Club News

What’s happening at SBARC? Here you will find the latest club news, events, projects, net activities, and news from our special interest groups (SIGS).

Be sure to check in frequently so you don’t miss out on any of the interesting things going on with the club and its members!

We have moved content for the Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net here, and content for the Digital Modes Net here.



Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net – 11/08/2017

The audio archive of this net can best be followed by downloading the .mp3 file for the appropriate date here and listening with the media player of your choice. You can move the progress slider forward or backward to the subject of interest to you.

We had another good net tonight with 10 check-ins plus net control, Frank, K6FLD and some chat room visitors! Tonight’s subjects included:

  • Flex Radio – Opinion, features and functionality.
  • Why does our 145.18 repeater phonetically announce MACRO-Error 9?
  • Looking for new radio and getting into digital communications, does anyone have any experience with the ICOM 718 vs Yaesu FT450D?
  • What is a static talk group on DMR (Digital Mobile Radio)?
  • Configure ZUMSpot for static talk groups so you can hear traffic without keying up every 10-15 minutes.

Tune in to the SBARC TM&E Net every Thursday at 8:00 PM local (2000 Hrs) and see what interesting questions will arise or ask some of your own! All club members and visitors are encouraged to check in to the net each week and join in with questions and /or answers to and contribute the knowledge of new and seasoned amateur radio operators alike.

Election Coming Up – General Club Meeting, November 17, 2017

It’s that time of year again. It is time to elect your board of directors for 2018. We also have two other items to vote on, so we hope to have a good turnout this year.

Not only will we be conducting the election, the November meeting is also traditionally been Homebrew Night. We invite everyone to bring a something you have built, or a project in progress, to show, demonstrate, and tell your ham friends about. Homebrew is what being a ham is all about! Anyone can go buy a radio, antenna or other accessory, but to many hams, building their own gear is much more fun and rewarding. So bring something (or a lot of things) because we’re all interested in seeing what you’re up to!

The official SBARC ballot is available by clicking here. We hope you can make it to the meeting, but if you can’t for some reason, we still hope you will cast your vote by absentee ballot. We are trying to make the procedure for casting absentee ballots easier this year, so here is the procedure:

  • Download and print the ballot.
  • Make your selections, sign and date it at the bottom of page 1.
  • If you have a scanner, please scan the document and save it to a file.
  • if you don’t have a scanner, take a clear picture of page 1.
  • Send either the scanned ballot or picture of the ballot by email to the Club Secretary, Dorothy K6DSO at secretary@sbarc.org.

Please note, if you are submitting your absentee ballot by email, it must be received by 11:59 PM on November 16, 2017. 

Of course, you can also send it by regular mail to the address below. Please make sure your ballot is received by November 16th.

Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club, Inc.
Post Office Box 3907
Santa Barbara, CA 93130-3907

We hope to see you all at the meeting!

Post expires at 9:00pm on Friday November 17th, 2017 but will still be available in the archives.

Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net – November 2, 2017

The audio archive of this net can best be followed by downloading the .mp3 file for the appropriate date here and listening with the media player of your choice. You can move the progress slider forward or backward to the subject of interest to you.

We had another good net tonight with 9 check-ins plus net control, Brian, K6BPM and some chat room visitors! Tonight’s subjects included:

  • A ham in Hope Ranch has trouble hitting the Mesa repeater with his HT but he can hit Santa Ynez okay, but it’s noisy. Is the noise normal or is there a problem?
  • What are electric and magnetic (electromagnetic) waves?
  • Fractional Wave Loop antennas.
  • How do you test a coax cable for continuity/signal quality?
  • What HF rig/s and amplifiers do you have?
  • What’s the furthest contact you’ve made and on which band and mode?

Tune in to the SBARC TM&E Net every Thursday at 8:00 PM local (2000 Hrs) and see what interesting questions will arise or ask some of your own! All club members and visitors are encouraged to check in to the net each week and join in with questions and /or answers to and contribute the knowledge of new and seasoned amateur radio operators alike.

General Club Meeting – Friday, October 20, 2017

Our club meeting this month will have two parts. At the November meeting we will hold our annual elections to elect board members and officers 2018. The nominating committee will present it’s slate of nominations for these positions and we will officially open floor nominations from the membership at large. There are a couple of other issues on the ballot as well, and we’ll discuss these, hear opposing views, and hold a question and answer session to make sure everyone understands the issues that will be before membership in November.

The second part of the meeting will be a hands-on demonstration on using DMR radios. We have previously had presentations on a general overview of DMR, programming radios, and now it’s time to learn how to operate. Many of our members have purchased excellent TYT MD-380 DMR radios and have them programmed and ready to go. DMR is quite a bit different than using normal ham FM radios, and there are a lot of features available. We’ll talk about using the menu options as well as all of the advanced features and explain all the interesting things you can do with DMR. So if you have a DMR radio, bring it to the meeting with you so you can follow along!

SBARC General Club Meetings are held at the Goleta Union School District, 401 N. Fairview Ave. in Goleta, right across the street from the Goleta Library. Doors open at 7:00 PM and the meeting starts at 7:30 PM. Put the date on your calendar and bring a guest!

Post expires at 11:00pm on Friday October 20th, 2017 but will still be available in the archives.

SBARC Election: November 17, 2017

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At the General Club Meeting on November 17, 2017, the Club membership will have the opportunity to elect the 2018 SBARC Board of Directors.  Members must be in good standing for at least 28 days prior to the election in order to be eligible to vote. Expired memberships may be renewed online or in person at the General Club Meeting this Friday, October 20, 2017.

The SBARC Nominating Committee has submitted the following slate of nominees for consideration by the membership. Additional nominations may be made from the floor by any member in good standing at the October 20th General Club Meeting and prior to the election at the November 17th General Club Meeting.

Nominees for the Executive Committee
These candidates are presently running unopposed. (i) = incumbent candidate
President and Chief Executive Officer: Brian Milburn, K6BPM (i)
Chief Financial Officer: Tom Saunders, N6YX (i)
Secretary: Wayne Beckman, AF6GX
Nominees for Director At Large
Members may vote for up to 4 directors.
These candidates are presently running unopposed. (i) = incumbent candidate

Director At Large: Ken Alker, KA6KEN
Director At Large: Theo Howe, KK6YYZ (i)
Director At Large: Levi Maaia, K6LCM (i)
Director At Large: Michael Taylor, K6RQV (i)
Submitted to the membership by this duly appointed
Nominating Committee in accordance with the SBARC Bylaws:
Levi C. Maaia, K6LCM
Michael Taylor, K6RQV

 


Notice of Vote to Change the Bylaws

We will be conducting a special vote at the SBARC General Club Meeting on November 17, 2017 on a proposed change to the SBARC bylaws.

Background:
After much discussion, the Board of Directors is recommending that we raise the annual club dues from $24.00 to $35.00. The dues have not been raised in over 16 years, and the modest increase we are recommending helps us keep our revenues more in line with current expenses. At our current membership levels, the $11.00 increase will provide approximately $1600 per year in additional revenue for the club. Over the past 16 years, costs for things like insurance, vehicle maintenance, infrastructure maintenance, etc. have risen, and the dues increase will help us prevent having to dip into the club’s reserves for regular expenses. This averages out to be a 91¢ per month increase per member. Most other clubs have significantly higher dues than ours.

Reason for bylaws change:
The current bylaws require a vote by the membership on any dues increase. We feel that any adjustments in the dues amount should be a function of the Board of Directors. The Board spends many hours over the course of a year discussing and implementing cost cutting policies, and we endeavor to be responsible custodians of the club’s finances.

Under the current reading of the bylaws, any adjustment in the annual dues amount could be decided by a very small number of members. It is not unusual to have meetings with a total attendance of 25 or less. That means at a meeting where a vote is taken, any proposal could be decided with a majority decision of 13 members or less. This could be unhealthy for the club as it could prevent a dues increase of even $1.00 that may be needed to ensure we can pay our regular fixed expenses.

Proposal:
The current bylaws can be read in their entirety at http://sbarc.org/documents/bylaws.pdf.

The Board of Directors proposes to eliminate the following paragraph in Section 2:
(a) The amount of dues shall be set by the Board of Directors and shall take effect when confirmed by a majority of voting members present at a regular meeting. Prior to said meeting, the Board shall cause a notice of such dues vote to be sent to each member of record at least one week in advance of said meeting.

And replace it with this paragraph:
(a) The amount of dues shall be set by the Board of Directors. In the event that the Board recommends that the dues should be adjusted, the Board shall cause notice of such change to be sent electronically or by mail to each member of record at least twenty-five (25) days prior to the next scheduled meeting of Board. Members will be allowed to submit their arguments or recommendations electronically, by mail, or in person for consideration before the final vote is taken by the Board. Any such change shall take effect at the Board’s discretion, but no sooner than 30 days after its adoption.
 

Conclusion:
This proposal will still give members a voice in any change in the annual dues amount. The Board will be precluded from arbitrarily adjusting the amount without notification and receiving input from the membership. However, the final decision will be in the hands of the Board. The Board is charged with maintaining the financial health of the club. This is what you elect us to do. The Board expends great effort to reduce expenses wherever we can but it may be sometimes necessary to revisit the issues of membership dues. We feel the authority for this determination should rest with the Board, and will ultimately be in the best interest of the club. 
 

Best regards,

Brian Milburn, President
Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club, Inc.

Post expires at 9:00pm on Friday November 17th, 2017 but will still be available in the archives.

Science and Engineering Council October Meeting

See meal choices below. Please reserve now, choose your meal, and pay now by PayPal or credit card,
or pay at the door with cash or check.SEC meets at the High Sierra Grill, 521 Firestone Road —
off Hollister Avenue just west of Fairview.
 Click www.scieng.org – use the Scholarship Donation Feature, 
and join SEC as a member
10-11-17 Smarter Sensors and Wearable Devices for Medicine
Where

High Sierra Grill in Goleta
521 Firestone Road
Goleta, CA 93111
Driving Directions

Like us on Facebook
LinkedIn
Join our LinkedIn group
Our October Presentation:  Digital medicine and big data are the hot words these days. However, digital medicine is only as good as the data it uses, and the data can only be as good as the sensor that provides it.
Dr. Sumita Pennathur will present her lab’s latest work on biosensor research and development, ranging from nanofluidic in-vitro diagnostics of viruses to wearable devices for glucose monitoring, which is an important new passion of hers given her daughter’s recent diagnosis of Type I diabetes.
Our Speaker:  Dr. Sumita Pennathur received her B.S. and M.S. in Aerospace and Aeronautical Engineering from MIT and her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford. Prior to joining UCSB in 2007, she performed postdoctoral studies at both Sandia National Laboratories and University of Twente.
Since arriving at UCSB, Pennathur has contributed significantly to the fields of nanofluidics and interfacial science. She has pushed the envelope in characterization of nanofluidic channels. Furthermore, she has discovered novel nanoscale concentration mechanisms that focus analytes within nanofluidic channels and has demonstrated unique separations of various biomolecules. Finally, she has developed a novel fabrication process for on-chip detection of biomolecules, which has the potential to revolutionize bio-analytical devices.
In addition to her over 60 publications, her notable awards include the DARPA Young Faculty Award (2008), the UC Regents Junior Faculty Fellowship (2009), and the PECASE (Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering) (2010), and the Santa Barbara Chamber of Commerce Innovator of the Quarter Award (2012).
Please RSVP by the Monday before the meeting:
A reservation allows SEC to provide the restaurant an accurate guarantee of meal amounts and results in faster service. When reserving, make a meal choice. You can pay in advance by credit card or at the door with check or cash. Remember you are always welcome as a walk-in member or guest without a reservation
Meal Choices: All meals are the same price. Please choose one when you register, to provide a count for the restaurant. Pay when you register or at the door.
  • Tri-Tip Sandwich
  • Smoked Turkey-Bacon Sandwich
  • High Sierra Chicken-Apple-Pecan Salad
  • Portobello Mushroom Sandwich with lettuce, tomato, onion
Drinks: Lemonade, diet soda, iced tea and water are available.
Register Now!
I can’t make it
Our Sponsors This meeting is co-sponsored by
Community West Bank

Santa Barbara News-Press

From our Co-Presidents Tim Murphy and Gary Kravetz

All members and guests are encouraged to contribute to the SEC scholarship program! Contact a board member at an SEC meeting, send email to the SEC, or simply visit our new web page and use the direct donation button. However you do it, the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara handles the actual fund and awards.
Donations may be tax-deductible.


Plan now for upcoming SEC meetings!

Join SEC on November 8 for the monthly luncheon and a high-tech presentation.
Our December 13 speaker will be Dr. Javier Read de Alaniz from UCSB Chemistry and Biochemistry and Associate Director of the CNSI on Sensors for Food Safety.

Send questions to:
Cheryl Ebner
Science & Engineering Council of Santa Barbara

Post expires at 10:06am on Thursday October 12th, 2017 but will still be available in the archives.

Science and Engineering Council of Santa Barbara Open Meeting

bpmss_047Here is something interesting that may interest some of our engineering oriented members.

The Science and Engineering Council of Santa Barbara has regular monthly luncheons that are open to the public. The luncheons are held at the High Sierra Restaurant (old Elephant Bar). The SEC is a group of engineers and scientists that are active in the local area. Activities include:

  1. Monthly Luncheon Programs which provide a forum for presentation of topics of interest, and a opportunity for meeting fellow engineers, scientists, and business professionals.
  2. Compilation ofTechnical Services Directory of SEC members.
  3. Monetary awards, certificates and trophies to Science Fair winners in all divisions with presentation by winners at the April SEC Luncheon.
  4. Sponsorship of Scholarships for local college students in the sciences. The scholarships are funded through the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara.
  5. Join SEC on Facebook or LinkedIn (SEC membership not required).