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Remco Radiocraft Crystal Radio

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Remco Radiocraft Crystal RadioSeen in the 2023 Northeast HamXposition flea market: a Remco Radiocraft crystal radio.
 
” . . . Many youthful experimenters started their radio involvement with one of these. Made by Remco Industries of Newark, New Jersey. Remco was one of the larger toy manufacturers in the 1950s and 60s but sought bankruptcy protection in 1971 and faded from the scene soon after. Its products included a number of scientific toys. This Remco Radiocraft is actually a crystal radio with a permeable coil for tuning and a single transistor as audio amplifier.” -Boat Anchor Pix

VE2DX Electronics Featured in Canada Ventures

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Richard Desaulniers, VE2DX, of VE2DX Electronics, one of the 2023 Northeast HamXposition vendors, was prominently featured in Canada Startup and Venture News, in an article entitled “Which Quebec Electronics Startups are Influencing Canada’s Tech Industry in 2023?” 

“Today’s article is all about Canadian innovation, as we spotlight some of the most exciting startups in the province of Quebec. Concentrating on the electronics industry, these companies are at the forefront of technological advancements, from AI developments to urban air mobility. Dive in to discover 15 remarkable Canadian startups making waves in the electronics world.

“These startups are not just technologically impressive – they’re also diverse in their fields of focus. Covering sectors like cannabis, audio, health care, electric vehicles, water purification, and more, these emerging companies underscore how technology has truly diffused into every facet of life and industry. Feast your eyes on the future, unfolding right now in Quebec.”

[Full story]

Enigma Expert Tom Perera, W1TP, Featured on RATPAC

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Prof. Tom Perera, W1TP, a regular presenter at the Northeast HamXpositions, recently gave a talk at a Radio Amateur Training and Activities Committee (RATPAC) session, “Inside ENIGMA—Cracking the WWII Enigma Codes.”
The German military used Enigma cipher machines to encode and decode all of their important communications. The breaking of these Enigma codes is credited with shortening the war by two years, saving thousands of lives, and perhaps keeping Hitler from developing the Atomic bomb. This talk will explain in detail how the Enigma works and trace the fascinating history of the cracking of the Enigma Codes. The Real Story behind the “Imitation Game” movie will be explained.
 
Tom Perera has been a ham for over 70 years. He is a retired professor of neuroscience who specialized in research on the coding of information in the human brain and nervous system. He has been hunting for, collecting, researching, restoring and writing about Enigmas and their history for over 40 years. He located, restored and sold the Enigmas that star in the “Imitation Game” and “Snowden.” He provides extensive Enigma information through his Enigma book, his lectures and his website: www.EnigmaMuseum.com
 
A recording of Tom’s presentation can be viewed at https://t.co/TZoZiOZncY.
 
Thanks, Barnstable ARC Facebook page

Convention Theme

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Photo of youths making things at HamXpositionSome have suggested that we come up with a theme for the 2024 Northeast HamXposition.

One person has proposed “The Amateur Radio Maker Space” or “Ham Radio Makers” or “Radio Operators and Makers.”

Are you an amateur who loves to make your own gear? Would you like to see a maker-related theme for the convention? Let us know what you think!

Friday Programming

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The results of the 2022 survey indicated that Friday attendance was poor, in part, because people felt there was little of interest offered.

What a difference a year can make! We now officially start the outdoor flea market on Friday at 12 noon. (In previous years, it officially started on Saturday morning, even though folks showed up Friday to sell their wares.)

In addition, we’ve “beefed up” the Friday programming substantially. This year we featured a whopping six indoor workshops and talks! The big draws included the nanoVNA and MESH Node Kit Build workshops. We hope to feature even more next year.

A Good Value? Yes!

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“You should compare attendance, ticket price, etc. with other conventions. HamXposition is pretty small. Do we present a good value?”

In fact, we do present a good value.  According to the chart, below, comparing pricing for the major national hamfests and conventions:

Some footnotes:

  • Northeast HamXposition: Youth 16 and under free admission
  • SEA-PAC charges $5 for badge holders
  • Huntsville: Youth under 12 free admission
  • Hamcation: 2023 price listed
  • Friedrichshafen: Youth 6-14 and special categories—admission $24;  under 6, free admission

(data courtesy K1NKR)

 

Obstructed Signage at Hotel Entrance

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Entrance to hotelOne issue that has come up repeatedly is the overgrown foliage blocking the sign at the entrance to the Best Western Hotel entrance off Boston Post Road (U.S. 20).

We’re painfully aware of this problem and so is the hotel. Unfortunately, the trees are situated on an adjacent property over which the hotel has no control.

This year, we compounded the problem by not having a “HamXposition” sign or banner at ground level to help signal folks that they had arrived. We’ll try to rectify this situation next year.

Retain More Information from the Previous Year

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“I think the general information, vendors, site structure and schedules for this year should remain up or available by a link until you are ready to change over the site to 2024. I think it would be handy for people to see content and not just a stripped down single page that doesn’t give a flavor of what the convention is about.”

Great minds think alike. We talked about this among the committee members and we agree with you. We will keep the entire schedule of talks from the previous year online and available for viewing. We are also making significant enhancements to our website to make it more interesting and attractive in between the conventions.

More Publicity

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One attendee writes:

“I attended flea at MIT the week before – did not see anything related to HamXposition next week there. May be you need a bit more publicity?”

You’re absolutely correct! This year, we’ve launched a new subcommittee to deal with Marketing and Promotion. Stay tuned for lots more publicity about the 2024 HamXposition.