Dave,
I tend to agree with your views.
About a year ago I requested from a VIP in AMSAT-NL (he will recognize himself) some info about the FOX series design to work on the 3B8 first satellite MIR-SAT1 (a HAM one) and the reply I got was that everything was confidential due to NDAs/US laws, etc..., no even a hint provided. Just excuses and the end result is that I had to reinvent the wheel this side. Anyway thats life, just non-transparent this is why I am now also a member of AMSAT-DL with which communication is much easier and fully transparent and their outstanding results such as QO-100 and in the past the best satellite we got up there (hope that no-one will deny this). It is just that they have a better vision and transparency than others.
Fully agree also about open source as it promotes knowledge for all and also contributions from all thus improving technology as no-one as the monopoly on knowledge and ideas.
My greatest fear, as a member of AMSAT-NA, is that we end up soon well behind of other HAM institutions and I take this opportunity to congratulate our Chinese fellows to have so many projects in the pipeline compared with others, also AMSAT_DL for their vision about Lunar and MARS projects, they are both taking the lead now.
I may understand that my opinions above may create some debate/controversy but it is just an honest feedback.
73
Jean Marc (3B8DU)
On Jan 26, 2021, at 9:17 PM, David Reinhart wa6ilt@cox.net wrote:
Clint Bradford posted:
Speaking only for myself ... Do you have an engineering background? If so, have you submitted your resume to AMSAT for consideration to be involved? Clint Bradford K6LCS
I wasn't going to respond to this, but I'm going to. This is exactly the kind of elitist snobbery that turns people off and keeps them from even wanting to volunteer.
I have been involved with radio and electronics for 54 years without an engineering degree. When I was in college I tutored my EE program girlfriend on circuit theory that I'd learned studying for my Novice exam when I was 10 years old! I was able to make the jump from social sciences to computers because of my ham background and spent 35 years in IT. I learned control systems because I helped put on-line a large plant producing IC chemicals and ran it as its Sysadmin with a 99.9% uptime. During my career I added embedded OS's, networking, etc. All without an engineering degree.
One thing I have never understood about AMSAT is why, in the absence of any legal requirements such as NDAs or ITAR restrictions, we seem to keep our materials so close to the vest. And if those are the reasons why not state so plainly, along with the conditions that must be met before the materials can be released?
Are we worried about somebody stealing AMSAT work for commercial purposes? As hams we're supposed to help advance the state of the art in electronics, and I don't think that means only electronics used by us.
Whatever the reasons why we restrict access to engineering data, remarks like the one from K6LCS do not help attract people.
Dave Reinhart, W4DSR (ex-WA6ILT)
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