wheatley@inuxi.UUCP (Steven Wheatley) (01/31/86)
qst de k9eui hr arrl bulletin nr 8 from arrl headquarters newington ct january 23, 1986 to all radio amateurs bt fcc has released a report and order in pr docket 85 105 allowing automatic control for digital operation on frequencies 50 mhz and above. automatic control privileges continue for repeater, auxiliary and beacon operation. the new privileges are effective march 1986. there is a dark lining in this silver cloud. a major goal in the securing of automatic control privileges for digital operation at 50 mhz and above had been the facilitation of packet radio data transfer, computer to computer communication and packet switching systems. such operation has continued to be hampered by the requirement that a control operator be present when third party traffic is handled. fcc has provided no relief in this quarter in its report and order in pr docket 85 105. fcc found that neither the speed with which a message is transmitted, nor the operating mode, justified any deviation from the rule requiring that the control operator of an amateur station be present at the control point whenever a station engages in third party traffic. under these circumstances, the expanded automatic control privileges gained through 85 105 may be a hollow victory. arrl response to this apparent setback for packet radio is scheduled for discussion at the january arrl board meeting, in progress at this writing. watch w1aw and qst for further details ar