Contents
About Shack Notes
Welcome to Shack Notes, a new category of blog posts here at the VE3FCQ Ham Shack.
Every Tuesday Evening, the New Hams Ottawa Net hosts a round table style net for new, returning and evolving amateur radio operators. The first round of the net is usually an open ended round where those checking into the net can share what they have been working on.
These “Shack Notes” are my way of starting to document and share my progress in the amateur radio hobby. The target audience includes the New Hams Ottawa community and the broader amateur radio community. These notes are also a historical record for me to circle back on things I started to explore and might have dropped or got stuck. Check out previous issues through the Shack Notes category.
The notes will be fairly terse and typically point form. For those in the agile progject management space you may recognize the format, as it mimics the “5 questions of scrum“. If you want me to expand on anything in particular then feel free to reach out through by leaving a comment. use the Contact Form or direct through e-mail.
If you find these posts useful and you want to receive regular updates when new shacknotes or other website content is added, feel free to subscribe to the Shack Notes mailing list. The plan is to regulalry update subscribers to the list.
What I have been working on…
- Last week I started working on an Amateur Radio Events Calendar for my own benefit, however I am now seeking input from others to see if it might serve a wider purpose for the local community in Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. Generally the events listed are located East of Toronto and West of Montreal. If you want to learn more about the Events Calendar, drop a comment below. If you want to join the team of early adopters then reach me through e-mail directly or through the Contact Form.
What I will be working on…
- Tonight on the New Hams Ottawa Net, I announced the Events Calendar and requested early input and feedback from those interested. So if I get some requests through e-mail I will be sharing the calendar in its current form. If you are interested, consider reaching out to become an “Alpha” reviewer through the Contact Form.
- I will get back to work on my evolving online Amateur Radio course. I am currently working on the Rules and Regulations portion of the the course. While Rules and Regulations tend to makeup 25% of the Amateur Radio Basica Qualification Exam in Canada, I find that many in person and online courses leave it to students to read the docs on their own and run some practice tests. I think we can serve the community a bit better.
- I listen to a lot of Amateur Radio Podcasts. My playlist currently lists 22 podcasts. So if you want to know what’s on my playlist then leave a comment below to let me know your interest in reading more about my playlist.
Blocks I am facing…
- Well time is always an issue. My son turns three next month, and life with a toddler is pretty fast paced, and sometimes draining after a day of work.
- I also started a new “gig” at work today, while this post is about Amateur Radio, not work, i find that onboarding to a new team can consume a bit more mental and emotional energy in the begining, leaving a bit less in the tank when I get to play radio at night.
Things I have learned…
- As I mentioned above I track 22 podcasts and counting. So I feel as though I am alwasy learning something. However, moving forward perhaps I need to find a way to document this learning. I often replay past podcast episodes to review a subject or an interview and find that over time I am learning a lot as topics become more familiar and I am able to put them into practice.
- One of the many reasons I have endeavoured to create an Amateur Radio online course is to provide a courses structured in a way that would have helped me learn the concepts of the hobby. In the process of developing this course , and having been licensed for 3 years now, I find I am solidifying my previous learning. As a “retired” wilderness instructor and active Telemark Ski Instructor, I find teaching others is a great way to increase your own understnading of a subject.
New things to add to the To Do list…
- Share my Amateur Radio podcast playlist.
- Share more on Amateur Radio Online Course development.
- figure out a good way to manage this To Do list. Maybe something like Trello or simmilar project board.
