Note: For those seeking the previous license holder of W8FI, Richard T White. I never knew the man but I hope I'm continuing the heritage of the call in a way he'd approve of. If you have information about Richard that you'd like to share, don't hesitate to reach out.

Current Station (EN82hj) :

Radiator: Homebrew dipole antenna using some coax, two 16-foot solid-core copper wires, two binding posts, and an insulator, about 20 feet up in an inverted-V configuration.

Tuner: LDG Z-817

Radio: Yaesu FT-817ND

Digital Interface: Homebrew, fully isolated, currently sitting on a protoboard.

Software: Xubuntu running fldigi on a Lenovo X100e or Lenovo T61.

Old Station (EN82gk) :

Radiator: Homebrew end-fed dipole, or would it be a Zepp?, that was taped to the wall in an inverted-L.

Radio: Kenwood TS-50

Digital Interface: Homebrew, non-isolated, protoboarded.

Software: Xubuntu running fldigi on a Fujitsu P1510D Lifebook or Lenovo T61.

History:

My father, Shanon, KA8SPW, met my mother through a friend of his, Ron, W8DR, who was to become my grandfather. My brother, David, N8DAH, joined the ranks of hams in the family, bringing the total to four. The addiction to electromagnetism runs pretty deep in this tribe. Come Dayton you'll be able to spot us with our bright orange antenna helmets, a tradition my father started a long time ago.

I recieved my Technician license in 2005 and ended upgrading to Amateur Extra just before Christmas 2009, after a grueling 14 week class. I've been most active in Wayne County, MI RACES as Assistant Emergency Coordinator for our Skywarn program and working closely to our NWS group, MICON.

Hamming it Up:

I've tried to make amateur radio accessible to everyone, even those who might otherwise not be interested, by presenting "Hamming It Up" at Ignite Detroit #1, circa April 2010. You can watch my presentation on YouTube here: http://w8fi.us/icW7cf

I've also served as an NCO for the #HamTwitNet (http://www.hamtwit.net), a group of hams devoted to enjoying the hobby on our favorite social network, Twitter. We meet every Wednesday at 9:00PM EDT (Thursday 0100 UTC) on the W5RAW-R node using Echolink. You can find more information on the #HamTwitNet by following @HamTwitNet or by contacting myself, http://w8fi.us/hF9yPl. We look forward to 'meeting' you!

SOP:

These days I'm spending most of my operating time on my favorite band, 20 meteres, using QRP. You'll also find me on the local repeaters, primarily 147.16 (Dearborn, MI) or 146.86 (Garden City, MI).

I've been focusing my attention to antenna building and experimenting with using simple construction techniques. I also like just taping some wire to the wall and finding out what happens.

Other Hobbies:

Aside from amateur radio I also enjoy reading philosophy, studying meterology, solar astrophysics, electromagnetism, and just about anything else, and I mean anything.

I handle QSLs direct, here on QRZ, or on eQSL. Just as soon as they get LoTW working well on Linux, I'll use that too.