I’ve been told that many people misunderstand the proper etiquette behind ham radio. Many people think that it is a hobby which involves a lot of talking. In reality, I’m being taught that it is more about listening. This makes a lot of sense, and is indicative of the culture I’ve found in ham radio.

As a new ham licensee, I obviously want to learn the proper procedures and protocols… as well as follow the above suggestion. I wanted to find a way to be able to quietly listen to Kenwood TH-D7A/G without annoying my co-workers. I found a great adapter to go from the 3/32″ mono phone jack on the Kenwood, to 1/8″ stereo headphone (RadioShack PN# 274-381). What I really like about the adapter is that it takes the mono and makes it stereo… so I can listen with either side of the headphones… or both.

This should help me learn more about the hobby, and discover which repeaters match my interests!

I finally found my callsign in the FCC ULS database! I've been assigned KI6ETL. I think its a pretty good callsign. I don't see the need for a vanity callsign yet. I might consider one if/when I get my General Class License.