 format pull-up floor projection screen with a built-in aluminum storage case. Special Events Coordinator Mike Flanagan WM5A said, “This greatly helps the projected images be clearer to the audience. And it’s a snap to setup, which I like since I usually do this task!” CMSARA has previously used the painted wall behind the speaker’s podium as a provisional screen. “This worked ok but the crystal coating on projection screens make the details clearer and the image much brighter to the audience,” N5DU elaborated.

Elmo HD Visual Presenter with Speaker Screen

Another donation is an Elmo Visual Presenter Document Camera HV-5100XG with Color LCD Monitor LM-5611A. This device allows the speaker to show an object—such as a radio or circuit board—on a light board with a high resolution, auto-focusing camera that sends the image to a projector as an input like a Powerpoint presentation. This device has side lights so as to emphasize the 3D object being shown. It will take a PC input (such as with a Powerpoint or PDF slide deck or perhaps a software program) and the speaker can easily switch between these two inputs. It also has a remote control so the speaker can move around more easily from the Elmo device. A hard shell case was included for easy storage and transport to other locations. [Read more…] about CMSARA Upgrades AV Equipment for Meeting Presentations (updated)

Magnolia Intertie Nears Launch

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magnolia-intertie.com

[dropcap]A[/dropcap]t August’s meeting, the how and why of a new non-profit corporation, the Magnolia Intertie Incorporated, was described by Frank Howell K4FMH, President of the company. Why? “Fundamentally, we do this because we hams want to have ‘fun’ in the practice of our hobby. In this case, a linked backbone of repeaters around Mississippi will also be a great service to those in need of communications in times of emergency.” Over 35 amateur radio operators and those ready for the FCC examination were in attendance at this monthly meeting. The Intertie’s website can be found at magnolia-intertie.com.

Frank K4FMH

Howell said he spent a full year researching other successful Intertie systems around the U.S. All had various suggestions on methods to utilize in linking repeater systems but all also had one definitive piece of advice: DO NOT try to organize a confederation of club repeaters! They said while it’s the quickest way to get a bunch of repeaters linked but it’s the most certain way to have it fail in a short time and with rancor between the Intertie and those clubs. Howell said that the Magnolia Intertie has heeded that set of recommendations. Clubs and other organizations, such as ARES chapters, MEMA, the National Weather Service, Storm Spotters, the Salvation Army, the American Red Cross, may apply to connect to the Intertie’s backbone system through a mechanism that is being developed by a working group of Board members and technical advisors, the Network Operations Working Committee. The NOWC is chaired by Mike N5DU. Mike is also the current President of CMSARA and Secretary-Treasurer of Magnolia Intertie Inc. [Read more…] about Magnolia Intertie Nears Launch

Rankin Co ARES to Participate in SET

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[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he Rankin County ARES team, led by Emergency Coordinator Mike Flanagan WM5A and Asst EC Mike Dancey WX5H, will fully participate in the ARRL MS Section Simulated Emergency Test (SET). A planning meeting held on Tuesday, August 3, 2015, at the Gluckstadt technology company L3 Communications facilitated the planning. Robert Hayes KC5IMN, District 1 EC, and Malcolm Keown W5XX, Section Director, gave presentations about the SET and it’s fundamentals as organized by the new Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator, Rez Johnson K1REZ.

Rez has prepared an initial website for the Section ARES organization, located at msares.org. The full set of documents for this Saturday’s SET can be found at this link. Please review some or all of these planning documents before the SET on Saturday. [Read more…] about Rankin Co ARES to Participate in SET