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VK2TV > PACKET 24.08.08 00:09l 134 Lines 7252 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 45105_VK2TV
Read: GUEST
Subj: Re: g4ebt article on packet radio
Path: IZ3LSV<IK3GET<IW2OHX<OE6XPE<DB0RES<ON0AR<YU7R<HG8LXL<XE1FH<VK2DOT<
VK2TV
Sent: 080823/2252Z @:VK2TV.#MNC.NSW.AUS.OC #:43461 [Kempsey, QF68JX] $:45105_VK
From: VK2TV@VK2TV.#MNC.NSW.AUS.OC
To : PACKET@WW
# Generated by: TstHWin v2.21b - Registered to VK2TV
# On : 8/24/2008 8:52:15 A
# UTC: 8/23/2008 22:52:15
Hello All,
Having read the article from David G4EBT about when and how he got into
packet, I started pondering my own situation.
Packet was introduced to the members of an ARC I belonged to, in 1983. One
of our members gave a talk on this new mode, speaking highly of its virtues
and possibilities. The club was so motivated that the member was given the
nod to import a TNC. In due course the Vancouver protocol TNC arrived and
the member, John Tanner, VK2ZXQ, commenced tests with a station in Sydney's
north, about 40km to the south of Gosford where the club was located.
For those "newcomers" to packet, Vancouver protocol came out of Canada and
preceded the AX25 protocol. After a short bunfight about which was best,
Vancouver or AX25, AX25 got the nod, probably due to the large number of US
stations supporting it. If nothing else, we should be grateful that a
single protocol was adopted worldwide and not a mish-mash of protocols as
we have with networking - Netrom, Rose, TCP/IP.
It was around 1987 when I bought my first TNC, a Paccomm TNC220, bought
second hand from the local BBS sysop who was upgrading his system. The
kindest thing I can say about the TNC220 is that it's an attractive
paperweight. Of course, in my excitement at the time, I thought it was
wonderful and it did provide many hours of enjoyment.
I dabbled in the usual variety of packet software that was around at the
time - Baycom, pacKet 5.0 (and later versions), TPK and TSTHOST (the memory
grows dim). My computer was strictly command line at this stage, no
Windoze, a 4.77MHz XT.
It wasn't until I was introduced to JNOS by VK2ZXQ that packet really
grabbed me. The possibility of having so many protocols handled by the one
application and the ability to provide cross-port linking really got my
attention. I ran JNOS under DOS for a number of years.
Where I lived I had a busy Rose node to the north of me, whilst my own club
had ventured down the path of Netrom and TCP/IP. It always irked me that
the the two networks were isolated from a users' perspective. I always did,
and still do, see that as counter productive to the development of packet
so I decided to do something about it.
VK2ZXQ was talking about this great new operating system - Linux - and even
though I'd never been a computer geek, it sounded interesting. John
produced a 1.44MB floppy disk for me that contained a working Linux system.
It booted from the floppy, expanding its contents into RAMdisk, and
provided me with two radio ports so users from one network could access
the other. Thus began my long association with Linux in about 1992.
When I moved to Kempsey (450km north of Sydney) in 1994 the locals on
packet had to contend with the nearest packet nodes being 75km away - one
to the north and one to the south. The result of being so far away meant
that stations local to the nodes would flatten the Kempsey guys. Packet was
frustrating! In order to alleviate their suffering I set up TSTHOST with
two radio ports and third-party mail handling. I was able to access the
70cm backbone and download bulletins and P mail for the locals who could
collect it from me on 2m. It was a means to an end until I realised I
should be doing it properly. In June 1996 I commenced running FBB under
DOS, with BPQ as the node and packet switch. When I changed to Win95 for
the multi-tasking it provided it didn't take me long to figure out there
had to be something better than Windoze, and there was - Linux. In November
1999 I moved the bbs system and node to Linux and it's been there ever
since.
I have to confess that getting Linux running, especially in its early days
of development when supported hardware was scarce, and kernel development
was in its infancy, was to say the least, a challenge for this relatively
computer illiterate person. However, the journey was worthwhile and I tend
to mostly enjoy the challenges that Linux throws at me. Even compiling
errors don't frighten me anymore!
The system here has grown a bit over the years and now supports ax25,
Netrom, Rose and TCP/IP. It has 7 radio ports in the 2m, 70cm, 20m, 30m and
40m bands, runs the FBB BBS, Fpac for Rose and Netrom nodes, and also
xastir for the 2m, 30m and Igate APRS facility.
Why do I do it? I love the technical challenge of making things work, and I
enjoy providing the service.
David had this to say about Telnet ....
quote ......
I take the pragmatic view that when packet RF links are lost due to BBSs
and nodes closing down at key locations with no way of restoring them, why
not make internet the servant - not the master, and use it to support the
network to plug the gaps, rather than see internet supplant packet
altogether? More and more users and sysops are coming to terms with that
outlook and offering and using telnet as a last - not a first, resort. In
2004 the harsh fact of life is that without telnet forwarding, messages
placed on the packet radio network by RF wouldn't travel very far.
......etouq
Whilst I provide Telnet access for a select few stations via internet, and
I still Telnet to forward to a couple of BBS's, it is not my preferred way
to utilise the internet. My preferred way is to establish one-on-one links
to other systems so that networks are expanded. axip/axudp links carry
ax25 traffic encapsulated in TCP/IP frames. As a result Netrom and Rose
routing can be expanded into other parts of the world. Some stations handle
only Netrom whilst others, particularly those running Linux, also handle
Rose routing, courtesy of fpac. Because axip/axudp links are established
one-on-one they are considerably more secure than Telnet, and much more
flexible in providing a facility to the AR population. The internet is
definitely a friend and I believe we would have seen the demise of packet
perhaps five years ago without it. My station will accept Telnet
connections on every radio port, it is not just an internet thing.
>How many of us would come into the hobby today as it is, and stick with it
>for the long haul? I'm set up for 160-10m but haven't had a QSO for years.
Probably very few. Most entrants to the AR service in years gone by were
attracted by the technical challenge and the possibility of speaking with
people in far off places in a time when international (and even national)
communications was almost unavailable to Joe Average. Our pictorial news of
world events was the Movietone News at the pictures once a week, or
outdated stories in newspapers and magazines. No wonder people were
interested in getting "real time" information from far flung places. And,
of course, to get there one had to be technically competent to make the
radio equipment. It's all changed now, with news in your face as it
happens, and commercial transceivers coming out of out ears. The changing
world has made people non-technical because they no longer have to be
technical to do what amateur operators of yesteryear did.
Cheers .... Ray vk2tv
Licenced in 1969 and never been interested in DX. It was always the
technical challenge of VHF/UHF/SHF for me. Perhaps I should add packet?
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