PREPNET testing has begun -- you can participate

Started by WA4STO, November 24, 2012, 10:30:06 AM

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White Tiger

I like the idea of bartering - from one in need to one with plenty - but finding value happens relatively quickly. I see what KC means about using Prepnet to barter "in the clear" ...but also, Luck's need to be able to schedule a trade?

Perhaps a "currency" would develop, or at least common value for common items - but would you need to post both "in the clear" in order to trade? Or would be better to set up a "swap-meet " night at a rotating rendezvous point at irregular intervals? Times and rendezvous locations could be determined by predetermined broadcast code for locals - like the way Air America used to send messages to principles behind the lines (how's that for dredging up the past ObeeWhan?)!
If you're looking for me, you're probably looking in the wrong place.

WA4STO

Quote from: White Tiger on November 29, 2012, 01:18:32 AM
like the way Air America used to send messages to principles behind the lines (how's that for dredging up the past ObeeWhan?)!

The past?  Uh, does anyone still wonder what that warehouse near Ben-gussy was actually used for?  Principles?  Bah!  :)

Actually, I hadn't consider using the PREPNET spreadsheet for 'scheduling' of trades.  My only two goals (so far) were:

1.  to come up with some attachment fodder to test our Winmor capabilities and

2.  To keep the other participants apprised of what's available for loan or barter.  For example, the 61 fictitious cords of firewood wouldn't be of any value to any of you in Florida, post SHTF, but it sure would to WA5TEE who is fairly local to me.

So far the spreadsheet is pretty much fictitious.  I was hoping that the others would join in and provide some more grist for the olde mill, but these things take time.

73 de Luck, WA4STO


KC9TNH

#17
Quote from: WA4STO on November 29, 2012, 09:33:32 AMFor example, the 61 fictitious cords of firewood wouldn't be of any value to any of you in Florida, post SHTF, but it sure would to WA5TEE who is fairly local to me.
Will it be of use to anyone if it's not real?
Just kiddin'. I take the spreadsheet as a demonstration of handling attachments, nothing more and it's a good proof of concept. It could also be used, in a regular natural disaster OUTSIDE established traffic handling methods, to keep track of who has what traffic sked with who at the top of what hour, if a net is passed from one NCS to another - normally done via email (oh, that's right the internet's down), or at a shift-change but if it's lengthy and a station log, others may call & inquire if so&so has been heard from, etc.

To be candid, at this point, I have those local to me who I'd be bartering with and we know what each other have, so it's' actually  more of a potential resource pool. Moving around a standard MS attachment is a good test though, no question.  (And of all their junk, an Excel spreadsheet typicaly has the smallest payload, including CPU burden at the destination so that was a good choice.)
:)

Now, I gotta go find my other post & edit that one 'cause I found out that there IS a Linux version of fldigi....

Also, gotta do some RE-benchmarking of where my amp is sitting power wise*, clean up some shack stuff, and do some late-night CW, so I may not even do anything digital for the next few days other than check the box via telnet.

* the tube is the original Eimac 3-500Z that was in it and it's only been running 17 years but still, I should check against last year's numbers and look into picking one up that'll last till I'm planted.

White Tiger

Quote from: KC9TNH on November 25, 2012, 07:32:55 AM
Quote from: White Tiger on November 24, 2012, 11:01:22 PM
Just sent an email to WA4STO@WINLINK.org...

And it bounced back to me?

No go, no joy....
Did you put //W2LK as the first 6 positions in the Subject line of the email as WA4STO mentioned?
If not, the system will kick it back as spam. The first 6 characters tell the system that it's destined for a real existing WINLINK user.

I meant to come back to you on this Wes, after I did this, it must have worked as I got a reply from Luck.

Also - do you do SSB? I seem to have had a clear path to Minnesota and Michigan the last few nights on 40m...I worked Luck on 20m - but since then I've gotten the fan dipole back up and the flexibility has allowed me to work 40m longer into the evening, where I seem to find myself spending a lot of time, lately!
If you're looking for me, you're probably looking in the wrong place.

KC9TNH

Quote from: White Tiger on December 02, 2012, 01:49:55 AMAlso - do you do SSB? I seem to have had a clear path to Minnesota and Michigan the last few nights on 40m...I worked Luck on 20m - but since then I've gotten the fan dipole back up and the flexibility has allowed me to work 40m longer into the evening, where I seem to find myself spending a lot of time, lately!
SSB, sure. 40m is kinda fickle over that distance but obviously works sometimes. 20 and 17 are good. I've got a couple of wires that probably play well down your way.
:)

WA4STO

Last evening, I updated the PREPNET spreadsheet and attached it to a Winmor message to all in our PREPNET group.  By the time an hour had gone by, four of the members had acknowledged receipt of the message and the spreadsheet.  The remainder had responded by the time I got up this morning.

No big deal for those who have internet capability, certainly. But a big old "not bad" for those of us in the prepping community. It's comforting to know that for  internet (and electricity!) purposes, we'll have that much less to worry about, post-SHTF. 

At this point, we're looking for more members who might be interested in 'reaching out' when email has disappeared and the internet is just a fond memory.  Here's what you need:

1.  An email address and,

2.  Wait, there IS no number 2.  No, you don't even need a ham radio license.

We're interested in each of the members starting to develop their own local PREPNET groups.  That way, post-SHTF, you'll have a better idea of what's available to your group in the way of loan,  barter, or "other resources" items.  Even information as to what gas stations are open, which ones carry E-85, or what day the farmer's food market is open.

At present, we're only populating the spreadsheet with fictitious data, such as cords of firewood (local would be nice!!) Sta-bil for gasoline, and one fellow has just added 10 pails of dry pool bleach.  I'm sorta waiting for somebody to add "50 lbs of only slightly used kitty litter".   Hey, it's all serious, insofar as getting the bits and bytes around the country without the internet, but we can have fun while we're at it.

Let me know if you're interested in joining in with us.

73 de Luck, WA4STO
Wilber, Nebraska





KC9TNH

Quote from: WA4STO on December 04, 2012, 09:41:49 AMEven information as to what gas stations are open, which ones carry E-85....
As an additional thought, it might be worthwhile knowing sources of gasoline WITH NO contaminants in it at all. Not just because the "green" stuff is bad on small engines (and what might we wanna use those for, hmmmm?) but because, on the other side of the cliff, they may not be as accessible, being poster children for Guv subsidies that reward things that cost more to produce than they save "aka" targets.
Quote from: WA4STO on December 04, 2012, 09:41:49 AMI'm sorta waiting for somebody to add "50 lbs of only slightly used kitty litter".   Hey, it's all serious, insofar as getting the bits and bytes around the country without the internet, but we can have fun while we're at it.
Did you want that with or without the used-up cat?

woof 8)
Back to work now, supporting the entitlements of the new majority.

White Tiger

Whatever happened to TAPRN? I visited their site - no information on times or frequencies for a SSB net?

Any interest on expanding Prepnet to including a SSB net?
If you're looking for me, you're probably looking in the wrong place.

WA4STO

PREPNET has a new member, John KC9GXU.  Welcome, John!

PREPNET is unique in that it allows error-corrected messages via WINMOR and the WL2K system.

Anybody can access it either by direct entry via WINMOR or with nothing more than your email address.

The main purpose of PREPNET is to provide "resource" information, post-SHTF.  Unlike most established EMCOMM networks that provide amateur radio assistance to Federal, State and Local officials, PREPNET provides means to support our own families, neighbors, and loved ones.

Anybody else want to join in?

Best 73

Luck, WA4STO



buster

Although I'm interested in the general concept (prepper networking, not roll call nets), when it comes to the actual implementation, most efforts like this seem to neglect OPSEC.  It is in fact very difficult to setup something like this and not throw your OPSEC out the window.  Should we trust everyone with a ham license?  Is the member list available to everyone invovled?  (Hopefully not to anyone not involved.)  I noticed there was a mention of CB - is the callsign list availability limited to hams only?  I noticed you posted the callsign of a new member above.  Is that your SOP or did he approve posting of that?

The only solution I have come up with in my personal effort is doing it on a one to one contact basis.  And that of course is very slow to work out.  I know, or know of, lots of hams in my area, but very few that I know of being preppers.

KC9TNH

Being prepared doesn't necessarily involve the assumed scenario of man-made hostile circumstances. It's about honing capabilities. Everyone has to make their choices.

OPSEC concerns (and I get it, this is not my first rodeo) get bandied about quite a bit when really what most people are concerned about is privacy. But one is simply unlikely to hone the skills needed unless one gets on the air to practice [fill-in your preferred mode], any more than reading about an Australian peel will get you proficient without going to the range & expending some ammo with some like-oriented friends.

To each their own, quite literally. I'm not backing up and because of who I am and things I've done I'm already a stereotype on Big Sis' threat list - but I'm in some pretty good company.

A person's gotta do what they think is right. My callsign is right there; some prefer not to do that. Cool.
Welcome to the board.


White Tiger

#26
Quote from: buster on January 25, 2013, 07:00:27 PM
Although I'm interested in the general concept (prepper networking, not roll call nets), when it comes to the actual implementation, most efforts like this seem to neglect OPSEC.  It is in fact very difficult to setup something like this and not throw your OPSEC out the window.  Should we trust everyone with a ham license?  Is the member list available to everyone invovled?  (Hopefully not to anyone not involved.)  I noticed there was a mention of CB - is the callsign list availability limited to hams only?  I noticed you posted the callsign of a new member above.  Is that your SOP or did he approve posting of that?

The only solution I have come up with in my personal effort is doing it on a one to one contact basis.  And that of course is very slow to work out.  I know, or know of, lots of hams in my area, but very few that I know of being preppers.

I get these concerns of yours - I really do. So much so, that in the beginning I only wanted a radio "in case" something went wrong, and even then I only wanted to operate as a "pirate" station (no call sign, just an emergency radio for calling out if I needed help). I'm going to structure my response as if you don't have radio experience (even though you do appear to have at least an understanding - as you know you don't want to be involved in a check-off/roll call type net...) - so I don't mean to offend you if you have more experience.

The undiscussed secret is: nothing really precludes you from operating as a "pirate" should the situation arise...but as KC has stated, you have to know how to operate in order to be able to be a successful pirate...and there's only one way to learn how to operate...and at this point, the FCC is more interested in you operating safely (i.e., high frequency = high voltage) and according to proper procedure - than to figure out how to get to you.

My initial reservation was that I didn't want to be on yet another "list"...along with the list I am on regarding my "tools of self-defense"...the list Im on about buying food...etc. - I just didn't want to add yet another layer to the ethereal lists of databases out there with my name on them...

But after reading things like "Search & Destroy; Why You Can't Trust Google", and "The Watchers: The Rise of Rise of America's Surveillance State" (to name only two)...I realized they have already gotten all the information they could ever need to know regarding who I am, who my friends/associates/contacts are, and how each are interrelated....we already live in Orwell's dystopia, and like the illusion of control...we also only have the illusion of privacy...I wish it were not so, but it is.

I have nothing to hide, I am simply a guy trying to prepare for bad stuff - like when the wind blows so hard the lights go out for days....and if that works out for anything heavier...so be it. It would take the average joe a lot of effort and special equipment to invade my OPSEC, and most likely, those are the type of folks already preparing for the same type "stuff". Finding frequencies on HF is a lot harder than tracking a guy on a channelize walkie-talkie, broadcasting "in the clear" on only a few (whether it's 4 channels, 6 channels, or 40 channels - with a range of about 2 miles)...there are simply too many frequencies on HF, covering too many miles...to find little 'ol me.

I think this website and the folks on it may have some interesting ideas for you to consider - they've already helped me a LOT!
If you're looking for me, you're probably looking in the wrong place.

madball13

Luck,
What was your original intention of starting Prepnet? I got your email about the NTS system but i think using Winlink amongst us here for sitreps or some other function has value and allows us to continue to use Winlink with a purpose.
Thanks,
Matt

WA4STO

Matt -- the original intent was twofold:

1.  to have a means of communications between like-minded folks.  Like us.

2.  to be able to use an error-corrected and very robust infrastructure to effect #1 above, and to do so without utilizing the internet or, when necessary, to do so without commercial power.

In the time between then and now, however, I discovered that the hierarchy of the National Traffic System had quit being so parochial and in the past few years has taken rather extreme strides to, well, allow for #1 above.

Thus, it made no sense to keep ourselves within the confines of the pitiful small PREPNET group. 

Would you agree?  Arguing IS allowed!  :)

best 73

LH

madball13

#29
I do, but I don't have a full understanding of NTS and how it would apply to your goal.