Syntogram
Issue 4 November 1997
A note from the Editor
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A letter from the President
Hi Synton members and friends,
This is always a difficult time in the semester as the workload picks up...
but the "crunch time" for projects, exams and term papers still lie ahead
of us. Hobbies are easily tossed into the "back when I had a life" zone.
I've found amateur radio is good medicine for the overwork blues ... a few
minutes of operating may be welcome relief from the eye and brain strain of
hitting the books.
Synton owes another big "thank you" to Al, WB9OIH, and Mark, N5RJF, who
were kind enough to share their radio direction-finding and "foxhunting"
expertise with the club on Oct. 29th. This kind of thing ...
club-sponsored "Elmer"-ing if you will ... is something I'd like to see
more of in the months to come. One of the joys of our dramatic rise in
membership is that we know have all kinds of ham radio expertise under our
roof. Make use of this knowledge bank by checking in with your fellow
members on what you're up to, and make some deposits to the bank by
offering to help those who could use a little of your expertise. This
message goes double for our newer hams ... let some of the "old salts" give
you a hand as you explore this extraordinary hobby.
As an organization is only as strong as its membership, be sure and thank
Debbie (... and make a note of her new call, N9DN) for setting up our
meetings, and Rich, KB8LOE, for picking up the Engineering Council chores
this month while I covered an extensive travel schedule. Wayne, AA9DY, has
been a stalwart for our ARRL Handbook sales desk, and has been key in
keeping things on the right financial track. Please thank these folks when
you see them.
And please thank Jim Coleman, KA6A, our faculty sponsor. Jim's vigilance
over and stewardship of Synton's interests means that he is looking after
us in ways that many of us may not be aware of. A good faculty sponsor
like Jim makes many good things possible that would be out of reach for
most any other club on campus.
By way of an update, we now have our 2 meter HT in 330C Everitt Lab, and a
packet station should be within easy reach in the near future. We're still
working on some furniture upgrades, and some alternatives are being
examined now to bring in our scanning receiver. In the short term, a
poster blitz will be underway to break up 330C's expanse of cinderblock!
Check it out and let us know what you think!
We'll be ordering another balun for Physics House III to improve our new
V-beam installation. The QSL bureau has just mailed us a fresh pack of DX
cards, and I'll be posting those in PH III in the days to come.
On the volunteer front ... Synton is heading for two service efforts: I've
offered our help to the local ASME chapter for a Christmas toy drive, and
I'm in touch with the Transportation Chair of the Engineering Open House
Committee to explore ways Synton might help with radio communications
during this spring's EOH in March, 1998. I'll keep you posted with
updates.
And finally ... we've had another near miss in the Safety and Security
department. During the overnight hours of October 30th, the outside screen
windows were jimmied off the front windows of Physics House III, including
our shack in #10. One of the units, #6, was entered, vandalized, and
equipment was stolen. I spoke with the University of Illinois police at
the scene who felt we escaped burglary by having our windows locked. They
advised me further that we should make careful records of our equiment
serial numbers and photograph our equipment layout in case we should be
next for a burglary. Fortunately, we have already taken the first step as
part of our equipment insurance, and I will be photographing the interior
of PH III right away to follow up on the second suggestion. Although these
incidents are traumatic, they can be used as a "wake-up call" to the
importance of good security. Let's do our part for the campus security
effort by making sure our facilities are safe and secure. Let's be aware
of our surroundings when we're using club facilities. Let's not hesitate
to inform the campus police through their emergency (9-911) or
non-emergency (333-8911) phone numbers if we see something suspicious or
amiss.
Have a good November, and best wishes for an enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday!
73 Tim, KM4KS
Synton ARC President
Club News:
Help Synton look good! There will be a photographer at an upcoming meeting (the 12th
or 19th) to take pictures for an upcoming article being published on Synton. Look
for more information on the mailing list.
Treasurer's Report:
I cleaned out the change cups in both PHIII and EL330C. Synton netted
$16.33, which was placed in our checking account.
I also believe that we had... let me look...
...as of this past Monday, two handbooks were sold for the month of October.
Checking account --> $829.51
Voucher --> $306.84
Savings --> $463.15
----------------------------
Total --> $1599.50
Club Activities:
Fox Hunt!
The fox hunt planned for Nov. 2nd was postponed due to rain, and has been rescheduled
for Sunday, Nov. 9th. Again the meeting of hunters will be at 1:30 at Physics House
III, and the hunt will start at 2pm.
Officer list:
President: Tim Shy (KM4KS)
Vice President: Still Vacant
Treasurer: Wayne Wagner (AA9DY)
Secretary: Debbie Fligor (N9DN)
Station Manager: Torsten Clay (N4OGW)
QSL Manager: Chris Bochna (N9RQW)
Public Service Manager: Mark Belding (N9GPA)
Engineering Council Representative: Tim Shy (KM4KS)
Advisor: Prof. Jim Coleman (KA6A)
73
de N9DN