Point me in the right direction?

[Tank Woman]

I've been seeing quite a few HAM radio references in our local (Oregon) area news feeds. I'm thinking we have a pretty decent amount of folks around us here that are dedicated to providing information during emergencies. What I DON'T know, is how to be able to make use of this resource.
What I am hoping for is information regarding what a non-hammy person can do.
Is there a way to listen to HAM broadcasts with a standard or emergency radio, CB, computer or other inexpensive device?
If anyone knows of good topics on this type of subject, links would be greatly appreciated. I usually have pretty good results with searching, but in this case I had zero clue what to even look for.

[zommoz10]

Very commonly hams provide communications during emergencies, special events, search and rescue and so forth.
Many hams have developed and practiced skills to handle traffic and improvise communications systems when those multi-million-dollar trunking systems your tax dollars paid for go down or in areas there never was and probably never will be any radio or phone coverage.

As for how you can use that service to your own personal benefit, well, you might learn more about a particular situation by monitoring on a scanner or ham radio. That may or may not fit your definition of inexpensive. Sometimes there are live feeds posted online of prominent repeaters or for special events. Of course in an actual emergency, you can count on those feeds, internet and electricity being down.

If it's an area that you'd like to find out more about how it works in your area and would like to get involved and help out in an emergency so that you can always be in the loop, contact your local A.R.E.S. (Amateur Radio Emergency Service) group(s). Also sometimes for special events, the group or club that is doing the communications will need volunteers and even non hams can help.

[TacAir]

As noted before, you will need two 'simple' radios.

One is a scanner. This is for HAM and Public service communications in your area. You will need to know what kind what equipment is in use in your area. The fastest way to check is to do a search for "scanner frequencies for xxx" xxx being your hometown/AO. In some areas, simple FM receivers will work. I'm lucky - there is little PB encryption in my area and none is allowed for HAM use.

The other is a small radio that provide wide coverage on HF and can tune in SSB (single sideband) transmissions. Without the SSB demodulation, just the few remaining SW broadcasts will be available - most all control/supported/owned by someones Government.
Listening to HAM transmissions can be difficult, owing to the low power used by most operators. I would suggest seeing if a local HAM club is listed in the phone book or on the web for your area.

Good luck, knowledge is power after all and in a disaster, could mean the difference between knowing if staying put or deciding to bug out is the better choice...

[KJ4VOV]

Also, amateur radio Field Day is coming up on the weekend of June 23rd. This is the "big event" of the year for amateur radio, and our most public one. Non-hams are encouraged to come visit our setups (usually in very public locations) and even Get On The Air (GOTA) themselves using one of our GOTA stations.

More info can be found here: http://www.arrl.org/field-day-info and here: http://warriortimes.com/2010/05/27/nationwide-simulated-emergency-communications-test/

[Lycosa]

I'd also say that if you look around your area, you should be able to locate a VEC or Volunteer Exam Coordinator. A VEC will most likely be glad to help you get involved and perhaps get you motivated to get your license. For the cost of a scanner, you can easily find a small HT 2 meter radio that is a really great way to start once you have your license. Since they removed the morse code requirements from the license, it's not a difficult test to pass with a modest bit of studying. Once you get involved you'll be amazed at how addicting it can be to try out different aspects in amateur radio. It can be a really expensive hobby, but with a little creativity, you can get started in it rather cheap. When I first started, back around '93, I had a little 40 meter low power CW (morse code) transciever and I talked to people all over the world with that thing... I built the antenna myself and the radio cost me about $35 from a swap meet.

So.. instead of being non-hammy, get hammy!

[roscoe]

Just take the test. The tech test can be passed after 3-4 hours of study.

[Tank Woman]

This is exactly what I needed! Now I have a starting point and am not just groping in the dark. Not that groping in the dark is bad...but I digress.
Thanks people!

[roscoe]

Free PDF study guides:
http://www.kb6nu.com/tech-manual/

[Lycosa]

This is exactly what I needed! Now I have a starting point and am not just groping in the dark. Not that groping in the dark is bad...but I digress.
Thanks people!

If you decide to get your license, check out this link

http://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-exam-session

Input your location and it'll give you a list of VEC's in your area. They will put you on the path to getting that license and let you know the next available exam date, what the fee is (usually around $5-7 dollars), and where to go, etc.