Looking at my logbook it seems that I took most of 2019 as a break from this radio hobby. I suspect this is due to the number of FT8 contacts I made in 2018 (622 total according to my logs) and likely just feeling burned out on doing the same thing over and over again. Contrast that to the 9 contacts I made in 2019 and draw your own conclusion.
So with the current Covid19 craze, sheltering at home, and avoiding the insanely high pollen counts in GA (to which I am highly allergic to one of (I think the Oak trees)) I have been holed up in the basement and playing a bit of radio.
In the last couple of days I’ve made 60 FT8 contacts (many on the 10m/6m band openings) while also playing with DMR. I ordered and received a Anytone AT-D878UV to play with. My TYT MD380 was a bit limited with regards to some of the newer features like contact lists, GPS and APRS stuff that I enjoy messing with. So far the radio is working out well.
I’ve also been reviewing my radio desk and how things are setup. The way my shelf unit is built doesn’t allow me to use a larger monitor, which I would very much like to do. I’ve temporarily added a second monitor on the desk to give me more screen real estate, but that won’t last for long. I think I’ve got a feasible plan that doesn’t require rebuilding everything. We’ll see…