Our Hero Dave Hughes
Founder of Old Colorado City Communications
Read About The Electronic Public Interest Versus the Private Good - Spread - Spectrum Radio
Community Networking
Dave Hughes is probably the premier technical and policy facilitator in grass-roots community networking. In 1981, he started what may be the first bulletin board system (BBS) whose goal was to empower the local public politically. Since then, Hughes has traveled around the world in an effort to bring some of the most disenfranchised and isolated communities into the electronic age.
In Hughes's home town, Colorado Springs, Colorado, all residents can get online, including truck drivers logging in from Rogers Bar. On more than one occasion, Colorado Springs citizens organized by Hughes online won a changes in the procurement policy by local government. His local private bulletin board has evolved into a city-run "City Link" on which the city council communicates openly with the entire community online. Hughes is targeting the state legislature next.
Dave Hughes Delivers Universal Net Access
"I told my sons to bury me in a grave with space enough for an Internet connection so I can come back and keep giving 'em hell."
Dave Hughes has definite tastes. What he likes: Stetson hats, Justin Boots, turquoise-studded bolo ties, and universal Internet access. What he hates: fools, bureaucrats, and phone companies. And the way the trailblazing activist figures it, Washington, DC, is where the fools and the bureaucrats conspire to make things easier for the phone companies to prevent truly universal Net service. "Fifty percent of Washington is full of conspiracists," he says. "The other 50 percent runs on the great American tradition of pure incompetence."
ATTENTION SCHOOL BOARDS:
WHO ANSWER TO THE TAX PAYER
ATTENTION TAX PAYER:
WHO ELECTS THE BOARD
ATTENTION CFO OF THE SCHOOL DISCTRICT:
ATTENTION SUPERINTENDENT:
WHO BUYS THE INTERNET SERVICE
READ WHAT DAVE RECOMMENDS CAN BE DONE TO GET ALL SCHOOLS WIRED WITHOUT SPENDING ALL THE MONEY THAT WE THE TAX PAYERS ARE SPENDING!!!
FCC'S HATFIELD TELLS HAMS TO "WALK THE WALK"
Jun 30,2000
From: Gary Johnston <ki4la@arrl.org>
To: Dave Farber
The FCC's Dale Hatfield, W0IFO, predicts a bright future for Amateur Radio. But the Office of Engineering and Technology chief says that amateurs "will be under a certain amount of pressure" to justify their free use of the radio spectrum. As a result, he said, it will be more important than ever that hams actually fulfill their service, good will and educational roles--not just talk about them.
Hatfield offered his observations as keynote speaker for AMRAD's 25th anniversary dinner June 17 in Virginia. Hatfield told the gathering, "the key issue for the amateur service is maintaining access to an adequate amount of spectrum." While emphasizing that he was not suggesting any immediate threat, Hatfield said hams will have to do a better job of justifying their current allocations.
Hatfield said hams should actually engage in experimentation to advance the state-of-the-art, provide communication and train operators for emergencies, encourage international cooperation and good will, and offer an important technical educational outlet. "Or, to use a bit of slang, it seems to me that it will be even more important for all segments of the amateur community to 'walk the walk' not just 'talk the talk'," he said.
Hatfield encouraged his audience to explore advanced techniques that conserve spectrum, especially digital techniques. As the rest of the telecommunications world transitions to digital techniques, Hatfield said, "the amateur service will look antiquated if it is not making progress in that direction as well."
Hatfield also said software defined radios could facilitate "a new era of amateur experimentation" and, in many ways, represent "a final merger" of radio communications and computers.
The text of Hatfield's prepared remarks is available on the FCC Web site
+-------Gary L. Johnston KI4LA---------+
| Vice Director |
| ARRL Great Lakes Division |
| ARRL - The National Association for Amateur Radio |
| ki4la@arrl.org |
| 425-984-7957 eFAX |
| http://www.nku.edu/~johnston |
| http://www.MrRace.Com/ARRL/ |
+-----Visit Our Division Web Site------+