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 Subject :MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-12- 05:25:37 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL

Hello to those interested,


After waiting for about a year with all the equipment in my house, I finally decided to get my node up and running.

I have a stand alone WRT54G remote node currently up at 22ft in the city of Tamarac near the Intersections of Nob Hill Rd and McNab Rd.  For now, It's only transmitting the 19db that the Linksys router allows and have a 14dbi Rootenna directional facing East and a 14dbi TP Link omnidirectional up vertically. I am using a WRT54GS v2 as a primary operating node in my house and a couple spares to link with it and to in the coming days, learn more of what I can do with it.

I plan and want to do more with this and hoping by making the first move, I may find a few others willing to get involved with Submit this near me.  If nothing else, I would like to start finding other MESH operators, I especially hope to find some IT guys who are hams and have a better understanding of the operating systems that can reach out to for guidance. 

Feel free to contact me on this post, I had asked the webmaster for this and how it brings some from my general area into this so that we could possible work together in something which many hams don't seem to have the patience or understanding of it's potential...

Gary KI4WPI

Tamarac, FL



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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-15- 10:23:05 
N1TY
Member
Joined: 2012-11-18- 09:37:11
Posts: 5
Location
There are a couple of us who also have nodes up in Broward -- Tony KK4GUU and myself. There's also a node up on the John Knox Village tower, although I've had mixed results hitting that one even when nearby.
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 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-15- 10:35:47 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
I jumped in my car one night last week and drove to the John Knox site, as I was told there was a node up on there. I had no trouble pinging the Gold Coast club's wi-fi node without an external antenna from the west side of I-95, but with an external antenna, I couldn't even find the MESH node. Then again, I did update all my routers with the V.1 BBHN firmware before heading over there!! Is there anyone between Davie and me in Western Tamarac that has a node up which I might be able to hit? I do have a Someone in Plantation which who I'm thinking might be persuaded to put a node up at his place.. I am going to be setting up a Raspberry Pi on Asterisk and get a PBX line working by this weekend, as well I plan to make some changes to my node to increase it's output signal and perhaps raise the elevation a few more feet. If the 14dbi rootenna doesn't seem to be enough, I am planning to switch it out with a 30dbi directional and maybe try to find a secondary site on some elevation near me for the rootenna set-up.. Gary KI4WPI Tamarac, FL
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-15- 13:35:34 
N0LO
Member
Joined: 2011-07-05- 19:04:48
Posts: 2
Location: Pompano Beach, FL
John Knox is still a 4.3 node. I will update it next week. I may add a an 2 watt amp to if at the same time. N0LO
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 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-16- 23:21:03 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
Cool, Line of sight to John Knox is due east from me and I don't see anything taller than it in between, if I can hit that from my QTH, that will be a nice feat! I have a couple 1 watt amps on standby to increase if needed... KI4WPI
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-18- 05:35:33 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
I finally figure it out and have two Linksys SPA1001 fully working and very well through the Raspberry-Asterisk PBX server. These modules are great for hooking up to a fax machine through VoIP or using any landline phone into the mesh.. Setup was easy, these instructions were on the spot for this: http://www.voiptuto.com/?q=en/spa1001 One other note: You have to enable all nodes (check the box) for "Gateway Mesh" in "Basic Setup" for a remote node to connect it's VoIP phone to the PBX Mesh node.. Thank you to KF5JIM for his video tutorial that was linked in the VIOP (Asterisk/Pi) forum on this site. It wasn't spot on, but directed me where I needed to look for setting up the Linksys VoIP modules...
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-23- 03:11:16 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
Tyler, do you or Tony have a directional antenna up on some elevation? let me know. I might be able to get a node up 400' on the Palmetto Club's site in Aventura at some future time, I plan to ask the members of the club if they would be interested in this, which i think they might since it won't interfere with any of their current equipment up there and I could perhaps throw it on a solar panel to make it completely independent. Let me know if this sounds like a worthwhile project. Ralph, what do you think the feasibility is to link the John Knox node with a 400' site in Aventura? I'm just wondering that given the line of sight is straight through Downtown Ft Lauderdale if it might be a bit challenging with all that noise? Gary -KI4WPI
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-23- 06:49:41 
N0LO
Member
Joined: 2011-07-05- 19:04:48
Posts: 2
Location: Pompano Beach, FL

The hop may be difficult, the Broward Club may have a node at the 110 tower.  With a little bit of amplification and reconfiguration of the antenna that hop may be viable.  Your hop to downtown should be viable now it the 110 nodes exists.

Ralph


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 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-23- 12:29:39 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
That would be nice to learn if BARC has their node up and could make things easier getting people accessed along the eastern side of the county. Just a thought I've been kicking around: One thing that is good about where we are at, is that the entire western side of Broward, Palm Beach and part of Miami-Dade Counties are all Everglades and flat with no tall obstacles I'm thinking that there could be locations (i.e. Holiday park, Markham Park, Air Boat tour building by Loxahatchee Rd (who I know), and I'm sure a few other places which we can set up nodes on solar and battery backup. If we linked them along the open part of the Everglades from north to south, we wouldn't need much for height and the Fresnel zone would be minimal for that area.
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2013-08-23- 12:35:39 
KI4WPI
Member
Joined: 2012-09-16- 04:20:26
Posts: 19
Location: Tamarac, FL
One other location I had thought about, was seeing if we could do something along the FP&L right a ways where the high power lines are, given that they are open and flat for miles on end, there could be potential there in establishing directional nodes over distances easily. I am guessing that by using directional antennas, the power lines would be minimal in generating any noise interference..
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Gary Michalosky
KI4WPI
 Subject :Re:MESH node started in Broward County.. 2015-08-04- 21:49:34 
KF5JIM
Future Astronaut
Joined: 2013-07-17- 12:13:36
Posts: 250
Location: Nederland

Two things:
First, thanks for reviving a dead thread of two years old (less a few days).
Take a look at the left-hand side of the website and click on "Googlemapped Mesh Nodes" that should help you out.

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