Hi,
There are still occasions when phone patch is used in MARS. I do not think Autopatch is used much any more either but it could be convenient if you had to call someone and didn't have a cell phone.
Some people don't have them for various reasons. I do not think there are many pay phones around either.
Colleen, N8TNV;
----- Original Message -----
From: Colin McDonald <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Sunday, Aug 12, 2012 05:09:54 PM
Subject: Re: Third party rules.
>
>
> I'm not sure I know anyone, except perhaps my 87 year old grandmother, and
> my GF's 92 year old grandfather, that don't own a cell phone.
> Why use auto patch when you can easily make a more or less private call to
> who you want?
> And, it's full duplex instead of half duplex like auto patch.
> radio ops are used to keying up and talking and then listening to the other
> persons transmission, but most people aren't, so having a meaningful
> conversation over auto patch with a non-ham is almost impossible.
> The only places radio telephone is still used that I know of is in remote
> areas of north western, and northern canada where there is no cellular
> coverage. And with that, it's all commercial and operated by the regional
> telco...we have one repeater here with auto patch, and it doesn't work most
> of the time...x's more of a novelty than a reliable or useful feature.
> Yes, I do pay for my cell phone air time, but I'm going to have that
> regardless, so I might as well use the far more convenient and reliable cell
> phone rather than a flaky or potentially unreliable autopatch.
> And if my cell phone battery goes dead, well, I always keep enough change in
> my wallet to use a pay phone if I have to for an emergency or something very
> important.
> I've also asked hams on the repeater to make a phone call for me when my
> cell battery is dead, and I'm not near a pay phone, and I just happen to
> have a handheld on me.
> I pretty much always have a charged HT in my backpack when I'm travelling
> around the city or out of town just in case.
> I haven't heard phone patch on HF in probably 20 years either.
>
> 73
> Colin, V A6BKX
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John Miller" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, August 11, 2012 9:39 PM
> Subject: Re: Third party rules.
>
>
> > There's only one repeater I know of in my area with auto patch anymore and
> > each club member who chooses to, can pretty much only call home or
> > whatever
> > emergency number they designate. Other than the amateur radio news line
> > every week, I don't think that auto patch has been used for anything else
> > in
> > 7 or 8 years at the least, maybe more than 10.
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Harvey Heagy" <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Saturday, August 11, 2012 6:44 PM
> > Subject: Re: Third party rules.
> >
> >
> >ar There was a time when we had to do that too. There was at least one
> >ar person
> >ar who was bringing up the autopatch without identifying himself and placing
> >ar calls to either long distance or 976 numbers. I had to bring down the
> >ar patch
> >ar a few times myself when he did that, or tried to. The club eventually
> >ar blocked most of these numbers as well as long distance numbers, and when
> >ar someone would try to do that, they would get a response in code, "SRI,"
> >ar which I believe is an abbreviation for sorry.
> >ar Harvey
> >ar ----- Original Message -----
> >ar From: "COLLEEN ROTH" <[log in to unmask]>
> >ar To: <[log in to unmask]>
> >ar Sent: Saturday, August 11, 2012 4:43 PM
> >ar Subject: Re: Third party rules.
> >ar
> >ar
> >>>i have to say that there can be as many flaky people on the low bands as
> >>>on
> >>>UHFIRSTVHF.
> >>> Not all poor operators are on UHFIRSTVHF.
> >>> Colleen Roth, N8TNV;
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