Using Twitter to Stay Connected

All the tech world seems to be abuzz with "Social Media" and "Staying Connected" saying they are the next big thing. Well, as hams we know better right? I mean how much more social can you get than a good rag chew every morning!

We can however take advantage of at least one of the new social media technologies to aid in our Emergency Communications efforts. I'm talking about Twitter!

So What the Heck Is Twitter?
Twitter is a short message, update based service hosted at, you guessed it, Twitter.com. The premise is simple. You post short (140 characters or less) updates about what you're doing or, say, that a net has been activated on 146.xxx, etc. Other Twitter users subscribe to your updates (known as Following in the Twitter world) and when they do, their Twitter home page is updated with your status. And if you follow them, your Twitter home page will be updated every time their status changes as well.

Ok. So What Does This Have To Do With Ham Radio or EmComm?
Well, I'm glad you asked! For those of us involved in EmComm, Twitter can really come in handy. For example, lets say the SEC, N1LF, wanted to start a state-wide drill? One way to do that would be to call each of the Assistant SECs, then they would call the DECs, then the DECs would call the ECs... you get the picture. Alternatively, he could simply post a message to Twitter, something like "AL Section Training Net on 3.965" and it would instantly appear on everyone's Twitter home page, alerting them to the net. See, that's much quicker and more efficient, right!

Yeah, But I'm Not Always Sitting In Front of My Computer
Ok, ok, I hear ya! Not always in front of the computer. Don't want to keep Twitter open all the time... etc. I hear you loud and clear! Well, here is the great part... You don't have to! Twitter has a really cool SMS (cell phone text messaging) integration piece that lets you use your cell phone to interact with the service. If you have your Twitter account configured to use SMS, when N1LF sends out that drill message, it will automatically pop-up on your cell phone! Now you can go about your daily business and still take be instantly up to date with alerts!

Alright You Sold Me... Now What?
Well, its pretty easy. I'll even walk you through the steps right here. Lets get started!

Step One, Setup a Twitter Account
This is pretty easy. Go to twitter.com and click the big green "Get Started - Join!" button in the middle of the screen. The next screen will ask you for your Full Name, Username, Password and Email. I suggest using your callsign as your username. Fill in the anti-spam words then click "Create My Account".

The next screen asks if you want Twitter to look for your friends on other services like Google Mail, Yahoo, or AOL. This is optional and totally up to you. If you want to skip it, click the "Skip this step" link at the bottom of the page.

Next you'll see some suggested people to follow. Most are celebrities of well known people in the social media world. If you're not interested in any of that, simply click the Select All checkbox at the top of the list and they will all be de-selected (meaning you won't be getting updates from any of them). Click the Finish button to get to your very own home page.

Step Two, Follow Somebody
Ok, so we missed out on following a few folks during signup... who can I follow now? Well, may I humbly suggest myself?!? At the top of the screen you should find a link for Find People. Clicking that link will bring you to a screen with a search box asking, "Who are you looking for?" Type K5JTR in the search box and press enter. You should get a result with my callsign and name. Out to the right will be a grey button that says, "Follow." Click that button, and the label will change to Following. You are now all setup to get updates from little ole me!

You can repeat this process to find the SEC. Simply type ALSEC in the who are you looking for box.

After following the SEC, you'll notice that the username alsec is a link. If you click on that link, you can see Les' profile. The profile has a handy little link called followers (near the top right corner). Click on followers to see who is following Les, you might want to follow some of them as well!

These are just a couple of ways to find people to follow. Play around a bit and I'll bet you find a few more. For now... lets move on...

Step Three, Get SMS Setup
Up in the same space where you found the Find People link, you should also find a link for Settings. Clicking this link will take you to, um, your settings page. There are lots of interesting things here, but lets click on over to the Devices tab.

The Devices tab is where you tell Twitter about your cell phone number. Enter your number in the field and remember to include the plus sign ( + ), the 1, and you full ten digit number... it should look something like +12565551212. Check the box to say its ok for Twitter to text you and then the Save button. You're in business!

Remember, if your cell phone plan charges for text messages, you will be charged for ever update you get from Twitter!

Ok, that's it, you are on Twitter. Shoot me an email if you run into any trouble... and happy Twittering!

73,

Thom / K5JTR

EmComm In North Alabama

So I guess sitting on the sidelines is not one of my strengths (at least that's what my wife says!). I've been back in Huntsville for just a pinch over a year now and find myself serving as the District 6 Emergency Coordinator for ARES. I've been spending some time getting to know the hams serving in the leadership positions in the district and thought I'd take the opportunity to share a little about myself and my thoughts for the District.

EmComm and the Amateur Operator

As we are all aware, one of the four underlying justifications for the amateur service is public service. In almost every area of the country and state, this takes the form of some type of auxiliary communication network in the event of an emergency. Broadly this is known as Emergency Communications or EmComm and is more narrowly defined as ARES, RACES, SkyWarn or one of a number of other monikers.

Like many new has of the last 7 years, I was drawn into the hobby by the EmComm aspect and a desire to "do something" when the time came. Many of you who read this will understand completely where I'm coming from.

It wasn't until I began working to establish a brand new ARES/RACES group in Texas that I found out just how difficult it can be to get all these like minded volunteers to actually work together.

At the end of the day, each of us engaged in EmComm through Amateur Radio are doing it to help our neighbors. Whether our hat says ARES, RACES, or Joe's Group of Really Cool Guys, our job remains the same...Get the Message Through!

Now I want to be clear here, my position as District 6 Emergency Coordinator is an ARES, and hence and ARRL, position. I'd love nothing more that to have each and every one of the EmComm groups in the district operating under the ARES/ARRL umbrella, however... As a veteran of Katrina and Rita I passed literally thousands of pieces of traffic and never once, on any net, at any time, did I ever hear anyone ask about the status of the other party's ARRL membership or for their RACES unit number. Those are just the facts and the reality of an emergency situation.

To this end, my first priority is to make sure that each county in the District has EmComm coverage and that the groups providing that EmComm support know how to ask for help from their neighbors / the District.

Ok, (stepping down off my soapbox...) As I get feedback from each of the counties in the District, I'll be building up a list of links on the right margin to those groups. If you don't see a group for your county, email me at K5JTR [at] ARRL.NET

Stay tuned, I'll put more out here as time allows. I hope this has given you a little insight into my operating philosophy in the District. Feel free to contact me any time you need anything from me or the District or the Section. I'll do everything I can to help.

73s,

Thom / K5KTR

From the Aftermath Comes Improvement

As many of you know, I recently relocated from Carrollton, Texas, a surburb of Dallas, to Huntsville, Alabama. Last Tuesday, Feb 5, as severe weather roll through the southeast, north Alabama got her share.

One of the first things I did when I got involved in Amateur Radio was to sign-up for ARES, RACES, and SkyWarn. Now for those of you that are unfamiliar with those organizations, let me take just a minute to explain.

ARES & RACES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service & Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Services) are organizations dedicated to augmenting communications during emergencies. Although they have different origins and have historically existed as separate entities, they are now reaching a melding point such that they are essentially interchangeable. During hurricanes Katrina & Rita, Amateur Radio volunteers through their service with ARES and RACES passed thousands of messages into and out of the storm ravaged areas when no other form of communication worked. These are your radio amateurs serving their community!

SkyWarn is a National Weather Service sponsored organization created and operated to support the NWS' severe storms forecasting and reporting activities. While not limited to amateur radio operators, this program draws a significant amount of its value and information from hams in the field reporting on weather conditions and relaying damage reports.

So, as I moved to the Huntsville area, the first contacts I attempted were with the ARES/RACES & SkyWarn communities and have been working in those programs ever since. As we debriefed on last Tuesday's storms a couple of points of interest came out and I wanted to share those with every ham I know. I believe these are important!

Warnings Fail In the Last Mile
Across the southeast on February 5th, the NWS offices did a stellar job issuing warnings and alerting the public to the dangers at hand. In some cases, as much as a 30 minute waring of incoming tornados was possible. Yet despite such forecasting ability, many lives were still lost. As I discussed this topic with my friend Steve, KD5YPB, last night it became clear that the failure was in the "last mile" of communication.

In all fairness, the warnings in north Alabama came between 3 am and 5 am when most of the population was sleeping. But as we saw, severe weather know no clock. How do we warn people tucked away in their beds? The answer is simple...weather alert radios with SAME technology.

Each time the NWS issues a watch or warning, it is broadcast on NOAA Weather Radio. Those signals can be received with many different types of receivers including specially designed weather radios. The weather service also encodes special data in this signal to automatically turn on these radios and sound an alarm in the event of a watch or warning for a specific area! Having one of these by your bed during severe weather season should be a must!

Now, I know I'm probably preaching to the choir here because most hams already have one. But here's the $64,000 question for you Mr. Ham...how many of your neighbors have one? For the ones that do, is it setup correctly? You are the local radio expert in your neighborhood. Serve your community one neighborhood at a time!

Along the same lines, do you have phone numbers for all your neighbors? Could you call them to alert them to severe weather at 3 am?

We cannot look to warning sirens, TV alerts, and talk radio to warn our friends and family in the middle of the night! Take action today to make your neighborhood a safer place.

Remember, this is a hobby and your Federal Amateur License is granted in the interest of community service. You have an obligation to do everything you can to help your community so get out there and get after it...TODAY.

Thom, K5JTR