[MNham] APRS expansion plans

[Matt Werner]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Doug Reed" <n0nas@amsat.org>
To: <MNham@mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Monday, February 02, 2004 9:46 AM
Subject: Re: [MNham] APRS expansion plans


> My map shows WIDE holes that need to be filled in the Hibbing-Virginia
> area, another around Ely, and another around Taconite Harbor.

Like I said earlier, we may have a spot in the Hibbing area - will have to
wait and see how things pan out.  It's currently not #1 on our priority
list.  We have found that digi coverage ends on the north shore of Lake
Superior right about at Beaver Bay, which is a few miles south of Silver
Bay.  We have a site, not very high, that is available in Silver Bay, which
comes with some of the equipment that we need if we use the spot.  That is
probably the next one that we get up - it's just a matter of collecting the
equipment that we already have into one spot and setting the stuff up.
Although Taconite Harbor may be a more ideal spot, we don't have an "in"
there at the moment.

> My choice of 60-80 miles between WIDEs is to minimize the number of sites
I
> have to build. But even at 60-80 miles, a good WIDE on a high site should
> have no trouble hearing the other WIDEs in its area so beacons will be
> passed. And a home station should be able to hear all the WIDEs in its
area
> with even a modest antenna. All you need to do is try listening to
> repeaters outside your local area. If you can reliably hear a repeater 80
> miles away, you'd be able to hear a WIDE at the same distance.
>
> And this certainly gives the users and clubs in between the WIDEs
something
> to do. They need to build RELAY stations to digi the local mobile beacons
> up to the WIDE. The whole premise of APRS is that every home station
should
> be a RELAY to fill in holes in WIDE coverage. Unless you're at the bottom
> of a gully with an antenna in the basement, a home RELAY should provide
> enhanced coverage for mobiles in the vicinity out to 10 miles, maybe more.

You're under some assumptions that prove to be false up here.

There are few hams on packet, much less APRS, in most of our WIDE areas.
Although there is club activity in the area, I don't believe there to be a
lot.  No club has really focused towards packet radio at all.  What you see
in our area now is the efforts of a small handful of people, mostly John,
AF9T.

Right now we probably have more digis than we have local hams on APRS.  I
guess we're working on the "if you build it, they will come" principal.

> Having a high density of WIDE stations and local RELAYs brings up the
> problem of "packet storms" when each beacon is repeated multiple times by
> the RELAY and WIDE stations in the vicinity. I don't understand how you
can
> avoid them in Duluth since you seem to have four WIDEs within spitting
> distance of each other. Why so many? Why not pick the best one and make
the
> rest RELAYs?

I'm not sure which four you are referring to, so I'll try and explain.
John, AF9T, has sent an email that covers some of the specifics for each
digi (excellent summary John!).

The K0NDX-10 digi is what we consider our "main" digi for the Duluth area.
KA0TMW-1 is a RELAY only that covers some holes in the main digi coverage to
the north.  It provides coverage to approximately Canyon, MN.  KC0MKS-10 is
a Digi-Ned experiment, and will eventually be a RELAY only.  We're playing
with Digi-Ned some to see if/where we want to utilize it.

The surrounding digis are then:

KC0FTN-10 in Two Harbors, MN.  This digi provides some excellent coverage up
the north shore.  It does look back towards Duluth some, but usually only
will pick stuff up when you are over the hill, away from the lake.

W0GKP-10 in Mahtowa, MN.  Provides some well needed coverage along the I-35
corridor as well as some coverage west along MN 210.  It also will
occasionally interface with N0WW-10 or N0NAS-11.  I have never seen this
digi direct from the Duluth area - it doesn't see Duluth other than the main
digi.

AA0AW-10 in Solon Springs, WI.  This is our next step going south along US
53.  It rarely sees the Duluth area, other than the main digi (I see an
occasional packet while mobile, maybe one per week).

N0BZZ-10 in Washburn, WI.  This provides good coverage along US 2, Madeline
Island, and some coverage along the north shore of Lake Superior.  It will
become more critical as we expand up the north shore.  It doesn't see the
Duluth area other than the main digi.

> Coming up with power supplies, antennas, and coax is more of a problem
than
> the radio, TNC, and cabinet. And of course finding an excellent site is
> also a problem...... I'm inclined to provide help with equipment if you
> need it to get packet or APRS on the air in your area. It is my "build it
> and they will come" theory.

We have run into some of the same problems - finding the equipment that
costs $$$.

 > Metro Skywarn is still behind this project since the APRS WIDE digi
network
> can also digi weather beacons from private weather stations around the
> state in to the National Weather Service data collection system. That
means
> donations to Metro Skywarn for APRS can be tax deductible. The next step
is
> to convince your local Emergency Manager or club to buy a Peet Brothers
> weather station and put it on a local APRS station. The NWS wants
> information from more than just its own sensors..... More info on the
> Citizen Weather Observation Program is at:
> http://www.wxqa.com/

We have two wx stations, myself (KB0KQA) and Jeff, KC0MKS-10.  We also will
hopefully have a third one up in the next few months.

73 for now - Matt
KB0KQA