 April/May 2024
In this issue...
Upcoming Community Deadlines and Notices
Remembering John Hays (K7VE) SK
As many of you likely know by now, we recently lost one of our beloved colleagues and friends: John Hays K7VE. Those who knew John – of which there were many – knew he was incredibly passionate about amateur radio and a brilliant engineer. First licensed in 1973 under the call sign WN7WHV, John was a skilled operator with an Extra Class license, as well as a skilled organizer in the amateur radio community. He was a founding member of several ham organizations and an active participant in many more, attending a weekly breakfast gathering with other hams at his local club. He also served as a Volunteer Examiner, helping to bring more people into the amateur radio community. ...more ARDC Launches 44Net Portal 2.0
For more information about these features, check out the Portal 2.0 documentation, which also covers how to get started with requesting 44Net address space. …more Grantee Updates and Interviews from the 2024 HamSCI WorkshopM17 Announces New Open-Source Hardware for Amateur Radio Enthusiasts and Enhancements to Current Offerings
ARDC Grantees at the 2024 HamSCI WorkshopAt HamSCI Workshop 2024, Rebecca (KO4KVG) caught up with ARDC Grantees from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and Youth on the Air (YOTA). NRAO Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS) Project
Youth on the Air (YOTA)
Highlights from the April 2024 Grantee GatheringOn April 10, we kicked off our second year of hosting Grantee Gatherings. About 30 participants joined us on Zoom to share their tips, successes, and challenges with project management. There was lots of synergy between grantees, and many were interested in connecting with each other post-gathering to share resources and seek advice (our ARDC Grantees subgroup is a great place for this!). Some of the major takeaways from the meeting were the following:
Stay tuned for our next Gathering, which will be scheduled for the Fall of 2024. A big thank you to all that were able to join us last month! ARDC Team SpotlightThis month’s spotlight will be highlighting TAC member Alvaro Prieto (KC2VVE) and GET member Scott Czeck (KC1GHT). Alvaro Prieto (KC2VVE)
Scott Czeck (KC1GHT)
Thanks to all of you for your contributions toward carrying out our mission at ARDC! Come See Us at Hamvention and Other Events this Summer! ARDC will be out and about in May: you will be able to find our team at the following event(s):
Contact Us!We always want to hear from you:
ARDC's MissionThe mission of Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) is to support, promote, and enhance digital communication and broader communication science and technology, to promote amateur radio, scientific research, experimentation, education, development, open access, and innovation in information and communication technology. To change your subscription, click here. |
ARDC is thrilled to publicly announce the launch of the 44Net Portal 2.0, now live at 
Funded by a grant from Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), M17 is excited to announce the following enhancements to their current hardware solutions for amateur radio operators as well as a new hardware offering, all of which include: Module17 – an M17 modem that converts a 9600 baud capable radio into an M17 transceiver; OpenHT – a cutting-edge QRP dual-band handheld transceiver (HT) that utilizes SDR technology; and a Remote Radio Unit (RRU) – a comprehensive, UHF FM/M17 ‘repeater in a box’, optimally designed for close antenna placement, enhancing signal strength and reliability. 
Check out this 
Watch this 
Alvaro is serving his second year on the TAC, where he has made significant contributions to testing routers for the 44Net Portal. For 2024, he is currently a part of the Outreach Subcommittee, which will aim to engage with members of the community to bring awareness to 44Net. Outside of volunteering at ARDC, Alvaro enjoys building open source hardware tools and is a co-host of the 
A member of the inaugural GET, Scott enjoys reading and learning about the interesting and diverse projects and programs that ARDC has funded. While learning about these projects, he also likes hearing the perspectives of his fellow GET members, as well as hearing more about their unique backgrounds. When he’s not volunteering with ARDC, Scott spends his time building and experimenting with antennas, namely in the VHF and UHF bands. He also enjoys experimenting with SDRs and digital modes. If you’d like to learn more about Scott and his projects, be sure to visit