Category: Digital Modes (Inc: FT8, DMR, YSF, DStar, Etc)
-
APRS Explained: Trackers, Digipeaters, and Messaging
APRS quietly runs in the background of the hobby, tracking hams, relaying weather, and passing short messages across a mesh of digipeaters. Here is how the whole system fits together.
-
Getting Started with Yaesu System Fusion and Wires-X
System Fusion is Yaesu’s digital voice ecosystem, and Wires-X is the network that links its repeaters and rooms together over the internet. Here is how to actually get on it.
-
Getting Started with D-STAR
D-STAR was the first widely adopted digital voice mode in amateur radio, and its reflector and gateway system still works a little differently than DMR or Fusion. Here is how to actually get on it.
-
What Is PSK Reporter?
PSK Reporter is a free website that shows you, on a live map, exactly where your signal is being heard around the world. Here is how it works.
-
Meshtastic vs. AREDN vs. APRS: Which Mesh Tool for Which Job
Three different technologies all get lumped together as ham radio mesh. They’re not interchangeable. Here’s what each one is actually built to do.
-
EchoLink and IRLP: Linking Repeaters Over the Internet
Before DMR and Fusion linked repeaters digitally over dedicated networks, EchoLink and IRLP were already connecting hams worldwide over the ordinary internet. Both are still very much alive.
-
Kenwood TH-D75A Review: My Go-To Travel and Wideband Receive Radio
My honest take on the Kenwood TH-D75A after using it as my dedicated travel radio: wideband receive, D-STAR, APRS, and where it actually falls short.
-
The Fldigi Family: Fldigi, Flrig, Flmsg, and the Other FL Apps
The FL suite is a collection of free, connected ham radio programs for digital modes, rig control, and message handling. Here is what each one does.
-
What Is Winlink, and Why EmComm Operators Rely On It
When the internet and cell towers go down, Winlink lets you send and receive real email over radio. Here is how it works, and why served agencies lean on it so heavily.
-
DMR Talkgroups Are Great Fun, But Don’t Mistake Them for a SHTF Plan
Brandmeister and TGIF talkgroups are a fantastic way to stay in touch and play radio every day. Just understand what they depend on, because that same dependency is exactly why they fail when it matters most.
-
The Best Budget DMR Handheld? Why I Recommend the Anytone AT-D168UV
Looking for your first DMR radio? Learn why the Anytone AT-D168UV is my top recommendation for budget-conscious amateur radio operators and how it compares to Baofeng, TYT, and BTECH alternatives.