The Charles Schultz classic cartoon Peanuts is one of those long running programs that you either love or hate.  I found the Peanuts kinda boring and I never quite understood the lack of adult supervision or the teacher being voiced by a muffled trumpet.  Let's face it, there wasn't a lot of competition back in the day. It was what it was for children's television programming and that Lucy was such a bitch, but, I digress.

Which brings us to the 2018 Amateur Radio invention that is revolutionizing the ease with which one can get on to D-Star digital Radio by Dutch Radio Amateur PA7LIM: "Peanut".  Over a matter of just a few days the normally sleepy reflectors that were once only given the appearance of being busy only by the odd net have suddenly become burdened with overwhelming Peanut traffic.  Peanut is software from Android phones that allows you to get onto D-Star.  This software was an instant hit and overwhelmed David PA7LIM who had to cut off the registration process as he could not keep up with the demand manually approving users and verifying call signs.

The story here is the discontent from the Elmer class of Ham Radio, the members of our fraternity that like their squelch levels unbroken, the ones that take things just a little too seriously.  Now am I interested in Cell Phone Ham Radio? Not really, not much interested in the entire DX thing anymore at all really.  Been there done that, next aspect of the hobby please.  However I have heard so much snobbery from the old timers over this one, somehow these fossils were convinced to get on the Digital Revolution wave and purchase a rig or hotspot of some kind or another and now they are debating whether or not Peanut access is Ham radio.  The same arguments that they heard from their Elmer's when Morse code was dropped as a requirement in most countries or, if you can go back far enough, when SSB challenged CW.

I now understand why human beings age and die, because they should when their sole contribution to society is the Bitch and the Complaint.  Harsh? Perhaps however innovators like PA7LIM who come up with cool new ideas are what Amateur Radio is supposed to be all about.  Technical achievement, pushing the boundaries of exploration of what we can do as radio operators, marrying technology and radio transmission is that frontier in 2018.

As the calendar changes to the month of December the Hams at North Fraser ARC become more excited as each day ticks down toward the ultimate festivities of the North Fraser ARC Xmas Party.  Held at an undisclosed location in a former DEW Line radar installation, secrecy is key as there is only room for the select few that make the mustard here at VE7NFR. No Peanut only operators here just tech savvy Amateurs on the cutting edge of "radio" operation; hams that boldly activate where few have activated before!

Our Christmas parties are legendary, in the past there have been appearances by Blondie, David Bowie, Van Halen and Bruce Springsteen.  It is tradition that members of the Nobel Laureate community let their hair down at North Fraser Xmas, discussions of quarks and leptons are common place as is the generosity of out President of Equipment Acquisitions VE7IOX.

Rumor has it that this year Dave will be passing out Kenwood P25 mode radios!  Well that is what most of the members have asked Santa for and Dave is the one that played Santa so you do the math.

Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year from North Fraser ARC