Over the past 40 years or so I've had fleeting thoughts about getting into ham radio, but two things always stopped me:  Code and real knowledge of electronics.
So, OK, code is gone now from the test.  But what level of electronics knowledge do you need to have now to pass the first test, and then the second one to get more powerful equipment?
That band that is 148 MHz is just right above what I'm used to - the aircraft communications frequencies which top out at 135.95.  These are all "line of sight", so unless you've got an antenna really high, you aren't going very far with your signal.
To get into HF, can an ignoramus like me, who knows nothing about electronics, get the required license?

ZAR wrote on 02/21/14 at 17:16:23:


I saw pictures of trees...in a book...once...

Yeah, I would be lucky to find two cactus close enough to each other yet I expect they would just topple over under tension. I'm thinking box canyons and flat scrub land. But if I ever do get near to two trees that are close enough then I am sure gonna use that sligshot idea.

Jerry Eichenberger wrote on 02/22/14 at 12:46:39:


That is what I thought too. There is more electricity theory and such in the Technician class. A lot about how not to electrcute yourself, which I found very valuable. Another part that is stressed is to not get on the air and act like a jackass. It definitely is not the "10-4 good buddy" of yesteryear and you will learn some very basic knowledge about what a capacitor and resistor does. The most interesting part I found was how radio waves get around and why some frequencies work better that others under various conditions.

Also, I am not sure it is accurate that you get more powerful equipment with higher licenses, rather, you get access to more frequency ranges and the radios associated with those ranges.

Bluesman wrote on 02/24/14 at 13:19:43:


I want to do CW and I have a Koch trainer all set up, just need to make the time. CW is definitely on my to do soon list.