What is........?

We are hoping that any questions that you have relating to Amateur Radio can be answered here.

  What is radio?
What is a Radio Amateur?
What do Amateurs do?
What do Amateurs talk about?
What is the license for?
What is the foundation license?
What is the Intermediate license?
What is the Advanced license?
Where can I take the examination?
What it cost me to become an Amateur?
What is OFCOM?
What is a callsign?
What kind of equipment do I need?
What is Morse?

What is Radio?
Over 100 years ago Hertz discovered radio waves, and Marconi realised how useful they could be to all of us.
Radio travels in waves and can be used to carry information.
Many items are radio based

• TV
• Mobile Phones
• Satellite communications
• Radar
• Even in some cases, The Internet

What is a Radio Amateur?
Radio Amateurs make contacts using two-way radios either at home or away travelling in cars, boats or on foot. World-wide contacts may be made using speech or Morse code, between computers and even by television. Radio amateurs have even built satellites for their own use!
Amateur radio can be enjoyed by young and old, male and female, even the most severely disabled can make friends around the world from their own home. There are many famous names associated with amateur radio!!

Chris Tarrant  Sergei Rebrov & King Hussein of Jordan

What do Amateurs do?
Through radio we talk to other like minded people around the world
We experiment with radio, building transmitters, aerials etc.
Some of us use satellites to communicate with each other
Some of us bounce radio waves off the moon to communicate
Some Amateurs transmit television pictures
Some Amateurs participate in contests
Some Amateurs take part in DXpeditions and travel to tiny tropical Islands
But the thing that all Amateurs do, all around the world....Is learn!

What do Amateurs talk about?
Pretty much anything, who they are, what they do, where they live etc. Remember you can talk to just about anywhere in the world so you will come into contact with many different cultures and people like it if you show an interest in their country and lives.
One other thing to remember, they are "Hams" too so you share a common interest in radio. Ask them what kind of equipment they use, if they ever construct any of their own equipment or if they are keen on one area of the hobby, say Amateur TV. You can also share ideas and designs with other Amateurs, this way you are able to put something back into your hobby.

 What is the license for?
A licence for amateur frequencies is only required if you intend to transmit on those frequencies. A listener's licence does not exist. The requirement to hold a licence is in the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949. You do not need a licence to purchase or own an amateur transceiver, only to transmit with it. No licence is required to receive any amateur transmission.

What is the foundation license?
The Foundation Licence has been designed and introduced for people of all ages and abilities. To take the associated training course you do not need to have any formal qualifications to be able to benefit from this interesting hobby. The aim of the Foundation Licence is to facilitate a simple entry into Amateur Radio as a hobby where you will be able to make friends from all walks of life. We hope that as experience and confidence increases, Foundation Licensees will progress up the Amateur Radio ladder to obtain a more advanced Amateur Licence, with all the attendant privileges
 

What is the intermediate license?
The Amateur Radio (Intermediate) formerly known as (Novice) Licence was introduced with the aim of encouraging people of all ages, but particularly young people, to take up amateur radio. Class A Intermediates can use all the amateur frequency bands allocated to intermediates, including some bands below 30MHz. Class B Intermediates have access to all the frequencies allocated to intermediates above 30MHz. From 1st Oct 2001 both types of licence allow a maximum DC transmitter input power of 17dBW or 50dBW RF output from the transmitter.

What is a Advanced license?
The Advanced license is now known as the "Full" license.
The Advanced Radio Amateur Examination is the final part of a structured suite of three examinations designed to give access to the amateur radio bands. This
examination gives access to the Amateur Radio (Full) Licence. All prospective radio amateurs must demonstrate a suitable level of competence and proficiency as a prerequisite to holding a licence.

  Where can I take the examination?
Many clubs across the country have been set-up as examination centres. There will be list available local exams on this website showing all areas and type of examination available. Together with clubs, local colleges who operate the Amateur radio courses will run the examination too.

What will it cost to become an Amateur?
The cost of the hobby really depends upon the individual and many stations have been set-up on a small budget. Many people decide to construct their own equipment and save lots of money in the process, some purchase used equipment paying anything from a few tens of pounds to hundreds of pounds. A good example price for used equipment:
A VHF multi-mode transceiver that is say 10-15 years old may cost as little as £80 - £100 and a HF transceiver of the same age may cost as little as £250 - £300.
There is new equipment coming onto the market pretty much every year and this can cost anything from £800 to £3000. At the end of the day the choice is yours but one thing to remember you don't need the most expensive equipment to get on the air and start enjoying the hobby, this can come later.
From October 1st 2006 the License fee will no longer be applicable, you will receive a free license for life, some conditions apply. Check on the OFCOM website for full details

  Who are OFCOM?
OFCOM is a department within the government that "polices" radio and TV in general. They are not dedicated to one service but they do have departments that deal directly with Amateur Radio and CB radio. OFCOM ensure that everyone operates in accordance with the regulations set out in their license. They also deal with complaints from members of the public regarding interference etc. At the highest level, OFCOM makes sure that their is enough space for everyone using radio and TV and allocate it as required. There have been many changes in past years, that is why the RSGB work very closely with OFCOM to ensure the Amateur Radio bands are safe form commercial use.

What is a callsign?
When you eventually pass whichever examination that you take and send away for your license, the RA issues a callsign against it. In the case of the Foundation license this could be an M3*** e.g.: M3ABC etc. This callsign is important because it is like a registration on a car and so the operator of that callsign is known. You may come across what is known as a callbook, this is a directory if you like, of all licensed amateurs in the UK or the world. You don't have to be listed in this book but it helps if you want to send someone a card, or information because you know the address.

 What kind of equipment do I need?
This depends upon the type of operating you want to do, there are many different ways in which to communicate using radio.
For starters you will need a transceiver of some kind (transmitter/receiver in one box) you will need some way of powering it, not all plug straight into a household mains socket. Most importantly of all is the aerial, this is the thing that will make the difference between being heard or not being heard. You can spend thousands of pounds on a radio and throw a short bit of wire in a tree to get "on the air" and yet the guy next door using a home built radio and an efficient aerial will get better results. There are many books available about aerials and some excellent wen sites too, you will be surprised at what you can achieve with a piece of wire.

What is Morse?
Morse or Morse code is one of the earliest forms of communicating using radio, Marconi used Morse when he made the very first transatlantic transmission from Poldu in Cornwall to the coast of Canada.
Morse is a series of dits and dah's, dots and dashes if you like sounds like a tone or beep. For instance the letter "A" is dit dah (dot-dash) "B" is dah dit dit dit (dot-dash dash dash) and so on. At the moment all license holders that wish to use the HF bands have to pass a sending and receiving Morse test,  they can use a sheet to aid with decoding the Morse. It sounds very daunting, but it really isn't that difficult once you get the hang of it.