[FARC] T-MARC Meeting Highlights

[K3SKE Dan]

Anyone who desires to read proposed or pending agenda is welcomed to go to the T-MARC web site at www.tmarc.org.

At the winter T-MARC meeting I was in the company of Roland W3FDK & Phil W3ICF.

The voting membership voted unanimously to approve the revised T-MARC by-laws.
The voting membership voted unanimously to retain the current T-MARC Board Members without challenge.

Comments from the T-MARC membership consisted of the following:

Amateur analog voice repeaters will in due course be phased out, being replaced with newer digital (voice) versions. In the long run your pride and joy 30 year old Clegg FM transceiver or that xtal controlled Regency radio will be worthless. So look for dual mode handhelds to start appearing. See what Dayton has out there this year. There are dual mode repeaters available at this time. My definition of dual mode means analog in analog out or digital in digital out. The biggest drawback that looms on the horizon is that there is no standard digital transmission format for manufacturers to build to. At least two competing standards are out there. If you have some age on you it is just like the VHS vs. BETA war for now. 

If the amateur radio community adopts any kind of band plan changes and closer channel spacing a lot of existing rigs will be toast as well.

The commercial VHF and UHF bands regulated by the FCC are being mandated to digital as well as 12.5 kHz and even 6.25 kHz channel spacing. This will get dragged out just like the switch to digital TV. Maybe we will all get vouchers for converters. The FCC will not mandate digital conversion to the amateur radio bands. But repeater owners more than likely will want the newer digital toys. Of course the resale value of all of that commercial analog equipment will drop to below scrape metal value.

Noteworthy; during this meeting other topics were discussed within the T-MARC membership and board members. In my opinion members that brought up these various requests should have just shut up and stayed seated during the meeting. 

Next scheduled T-MARC regional meeting is scheduled for Howard County in the summer.  

That's about all the news that's fit to print...

Regards,

Dan
K3SKE

Official voice for representing the FARC to T-MARC.