Originally Posted By Loadthis:


Hey gentlemen,

I'm currently studying to get my Technician license and started off scoring mid 50's on the practice tests. After a couple days reading I am up to 80%-90%. Next test in my area isn't til July so I've got plenty of time to prepare, may even go for the General. The study guides are great but I would like to learn more than just how to pass the test. There is a local club here that I'll be checking out soon.



I'm not quite sure how I want to start out, as far as equipment. I'm thinking a mobile setup would be best since I travel (and move) a lot.



My Dad (W6DX) has been urging me to get into Ham since I was a teenager and I am finally getting interested. I will talk to him this weekend and get his input. He may even have some gear I could try out before buying.



Thanks guys for the outstanding info here.

Originally Posted By wganz:


When does the current General test expire and is replaced with a new one?

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:




Ok –– checkpoint time –– who has made progress, and who needs help?



ar-jedi

Originally Posted By machinisttx:

I need an extra week to cram everything in so I can test for tech and general at the same time.  

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:





i will see what i can do.  no promises.  



ar-jedi

Originally Posted By machinisttx:


I'm pretty confident that I'll pass the tech test. Just took 14 or 15 practice tests on qrz.com and scored anywhere from 86-96%. I'll cram for the next couple of days and maybe I'll pass the general.
 

Originally Posted By KB7DX:
Keep up the good work guys! Take the General even if you think you are going to fail it. It will give you some insight on what the test consists of and doesn't cost you anything extra. Who knows..you may get an "easy" test.

Originally Posted By Macumazahn:
In!

Am general studying for extra.   Me needs a vanity call sign.

Originally Posted By SCWolverine:
have misplaced my General Study Guide (or my wife has hidden) back to searching!

Originally Posted By SCWolverine:
have misplaced my General Study Guide (or my wife has hidden) back to searching!

Originally Posted By SCWolverine:


found, sitting behind my laptop studying, again!

Originally Posted By Jax2Chl:
If you don't find your study guide, here is a link to one I used when I was studying for my upgrade that I found useful (and free).
The No-Nonsense General Class License Study Guide

Originally Posted By fatdoggie:
I passed my Technician and General Exams tonight.

Originally Posted By fatdoggie:

I studied an hour or so a day for the past week and I passed my Technician and General Exams tonight.

Originally Posted By fatdoggie:
+1





In addition to the guide, you might want to look online at diagrams for the Yagi, cubic-quad, and delta-loop antennas if you're not familiar with them.  Remembering the answers to those antenna questions are a lot easier if you can visualize the antenna.





I used this and the flash cards and practice tests from hamexam.com.  I studied an hour or so a day for the past week and I passed my Technician and General Exams tonight.
   

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:

CONGRATS!

ar-jedi

Originally Posted By JaxShooter:

Originally Posted By machinisttx:
Good deal. I've been studying about the same amount for several weeks. A lot of this stuff just doesn't "click" for me.
ETA: I'm curious about the software from hamexam.com. I'm reading through the info on their site and came across this:






I don't understand... The software doesn't already have the General and Extra portions in it? After "updating" can you go back through the tech or general stuff to review at a later date?





 

Originally Posted By BigDaddy0004:


Nice shootin', fatdoggie!  Congrats!  

Originally Posted By: W6DX
Hi Son––

Ohm's Law is one of the most powerful problem solving tools in electronics.  I am still to this day amazed at how many seemingly difficult problems can be solved using the simple math of Ohm's Law.

I never tried to memorize all the variations of Ohm's Law; I still use the following simple memory trick to remember the formula.

Think of a triangle, as below.



Note that the triangle has three letters in alphabetical order:   E is Electro-Motive Force––usually abbreviated EMF––which is measured in Volts.  I is the current in Amperes, and R is resistance in Ohms.  You now have a picture of Ohm's Law, and from this you can figure out the voltage, current, or resistance in a circuit if you know any two of the three.  Here's how––

To find which ever one you need when you have the other two, cover the unknown symbol with your finger and the relationship to the other two will still be visible.  For example, to find E when you know I and R, just cover the E with your finger and what's left showing is I R, which is read "I times R."  To find R if you know E and I, just cover the R and you're left with E over I (E divided by I).  And to find I, cover it and you're left with E over R.

That's all there is to it––you only have to remember to write E, I, and R, in a triangle, in alphabetical order, and you have Ohm's Law mastered.  That's not too hard is it?  In all honesty, if I'm working several Ohm's Law problems, I still sometimes scribble E I R on the paper in the shape of a triangle, just to remind myself how the law works.

For Power––All you have to remember is that that Power is Volts x Amps.  One Volt times one Amp equals one Watt.  Five Volts times 3 Amperes equals 15 Watts.  Using the symbols from Ohm's law, power equals EMF times current, or P = EI.  If you can remember that one equation, you can solve any power problem.  Let's try one:

   "How much power is dissipated in a 50 Ohm resistor when 2 Amperes flows through it?"

   Answer:  Power = Voltage x Current.  You already know the Current, so the simple way to answer this problem is just to use Ohms law to find the unknown voltage, then multiply the Voltage and the Current to get the power.  So we go back to Ohm's law:

       We know from our Ohm's Law triangle that E, the unknown Voltage, will be I x R, or  2 x 50, which is 100 Volts.  Now we can use the Power equation, P = EI  to solve for the Wattage:    

           P = 100 x 2    so    P = 200 Watts

     
   Actually, my physics friends would argue that you should always write the units and the unit equivalents, just to check your results––the units always have to be equal on both sides of an equation.  So in that respect, the following would be more descriptive:

       P(Watts) =  100 Volts x 2 Amps   so  P = 200 Volt●Amps    (the dot between Volt and Amps means "multiply" or "times," which is pronounced "Volt Amps").  And we know that a Volt●Amp is a Watt, and we were looking for P in Watts, so the units are the same and P = 200 Watts


   Another, more subtle way to solve the power problem is to substitute Ohm's law into the Power equation to make a new equation, like this:

       Power is Volts x Amps, so P = EI, but in this case we don't know E.

       But Ohm's Law tells what E is equal to.  We go back to the triangle, cover E with our finger, and see that E is I x R.  That means we can substitute I x R for E in our Power equation:

               P = EI    thus becomes  P = ( I x R) x I      which is     P = I x I x R

       We would usually write it this way:   P = I² R      where I² means "I squared."  So we do the math: P = 2 x 2 x 50   which equals 200 Watts.

       If you are given Resistance and Volts and asked to find the Power, you can go back to the triangle and see that current  is E/R, so substituting that for I in the power equation (P = EI )  gives this:

                                     
                         P = E ( E / R )    which is    P = E² / R

       Actually, you don't need to memorize P = I² R    or   P = E² / R because you can always derive them from Ohm's Law and the power equation.  At some point you will just remember it anyway, but for now just concentrate on learning Ohm's Law––the triangle version only, and the power equation.  All the other variations of the formulas (on the web page you listed below, for example) can be derived from the basic E=IR and P=EI.

       And although you don't need to worry about it right now, Ohm's Law works on AC as well as DC, it works at Radio Frequencies, it works in reactive circuits as well as resistive ones, and it can be used to solve some amazingly complex problems.

       You will also need to know how to figure the value of resistors in series and in parallel.  We can talk about that another time if you don't already know how to do it.

You now have all the tools you need to solve any Ohm's law problem and any power problem.  Just work with it a bit.  Hope this helps, son.

Dad

History lesson:

   *  The term Volt, the unit of Electromotive Force, is named for Count Alessandro Volta, an early Italian scientist (1745-1827).  Voltage is analogous to pressure, like water pressure or air pressure––it's a force.
   * The unit of current, the Ampere, is named for Andre-Marie Ampere, an early French physicist and mathematician (1775-1836).  Current is analogous to the quantity of water or air that flows past a given point.  It's actually calculated in a certain number of electrons moving past a fixed point per second.
   * The unit of resistance, the Ohm, is named for Georg Simon Ohm, a German physicist (1789-1854).  Resistance is a characteristic of all physical objects that opposes the flow of current.
   * The unit of Power, the Watt, is named for James Watt (1736-1819), a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer who improved the Newcomen steam engine and made it a practical source of power for the coming industrial revolution.  
   * Technically, Volt, Ohm, Ampere, and Watt should all be capitalized, since they are the names of real people.

Originally Posted By KB7DX:
ar-jedi. I offer my assistance in any way I can. This year, 2011 is my 20th year as a ham.

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:




machinisttx,

don't you have something to report?  

ar-jedi

Originally Posted By HankEllis:
The one liner to remember Ohms Law that was taught to me 30+ years ago in aircraft mechanics school.

"Stick the PIE in your EIR."

P
––––-
I x E

E
––––-
I x R

P = Power in Watts
I = Amps
E = Electromotive force in Volts
R = Resistance in Ohms

Take your thumb and cover the parameter you don't have and calculate from there. For example I have a 60w lightbulb plugged in a 12vdc circuit. What is the amperage? Cover I and the formula is P divided by E or 60 / 12 = 5 amps.

Worst case math is if you have say the values of Watts and Volts but want the know the Resistance. Here do two calculations. Taking that same 60w, 12vdc lightbulb we again do the P / E = I or 5 amps. Now cover the R and the formula is E divided by I or 12 / 5 = 2.4 ohms.

Doing two simple calculations saves having to remember and do those other squared and square root calculations.

The other thing from A&P school was a one-liner for the resistor color code. However it is now so politcally incorrect that even I will not repeat it on a public forum. Different time in 1977.

Originally Posted By KB7DX:

Thank you, well said. I sometimes have a hard time with wordz.
IM me the offending phrase please...

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:

same here, April 1991.

ar-jedi

Originally Posted By Loadthis:


Congrats machinisttx,



I was hoping to test tomorrow but I got stuck in VA an extra day. I plan on driving 2 hours each way on Wednesday to test at another club.

Then I need to find me a radio



For the skeptics -  I've only been studying for about a week and a half and am scoring 100's on the Tech practice exams and between 85-100 on General.  - you can do it.

Originally Posted By Molon-Labe:
Thanks for posting this. I've been wanting to get into ham radio for a while now, and have been a bit overwhelmed at how to proceed. Hopefully going through this thread will help with that.

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:

poor Violet...  

here is a compendium...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_electronic_color_code_mnemonics

ar-jedi

Originally Posted By JoeRedman:
AR-Jedi....sign me up. It's about time I finished this up

Originally Posted By ar-jedi:





does that mean you are signed up?  



ar-jedi

Originally Posted By Molon-Labe:

Not yet. But I plan to.