About a year after playing and listening to different transmissions using my Baofeng, I found out about Software Defined Radio (SDR). I ordered an SDR from Amazon and a small 3 antenna kit to go along with it and setup a small area at my desk in my living room, then started to explore the airwaves. I found the major signals right away, like the broadcast radio signals and weather broadcasts. After getting some basic knowledge of the simple programs that come with the device I went outside to try my hand at some of the NOAA satellites. By being able to see the waterfall of the frequency I was able to adjust the antenna on the fly as the satellite passed by. I had done some research on the internet and found that in order to get even better signal from the satellite I needed a different antenna. I changed my technique a little and soon moved on to other projects with the SDR. I quickly bought myself another to test out trunking. I was able to link to my local trucked system that handled everything in the area from city workers to 911 dispatch. I played around with other programs a little and then finally felt like I should come back to the weather satellites. I built a QFH antenna and set it up temporarily on the roof of my house. I was absolutely amazed at the quality difference of the images I was receiving. They were crystal clear and I maintained reception way closer to the horizon than before. After more research I learned about Russia's version of the NOAA weather satellites called Meteor M2. I found a program that was capable of demodulation of the signals from the Meteor satellite. These signals are digital and contain more data therefore can be made into color images and have far greater detail than the analog APT transmissions of the NOAA satellites.

Almost three years after playing around with the SDRs, Beofeng HTs, etc. I decided it was time to get into the transmission side of radio. I ordered the E-Book version of ARRL's The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual I read about a chapter a night for a little over a week, then made an appointment to take my test. I went to the exam session and got my first look at the culture of amateur radio operators. I took the exam and passed my technicians license. It took about 11 days to get my license. I got an email from my VEs and then later from the FCC saying that I have gotten my license. The most exciting part was getting my callsign. After I got my license I bought an ICOM ID-4100. I wanted a radio that I could put in my vehicle as I felt I would mostly use it there. We do not travel much, but often spend time at the nearby ocean beaches and Eastern Washington. I also wanted a radio that I could grow into and as I became a more knowledgeable amatuer I could utilize the features that it had. So far after using the radio I have found that it is super simple to use and setup. The radio has DSTAR capabilities as well, and I am slowly exploring the whole new access to the world via DSTAR. After getting my license and radio, I quickly joined the local club in my town and the ARRL. I have joined in a few nets as of writing this and made a few contacts.

I wrote this introduction on Feb, 28th 2019, about 2 weeks after getting my license. I will hopefully update it as time goes on.