[FADCA] Tampa get together

[Bill Sinbine]

Hi All

Here are some snips from some messages we've been having.
It looks like we might have the need for a table again this year and if we 
can get PacComm to set up also we might be able to get real close to it so 
we as FADCA members can help out with both setups.


>Wonder if we could encourage Linda to come to a FADCA/FPAC/Winlink meeting
>and participate in the discussion regarding Tait radios or even have a
>booth?

That would be nice to have Linda at a hamfest again. She said that last 
year she was going to come but there was a date conflict of some kind.
Talk her into it Chuck. I told here last year that we would even get some 
people to help out at the booth!!!! I know I would!


>Bill, I saw the discussion on the meeting at 3 PM but you think we could get
>time for a "public" EMCOMMS presentaton/meeting at Tampa?

I just got the reply from Chris and he said;

I don't see any issue doing this.

Would you like 90 minutes for the Forum, and 90 minutes for the directors
meeting?

*****

Is this what the directors and members would like to do? If so let me know 
and I can let Chris know. We also have Gary on the list that is on the BoD 
so he will see what we want also. We can just get the time backed up from 
the 5 PM closing time for whatever we want to do if they can do it in one 
block. I guess a lot of this has to do with bud......Does a EMCOMMs demo 
sound good to you bud? If so we can get the time for both!
We can have a 3 hour block to have enough time to do a GREAT EMCOMMs 
presentation take a break and have a full FADCA meeting/directors meeting 
at the end of the day.



I feel the need to also build a fire under FADCA folks all around who are
responsible for switches... we need to get the old/existing LANS working,
the backbones between them working, and build more files for new LANS where
needed.

And also get EVERYONE that has a switch node or bbs that is on the air to 
do a FULL NEW coordination form from the web site so we can prune ALL the 
dead wood out of our database. This is very important to have our database 
current with the ARRL pushing the EMCOMM stuff like they are. We MUST have 
our database REAL so if someone looks at our web site that needs to get 
into a area to get to a Telpac or whatever they can get good information to 
use so PLEASE redo NEW paperwork for your site! It is going to get to the 
point that by a certain date if you don't have NEW paperwork in we will 
just drop it from the database. This will be one of the things to talk 
about at the Directors meeting. We've been talking about this for enough 
years and now it is time to do it!

As for Tampa Ham Fest -  Our experiences for the past two (or is it three?)
years there have not been good as we've never been able to get to a packet
switch to play.  Unless they have a way for us to get to a switch and we can
get to a TelPac node, I don't want to spend much effort there.  If we set up
a table top exercise in a booth, we are going to need some help from FADCA
folks manning it.  Charlie and I get worn out during conventions and don't
get to see much of the tables/booths... of course that saves us some money.

Chuck, can we get to a switch from there now? If not what has to be done to 
make it work for the weekend? Would we need to have a digi set up or 
something? I remember that Free tried last year and it didn't work too well.

If we can get a solid link from the convention floor to a Telpac node, then
setting up a two/three laptop table top exercise in a FADCA booth is worth
while - and certainly having a forum where we can promote this is worth
while.  What probably makes the best sense is to have the table top exercise
available at the FADCA booth, and give a full PPT program during a 30-45
minute forum w/o tearing the booth stuff apart.  It would take some effort
to have the table top exercise set up at the booth and move it to a meeting
room... maybe  we just set up the laptops at the booth with PPT show running
and promote folks attending the forum to visit.  If we cannot have a solid
link to a switch/Telpac node, then we just set up several laptops at the
booth running a short PPT file.

bud since you have the 802.11b stuff working again now, maybe it would make 
it from the FADCA table to the forum room and we could just have one laptop 
set up in the forum that can be used for the group forum demo.



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Bill Sinbine
n4xeo at bellsouth.net