Tonight at 11PM, Shelley [KF7TBA] and LW [K7LWA] are hosting the nightly Insomniac-Net on the WINSystem (http://www.winsystem.org).
This Trivia-style Net has occurred every night for over the past 33 years.
Tonight's topic is about the 1960s TV phenomenon The Monkees.
Link to questions: Insomniac-Net Questions -- Friday[03], Jan 17, 2014 -- Tonight's Topic: "Mixed Bag of 3 Trivia Questions -- #02 -- The Monkees")
You are cordially invited to listen in on how this typical "Directed Net" is conducted.
A "directed net" is "directed" or "controlled" by a designated Net Controller.
The Net Contoller has a list of valid Amateur Operators(/Stations) who want to check in to give their trivia answers.
During the net, the Net Controller (LW [K7LWA]) will ask each Amateur Operator to check in -- one at a time -- with their answers.
The Net Controller does this by calling each Operator by their FCC-granted Call sign and waiting for a few seconds for the called Operator to respond with their check-in and answers.
If the Operator does or does not respond, then the Net Controller calls the next operator on this Check-in List until the end of the List is reached.
If the Net Controller cannot hear or understand a responding Operator clearly, s/he will ask for a "relay" from any Station who may have heard the transmission.
Tonight's Check-in List for example, has 168 Operators on it -- which should run about 90 minutes.
At the end of the regular Check-in List, the Net Controller will ask for any Late or Missed Operators to check in.
The format that is used for the Late or Missed Check-in is for the Operators to transmit their Call sign suffix phonetically twice.
For example, for LW [K7LWA] to check in with format, LW would "key up" (i.e., "push-to-talk") and transmit with "Lima Whiskey Alpha -- Lima Whiskey Alpha".
Usually after a couple of go-arounds, the Net Controller will ask for any Station -- Late, Missed or New (to the Net) Stations to check in.
After the last Check-in sequence, the Net Controller will give the Answers to the Trivia Questions and read the "Daily Quote".
Next, the Net Controller will ask for all Stations to refrain from transmitting for about 30 seconds of NO AUDIO -- for anybody who had connected to the WINSystem via internet/radio Nodes and wants to disconnect -- the Net Controller will ask for any questions about the Trivia Qs&As.
Finally, the Net Controller will thank all the Operators and Stations who gave the Network a free and clear frequency to run the Net and return the Net to its usual and normal status.
Typically, as on the WINSystem, this status allows all licensed Opeators (or Stations) to conduct Amateur Radio communications as granted by the FCC.
(NOTE: While the "On-Air" Net Controller is running check-ins on the Net, there are usually another two or three Net Controllers (behind the scenes) keeping the Network functioning and controlling "traffic" -- which may include jammers who try to disrupt the net or interfere with routine Amateur Radio Operations.)
The following instructions will show you how to listen in on tonight's Insomniac-Net via the internet.
With your web browser:1. Go to the WINSystem website http://www.winsystem.org
2. Click on the left sidebar named Streaming Audio
3. Copy the link on the Hub Audio (Cleaner Sound) Audio Stream of your choice
4. Open this link in your favorite audio program (e.g., WMP is shown below)
(NOTE; You will hear what is being heard on the WINSystem -- with about a 30-second delay -- including the occasional "doubling" of multiple stations transmitting simultaneously.)
