What are the communication modes they use
CW - (Continues Wave) also known as Morse Code:
CW is a primitive but perhaps the most reliable and effective way of Communication. Here the messages are sent and received by way of sound tones in combination of Dah and Dit such as dah-dah-dah dah-dit-dah means 'OK' initially it may sound like noise to you but later is music to your ears.
HF Communication (High Frequency - Voice):
In this mode of communication, one can communicate with any ham around the world by using their HF Sets. You can talk to a station in U.S.A or a station in Alaska or a station in Japan, anywhere in the world without any problem without any Cost (No Airtime expect for the initial cost of the equipment).You may talk for hours make new friends exchange information etc.. This mode of communication is by far the most popular and most wide used.
VHF Mobile Communication (Very High Frequency):
This mode of communication is very similar to the Mobile Telephones but with a difference, here there is no air time, you can carry your VHF Handy (Mobile Set) with you and can communicate with any ham in a radius of about 50 Kilo Meters. You can also communicate with far of stations with your handy with the help of the Ham Repeaters. You may be driving down to a nearby hill station and still keep in touch with other hams from your vehicle.
Satellite Communication:
Ham Radio around the world is so popular that Hams have their own satellite network, they are known as 'OSCAR' (Orbiting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio) Hams have as many as 44 Oscars at their disposal. Hams communicate globally with the help of this satellite, for example you can communicate with a station in Japan with your hand Set even if you are Mobile in your Vehicle. Hams have also been communicating with the MIR Space Station on regular basis. The International Space Station (ISS) is having an Amateur Radio and it is already functional. Hams around the world are known for experimenting with their radio Set. A step up on the evolutionary ladder of Hamming is the Moon Bounce, or Earth Moon Earth (EME)
Digital Communication:
In this mode of communication, Hams interface their computer with their radio by using Radio Modems(Hardware or Software Modems) Once you are set you can do almost anything which you may do on the Internet, Such as Send Mails, Pictures, Data files, you can also have a video conferences. The application can be endless because tons of software is available (Mostly developed by Hams) for Digital Communication using Ham radio. Incidentally Linux has a complete module for Ham radio.
Internet & Intranet:
Some people believe that ham radio is dying because of the arrival of the Internet. Actually it is quite the opposite, Ham radio and Internet compliment each other very well, When one merges both the worlds, the out come is beyond imagination. Just try to visualize if you were to replace your telephone lines with Ham Radio by using radio Modems. Incidentally the TCP/IP software was developed by a ham. Using Ham Radio you can connect to Internet and surf using any browsers like IE, Netscape etc.. You may be in a remote location like Saint Martin Island or Chittagong Hill Tracks, but if you have your laptop & a VHF set, you remain connected with Internet. Hams also have there own Intranet for local Digital communications.
Ham Radio is one of the few hobbies in the world which requires a government license. To obtain the license one has to go through a course as per the syllabus devised by the communication authorities, which help in acquiring the knowledge and proficiency necessary to communicate using a wireless transceiver without causing interference to the other radio communication services.
The course covers basic electronic radio theories as well as existing National and International rules related to amateur radio communication. The Amateur Radio Operator's certificate (License) is awarded by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC). The examination is conducted at the BTRC premises.
