Sat for my Radio Amateur exam in September 1983 and received my license a month later, having been an avid SWL (ShortWave Listener's Callsign SW1AAU). Made my 1st radio in 1967, when I was 12 years old.

I am very interested in SSTV (analogue and digital), PACTOR 1/2/3/4, ROBUST PACKET RADIO (RPR), PACKET RADIO, APRS and HF DIGITAL DATA MODES such as RTTY & AMTOR. Also interested in RADIO WAVES PROPAGATION, RADIO CONSTRUCTION, ANTENNAS and CW (sometimes).

SSTV

For analogue SSTV I used for many years a homemade 128 Line RAM SSTV converter by G3WCH and G4ENA of BATC with a Philips CCTV Camera, and my ZX-Spectrum home computer with G1FTU SSTV as an SSTV character generator. Later, in 1998 I used the GSH-PC SSTV System for DOS Computers with an ISA SSTV Card by DL4SAW.

From 2005 and onwards I use ChromaPIX by Silicon Pixels. It costs some money, but it receives the clearest and sharpest analogue SSTV pictures. Most free SSTV programs leave a lot to be desired, except perhaps for MMSSTV which is nearly as good as (well 90% as good as) ChromaPIX.

For DIGITAL SSTV I use my SCS P4dragon DR-7800 modem with Simple32Gold in PACTOR 3 or 4 mode. This  program shows you the DIGITAL SSTV picture being written 3 lines at a time as it is received ERROR FREE with Pactor 3 or 4, very similar to real SSTV where you see the picture line by line as it is being received. I think it is the only system that deserves to be called DIGITAL SSTV because you start seing the picture almost immediately. You could use Pactor 2 as well but it will be too slow.

Recently I discovered KG-STV, a new soundcard DIGITAL SSTV program and protocol, which uses a different encoding technique (MSK and 4LFSK that needs only 600 Hz bandwidth). This program splits each image in 16x16 pixel blocks and each image has 300 blocks. As you receive the transmission, each successfully received picture block is printed on your screen, in a similar way to normal SSTV. Even if you do not receive all the blocks and you loose the transmitting station due to bad Propagation, QRM, QSB etc, hence becoming unable to send him a BSR (Bad Segment Report), you still have a partial picture. For this reason I think KG-STV to be the best of all Soundcard DIGITAL SSTV programs/protocols and although userbase is small, it is increasing on 14,111KHz USB DIAL. The more popular EasyPAL has a very low success rate and you do not get a picture until you ask for an ERROR CORRECTION (BSR) after the end of transmission and then it all depends if the transmitting station can actually hear you to pick up your BSR request. BSR is a very crud and extremely slow ERROR CORRECTION technique and most of the time you end without any received picture at all. EasyPAL is based on DRM and it is not very successful on HF.

SSTV is the reason why I ever became a licensed Radio Amateur, having being introduced to it by Dinos SV1DB during the Radio and Electronics Exhibition ELECTRON-73 in Athens, when I was still only an SWL (ShortWave Listener with the callsign SW1AAU).

I am QRV quite often for Analogue SSTV QSOs on 14,230 KHz USB DIAL with ChromaPIX. For DIGITAL SSTV QSOs on 14109 KHz CF with Simple32 via PACTOR 3/4 or on 14,111 KHz USB DIAL with KG-STV.

Click http://www.qsl.net/sv1uy/sstv_rx.html to see the last 12 analogue SSTV pictures my YAESU FT-1000MP has received on 14,230 KHZ with ChromaPIX.

HF DIGITAL DATA MODES

For HF DATA MODES during my first steps I used to operate RTTY using an old SURPLUS TELEPRINTER (T41) from the American Army but a few months later a Sinclair ZX-81 home computer with G4IDE's RITTY RTTY program in an EPROM and a homemade Terminal Unit. Later I used the same hardware with my ZX-Spectrum home computer. After 1998 I made a new Terminal Unit designed by G3LIV in combination with G4BMK's DOS program that supports RTTY, AMTOR and PACTOR before PACTOR 2/3/4 where invented. G4BMK's program was running in an OLIVETTI QUADERNO A5 sized DOS netbook.

For PACTOR 2/3/4 and ROBUST PACKET RADIO (RPR), I use an SCS P4dragon DR-7800 modem and an SCS Tracker DSP/TNC (ROBUST PACKET RADIO & PACKET RADIO), but I still have a PTC-IIe, a PTC-II with DSP-II+2MB RAM and a PTC-IIex for when I am portable or on holiday. For other Soundcard Warrior's DATA modes and SSTV I use a microHam USB Interface III. The P4dragon, Tracker and microHAM interface are all connected ii parallel to my YAESU FT-1000MP HF Radio with a triple Y-cable. Antennas are a 2 turn BALCONY SQUARE LOOP with an auto ATU on my 4th floor veranda and a 5.5 meters tall vertical with an SGC-230 ATU on my roof.

I am usually QRV PACTOR on 14,109 KHZ Center Frequency (or 14,107.5 KHZ USB Dial Frequency with Mark 1600Hz / Space 1400Hz) for PACTOR 1/2/3/4 QSOS. When I am not in the shack my Pactor MBOX and/or my PACTOR BEACON is sometimes QRV on the same frequency. I use Simple32 Gold, the best Pactor terminal program, which includes a PACTOR MBOX, a PACTOR BEACON with Atomic Clock, an APRS like Map when someone else also uses Simple32 Atomic BEACON, etc.

PACKET RADIO

I am the operator of a full time AMPRnet GATEWAY system in Athens called ATHnet. This system had quite a few NODES around Athens and later all over Greece and it could connect via PACKET RADIO all the Radio Amateurs involved to other AMPRnet communities all over the World and more. Radio Amateurs could receive internet and AMPRnet e-mail in their PCs in realtime, they could have realtime QSOS using our CONVERSE BRIDGE or one to one personal QSOS with other Radio Amateurs, accessed minimal WEB Pages other Radio Amateurs had built, even played games, such as chess, etc, over PACKET RADIO. We used TCP/IP over AX25 and this system worked well for many. It even provided us with emergency communications in the 1999 Athens Earthquake when the telephone network had failed. Some of us even used PORTABLE PACKET RADIO with our HTs so when we went on holiday we were not without access to our Network and hence our e-mail etc. This system is still active by a few of us even today (we all use the URONode as an AMPRnet switch now) but very few Radio Amateurs use it now since Internet is much cheaper than buying a TNC and dedicating a VHF/UHF radio solely for this purpose and people have a tendency to compare AMATEUR PACKET RADIO with INTERNET all the time as if they were rivals. Even the D-Star guys never use DATA over their D-Star Nodes, just DIGITAL Voice and this DIGITAL Voice sounds terrible!  In my opinion, D-Star is not doing anything good for Amateur Radio, it is very good for ICOM's profits though!

Unfortunatelly we live in an era where money is all that counts, so everybody has QSYed to DMR these days! Oh yes I am on DMR too!

RADIO E-MAIL (via PACTOR)

I use Radio e-mail a lot via the Winlink2000 system utilising PACTOR 2/3 or 4 on HF. This is very useful when I am on my holidays or somewhere without an Internet feed. You can contact me on SV1UY @ WINLINK.ORG even when I walk on the mountains. I will receive your e-mail in my VX-8E HT via APRSlink when I walk or via HF PACTOR when I am sitting down and my HF Radio is QRV with my PTC-IIex modem. Mobile phones do not work on the mountains but APRS and HF PACTOR can work.

HF PORTABLE

I also operate HF Portable and HF Walking Portable when I hike on the mountains with my FT-817, my RACAL PRM-4031 or my FT-897D and sometimes I operate Portable Pactor using a PTC-IIex controller and my Winbook TW-800 running Windows 8.1. Listen for me on 14,340 KHZ SSB, CW (pse QRS) and on 14,109 KHZ Center Frequency for PACTOR 1/2/3 or AMTOR. I have even used my VC-H1 (Kenwood portable SSTV camera) connected to my FT-817 or TH-D7 for portable SSTV. When I am on the mountain I use my KENWOOD TH-D74 and/or YAESU VX-8 HT for APRS so you can check http://aprs.fi/sv1uy-7 to track me while I walk or to see where I am and where I have been recently.

APRS

I run the APRS IGATE (SV1UY-5) in ATHENS. I love operating APRS at home with my desktop. You can see me on http://aprs.fi/sv1uy-1 when I am at home and on http://aprs.fi/sv1uy-6 when I operate APRS with my Winbook TW-800. I also operate mobile APRS with my Kenwood TM-D710 in my car and you can track me or see where I have been driving recently on http://aprs.fi/sv1uy-9 . Of course I also operate portable APRS with my KENWOOD TH-D74, YAESU VX-8 HT or AP510 for APRS so you can check http://aprs.fi/sv1uy-7 to see where I am.

HF ROBUST PACKET & PACKET APRS

Now I operate ROBUST PACKET RADIO (RPR) and PACKET RADIO when I am not on PACTOR or SSTV. This takes place on 10147.30 USB DIAL for ROBUST PACKET RADIO (RPR) with 1500HZ TONES or PACKET RADIO (PR) with 2000HZ TONES using my FT1000MP HF radio! I use my SCS Tracker, P4dragon DR-7800 and microHAM interface with AGWPE for RPR and UZ7HO Soundmodem for PR. For more information on ROBUST PACKET RADIO see http://robust-packet.net .

GROUPS

Member of Radio Amateurs Association of Greece, Radio Amateur Association of Lefkas, G-QRP Club, AthensQRPNet, RPRnet and ATHnet.

FORUMS

YAHOO GROUPS

- E.P.R.G. (European Portable Radio Group) http://groups.yahoo.com/group/european-portable-radio-group/join

- pactor_packet http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pactor_packet/join

Also running 3 FACEBOOK groups as follows:

- PACTOR GROUP on FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/groups/pactor/

- APRS ON HF on FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/groups/aprs.on.hf/

- Hellas Radio Club on FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/groups/HellasRadioClub/

OTHER INTERESTS

Astronomy, Photography (Analogue and DIGITAL), VIDEO, mountaineering and cycling sometimes.

I hope to see you on the air soon!!!

73 de Demetre SV1UY