S.D-REUBEN%KLA.WESLYN%WESLEYAN.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU.UUCP (02/22/87)
Is there any way that one can place mobile calls over a wide area via the
phone company other than Marine Band ship-to-shore calls and of course Cellular
service?
Since I mostly need to place calls, (rather than receive them) I don't
particularly need a service like cellular, and would like to avoid paying the
high start-up fees and monthly service
charges if possible. I have a Marine band radio on my boat, and it works fine,
but I am wondering of how well it would work in my car...? (Ie, how close to
the shoreline would I have to be, is the signal easily cancelled out by minor
obstructions such as small buildings along the road, etc?) I plan to use it
mainly along I-95 and the Meritt Parkway in Connecticut, both of which are near
the ocean. Any ideas on how the standard 25-watt radios will operate under such
conditions?
If there are any other similar systems, perhaps a land based system which
allows mobile calls in areas not close marine areas, I would really appreciate
hearing about it. I have been told that there is a way to place mobile calls
with a Ham radio, but I have never been able to find out what is involved in
that system. If anyone has any experience with this sort of thing, please let
me know!
Thanks in advance for any help!
-Doug
REUBEN@WESLYN.BITNET
S.D-REUBEN%KLA.WESLYN@WESLEYAN.BITNET
S.D-REUBEN%KLA.WESLYN%WESLEYAN.BITNET@WISCVM.ARPA
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-------grr@seismo.CSS.GOV@cbmvax.UUCP (02/23/87)
In article <12281027612.34.S.D-REUBEN@KLA.WESLYN> S.D-REUBEN%KLA.WESLYN%WESLEYAN.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU (Doug Reuben) writes: > > Is there any way that one can place mobile calls over a wide area via the >phone company other than Marine Band ship-to-shore calls and of course Cellular >service? I think there is a similar aeronautical service, but no general purpose land mobile service. There is another marine service 'Marisat' that uses direct ship-to-shore satellite links. One proplem is that you need a ~1 meter dish and about $50K of equipment. The other is that they only permit non-marine stations in rare situations like scientific expeditions and bases. There is talk of expanding this service to include air and land mobile service, but there are technical problems and lots of international politics involved... > >charges if possible. I have a Marine band radio on my boat, and it works fine, >but I am wondering of how well it would work in my car...? (Ie, how close to >the shoreline would I have to be, is the signal easily cancelled out by minor >obstructions such as small buildings along the road, etc?) I plan to use it >mainly along I-95 and the Meritt Parkway in Connecticut, both of which are near >the ocean. Any ideas on how the standard 25-watt radios will operate under such >conditions? This would probably work fine, but I doubt either the FCC or the Marine operators would be happy if they found out you were using the services for other purposes. > > > -Doug