www.nwaprs update

Stay tuned.   The static website is back.  We have a link to the blog.   I'll upload a blog posting today with a summary of the 2012 Summer Gathering presentations.   Then over the next couple days we'll get the email and email list back on line.

In the future -- lets work towards a full cloud based wordpress portal for the community...

73
Bill - WA7NWP

2012 Summer Gathering - Presentations - preliminary

Friday September 7th:

• 5:00pm grill going – Cook something!

Saturday September 8th: 

• 7:00am to 8:45 Breakfast hosted by the West Seattle Amateur Radio Club
• 9:00am Introductions in the Pavilion including identifying any topic or issue anyone needs assistance with this weekend & Overview of Your 15th Annual Summer Gathering - Curt Black, WR5J
• xx am  Packet Radio calling channel by Brian
• HSMM-Mesh use by Bryan/KY9K
• Microwave Amateur Radio network by Bart/AE7xx
• Lunch - hambergers by Bryan/KY9K and many others
• APRSISCE by Ann/WA7ROS
• APRS-Messenger overview by Bill/WA7NWP
• Low Cost Computing and Net-44 update by John/K7VE
• Missed Subjects:
• Other Packet in the NWAPRS region:
• P9 (Packet Plan 9) update
• Dinner
• Bats by Curt/WU7J
• Movie - Star Crash

Sunday Sept 9th:

• Summer Gathering Review, Future Plans, making APRS Better
• Brian ..  volunteered

2012 Summer Gathering - Approximate Schedule

Friday September 7th: Objective: Socialize/Try Things Out/FUN!

Participants Arrive/ Demo Stations Setup on South Side of the Pavilion
3:00pm Free Beer for Trying Each New Digital Mode Chest Opens
5:00pm grill going – Cook something!

Saturday September 8th: Objective: Informative Talks with Time for Q&A/Discussion/Flexibility/FUN!

7:00am to 8:45 Breakfast hosted by the West Seattle Amateur Radio Club
9:00am Introductions in the Pavilion including identifying any topic or issue anyone needs assistance with this weekend & Overview of Your 15th Annual Summer Gathering - Curt Black, WR5J
9:30 Morning Technical Sessions (not to exceed 66% duty cycle - that is, we build in time for discussion and exploration)
12:00 LUNCH BREAK Social/Technical Demos and Discussion/
12:50pm Reconvene for GROUP PHOTO
1:00pm Afternoon Technical Sessions
5:00pm Open Discussion of APRS Applications and Hardware / Digital Radios Setups Demos

Dinner BREAK Dinner/Social/Technical Demos/Play Radio and Open Discussions

7:30pm Optional Talk – What Northwest Digital Hams Might Want to Know About Northwest Bats
8:30 – Movies and Popcorn – Buckaroo Banzai/Last Star Fighter/Who Killed the Electric Car? What Else?

Sunday, September 9th: Objective – Making APRS Better / Planning for Future Summer Gatherings / More Fun!

7:30am to 9:30 Breakfast hosted by the West Seattle Amateur Radio Club if you didn't eat it all on Saturday

Thanks and See you at the Summer Gathering near North Bend!

Curt Black

2012 Summer Gathering - Rules Of Engagement

YOU MUST HAVE A GOOD TIME – if at anytime you are not having a good time please find Curt Black – WR5J, – 206 755-4541c - and let him know what the issue is and we will work to fix you up

Please wear a name tag. Please meet your fellow participants. If you don't know someone, go find out what makes them tick. There is a treasure trove of interest and experience here –make sure you check it all out. If you are willing to act as a subject/topic resource, please put your interests/areas of expertise on your name tag.

This Year we would like to reserve the whole north side for presentations. Please don't set up equipment on the north side. Please set up demos and equipment on the south side tables only;

Please socialize anytime, but during presentations, please move conversations to the South Side with the Demos – we want everyone to be able to hear our brave presenters;

If you have a QUESTION you would like answered during the Gathering, please:

1. write it out and put it on the Kiosk, and/or
2. bring it up during the introductions, and/or
3. grab any of the presenters or other participants anytime during the weekend.

Don't leave without getting help or setting up future help!

Please DONATE to Valley Camp to keep this beautiful venue available to us for events like this. The Mail Box for donations is on the railing of the main pavilion on the north side cleverly labeled, "Donations" We are hoping the day folks will help with $10, more if you are so moved, if you enjoyed the free breakfast, maybe add more and $25 for overnight stays – Thom and Teena and the SG Team Thank You!

2012 Summer Gathering - Additional Information

Please join us for the 15th Annual Summer Gathering. It looks like we will have perfect weather for this weekend event.

If you haven't heard of the Summer Gathering, shame on us. If you miss it shame on you.

This is a very social and very educational event right here in the Pacific Northwest in North Bend, WA. It is always the weekend after Labor Day.

The Summer Gathering is lots of fun and a great opportunity to learn and practice just about anything you can do with a computer and your ham radio particularly focused on the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) http://www.aprs.org.

Many folks arrive on Friday for socializing. The presentations are on Saturday - Breakfast from 7:00 to 8:45. Presentations start at 9:00am. Soldering irons are hot through the event starting on Friday afternoon.

Tradition has it that there is one free beer with every new digital mode you try during Friday or Saturday night.

Here is the link to Valley Camp - it is located in North Bend, Washington 10 minutes off of I-90 at exit 34. At the bottom of the Exit 34 ramp, turn north and continue 1/2 mile past the convenience stores and truck stop and watch for and take the right turn onto SE Middle Fork Road (County Road sign says Valley Camp 2.2 miles). Continue to the "Y" and take the left on SE Middle Fork Road (lower road). Follow until you come to the stop sign. The entrance to the camp is straight ahead across the small intersection.

GPS Coordinates for the entrance of camp: 47.4680 -121.6808 (Don't forget the minus on the longitude or you'll end up in Mongolia!)

Our hosts at Valley Camp are: Thom/K7FZO and Teena/K9HAV Proehl Contact them for reservations for RV and Bunkhouse spots at:

K7FZO 425 888-1852

The location is a beautiful camp with hot showers and a bunkhouse or camping or RV opportunities. The event runs on donations and we encourage you to shoot for $10 for the day or $25 for the overnight experience - there is a donation box at the event and I mention this only because we ran under last year. This venue is made available to us at no charge but it can't continue to happen without your participation and support.

Bring your thirst for knowledge, some warm clothing for the evenings and some food and drink to eat and share. There are grills going and coffee early each day...

It is an incredibly beautiful place - lots of nature trails and birding opportunities for the family along the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River.

Contact Curt Black, WR5J
wr5j@arrl.net
206 755-4541

and/or

Thom Proehl, K7FZO
k7fzo.thom@gmail.com
425 888-1852

Tucson Weather at the Summer Gathering

Forecast for the 15th annual, yes we've been doing this for 15 years now, NWAPRS Summer Gathering: Sunny and warm. Temperatures could be in the high 70's or low 80's. It would even make Dave feel like he was home. (we'll miss ya good-buddy)

We have a few RV sites still available, lots of tent space and for those wanting to sleep inside we still have bunks available in our lodge. RSVP for accommodations ASAP at info@valleycamp.org

If an overnight trip is not in the cards, come out early Saturday and join us for breakfast and a full day of presentations and time to get all your APRS questions answered. We will be making available to anyone that wants to join us for lunch burgers and hot dogs. Coffee will be available all day. For those of you wanting to gather around the grill and cook your dinner together we will have the BBQ going Saturday evening around 6PM.

We have an added treat for anyone staying overnight; the local elk herd has returned this week and is very vocal early in the morning along with the chorus of owls.......You might even see the large bull that is following the herd of cows and calves around at a distance.
If anyone is interested I could be talked into discussing my work trapping, collaring and tracking the Middle Fork elk.

We no longer have an IGATE here at Valley Camp, so if someone wants to bring their portable system along that can use WiFi for your Internet connection please do, we are to far away from the nearest digi for units running less than 10 watts to get messages or position reports into an IGATE.

We also lost our EchoIRLP node, but I am hoping to have one on the air by September 7th.

Our schedule this year will allow lots of time between presentations so please bring your projects and ideas as well as questions to share, that is what this event is all about!

Cost of this event? A donation to Valley Camp to help us keep the place running.
That's all the news from Valley Camp for now.  See you all in a week!

73,
Thom

NWAPRS Gathering - Save the Date: September 7, 8 and 9th

Greetings Northwest APRS users and fans of the Summer Gathering!

First - Save the Date: Friday through Sunday, September 7, 8 and 9th with the technical / educational / discussion content on Saturday the 8th. Breakfast will be 7 to 9am on Saturday - talks will start at 9:30am. I would stay longer if you have available time...

Second - plan to attend. The parts folks like have been retained. The social interaction, the access to knowledgeable people, the chance to mess with new radios and software and the beautiful setting at Valley Camp near North Bend all remain the same. The focus remains on APRS - the whole expanding universe of tools, techniques, software and hardware for tracking, messaging, and resource announcing.

Third, if you gave a talk last year, please consider updating us on the tool, software or technique you shared. There has been much development of new hardware, and considerable progress in passing APRS data across many systems from packet to D-Star to HSMM. If you didn't have a chance to share last year, please consider this as your invitation to talk this year. Either way, please send me a title, brief abstract of your topic and your phone and email contact information. That is all it will take
to get you onto the Saturday agenda.

We remain possibly the friendliest group in amateur radio and continue to strive to be the place to come for help getting started and staying abreast of all things "Automatic Packet Reporting System." ---
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_Packet_Reporting_System.

We continue to meet at the most laid-back, natural and lovely venue available to amateur radio: Valley Camp on the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River, King County, Washington, near North Bend. Valley Camp, 49515 SE Middle Fork RD., North Bend, WA 98045

We share a number of meals and libations during Summer Gathering - more info will follow on bringing potluck items and/or grill-able food items.

Saturday breakfast will be hosted by the West Seattle ARC.

Contact our hosts, Thom or Teena for arrangements for RV parking, camping or possible access to the bunkhouse/lodge by calling 425-888-1852 or email info@valleycamp.org

More information can be found on the web about Valley Camp or the NWAPRS Group website nwaprs.info or on the NWAPRS Blog page.

Thanks! I look forward to seeing everyone again for the 15th Annual Summer Gathering.

Call or write with any questions or comments, to get onto the agenda or to offer to assist with planning.

vy 73 de WR5J,
Curt Black
West Seattle Amateur Radio Club
wr5j@arrl.net