Author: Kris – KZ7K
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Setting Up WSJT-X, GridTracker, HRD, and TQSL: A Digital Station That Logs Itself
How to install WSJT-X, Ham Radio Deluxe, GridTracker, and TQSL, and get them syncing so every FT8 contact logs itself and uploads to LoTW, QRZ, and PSK Reporter automatically.
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What Is RTTY, and Is It Still Worth Learning?
RTTY, radioteletype, predates every other digital mode covered on this site by decades. It was running over HF long before packet radio, PSK31, or FT8 existed, and it’s still alive today mostly because of one thing: contesting. Mechanical roots, digital survival RTTY traces back to actual mechanical teletype machines, using a 5-bit Baudot code to…
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GMRS Licensing 101: Cost, Application, and What It Actually Covers
No test, one application, and a license that covers your whole family. Here’s exactly what GMRS licensing costs, how long it takes, and what you’re actually allowed to do with it.
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SD Card Logging and Recording on the IC-7300 Mark II: What It’s Actually For
What the IC-7300 Mark II’s SD card slot actually does beyond firmware and settings backup, and how I use its audio recording feature.
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FreeDV: Open-Source Digital Voice for HF
Every digital voice mode covered elsewhere on this site, D-STAR, DMR, System Fusion, lives on VHF and UHF. FreeDV fills a different gap entirely: open-source digital voice on HF, where none of those other modes operate at all. Open source, top to bottom Unlike D-STAR’s proprietary AMBE codec or DMR’s commercial ETSI roots, FreeDV is…
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Running GMRS and Ham Radio Together: Legal Lines and Practical Setups
Holding both a GMRS and a ham license is common and useful, but the two services can’t be mixed on air. Here’s where the legal lines actually sit, and how to run both well.
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What Is SWR, and Why Does It Actually Matter?
Part of our Building Your First Ham Radio Station guide. SWR is the number every new ham gets nervous about before they understand what it means. It shows up on the radio’s display, on a meter, on a tuner, and it gets treated like a pass or fail grade for an antenna. It’s simpler than…