Ham Radio For Dummies, 4th Edition

Chapter 2

Getting a Handle on Ham Radio Technology

IN THIS CHAPTER

Getting familiar with ham radio gear

Discovering radio waves

Understanding the effects of nature on ham radio

Ham radio covers a lot of technological territory — one of its most attractive features. To get the most out of ham radio, you need to have a general understanding of the technology that makes ham radio work.

In this chapter, I cover the most common terms and ideas that form the foundation of ham radio. If you want, skip ahead to read about what hams do and how we operate our radios; then come back to this chapter when you need to explore a technical idea.

Getting to Know Basic Ham Radio Gear

For some hams, their entire station consists of a small handheld radio or two. Other hams operate on the go in a vehicle. Most hams also have a spot somewhere at home that they claim for a ham radio and associated gadgets. I discuss building and operating your own station in Part 4 of this book. You can see examples of several stations, including mine, in Chapter 13. For now, though, here’s a list of the usual gear that makes up a ham’s station:

• The radio: The modern radio transceiver, also referred to as a “rig,” ...