ANTHONY JAPHA wrote:

My vote is for a linear transponder. Hope there's enough power and space for that. If there is, it would set a very nice precedent for a fair price to pay for using ham frequencies. Thanks for asking. 73,

This is a silly idea, but what's the math as far as an AM transponder? AM would have less of the capture effect -- maybe weak signals might be audible, though maybe not intelligible. Could possibly result in simpler, no-doppler ground stations. Don't some of the HT's support AM these days?

Another idea I had, four FM receivers, one transmitters. The inputs just mix together on the satellite. The power all goes into the one transmitter, and gives more chance for multiple people to exchange calls. The big guns can have their long chat, and then the other callsigns that people are exchanging would just be heard on top of the conversation when they send to the other receivers. I've heard this kind of thing on ssb.