Author Archives: Dan

March 20, 2011
20:14
by: Dan

A custom APRS tracker with a real screen

For those that don’t know, amateur radio operators have had something called the Automatic Packet Reporting System for quite a while now.  Most associate it with vehicular tracking, but it does a lot of other neat stuff like weather, telemetry, … Continue reading →

Posted in Radio Tagged

December 2, 2010
16:54
by: Dan

ACPI Events on a Toughbook CF-29

I have a Panasonic Toughbook CF-29 that I use for situations where I don’t want to take my regular office-ish notebook.  I am planning to take and use it at the 2011 Eagle Cap Extreme event for digital communications.  I … Continue reading →

Posted in Linux Tagged

November 10, 2010
00:05
by: Dan

A better way to process binary data in Python

One of my side-projects is CHIRP, which is an application for programming the memory contents of various radios.  Like other projects I’ve done where I want to cater to (or at least, not exclude) people running Windows, it’s written in … Continue reading →

Posted in Codemonkeying Tagged ,

November 2, 2010
23:15
by: Dan

Q89 Compressor Modification

One of the first things you need when you start into off-roading is a good compressor.  This is because you air down your tires each time before you go, and have to air them back up before you drive home.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Hardware

September 1, 2010
14:06
by: Dan

A DNSBL and Greylisting Hybrid Approach

I have long been a critic of greylisting as a method of reducing spam.  I recently broke down and implemented it on my servers after a couple of back-to-back blacklisting issues.  The problem with DNSBL blacklists is that even the … Continue reading →

Posted in Miscellaneous Tagged , ,

July 20, 2010
14:10
by: Dan

Jolly Jeepers Rally 2010

This past Saturday, Taylor and I participated in our second Jolly Jeepers “Back to Basics” Rally event.  Unfortunately, we had firm commitments to other things on Friday and Sunday, so we didn’t camp or do both days.  This has become … Continue reading →

Posted in News Tagged

July 11, 2010
18:34
by: Dan

Kenwood TK-380 Self-Programming Modification

I recently purchased a Kenwood TK-380 UHF handheld radio on eBay.  This is a commercial UHF FM transceiver used by public safety organizations.  It will do 4W output, narrow or wide band transmission, and conventional or trunking operation. This radio … Continue reading →

Posted in Hardware, Radio Tagged

June 29, 2010
13:53
by: Dan

Custom UPS External Battery Bank

When we moved into our current house, I had a Matrix 5000 UPS that I used to power my server room.  This 5kVA unit was a really impressive device that ran on 220V and could have its “brain” replaced without … Continue reading →

Posted in Hardware Tagged ,

June 17, 2010
19:24
by: Dan

The IBM “Jeopardy Challenge”

Most people don’t think of working at IBM as a very exciting endeavor.  At times, I’d be hard pressed to convince them otherwise.  However, there’s something very special about what a large (country-sized) company with a wealth of talent and resources … Continue reading →

Posted in News Tagged , ,

June 9, 2010
22:20
by: Dan

CHIRP gains Yaesu VX-7 Support

Until now, CHIRP development has been focused on ICOM products.  In fact, you might even be tempted to think that the “I” in CHIRP was for ICOM.  Lately I’ve been using my Yaesu VX-7 and VX-8 radios a little bit … Continue reading →

Posted in Radio Tagged , ,