This and That from the President May 2004.
Welcome to a new GGREC year. The new committee has met in combined session with the retiring members as we move into a year that promises to be quite exciting in the clubs life.

The re-locatable is about to become a reality. The preparations needed to custom it to our particular needs will require a series of working bees. Ian and Dianne are kindly allowing their QTH to be used while this work is carried out.

Small working groups will be needed and Ian will call on those with
various trades and skills from time to time. When in place at the Guide complex we should have a shack/workshop with almost unrestricted access as a tremendous asset to the club for years to come.

We also need a small group to be responsible for the over haul and in some cases replacement of the antenna system at the guide hall. I believe someone has details of repairs needed to the HF beam, Phil VK3YB is happy to co-ordinate those who can help in this way. As a club we need to take care that it is not the same few people involved in these projects, burn out leads to drop out and this we need to avoid.

The club has a video tape of the talk given by Michael Owen,
VK3KI to the EMDRC regarding the existing WIA federal system being reformed into a national body. While the audio is a little fuzzy it does convey the thinking and reasons behind the need for change. Any one wishing to borrow this for viewing at home should contact me.

Looking to other club activities over the next twelve months I
still need a co-ordinator for JOTA for the usual third Sat in October.

Again ideas for speakers outings Australia/Labour day weekend venues are needed please pass on to one of the committee members.

As we are now into a new club year this means club fees are now
due. With the clubroom project now in progress we will be expending quite an amount of funds over the next two to three months. Your prompt payment of subs (still same scale as late year) will ensure our treasurer
(Andrew VK3HFA) maintains a smile on his face.

That's enough of me for this month, hope to catch you "on air"
at the next working bee or meeting

73s Peter VK3VB
(03 5998 3533)
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Paul VK3TGX's GGREC PHOTO ALBUM online
Iavn's 60, Ian's 43, Pat's 60 @ Cranbourne RSL 27-3-2004
* NEW * Naree's Birthday Night Photo's 27-3-2004
Jenny's birthday at the German (Tivoli) club 24/1/2004
Merlin Engine 16/1/2004
VK3RLP repeater works 11/1/2004
GGREC Christmas at the guide hall 13/12/2003
Walhalla 12/3/2000
* NEW * Walhalla 2000, by Steve
* NEW * Philip Island 1999, by Steve
* NEW * Old Club Photo's, curtesy Reg VK3UK

I have also added a few new links to the page

GGREC home page
*UPDATED* Paul VK3TGX's home page
Peter VK3KCG's antenna site
* NEW * Ian VK3BUF's "ALIAN electronics" site
* NEW * Graham VK3KCS's "G&C Communications" site
WIA home page " Learn all about Amateur radio"
Alternative Technology Association's home page

The ATA web site (Alternative Technology Association) has a VERY comprehensive links page that covers quite a few fields, and is well worth a look at.

They are also the organization that a supplied those high power white LED's I had at the last club natter night (and in the RSL carpark, at Cranbourne)

To access the site, point your web browser to WWW.paulstubbs.pozzie.net/

If you have any ideas for this site, then open your mouth and let us know what you would like to see, alternatively, what could be added to use it to promote the club.

If you have a home page of your own, add this and the GGREC home page to your links section so that as many people as possible can hear about us.

Paul VK3TGX
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GGREC SHACK PROJECT
A progress report by Ian Jackson VK3BUF

Work has finally begun on our Shack Project. Last Saturday saw a number of Club members congregate at Drouin West for the first stage of the project. Steel beams and channels were welded together while the floor sub-frame was assembled. The sections were then brought together to complete the floor.

The weather was perfect and we all enjoyed a BBQ lunch. This first stage was a bit tricky as the 250mm wide steel channels were very heavy to jockey into position. Numerous ropes pulled them tightly together while the various vertical welds were laid in. Graeme Brown VK3BXG, Ian Benson, VK3KSZ and myself focused on this task.

Our President, Peter Pavey VK3VB, Mike Ide VK3KTO and Reg Goddard VK3UK made up the 'Timber Team'. As this first day on the job was fiddly, any additional helpers on this occasion would not have made the work proceed faster. Ross Jackson VK3HDW had the combined task of cooking lunch and taking photo's

The final size of the structure is 10.37 metres long, 3.4 metres wide with interior ceilings set at 2.4 metres. It is being fabricated in two equal sections that will be conveyed to the Cranbourne site via crane truck when completed. The interior is to be divided into four areas, A entry/kitchenette, a toilet and two 'operating' rooms of approximate equal size. While there will be no windows, there shall be five skylights and two external doors with insect screens fitted. While This approach to acquiring a shack is a labour intensive one, we will finish up with a first class, purpose built structure that will have cost less than half the market value of similar brand-new building.

In another week, Saturday the 29th of May we will be staging another Working Bee event, and this will be a big one. We will be gluing down the vinyl flooring, fabricating all the wall frames and then erecting them.

We will be dividing into about four teams, so the more people who can come along, the better. Try to get there at 9:00am for a cup of tea and a briefing before the work begins in earnest at 9:30. A simple BBQ lunch will be provided by the Club. The only tools needed will be a claw hammer, marking pencil and perhaps a tape measure. As much of the work can be achieved under-cover, the work should proceed even if it is a little inclement. Mind you, if the weather report says that it's going to be snowing sideways, we should stay home and find something else to do. If you do intend to come along, let me know, so that we can get the barbecue requirements right.

Come along and be a part of GGREC History!

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The new WIA gets constitutional approval
The resumed WIA Federal Convention was held via a teleconference today (16 May) and voted by the required majority to accept the constitution of the new nationally based Wireless Institute of Australia.

The result was a "yes" vote from VK1, VK2, VK4, VK5/8, VK6 and VK7. In line with public undertakings by the WIA Victoria Council, the VK3 representative Peter Mill VK3APO voted "no".

Those undertakings included the seeking of legal advice on the proposals in relation to the new national WIA, and taking a vote of the membership.

The voting process was difficult, and the required majority came about when the VK2 Federal Councillor voted apparently contrary to the instructions of the WIA NSW Council.

The VK2 alternative federal councillor also participating in the teleconference disputed the vote, but it was recorded in the affirmative.

The WIA now has a new President, Michael Owen VK3KI, with the Vice President being Ernie Hocking VK1LK.

The other directors are Glenn Dunstan VK4DU, Ewan McLeod VK4ERM, Phil Wait VK2DKN, Edward Thrift VK2ARA and Trevor Quick VK5ATQ.

The collateral or implementation agreement that for the new WIA involving all seven WIA Divisions is still to be negotiated.

WIA Victoria is proceeding to seek the legal advice on the implementation agreement to ensure safeguards for its membership, services and assets. A vote of the membership is also still required before that agreement can be signed.

Peter Mill VK3APO, Barry Robinson VK3JBR, Jim Linton VK3PC

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Observations for the day:
I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people
die of natural causes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There are two kinds of pedestrians: the quick and the dead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Life is sexually transmitted.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Give a person a fish and you feed them for a day; teach that person to
use the Internet and they won't bother you for weeks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Some people are like Slinkies . . . not really good for anything, but
you still can't help but smile when you see one tumble down the stairs.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying
of nothing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Have you noticed since everyone has a camcorder these days no one
talks about seeing UFOs like they used to?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the 60's, people took acid to make the world weird. Now the
world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AND THE # 1 THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: You read about all these
terrorists --- most of them came here legally, but they hung around on these expired visas, some for as long as 10 -15 years. Now, compare that to Blockbuster; you are two days late with a video and those people are all over you. I say we should put Blockbuster in charge of immigration...
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The Lost Dr. Seuss poem
I Love My Job

I love my job, I love the pay!
I love it more and more each day.
I love my boss, he is the best!
I love his boss and all the rest.

I love my office and its location;
I hate to have to go on vacation.
I love my furniture, drab and grey,
and piles of paper that grow each day!

I think my job is really swell,
there's nothing else I love so well.
I love to work among my peers,
I Love their leers, and jeers, and sneers.

I love my computer and its software;
I hug it often though it won't care.
I love each program and every file.
I'd love them more if they worked a while.

I'm happy to be here. I am. I am
I'm the happiest slave of the firm, I am.
I love this work, love these chores.
I love the meetings with the deadly bores.

I love my job - I'll say it again -
I even love those friendly men.
Those friendly men who've come today,
In clean white coats to take me away!!!!!
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Naree's Birthday Night Photo's

Cathie & William
	Marianna & Kate
Shutter Bug Paul (Naree insisted on this caption)

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Fun with 2.4 GHz on the cheap
With the demise of the Galaxy 2.4GHz MDS pay TV system, grid dish antenna's very similar to this one have become available for nothing, they are fitted to many houses but are no longer used - just ask and someone will let you have theirs for nothing.

Now what to do with them, well recently 2.4GHz TV transmitter modules have become available at very cheap prices, especially if several club members can come together and make a bulk purchase, prices like $22 for a TX and $27 for an RX module can be achieved.

Another possible use is to connect them to wireless network cards in your PC, and share files and live 2 way video/audio contacts across town.

The biggest problem is getting the signals to the antenna, the secret to this is to put the transmitter/receiver modules on the back of the antenna's (in a water proof box of course) then run the video/data signals back to your shack.

To run 2.4 GHz any distance up a co-axial cable requires something like helix coax, however if you put, say a video transmitter module (about the size of a box of matches) at the antenna, then video can be run up to the antenna using cheap 75 ohm TV coax, with very little to no signal loss problems. Power can be run using figure 8 flex as the modules consume very little power (at 5V), so voltage drop is not a problem.

In the first picture, the grid dish antenna was mounted on a light duty camera tripod for field work. This is a good way to experiment with simple short hop links before one gets too ambitions.

The feed to the dish consists of a simple dipole antenna with a reflector element. The one above was made on printed circuit board, however you can use bits or brass rod, or heavy copper wire, just soldered together.

This one is made from brass rod, housed in PVC water pipe.

Come to this Friday's meeting and talk to John VK3YTV who made them.

Talk to Peter VK3KCG about how to get the video modules for a good price

Paul VK3TGX

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Event Queue

Date / Time	Event	Details
Friday 21st May	General Meeting	John Edwards VK3YTV talk about UHF bands
Monday 31st May	Committee Meeting	Peter Woodland VK3KCG QTH 8.00pm
Friday 4th June	Prac Night
Monday 7th June	Committee Meeting	TBA
Monday 14th June	QE2 Birthday Holiday
Friday 18th June	General Meeting	Talk by John Woodland South East Water
Saturday 26th June	Mid Year Dinner	At Guide Hall
Friday 2nd July	Prac Night
Monday 5th July	Committee Meeting	TBA
Friday 16th July	General Meeting	TBA
Saturday 17th July	GGREC Hamfest	Cranbourne Public Hall, Sth Gippsland Hwy.
Monday 2nd August	Committee Meeting	TBA
Friday 6th August	Prac Night
Friday 20th August	General Meeting	TBA