My CQ Digital Wireless Columns Now Online
This is a “refugee” article from my SuperPacket blog whose host - Typepad, is shutting down on 2025-09-30 that I’m parking on Zero Retries because I often refer to it in Zero Retries. In this reposting, I’m leaving the original links in place, but adding the files inline per Substack’s methodology. This blog post was dated 2023-02-01. CQ’s last issue was 2023-10.
My CQ Digital Wireless Columns Now Online
Beginning 2000-09 and ending 2002-06 (two decades ago - wow...), I wrote thirteen "Digital Wireless" columns in CQ Magazine. Many of these columns were similar themes as this blog and my newsletter Zero Retries.
In the September 2000 issue of CQ, I received a nice introduction from Editor Richard S. (Rich) Moseson W2VU:
Introducing N8GNJ
I was first introduced to Steve Stroh, N8GNJ, a little more than a year ago, when someone forwarded to me a copy of Boardwatch magazine with his "Wireless Data Developments" column, which that month was subtitled "Amateur Radio and the Future?" In it, Steve talked to his audience of commercial wireless data folks about not only the continued relevance of amateur radio as we enter the 21 st century, but also its importance as an adjunct to formal technical training. "I've met an astonishing number of degreed Electrical Engineers who've never held a soldering iron," he wrote. "If you have a son or daughter who plans on a technical career, getting them involved in amateur radio will be a godsend."
Steve also had nice things to say about CQ VHF magazine, which I was editing at the time, so I dropped him an e-mail and we began to correspond occasionally by e-mail and phone. We had the opportunity to meet in person last year at the ARRL/ TAPR Digital Communications Conference and talked about future trends in amateur digital wireless, as well as his burgeoning writing career.
Thus, after the departure a couple of months ago of long-time CQ Packet Editor Buck Rogers, K4ABT, Steve became an obvious choice to succeed him. N8GNJ is joining our staff as of this issue with a new column entitled "Digital Wireless." It will cover the full spectrum of amateur digital communications, with a particular focus on new and developing technology. Steve is chairman of the 2000 Digital Communications Conference, so he certainly has his finger squarely on the pulse of technical innovation within the amateur community. It is our privilege to be able to share his knowledge with you. Welcome aboard, Steve!
...
I had long forgotten about that particular Wireless Data Developments column in Boardwatch Magazine.
My agreement with CQ was that my content would first appear in CQ, and after it was published in CQ, I was free to use it elsewhere.
I will eventually do a "revisit" post about these columns. Some of my writing there aged well. Some of it hasn't :-(
September 2000 - Meet The New Guy - PDF
Intro
IP Everywhere
2000 Digital Communications Conference in September
High-Speed Wireless
TCP/IP and 9600 Baud - Painlessly!
October 2000 - Amateur Radio Networks and the Internet - PDF
Content
Relevance
Solves Nagging Problems
Technical Training
Emergency Services Support
Some Examples
New Breed Amateur Radio Clubs (and Amateurs)
November 2000 - Why I Like Linux, and Other Tales - PDF
TCP/IP Without Tears
Wouldn't It Be Cool if...
Resources
December 2000 - ARRL and TAPR 19th Annual Digital Communications Conference - PDF
On the Agenda
Attending the DCC
TAPR Board Meeting
APRS Symposium
Main Session
DCC Audio
A Note about DCC Papers
TAPR Annual Meeting
Dinner Speaker and Prizes
Sunday Technical Seminar
The Fun
DCC 2001
January 2001 - A Visit to PacComm Packet Radio Systems - PDF
March 2001 - Packet is Dead! Long Live Packet! - PDF
WA7NWP NetSIG Message
N8GNJ NetSIG Message
Comments
Linux Update
Green Bay Professional Packet Radio
APRS at 9600 Baud
News From TAPR
New Toys at N8GNJ
www.packetradio.com
Major Events on My Calendar
April 2001 - N8GNJ Elected to TAPR Board of Directors - PDF
Pioneering History
An SDR in Your Future?
Amateur Radio and Wireless Technical Education
More on 802.11
Web Pages of the Month
Major Events On My Calendar
May 2001 - Seattle Earthquake Shakes Things Up - PDF
Misleading News Coverage
Lessons Learned
Web Pages of The Month
August 2001 - Dayton 2001 - Briefly - PDF
Vendor Highlights
Packet Bash and More
Digital Wireless Field Day
The Bigger Picture
Publishing Notes
Web Pages of the Month
October 2001 - Sometimes We're Our Own Worst Enemy - PDF
Lyle Johnson, Prophet
The Death of Metricom
December 2001 - Some Thoughts on Amateur Radio Digital History - PDF
Digital History
April 2002 - Broadband Wireless Internet Access and Amateur Radio - PDF
56K Packet Radio
In 2002...
Why
802.11
The 2002 Digital Communications Conference
The Big Gotcha
In Closing...
June 2002 - Blue Sky Amateur Radio Networking Starting from Scratch - PDF
Some Detailed Explanation
The Ongoing Project
Other Potential Networking Approaches
Correction and Update
Seattle Software Radio Specs version 0.1 per AC7FT
Digital Conference and "Coming Soon"
CQ Magazine Archives Online
I was able to retrieve these columns thanks to the CQ Magazine Archives Online service of Buckmaster International LLC / HamCall.net. They offer various plans for viewing / downloading pages of CQ
... from its first issue in January 1945 up to present, excluding the past 24 issues by agreement with CQ.
The interface takes a bit of getting used to, but eventually I was able to navigate reasonably well to find what I was looking for.
Thanks for reading!
Steve Stroh N8GNJ
Bellingham, Washington, USA
2023-02-01