This is the type of S#^T that will kill ham radio.

My comments are in bold….

927 TECH LINKED NETWORK GUIDELINES

· While amateur radio is open and public (which we don’t like, but we are too cheap to license our own commercial network so we’ll take away from the HAM community and tie up a bunch of repeater pairs for our own use while looking down at anybody below the 900mhz as trash.  At least they are up ‘there’ and not tying up 2m and 70cm frequencies like a local SAR group…(that should be on public service frequencies)), linked systems like ours is a collection of privately owned repeaters and linking hub servers. We have a substantial investment in our repeater and linking hardware.

· Others are free to build their own linked system and set their own rules. (because that would be in the spirit of Ham Radio!?)

· Our 900 MHz network was formed by repeater owners with a common interest in 900 MHz and higher operation. This is in part due to technical interest and in part due to the common culture associated with operation on 900 MHz and above. (and the elitist attitude we have decided to pin to it) We don’t want it to become another 2M or 11M (CB) channel. (!?!*$#)  We don’t want ANY linking from FM repeaters or simplex nodes on bands below 900 MHz. (Yet you are linked using AllStarLink that requires that you allow connections from anywhere. Because again! You are using it for FREE. It’s not yours to decide.  Why aren’t you creating an elitist linking network of your own?)

· Radios on 900 MHz come from commercial service and are not generally ham radio store “appliances”. This helps filter out the 2M and 11M culture crowd. (Don’t want THOSE guys. Lowely ham radio operators bringing their jargon up here! Into 900mhz heaven.  They can stay in 2m and 11m hell! We only want people who still have a DOS laptop and a RIB interface to program prehistoric radios… which I have BTW :))

· The operators on the 900 MHz network have interest in the technical side of the hobby. (people below 900mhz couldn’t possible comprehend the ‘technical side of the hobby’)  They could be called “techies” (or wannabe elitest snobs in this case) . They are generally interested in the intimate technical details of repeater building, audio interfacing, Allstar/Asterisk and Linux/Unix systems along with the networking that makes it all work. These are QSO’s that everyone is interested in hearing, regardless of the particular area one lives in. We are all hams and often compare notes on weather differences in other areas on the link as well as other daily activities. (WHOA WAIT! WEATHER????  What next, a conversation about the painful boil on your ass and other ailments?)

· Technical QSO’s often are longer due to the nature of what is being communicated. (Probably even longer if you have to dumb it down and techsplain it to anyone used to operating below 900mhz) Nontechnical QSO’s can get uninteresting quickly and accordingly should be kept short. (like the weather?)

· Regional hubs often disconnect from the main linking hub during weekday commute times, if there is heavy local/regional activity.

· Acceptable operation on ALL linked systems requires:

o NO calling CQ. If you ID once, EVERYONE heard you. There’s no need to keep doing it. (OK… that is annoying)

o NO general DX calling (essentially, calling CQ) o ONLY use phonetics in your call when needed. If someone doesn’t get your call correctly, then correct with phonetics. (OK.. I’ll give you that one too)

o To restate: Just ID once without phonetics. (Again..phonetics on a crystal clear FM voice network is annoying.. agreed)

o DON’T use CB type lingo like “back to you”, “I’ll be on the side or back in the box”, “Negative contact on . . . . . “, etc, etc. (Don’t forget “Breaker, Breaker 927 MHz”)

o QSO content and length depends the nature of the network (900 MHz is not the same as a 2M network). (WTF does that mean?  Have to talk slower because the wavelength is so fast?)

o Exclusively local QSO’s on the same repeater should be short or moved to a nonlinked repeater, unless the topic is of general linked interest.

· Hams with these common interests and culture are welcome to join in

And there’s your problem lady!  Off my soap box for now….