Michael K Johnson1st Fedora Project Lead. Co-author Linux Application Development. Pendo Distinguished Engineer. Ex-{Linux Journal, Red Hat, rPath, SAS}. Christian. Father. Maker (including machining, 3D printing, and electronics). Books. Classical music. Aviation (PP-Inst-SEL). Amateur Radio KZ4LY
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Michael K JohnsonHi followers or prospective followers.
I don't subscribe to the long lists of gatekeeping rules for how to structure my posts in the fediverse.
I just post. I don't think I post anything that would require a content warning. I don't hide wordle.
Feel free to scroll through my timeline, and if any of it offends you, I won't be offended if you unfollow me.
Michael K JohnsonHi, I'm Michael, friendly Maker Forums administrator. I'm the type who uses the tools to make parts for the other tools, and occasionally to do something useful with them. I'm one of the original Linux developers, and I started the Fedora Project at Red Hat.
I enjoy #3dprinting, #machining, and #electronics, and hope that I'm close to finishing my custom-designed laser cutter to add another hobby.
I'm an inactive pilot (PP-Instrument-SEL) at the moment but still love #aviation
Michael K JohnsonThis looks nice! Sometimes we get really cool things posted when folks show up at Maker Forums to make their first post, and AxioCNC looks modern and has some potentially really helpful features. 🎉
https://forum.makerforums.info/t/made-a-free-controller-app-looking-for-feedback/94657?u=mcdanlj
Michael K JohnsonAnd now he posted a nice introductory video. 🎉
https://forum.makerforums.info/t/made-a-free-controller-app-looking-for-feedback/94657/3?u=mcdanlj
Michael K JohnsonThis looks nice! Sometimes we get really cool things posted when folks show up at Maker Forums to make their first post, and AxioCNC looks modern and has some potentially really helpful features. 🎉
https://forum.makerforums.info/t/made-a-free-controller-app-looking-for-feedback/94657?u=mcdanlj
Michael K JohnsonYay, I worked @kb6nu@mastodon.radio
Even though I'm doing this from home, I decided to operate QRP, so I have the rig turned down to a measly 5W. Operating QRP is an exercise in patience to get through, but I'm now to the point that most of the calls I copy get a big red DUPE in not1mm. I got two on 40m, which was two more than I was expecting. I won't have a map handy until I load from not1mm into wavelog, but so far south Florida, Connecticut, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Minnesota, Michigan, Quebec, and Ontario bound the stations I've worked so far.
Almost everything has been on 20m but a few 40m QSOs.
One more hour.
Michael K Johnson40m came alive in the last hour, as we started to get close to evening, and as 20m was frankly played out.
I was going to plug my rig into battery, but then saw in the rules that your computer has to be on battery power as well, and I didn't have a way to plug my shack computer into battery, so I didn't bother running the rig off battery.
Then when I went to submit my log, I saw that actually your logging computer can be mains powered, so the rules must have been about the computer you are using for digital modes. Which I wasn't. I did all CW, no multi-mode multipliers for me!
So I could have gotten another multiplier for my 2-point CW QSOs for my solar-charged battery, as well as the 4x QRP multiplier. I could have had 510 points instead of 408 points. Which doesn't matter at all because I'm not actually in any form of contention for anything; I worked only about five hours thanks to all the winter storm prep. And even if I'd worked the whole time I still wouldn't be competitive. I only hunted, I didn't run.
And running only 5W, I didn't even make the antenna wire warm enough to melt the ice that was covering it.
Maybe next year I'll run instead of hunting. But probably still QRP, and maybe actually in the field...
#WinterFieldDay #HamRadio
Michael K JohnsonWorking WFD CW today. Didn't yesterday due to doing storm preparations. Not a serious contester here, just pulled up not1mm, and am using it to send code so that I don't slow down more serious folks with my bad keying, just using the key when I need to send something that I didn't have a macro for, or to send slowly. Just now, I was delighted that I copied a 2x3 call on first hearing at 35WPM and then was deflated to hear "TEST" afterwards. I didn't know what contests are currently active, but I'm trying to do WFD not a contest.
#HamRadio #WinterFieldDay
Michael K JohnsonYay, I worked @kb6nu@mastodon.radio
Even though I'm doing this from home, I decided to operate QRP, so I have the rig turned down to a measly 5W. Operating QRP is an exercise in patience to get through, but I'm now to the point that most of the calls I copy get a big red DUPE in not1mm. I got two on 40m, which was two more than I was expecting. I won't have a map handy until I load from not1mm into wavelog, but so far south Florida, Connecticut, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Minnesota, Michigan, Quebec, and Ontario bound the stations I've worked so far.
Almost everything has been on 20m but a few 40m QSOs.
One more hour.
Michael K JohnsonWorking WFD CW today. Didn't yesterday due to doing storm preparations. Not a serious contester here, just pulled up not1mm, and am using it to send code so that I don't slow down more serious folks with my bad keying, just using the key when I need to send something that I didn't have a macro for, or to send slowly. Just now, I was delighted that I copied a 2x3 call on first hearing at 35WPM and then was deflated to hear "TEST" afterwards. I didn't know what contests are currently active, but I'm trying to do WFD not a contest.
#HamRadio #WinterFieldDay
Michael K JohnsonCatching up on the Morserino group today, I went down a rabbit hole and ended up at https://www.fpqrp.org/ and thence https://www.fpqrp.org/pighist.htm where I discovered this image of the first flying pig, from 1909. Thence, of course to Wikipedia, since all rabbit holes lead to Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Moore-Brabazon,_1st_Baron_Brabazon_of_Tara
Michael K JohnsonToday I released version 0.7 of my print-in place single-paddle Morse code key.
This will function as release notes:
The most important practical change is that the slot in the lever for the stabilizer bar is taller, so that it doesn't bind. Previously, it sometimes bound depending on luck, and when it didn't bind, needed to be greased with a light lubricant.
The most important user-facing change is updated build instructions, now with pictures. Previously, the instructions were just text.
The most important developer-facing change is that it was rebuilt with FreeCAD 1.1RC, and all recalculation errors and warnings were removed. previously, it had quit building correctly due to changes in FreeCAD.
The side contacts are better aligned with the common/ground screw in the lever when using thin ring terminals. (It was previously optimized for thick terminals.)
The rear stabilizing bar was never necessary and was just extra weight and ugly complexity, so it has been removed.
The spring radius is no longer an explicit parameter.
I added more links to sources for hardware.
This is getting close to what I would consider a polished, 1.0 release.
As always, I crave feedback. If you build this, I want to hear what went well and what, if anything did not.
#MorseCode #HamRadio
Michael K JohnsonI've been working on assembling my one-kilogram QSO¹ kit. I set a 1kg limit including the case into which to cram everything I need to work POTA on a whim because it's just bouncing around in the bottom of my backpack. I'm still working out what to carry for filter, choke, and ununs; after I'm done, I'll write up the whole kit with pictures.
I just swapped out a 20Ah Anker power bank for an 88g 5Ah Nitecore NB Air that does both 9V and 12V PD. That saved me so much space that I can add a QRP "ATU10" tuner, and so much weight that the whole thing including my throw weight is currently down to 880g.
¹No one-pound POTA for me for now, I prefer metric! 🤣
#HamRadio #QRP #POTA
Michael K JohnsonFirst QSO from that miniscule Nitecore power bank (about 1cm thick, 5cm wide, 11cm long) powering my QMX was from NC to QC, 725 miles / 1167 km. That's 5W of RF into an 80m EFHW on 20m, and I got a 599 signal report. ✨
#HamRadio #QRP
Michael K JohnsonI spent quite a few evening hours this past week modeling the production Morserino M32 Pocket case in FreeCAD. The original had basically been forked in a mesh editor, which made it hard to work from. Hans (of QRP Labs) kindly released his STLs, which made this work easier and the resulting objects better.
If you want a different color, or different plastic, or to make a modification to the design, you now have a good starting point.
I did all this work as preparation for designing my own case with an integrated single-lever paddle. Now that I've finished the "upstream" work, I'm ready to start thinking about my own design. I know that I don't want to just smoosh together two models; I want to make a good integrated design and it's probably going to just be different.
https://www.printables.com/model/1550518-morserino-m32-pocket-case-for-production-component
https://morserino.groups.io/g/main/message/8220
#FreeCAD #MorseCode #HamRadio #Morserino
Michael K JohnsonThis first make of this case has been posted on Printables. It's a striking color scheme of black case with green logo that reminds me of the old-school "greenscreen" terminals I used to log into the vaxen lo these many years ago.
https://www.printables.com/make/3155885?comment_id=3155885
Michael K JohnsonI've been working on assembling my one-kilogram QSO¹ kit. I set a 1kg limit including the case into which to cram everything I need to work POTA on a whim because it's just bouncing around in the bottom of my backpack. I'm still working out what to carry for filter, choke, and ununs; after I'm done, I'll write up the whole kit with pictures.
I just swapped out a 20Ah Anker power bank for an 88g 5Ah Nitecore NB Air that does both 9V and 12V PD. That saved me so much space that I can add a QRP "ATU10" tuner, and so much weight that the whole thing including my throw weight is currently down to 880g.
¹No one-pound POTA for me for now, I prefer metric! 🤣
#HamRadio #QRP #POTA