11 Where can I find further information? (Shortwave radio)
Description
This article is from the Shortwave radio FAQ, by Ralph Brandi rbrandi@lucent.com with numerous contributions by others.
11 Where can I find further information? (Shortwave radio)
There are a number of hobby publications available. Two glossy magazines
which cover the hobby are Monitoring Times and Popular Communications. They
both cover a number of aspects of the hobby, including international
broadcasts, scanning, pirate radio, QSLing, and Utility broadcasting.
Monitoring Times also contains listings of broadcasts and programs in English,
which gives it a slight edge. PopComm is the one you're more likely to find
on your local newsstand, although Monitoring Times is starting to show up in
some larger book stores such as Barnes & Noble.
There are many clubs catering to the hobbyist, many of which publish
bulletins. Many of these groups are part of an all-encompassing group known
as ANARC, the Association of North American Radio Clubs. ANARC has a list
available of its constituent clubs, listing addresses, what the focus of each
club is, club publications, and current dues. You can contact them by writing
to ANARC, 2216 Burkey Dr., Wyomissing, PA 19610, USA. You should include some
form of return postage when asking for the club list. The WRTH contains
contact addresses for the clubs that constitute ANARC.
ANARC has counterpart organizations in Europe and the south Pacific. The
European organization is the European DX Council (EDXC). More information on
their constituent clubs is available for 2 International Reply Coupons from
P.O. Box 4, St. Ives, Huntingdon, PE17 4FE, England. In the south Pacific, the
organization is the South Pacific Association of Radio Clubs, or SPARC. They
offer information from P.O. Box 1313, Invercargill, New Zealand.
A couple of clubs "went under" in spectacular fashion in early 1995, but you
shouldn't let this dissuade you from joining one. Any club member will tell
you that the quality and timeliness of the information contained in many
club bulletins is excellent. And despite the rapid expansion of resources
like Usenet, the Internet, FIDONET, etc., the clubs provide a great deal of
information not available online, including the knowledge of many
experienced members without access to such electronic forums.
One alternative to consider is joining a local or regional club, which can
provide members with the opportunity to meet face-to-face periodically to
swap tips, test or trade equipment, or meet visiting luminaries. One example
of a club with a strong local presence would be the Michigan Association of
Radio Enthusiasts (MARE) in southeastern Michigan.
And, naturally, listening to the radio can provide you with excellent
information on radio. There are a number of excellent "DX" programs on the
air for the radio hobbyist. The WRTH contains a comprehensive list of such
shows; Tom Sundstrom also has a list as part of his Shortwave Database
subscription service. Different shows have different strengths. DX Party
Line on Ecuador's HCJB is directed toward the beginner, although their "Quito
Log Book" feature provides information of interest to the DXer specializing in
Latin American stations. Sweden Calling DXers on Radio Sweden is a compendium
of news about shortwave and satellites, increasingly focused on Scandinavia,
including frequency changes, station reactivations and deactivations, and
such. Radio Netherlands's Media Network is a slickly produced general-coverage
program. Radio Havana Cuba's "DXers Unlimited" often offers construction tips
for people who like to do things themselves, especially for antennas. And
Glenn Hauser's World of Radio, which covers mostly DX tips, is available on an
ever-shifting number of stations and times.
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