AmiZed Studios » Video

The Magic of DIY from the ARRL

MobbyG — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 15:00:20 +0000

I love my morning surfing. I’m always finding something good to share. One other morning, I found this one. It’s a video from the ARRL showing innovative, imaginative and fun ways hams use radio technology. It’s about 8 minutes long and it looks to be a recruitment video towards the DIY crowd.That I think is a good idea, as I have seen a couple videos from the Maker Fair on YouTube here and there, that incorporate Ham Radio in their projects. And the topper of this video in my opinion is the host, Diana Eng, KC2UHB, who is no stranger to the DIY, Fashion and Ham Radio communities. A Trifecta!

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N7TFP Demonstrates How to Set SSB Gain

MobbyG — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 15:00:23 +0000

Happy New Year to all! I’m back after a week’s vacation for the holidays and feeling very rested. Tyler, N7TFP on the other hand, has been busy, busy, busy. I don’t know about the holidays, but the videos he’s been cranking out are great! Here’s another one for you!I have been saying this with the last couple videos that getting back to basics are great for the veterans on the air, and these are great tutorials for those just joining or recently joined the hobby. In this one, Tyler shows how to set the proper mic gain on your SSB tranceiver. Without any more fanfare, heeeeeeeere’s TYLER!

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Building Your First Station

MobbyG — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:00:03 +0000

A few weeks ago, I posted a video from Tyler, N7FTP, who posted a “Getting Started” kind of video on how to use an antenna tuner. And I am a firm believer in getting back to basics. It’s saved my bacon a bunch of times. When I came across this video, it was a no brainer on if I should post it or not. So Tyler is back with a video and tips on building your first Amateur Radio station. He demonstrates equipment that is important to have in a first station.

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FoxNews.com Media Hit on 700K Amatuers in the US

MobbyG — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 15:00:55 +0000

While doing my usual trolling of the internet, I found a quick little media hit from a Fresno, CA, Fox news station, on the number of licensed Hams in the US. I figured I would share this one.

1200+ Mile Contact on 10 Meter Handheld

MobbyG — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:00:06 +0000

As Hams, we know the phrase “A little goes a long way” is very true in Ham Radio. Anyone working QRP can tell you that. There are people that have worked the other side of the planet with just a few watts. I worked Japan once with 5 watts with Grayline. But check out this video of 1200+ mile contact on a handheld.I didn’t even know they made 10 meter handhelds. But we can see one here in the video. As well as making that contact with just 5 watts of power. Not too shabby at all. I say keep this video handy for recruitment. This shows how radio can work.

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A Ham’s Night Before Christmas

MobbyG — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 15:00:58 +0000

‘Tis the season to be jolly and give of yourself to your fellow man. Though I think that should be all year long, but still, around this time of year, it’s nice to spend time with friends and family and enjoy the time. This year I am feeling especially festive, simply because I am with my family. I know, I’m easy to please. But one of the other things I like this time of year is of course the entertainment. It’s a tradition for me to watch Miracle on 34th Street every year during the holidays. And this one may be a tradition I do every year. Post (or repost from this point on..) “A Ham’s Night Before Christmas”. The video is done by Gary Pearce, KN4AQ, with guitar melody by Don Mercz, WA3AYR. So sit back with your coffee or hot chocolate, grab a candy cane or a sugar cookie, and enjoy!

How To Use An Antenna Tuner

MobbyG — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:00:00 +0000

It’s always good to review the basics now and again. I know I could use some brushing upon a few things from time to time. Tyler, N7TFP, has made a video on how to tune an antenna. If your building your first station or studying for your exam, then this video is something I suggest you watch. Even if you’re a seasoned “Pro from Dover”, it’s good to watch. So here’s Tyler…

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Meet Randy, K7AGE

MobbyG — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:00:43 +0000

I’ve posted stuff from Randy before, and it’s usually him talking about Ham Radio related stuff, and not necessarily about himself. This video turns that around as he is interviewed during his visit to the TWiT Studios when they first opened.I thought I had posted this before, but when I checked, I hadn’t, so I figured I would do that now. So here is George Thomas W5JDX, interviewing Randy Hall, K7AGE. Enjoy.

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Rich also writes a Tech blog and posts stories every Tuesday and Thursday on Q103, Albany’s #1 Rock Station website, as well as Amateur Radio stories every Monday thru Friday on AmiZed Studios and hosts a podcast called The Kim & Rich Show with his fiance’ Kim Dunne.

Steve Solie at AmiWest 2011 Announces AmigaOS Based Netbook

MobbyG — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:15:51 +0000

This video has been out for some time, and the word spread like wild fire on the Amiga community forums. This, is by far, one of the biggest things to happen in the Amiga Community since the release of Amiga OS4. And I personally, wanting to be an OS4 user but not being able to afford new hardware, am as pleased as punch about this!While this certainly did eclipse the news about the AmigaOne X1000′s availability for this holiday season, the community as a whole, is very happy to see this. Lower cost hardware is a great way to help get the attention of former Amiga users and with luck, get them back into the community. Increasing the user base has long been our goal. The more people we have, the strong the community becomes. So with that, I give you Steve’s speech at AmiWest 2011.

And just for good measure, Trevor Dickinson’s speech about the AmigaOne X1000 at AmiWest, as well. After watching both of these videos, I have to wonder to myself how could I be a part of all this? The podcast is fun and everything, but I feel like I would like to do more.But, here’s Trevor’s speech at AmiWest 2011.

W5CYF QRP CW

MobbyG — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 14:00:30 +0000

Tinker John has been posting videos of Amateur Radio for a while now, and I have re-posted them on this blog a time or two because he does a really awesome job showing off Amateur Radio and the different modes he uses. He’s video of him doing QRP CW with just 5 watts. Yeah, I know, a lot of Hams do QRP, CW, but still, this is a great example for anyone looking to see how to do it. John’s videos are almost like a video Elmer. And as I have mentioned in older posts, inspired me to try a couple new things. But, enjoy his 5W CW fun.

Ham Radio in China

MobbyG — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 14:00:33 +0000

I have never been off the continent before, and the only other country I have been to is Canada. So I think my travel experience is kind of lacking. But I can live through Randy, K7AGE, vicariously! Randy went to China some time ago, and he posted a video on his YouTube channel.From the description on the video:

I visited Beijing China during the first week in March 2008. I was able to visit with several Beijing hams, their homes, the CRSA and a club station. I had a great day. Hams are great the world over!

There is also a link to an article written by Larry, KH6ITY, that talks more about Ham Radio in China, but it seems to be a dead link. If anyone knows where to find the article now, please let me know.

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North America’s Summits On The Air Day with K2FR

MobbyG — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:00:28 +0000

I can’t believe I missed this. I’ve written about Summits on The Air before, but Andrew, K2FR hiked up Hunter mountain in the Catskills for S.O.T.A., Summits on The Air and made some contacts when he reached the top. While hiking up, he made a video. This is of course that video. Andrew talks about what he has in his pack and how he slimmed it down considerably, for this hike to save on weight. On the way up, Andrew stops stops and, we get a view of the valley below. Sadly, it’s past peak for the leafs so no bright autumn colors. And because of fog at the summit, no view of the mountains and area. Andrew also has a bunch more videos on his YouTube channel. Some are S.O.T.A. videos. The description from this video says..

Cool weather, turned into cold weather at the top. A completely fogged in summit made for no views or any cool photos. My new battery pack worked great, Im quite happy I dropped over 10 pounds of weight from my pack by using that instead of the SLA ones, well worth the investment.

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SSTV on an iOS Device

MobbyG — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:00:31 +0000

From the “Oh, How Cool is That?!” department, is a video to round out a week’s worth of Ham Radio videos, showing an iOS device, (iPhone,iPod Touch,iPad) decoding an SSTV signal. I have seen a bunch of Ham Radio apps on the iTunes App store, but I seemed to miss this one. According to the link in the video’s description, the SSTV Decoder app is made by Black Cat Systems, who also make a few other Ham Radio programs for Macs. The webpage says “.. Just connect it to an HF radio (or even set it next to the radio’s speaker), tune in an SSTV frequency, and watch the pictures.” From the video I didn’t see a directly connected cable from the iPod Touch, so I’m guessing that they are using a 4th Generation iPod Touch with a built in microphone and have it sitting close to the radio to hear the SSTV tones. Still, it looks like it received a nice picture. But they could also have been replaying pre-recorded picture on the device too. Either way, it’s cool!

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A 1st Contact on Amateur Radio

MobbyG — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:00:44 +0000

So I was trolling YouTube again, (I know, it’s getting to be a habit..) and came across a nice video of a 20 something woman named Angelica, in Springfield, M.A. making her first Amateur Radio contact. Remember the first time you cracked a mic? Were you nervous or scared or excited? All three, or calm or just business as usual? Watch this video and you can see how she did on her first go of it. I think she did pretty well myself. And hopefully she enjoyed it enough that she’ll be getting a license of her own some day. I’m still trying to get the YL a little interested, but it’s a no go so far. The daughter though, she just likes to talk. Hope the duty cycle on my radios will be able to keep up with her. And without further ado, the lovely YL making her first contact.

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A Look Back at the Heathkit AT-1 [VIDEO]

MobbyG — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 14:00:11 +0000

With Heathkit‘s recent announcement of them getting back into the kit building business, and Amateur Radio is one of those category of kits coming back, I thought that this little video look at Heathkit’s first Amateur Radio kit would be a good way to celebrate that.I know they announced it some time ago, but better late then never right? Well, this video wasn’t uploaded till about a month ago and I just found it. But You’re the first ones I’m sharing it with. My only complaint about this video, is the presenter is very mono tone. He doesn’t sound enthused with anything. But all in all, it’s still a nice video. Hope you enjoy!

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Ham Radio Motorcycle Mobile [VIDEO]

MobbyG — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 14:00:52 +0000

A few months back I posted a story about getting a bicycle and looking up way to attach a radio to it to do some mobile work. While the summer has been busy and that project is on the side for the winter, I came across this video from KH1JH, of his Motorcycle mobile. Justin shows us how he mounted an HTX-202 from Radio Shack and is able to use it while on the road on his bike. A nice little setup if I do say so. Wish I could have a nice big hog to ride while doing 2 meters. That would be fun I bet! But I digress, here is Justin’s video. Enjoy!

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