Steve's Blog

After years of mucking around with radios and a stalled attempt to get an advanced amateur radio license, I got talked into taking the foundation license study/exam session run by Amateur Radio Victoria. The foundation license is a newish class of amateur radio license that allows the operator to use up to 10 watts transmitter power on:

• 3.5 – 3.7 MHz (80 metres)
• 7.0 – 7.3 MHz (40 metres)
• 21 – 21.45 MHz (15 metres)
• 28 – 29.7 MHz (10 metres)
• 144 – 148 MHz (2 metres)
• 430 – 450 MHz (70cm)

For those interested in starting out with radio communications, you should check out this course. It’s great for people with no previous experience, and a great way to get on air.

THE CSIRO has won another round in its lengthy battle in the US to collect millions of dollars in royalties for its 1996-patented Wireless LAN technology.

Last Friday, a US federal court granted the science agency’s application for an injunction to stop the Buffalo group of companies from infringing the CSIRO patent in the US.

The injunction prevents the sale of products using CSIRO-patented technology until a license is negotiated.

Hopefully this should see the start of the CSIRO starting to get some royalties for patents used in 802.11a/g based equipment that were researched and developed at CSIRO.

On the 3rd May, the ACMA launched the Australian do not call register. This register forbids telemarketing calls to registered numbers 30 days after registering them. In the first 48 hours, the number of registrations whizzed past 250,000 numbers proving without a doubt that people just don’t want to be bothered by telemarketers! I suggest that all Australians who are sick of telemarketers register their number.