Hi.

I'm willing to get the EchoLink net up and running.  The following things
are some thoughts of mine.

First, if we use the Handiham node as our meeting point, we should get
permission from the owner of the node.  It's based in Minnesota, and is tied
to a local repeater there.

As for the time of the net, the only times I think we should avoid is when
the Handiham net is on.  I haven't checked into that net for quite a while,
so the following times I list may have changed.  Last time I listened, the
net was at noon Eastern Monday through Saturday, and 8:30 p.m. Eastern on
Wednesday.

Here's my ideas.  I have an EchoLink node set up on a repeater in Lexington,
KY.  I've done this to link the repeater to other locations for emergency
communications.  The repeater is quiet most of the time, so we shouldn't be
tying up a frequency, and if there is activity on the channel, I can change
frequencies easily from my apartment location.  I'm lazy, and don't want to
be tied to the PC, so I use good old radio waves to talk the DX distance of
fifteen feet or so from the TS-2000X by my rocker recliner, or lying on the
couch with my HT.  I have EchoLink set up for up to 25 simultaneous
connections, but I'm not sure if my broadband setup can handle that many.
As they say, the only sure way to learn is to try things out.

As for when to have the net, I'm flexible on that.  Saturday works for me,
but as I said above, we might want to avoid noon Eastern time, since I think
the Handiham net is on at that time.  I suggest either an afternoon or
evening time for us to meet.  Just let me know what works for folks.  I'll
throw out the time of 21 UTC, which translates to 4 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m.
Central, 2 p.m. Mountain and 1 p.m. Pacific.  This is just a time to work
from, so if it is inconvenient for folks let me know and it can be adjusted.

If you haven't used EchoLink before, and you'd like to participate in the
net, there are two ways you can access the EchoLink network.  You can either
use your PC, or you can get to it via a local station who has EchoLink
hooked up to a radio.  If you're using a PC, go to

http://echolink.org

and download the software.  You'll also need to validate yourself to prove
you're a licensed ham.  This involves sending a copy of your license to the
folks who operate the EchoLink server.  For more details on what you need to
do, go to the above web site.  If you're accessing EchoLink over a radio,
talk to the sysop who operates the EchoLink node to find out how to connect
to other nodes.  Some sysops have access codes that you'll have to enter to
connect to a node.

When you initially run EchoLink, you'll be in the index view.  I've had
problems with this view, so I've switched to Explorer view.  To do this, I
used my mouse emulation feature in my screen reader (in my case the JAWS
cursor), and clicked on the Explorer view tab near the bottom of the screen.
In this mode, things are in tree views and list boxes, which you can access
with the keyboard.

To connect to someone, you can just go through the list of calls and hit
ENTER on the one you want to reach.  To talk, press and release the space
bar.  When you're finished talking, press and release the spacebar again.
You can set EchoLink to use a different key to act as a PTT key, and you can
also set it to work only while you hold the key.  To disconnect from a
station, hit ALT+D.

This may sound like the "Warning, don't do the above before you do this"
instruction, but before you connect to a station, you should connect to the
EchoLink test server to check your audio.  There are two ways to reach it.
You can either go to the Stations menu choice, and it's under there, or hit
CTRL-O, TAB, type in 9999 for the node number and hit ENTER.  If you have
everything set up right, EchoLink will say "Connected", and it may announce
that you're connected to the test server.  To test your microphone level,
hit the PTT key, say something, unkey the PTT, and a few seconds later you
should hear what you said.  Make any adjustments you need, and repeat the
above.  When you're done, disconnect from the server.

EchoLink is pretty easy to get up and running.  I did switch internet
providers a few months ago, and I had to enable port forwarding in my DSL
modem.  To do this, consult your internet provider.

That's about it from me.  I apologize to those who already know how to use
EchoLink, but I felt this message was the best place to tell folks how to
get things going.  Feel free to connect to me to see if things are working.
I have the TS-2000X always listening to the EchoLink node, so if I'm awake
I'll hear you connect.  You might want to give me a call so I know you're
looking for me.  Give me a minute or so after you holler for me to either
give me time to reach the radio, or you'll know I'm either asleep or am out
with Paterson, the flying dog.  During the next week it's supposed to be
really cold here, so I should be around.  I will be out for about an hour
tomorrow to get groceries, so I may not respond then.

To connect to me, do one of three things:

Find my call in the list of calls, it's N8EGA-R, and either click on it or
if you have Explorer view on, hit ENTER.

Hit CTRL-O, and type in N8EGA-R in the call sign field, then hit ENTER.

Hit CTRL-O, TAB, and enter 453581 as the node number, then hit ENTER.

If you're using a radio to access an EchoLink station, if there's an access
code, enter it, then enter 453581 as the node number.  You can enter my call
sign, which is N8EGA, but that's a convoluted way to do it.  If you do want
to enter my call sign with the touch tone pad, go to the EchoLink web site
and look up the DTMF codes on the page.

That's about it from here.  The above is my offering to be net control.  If
someone else feels he or she can do a better job, then by all means go for
it.  Someone needs to throw something out there for folks to ponder, so I
figured I would do it.  By the way, I always have EchoLink running, so if
I'm not around to be net control, someone else can connect to my station and
do it.

Look forward to hearing opinions from everybody.

73
Kevin Minor
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