Officers President: Jim/KLØLN Vice-Pres: Buck/K4HKR Sec/Treas: Rick/N4JAG Public Info: Ken/KG4VBM

Mailing Address EARS P O Box 310034 Enterprise, AL 36331-0034 www.EARSweb.com

Club Events Calendar 19 Aug - Thu at 7:00pm: EARS Meeting at EOCC in the Science Building 16 Sep - Thu at 7:00pm: EARS Meeting at EOCC in the Science Building 21 Oct - Thu at 7:00pm: EARS Meeting at EOCC in the Science Building Club Dining Calendar Sun at 4:30pm: Dinner at Larry's BBQ in Daleville Tue at 6:00pm: Dinner at Po Folks in Enterprise Wed at 11:00am: Lunch at the Italian Deli in Daleville Sat at 7:00am: Breakfast at the Koffee Kettle in Enterprise Sat at 8:00am: Breakfast at Ann's Restaurant in Ozark Amateur Radio Exams Exams are given after each monthly EARS meeting. Please contact Tom/WA4YQT at 763-0532 at least 24 hours in advance to schedule an exam.

EARS Repeater Status The EARS 2-meter repeater suffered significant lightning damage when storms passed through the Enterprise area on July 15th. Initial troubleshooting showed visible damage to capacitors and integrated circuits. Subsequent detailed analysis by Bob/WA4GIU indicated damage well beyond those visibly damaged components. Bob has been given the task of trying to bring the Mark IV repeater back to life ... let's all wish him the best of luck! On July 31st, Tom/WA4YQT and Jerry/N4RYC installed a temporary replacement donated by Duane/WA4WQW. This system, known under the official trade name of Porta-Peater, (for real folks, some stuff just can't be made up!) will remain in place until the toasted Mark IV is hopefully repaired. Although this temporary repeater has demonstrated somewhat of a defiant attitude at times, it is most certainly better than having no repeater at all! Note that the CW ID'er on this temporary repeater has mysteriously gone silent, so please remember to manually ID yourself as well as the repeater during use. For example: "This is K4EXT on the WD4ROJ Repeater"

Enterprise Amateur Radio Society August 2004 Newsletter

Nothing But Net? The Tuesday night Boll Weevil Net was cancelled per unanimous vote at the July 15th EARS meeting. New Web Site Justin/KG4VBK has offered his webmaster skills and services in creating a modern web site for EARS members. The new www.EARSweb.com includes much of the same information occasionally provided by Rick/N4JAG on his perpetually-outdated original EARS site, plus adds a variety of new features such as: Regularly Updated Hot News Quick-Link APRS Lookups Area Repeater and Scanner Freqs EARS Message Exchange Forum EARS Member Information/Pics Field Day Pics (2003 and 2004) EARS Tid Bits Ham items from silent key W4OTQ can be found at www.hamdepot.com/ears/w4otq.txt Ham items from silent key N4WIG can be found at www.hamdepot.com/ears/n4wig.txt Please send your comments, complaints, cash, or creative works to Gary/K4EXT at: k4ext@hamdepot.com

Dues Reminder de Rick/N4JAG Please note that the following member's annual dues of $20 ($5 Associate) are due: May: KE4AYM Jun: KB4IJ Jul: N4JAG, KF4BHP/CHK Also note that after you are three months overdue, you will be dropped from the club roster. If you can't attend a meeting, please mail your check, payable to EARS, to the club address shown on page 1 of this newsletter. Upcoming Area Hamfests The infamous Huntsville Hamfest is August 21-22 at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Alabama. More Info: www.hamfest.org The 5th Annual Ten-Tec Hamfest is September 24-25 at the Ten-Tec facility in Sevierville, Tennessee. More Info: www.tentec.com The Montgomery Amateur Radio Club Annual Hamfest is November 13th in Montgomery, Alabama. More Info: www.w4ap.org