On-The-Go Radio

by Alan Dixon, N3HOE / WPUC720 / KST8678

A 1987 Honda CRX telematics
installation view from driver’s seat.
(All photos by N3HOE)

Every once in a while we need to take a step back from what we are doing, take a deep, slow breath, and contemplate our direction. This goes for any field of interest, but is especially true for radio communications and wireless technology. We really should take a look, from time to time, at where we have been and where we are going. Doing so helps keep us focused and organized in our efforts. It helps us manage our knowledge of the topics and technologies at hand, enabling us to “connect the dots” in comprehending newer information and in relating this to older information with which we are already familiar.

And if radio communications happens to be an obsession for you, then pausing to reflect just might help save your sanity, too. There is an awful lot of new information concerning the accelerated evolution of communications technology. And it truly is challenging not only to keep up with but, more importantly, to understand how recent developments will or will not affect our own radio communications interests.

Have you been wondering about all the changes going on within the world of wireless—changes occurring so quickly that you can hardly keep up with the endless stream of emerging technology and the inevitable related jargon? Really! What has been going on in wireless technology, anyway?

We need to understand that even though radio technology has existed for well over one hundred years, sophisticated and powerful personal wireless communications services were, for the most part, not available to everyday folks. It’s amazing to realize that, just a generation or so ago, only government and public service agencies and personnel, businesses, and licensed amateur radio operators had access to powerful and reliable radio communications. For the rest of us, not so long ago, a “wireless” phone meant a relatively low-tech cordless phone for use around the house. And having a two-way radio in the car meant having a CB installed under the dash, with its typical mobile unit range of perhaps four miles or so. Neither of these was, or is, good for phoning home from afar. And depending upon location at any given moment, CB has sometimes been less than totally reliable for summoning help in an emergency while on the road.

Return to June 2003 Highlights Page