1. Choosing a Radio* *I don’t have one yet

2. Where to Start? Primary use Location of shack Price range Technical savvy Long term goals

3. Primary Use Volunteer work 1 Local Communication 2 Emergency Communications 3,4 Long Distant Contacts

4. Location of Shack House Apartment Car Off the grid

5. Other issues Cost Technical Savvy Long Term Goals

6. Rig Type Handy Talkie Mobile Unit Base Station

7. Companies Icom Yaesu Alinco Kenwood Elecraft Others …

8. Handy Talkies How many bands? 6 m, 2 m, 70 cm, and 220 MHz. Houston - 2 m and 70 cm repeaters 6 m has sporadic E layer progation Extra features GPS APRS DTFM Memory Channels

9. Handy Talkies Dual bander US companies very similar Menu logic differences Receive capabilities vary Wideband receiver? Cheaper Radios and their caveats

10. Mobile Stations How many bands? Dual band, or more … Higher power Antenna Tuner Accessories

11. Base Stations VHF/UHF? Placement of Antennas Power supplies Grounding

12. Beyond … Amplifiers Antenna Software Contests Clubs Specialties

13. References 1. Harris County ARES MS-150 Harris County ARES MS-150 2. Harris County Frequencies Harris County Frequencies 3. Southeast Harris County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) Emergency Communications Plan Southeast Harris County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) Emergency Communications Plan 4. ARES Go Kit ARES Go Kit 5. Silver, David. The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual. ARRL Newington, CT 2008

14. Example: Cheap HT Jingtong JT-208 Asiaradiosales.com Tx: 136-172 MHz (not limited to 144-148 MHz) No button labels, may have modify case. $53.90 + shipping Manual Eham review

15. Example: Expensive HT Yaesu VX-8R 4 band Tx - Wideband Rx All the bells and whistles APRS Bluetooth capable Memory channels with names Monitor 2 Ham frequencies and one AM/FM station at one time Barometric sensor Well written manual UniversalRadio.com $370 + shipping

16. Example: Mobile HF/UHF/VHF Yeasu FT-857 HF + 6m + 2m + 70cm All mode Computer controllable UniversalRadio.com $700 radio + $360 ATAS-120 + free head separation kit

17. Example: Base Station HF/UHF/VHF Kenwood TS-480 HF+6m+2m+70cm 100 Watts Remote Head UniversalRadio.com $1,000 radio + $120 power supply + antenna