# Why do you forum?



## -Adam- (May 28, 2020)

After recent developments, I'm curious, as I see different posts from those who want to converse, to those who just want to have opinions, to those all in-between.

For me - there's more I don't know than I do know. 

I find forums a brilliant place to come to because:

I can ask questions and get answers, having conversations (it's better than reading a magazine)

I can get different view points and weigh them up on their own merits. (And see things challenged if someone posts something wrong)

I can express my thoughts - and have them challenged too, so I can learn if I'm wrong - to not live in ignorance

Every now and then - there's some funny meme's posted - which I get a kick out of.

How about you?


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## Flaviemys purvisi (May 28, 2020)

For laughs.


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## Herpetology (May 28, 2020)

To learn from the masters and hopefully educate some c:


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## Flaviemys purvisi (May 28, 2020)

Reptile forums are the first place I look for the latest on world issues like **********.


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## reptileandsodaz (May 28, 2020)

well i only go on here after ive watched tiktok!!!!


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## dragonlover1 (May 28, 2020)

I am with Adam, this is the first reptile forum I ever found and even though it wasn't about my first love (dragons) I was accepted. My questions and opinions weren't ridiculed. 
I don't pretend to know everything but my advice has been accepted and even asked for over the years.
So as Adam says there are many things about APS that will bring me back, info,laughs and amazing facts.
Anyone who says they know everything obviously knows nothing.


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## Flaviemys purvisi (May 28, 2020)

I thought it'd be a good place to find broads.


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## Bl69aze (May 28, 2020)

Flaviemys purvisi said:


> I thought it'd be a good place to find broads.


*Broad Shelled Long Necked Turtles?*


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## dragonlover1 (May 28, 2020)

Bl69aze said:


> *Broad Shelled Long Necked Turtles?*


yeah that's what he meant


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## Shaggers89 (May 29, 2020)

I joined up with the idea of getting back into keeping reptiles and learning a bit more than i already knew APS was the first forum i actually found have been here ever since.


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## Flaviemys purvisi (May 29, 2020)

dragonlover1 said:


> yeah that's what he meant


Haha no it's not. Lol


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## Bl69aze (May 29, 2020)

Flaviemys purvisi said:


> Haha no it's not. Lol


Sureeeee we know u like the long necks kevvyboy


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## Flaviemys purvisi (May 30, 2020)

Bl69aze said:


> Sureeeee we know u like the long necks kevvyboy


Sure do... on ice.


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 16, 2020)

-Adam- said:


> Every now and then - there's some funny meme's posted - which I get a kick out of.


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## Stuart (Jul 17, 2020)




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## Flaviemys purvisi (Jul 17, 2020)




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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 17, 2020)




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## Shaughan (Jul 17, 2020)

Flaviemys purvisi said:


> I thought it'd be a good place to find broads.



I can get sure boards here that's cool lol


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## CF Constrictor (Jul 18, 2020)

Beats watching TV!!!


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## Bluetongue1 (Jul 18, 2020)

To share and enjoy a common interest, which I happen to be passionate about.


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 19, 2020)

CF Constrictor said:


> Beats watching TV!!!


To right mate! Especially with the amount of garbage that's on it these days.


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## dragonlover1 (Jul 20, 2020)

Josiah Rossic said:


> To right mate! Especially with the amount of garbage that's on it these days.


doesn't TV stand for Terrible Visual ? or is it Totally Vacuous ?


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 20, 2020)

dragonlover1 said:


> doesn't TV stand for Terrible Visual ? or is it Totally Vacuous ?


Haha, who knows? Don't have TV anymore actually, just DVD, whatever that stands for, lol


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## Bluetongue1 (Jul 21, 2020)

@dragonlover1. I reckon the second option is right on the money! When I was a kid my dad used to call it "the idiot box". And that is over half century ago now. Funny how some things never change.


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## -Adam- (Jul 21, 2020)

CF Constrictor said:


> Beats watching TV!!!



Got to be the quote of the thread I reckon! 

If you want to learn something - gather where people can discuss (and even disagree) where statements will stand or fall on their own merit.

If you want to be conditioned to believing a single bias narrative - made by mostly lazy research that is highly edited to only show one side where they silence or suppress any opposition - go watch TV. 

FWIW, I think other large online organizations are heading that direction with the increase in censorship as well - which is why I will always support small local forums.


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 21, 2020)

-Adam- said:


> Got to be the quote of the thread I reckon!
> 
> If you want to learn something - gather where people can discuss (and even disagree) where statements will stand or fall on their own merit.
> 
> ...


Couldn't agree more, I'v learnt a lot just from being on this forum (partly the reason I don't want it to close). And all I've learn't from watching, "The Idiot Box" (as Bluetongue1 puts it) is just how stupid and messed up the outside world can be. (self-isolation was a treat )


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## -Adam- (Jul 24, 2020)

Josiah Rossic said:


> Couldn't agree more, I'v learnt a lot just from being on this forum (partly the reason I don't want it to close). And all I've learn't from watching, "The Idiot Box" (as Bluetongue1 puts it) is just how stupid and messed up the outside world can be. (self-isolation was a treat )



Keep in mind, the 'outside world' as you view it through the idiot box is the outside world as they would have you believe that it is. Truth is - reality shows aren't real. News more than half the time is bias, or omits details, (or completely ignores some things to portray a different view of the world to what is happening), and of course "fake" ;-)

Even the people interviews they do on TV. If I go down the street, pick people at random and ask them questions - I bet 10 to 1 that I get a different ratio of from people than what the TV does. Everything is controlled on TV to fit a narative, and while there are drongo's out there - I suspect there's more reasonable polite and kind people than the TV would have us believe, but propaganda worked well in Nazi Germany - why would the media want to ignore powerful lessons learned from there if they can put it to their own use.


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 24, 2020)

-Adam- said:


> News more than half the time is bias, or omits details, (or completely ignores some things to portray a different view of the world to what is happening), and of course "fake" ;-)


Knowing someone who works in the news industry I know all about this. There's always another side to the story. Not long ago I heard on the news that a motorbike rider "Identified" as a cyclist and broke the world record for fastest cyclist, on his motorbike. Apparently having an engine had nothing to do with it. Not sure about you but I see the news industry as the outside world. And by watching the idiot box, reading the news and seeing them exaggerate so many stories, all I've found is that it is stupid and messed up.


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## Flaviemys purvisi (Jul 24, 2020)

Here's a news story...


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## Pythonguy1 (Jul 24, 2020)

Flaviemys purvisi said:


> Here's a news story...


Haha, like Noah's ark. As in the bathtub ark.


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## CF Constrictor (Aug 2, 2020)

Josiah Rossic said:


> Couldn't agree more, I'v learnt a lot just from being on this forum (partly the reason I don't want it to close). And all I've learn't from watching, "The Idiot Box" (as Bluetongue1 puts it) is just how stupid and messed up the outside world can be. (self-isolation was a treat )


 "Television,,,where imagination is sucked out of children by a cathode ray nipple,,,,,TeeVee, is the only wet nurse, that would create a cripple" !!!


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## Pythonguy1 (Aug 2, 2020)

A poem from Roald Dalh that got brought to mind...

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start -- oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

Roald Dahl


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## xxMelissaxx (Jun 13, 2021)

Because I get bored as fk, and enjoy talking in great detail about things I like. Looking back at some of my posts and PMs on here from many years ago, it seems I also just like to be a little sht...


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## E.Shell (Jun 13, 2021)

I visit several forums, for several reasons, but mainly to learn and to share what little I DO know. Here and the ham radio forums, I'm on the learning side of the curve. At a tropical fish forum and a firearms forum, I'm on the helper side of the curve.

"Better than TV"...Haha, ANYTHING is better than TV, the detriment to the last few generations and quite probably why the world is in the shape it's in now. I think Frank Zappa expressed it best:


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## Sdaji (Jun 14, 2021)

E.Shell said:


> I visit several forums, for several reasons, but mainly to learn and to share what little I DO know. Here and the ham radio forums, I'm on the learning side of the curve. At a tropical fish forum and a firearms forum, I'm on the helper side of the curve.
> 
> "Better than TV"...Haha, ANYTHING is better than TV, the detriment to the last few generations and quite probably why the world is in the shape it's in now. I think Frank Zappa expressed it best:




What's the ham radio scene like these days? Years and years ago I thought about getting into it, but circumstances didn't really suit it. Then the internet became such a thing, I figured ham radio was largely redundant, but maybe I was wrong.


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## E.Shell (Jun 15, 2021)

Sdaji said:


> What's the ham radio scene like these days? Years and years ago I thought about getting into it, but circumstances didn't really suit it. Then the internet became such a thing, I figured ham radio was largely redundant, but maybe I was wrong.


Good question.

For hobbyists, ham radio is going strong. There are a few new digital modes, like FT-8, that both allows more distant communication on less power, and also automates communication to a certain degree, There is more and more information available and it has become much easier to both get licensed and to learn.

I have a civilian background in two-way radio and a military background in radar and have always enjoyed tinkering with electronics. I am an 'Amateur Extra' level amateur radio operator, which is the uppermost of the three licensing levels here in the states. I am also a "volunteer examiner" and help to administer licensing exams.

You're right about redundancy, if you want to talk to someone, just email them or pick up the phone, but the internet and cellular service both rely on infrastructure that is relatively fragile. Weather events like hurricanes (typhoons) can, and often do, impede normal communications. If cell towers are damaged, no one's phone works. Power outages that go with such events can shut down computers. Other events can cause cell phone outages due to vast demand. We had an 5.8 earthquake nearby and while the infrastructure was largely undamaged, you could not get a phone call out due to everyone calling everyone else to check their well-being. Ham radio operators tend to overemphasize the importance, but the truth is that for normal communication, it's just a hobby, grown-up playtime. For true emergencies, it can have great value.

The potential value is understood by local emergency/first responders, who actually train with us for emergency field communications. In fact, the weekend of June 26-27 is our national 'Field Day', where individuals and clubs set up and run from emergency power like solar, batteries and generators alongside government officials. We use gear intended to withstand field conditions and temporary/portable antennas. Our local fire/rescue department has a large mobile commo center, based on a 30' RV, and they join with us in an outdoor location. From our side of it, it is operated like a contest, to determine how many contacts can be made and how far, all running from remote locations on emergency power. From their side, they prove out interoperability and learn about our strengths and weaknesses.

Weather spotting is also a value at times, where rapidly changing weather patterns are kept up with by trained spotters, who observe and report conditions. I have taken training with our national weather service and have become a registered spotter. When we have severe weather predicted, the national weather service's local office will 'activate spotters' and many networks become dedicated to handling weather-oriented traffic. We report on hazards and anomolies, like ice accumulation, high winds, large hail, snowfall measurements, etc..

It's mostly a fun hobby for me. I have had conversations with people in all parts of the world, and the challenge becomes making contacts with countries you've never spoken with. Japan and Australia are both on my wish list, but I have spoken with most of the North America, South America, Canada and even a few in Asiatic Russia. I can talk regularly with friends within a several hundred mile radius, and we have short-range nets on VHF every week, where club members can meet and talk.

https://www.qrz.com/
https://www.eham.net/


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## Sdaji (Jun 15, 2021)

E.Shell said:


> Good question.
> 
> For hobbyists, ham radio is going strong. There are a few new digital modes, like FT-8, that both allows more distant communication on less power, and also automates communication to a certain degree, There is more and more information available and it has become much easier to both get licensed and to learn.
> 
> ...



Interesting stuff! Thank you for taking the time to type such a detailed response.

Do you get a lot of doomsday prepper type folks in the community? Making EMP-proof units which run on off grid, standalone energy sources, etc? That's about the only genuinely real potential practical value I can see (and even then, hopefully it'll never be relevant, and even then, if an EMP has been set off and you're not already dead, it's probably unlikely you'd even want to be using it. In a natural disaster of extreme proportions it could potentially be practical, but wow, you really need to use the imagination to come up with a hypothetical scenario. But, still, in many ways it beats a completely useless hobby like memorising football statistics and players' names, or following celebrity gossip.


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## CarlosTheSnake (Jun 15, 2021)

i know next to nothing lmao. i know a tiny bit about baby stimmies but thats all lol


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## Sdaji (Jun 15, 2021)

Pythonguy1 said:


> Haha, like Noah's ark. As in the bathtub ark.



Both the kangaroos are female, and just imagine all that inbreeding.


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## Pythonguy1 (Jun 15, 2021)

Sdaji said:


> Both the kangaroos are female, and just imagine all that inbreeding.


Oh Crikey! I didn't even see that!


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## Maven8ter (Jun 15, 2021)




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## Stuart (Jun 15, 2021)

Because Im the Admin


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## E.Shell (Jun 15, 2021)

Sdaji said:


> Interesting stuff! Thank you for taking the time to type such a detailed response.


You're welcome.


> Do you get a lot of doomsday prepper type folks in the community?


Yes, especially more recently. Two main types: Type 1 wants solid commo for distant friends and relatives in case their normal infrastructure isn't working. Type 2 wants 'tactical' communications, like handheld radios that can be used among associates. Hunting, paintball, orienteering, stuff like that. Both groups tend to overestimate the capability of radio, such as thinking a handheld unit (normally 5-7 watts with the worst antenna imaginable) will get them more than a few miles, or think that an HF radio can talk all over the planet (which it can) 24/7 (which it cannot). Both groups are typically directed and encouraged to the licensed, and in that process, learn the reality of it.


> Making EMP-proof units which run on off grid, standalone energy sources, etc?


Yes, the idea of maintaining working equipment '30 seconds after' is not new and is not limited to preppers. Most experienced operators maintain what is called a "Go Box" or "EmComm Box"that will have capability to operate off household AC, DC from on-board batteries, which are charged by solar or tapping a temporary source like a vehicle alternator. https://www.ar15.com/forums/outdoors/The_EMCOMM_Box/22-648273/? I have enough backup batteries sitting at my feet right now to run my VHF radio for days, which get topped off every time I turn on my desk power supply to run a radio. Also in the average Go Box is at least one portable antenna and some sort of connecting cable, like flexible coax.


> That's about the only genuinely real potential practical value I can see (and even then, hopefully it'll never be relevant, and even then, if an EMP has been set off and you're not already dead, it's probably unlikely you'd even want to be using it. In a natural disaster of extreme proportions it could potentially be practical, but wow, you really need to use the imagination to come up with a hypothetical scenario.


Agreed. For preppers, the radio is very much like the rifle, in that it cannot be treated like a talisman, to be bought and stored away. One must learn effective operation and maintenance BEFORE any event requiring its use. Also much like the rifle, many preppers seem to become fixated on these aspects without having long term food/water/meds/shelter provided for.


> But, still, in many ways it beats a completely useless hobby like memorising football statistics and players' names, or following celebrity gossip.


Ha, this is true, there are MANY things that could be described this way.


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## Sdaji (Jun 15, 2021)

E.Shell said:


> You're welcome.Yes, especially more recently. Two main types: Type 1 wants solid commo for distant friends and relatives in case their normal infrastructure isn't working. Type 2 wants 'tactical' communications, like handheld radios that can be used among associates. Hunting, paintball, orienteering, stuff like that. Both groups tend to overestimate the capability of radio, such as thinking a handheld unit (normally 5-7 watts with the worst antenna imaginable) will get them more than a few miles, or think that an HF radio can talk all over the planet (which it can) 24/7 (which it cannot). Both groups are typically directed and encouraged to the licensed, and in that process, learn the reality of it.Yes, the idea of maintaining working equipment '30 seconds after' is not new and is not limited to preppers. Most experienced operators maintain what is called a "Go Box" or "EmComm Box"that will have capability to operate off household AC, DC from on-board batteries, which are charged by solar or tapping a temporary source like a vehicle alternator. https://www.ar15.com/forums/outdoors/The_EMCOMM_Box/22-648273/? I have enough backup batteries sitting at my feet right now to run my VHF radio for days, which get topped off every time I turn on my desk power supply to run a radio. Also in the average Go Box is at least one portable antenna and some sort of connecting cable, like flexible coax.Agreed. For preppers, the radio is very much like the rifle, in that it cannot be treated like a talisman, to be bought and stored away. One must learn effective operation and maintenance BEFORE any event requiring its use. Also much like the rifle, many preppers seem to become fixated on these aspects without having long term food/water/meds/shelter provided for.
> Ha, this is true, there are MANY things that could be described this way.


Thanks again for taking the time to share your insights. I suppose if I ask you if you think it's worth getting into, you'll say yes, so, what would you suggest is the best way for a novice to get started?


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## E.Shell (Jun 16, 2021)

Not sure how it works in your area, but it seems like about the same as it does here.

I would suggest you search for nearby radio clubs and attend a meeting. Introduce yourself and explain your interest, and I would bet you get as much help as you need. Most amateur radio operators are very helpful and old-timers realize the future of the hobby lies in new blood. Our local clubs offer coaching ("Elmering"), licensing classes and testing. If someone walks in and want to be involved, they are usually welcomed with open arms and helped along.

Here is a club/site that provides video classes that i found with a few minutes of searching, and I'm sure you can find more. It actually looks like a great resource. At this site, in addition to a LOT of information, I see it offers a guide to becoming licensed.
https://vkfaq.ampr.org/lichow.php

I see from your profile you are in Victoria. Here is a link to the 'Victoria Associated Radio Clubs' site:
https://www.wia.org.au/clubs/vk3/
You could find a club near you, go to their website and see when they have meetings.

For example, say your near Wagga Wagga. Click on the tower icon at Wagga Wagga and club info pops up. Click on the club link and you're there. We can see that meetings are held on the last Friday of the month at 8pm, but also there is a good chance of catching club members at the clubhouse on Saturday mornings after 10am, so you could do either. It even says on their site "Visitors always welcome for a cuppa and a chat." Can't beat that...

I will warn you ahead of time: If your amateur radio operators are like ours, at any given event, you will have mostly outwardly normal casual users, some outright fanatics that live and breathe ham radio, and even a few decrepit hermit-type basement dwellers that use radio to overcome/offset social disadvantages. What they call a "wide cross-section of humanity"...

Here is your local governing authority's website, where you can look for more information:
 https://www.acma.gov.au/amateur-radio-licences
I suspect you would begin with the"Foundation" license, which starts you out with limited privileges. In my area, 144 mHz ("2 meters") is a very popular frequency band for local (up to about 75 miles max) communication and that is available to your 'Foundation' license, much like our 'Technician' level license. The general idea is to start new operators off on the shorter-range stuff, so they inflict minimum interference with their developing skills, then allow more frequencies as one advances. Certain frequencies travel better at certain times of day and some can get you around the world, and as you advance through the licensing levels, you can begin to use the fancier stuff.

You can dump a lot of money into it if you're not careful. Like many hobbies, you can get by with this, but it would really be great to have that... I started out with a handheld "HT" (handy-talkie) 15 years ago and just listened to local stations for a long time, then got licensed and started using the radio and started adding things. Now...ugh...


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## Sdaji (Jun 16, 2021)

E.Shell said:


> For example, say your near Wagga Wagga. Click on the tower icon at Wagga Wagga and club info pops up. Click on the club link and you're there. We can see that meetings are held on the last Friday of the month at 8pm, but also there is a good chance of catching club members at the clubhouse on Saturday mornings after 10am, so you could do either. It even says on their site "Visitors always welcome for a cuppa and a chat." Can't beat that...



If there are people half as helpful as you, I'm sure I'll be in very good hands!



E.Shell said:


> I will warn you ahead of time: If your amateur radio operators are like ours, at any given event, you will have mostly outwardly normal casual users, some outright fanatics that live and breathe ham radio, and even a few decrepit hermit-type basement dwellers that use radio to overcome/offset social disadvantages. What they call a "wide cross-section of humanity"...



Haha, this definitely comes as no surprise! I've mixed in a lot of circles with colourful demographics. Herpers are a pretty good example, but DIY tech nerd circles are obviously going to include some fine examples of humanity indeed!

Thank you so much for all the information you've provided! I'll be sure to make good use of it, you've been inspiring as well as informative!


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## E.Shell (Jun 17, 2021)

Hi Sdaji, fair warning, LOL: With regard to equipment, here's what CAN happen. Obviously, the next major piece of equipment I need to purchase is a decent chair...


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