开云体育

and wanted to add my two cents worth. I honestly believe that anyone who is smart enough to pass an FCC license exam is smart enough to use an Arduino. Indeed, I've had students who could barely fog a mirror, yet they learned to program. The really great thing about microcontrollers is that there is a bazillion lines of Open Source code already written for your use. You just compile it into your Arduino and use it. If you want to modify the code for some specialize purpose, then a week with a good C programming book or a free online tutorial would likely be enough.?

My mission is to see more projects with microcontrollers in them, like the Forty-9er VFO/LCD mods in March, 2016, QST. They bring a lot to the table at very low cost. (You can buy a Nano for less than $3.00 and start learning programming.) My BITX40 will soon have a DDS VFO and a 2.4" color TFT display, all driven by an Arduino Mega2560. I was really happy to see Farhan add a Nano-based VFO and LCD display to the BITX40, as frequency agility is one key component to successful QRP operations. Indeed, I'm hoping the new BITX40 will be a club build, as our members enjoy things like NPOTA, FD, and other events where the BITX40 is a viable portable solution without breaking the bank.

I feel we are fortunate to have someone like Farhan as the driving behind the BITX40. Perhaps with one (overly vocal) exception, I think all of us view the BITX40 as a bargain.

Jack, W8TEE