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RadioWiki · written by members

What do you want to learn?

Plain-language guides for GMRS, ham, Meshtastic and MeshCore - written and kept current by the people who actually run the gear.

31 articles·2 contributors this month·3 edits this week

Start here

Step-by-step paths. Pick one and we’ll keep your place.
gmrs4 steps · ~1 hr
Get your GMRS licence and make your first call

No test. $35, ten years, covers your whole family.

  1. 1What GMRS is (and isn't)
  2. 2Apply for your GMRS licence on the FCC ULS
  3. 3Pick your first GMRS radio
  4. 4Find an open repeater near you
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HAM5 steps · ~20 min
Your first repeater check-in

From nervous to natural. Includes the exact words.

  1. 1Listen first: what a net sounds like
  2. 2Program the repeater: offset and tone
  3. 3The check-in script
  4. 4What to do when nobody answers
  5. 5Join tonight's net
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meshtastic6 steps · ~2 hr
Build your first Meshtastic node

Board, flash, channel, first message, then a solar router.

  1. 1Which board? Three good answers
  2. 2Flash it in the browser
  3. 3Set your region and join a channel
  4. 4Send your first message
  5. 5Pair your node to ChatterBack
  6. 6Go solar: the power budget
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meshcore4 steps · ~45 min
Get on MeshCore

Companion first, then the repeater your town is missing.

  1. 1What MeshCore is (and how it differs from Meshtastic)
  2. 2Flash a companion and connect the app
  3. 3Adverts, contacts and your first message
  4. 4Stand up a repeater or a room server
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5 steps · ~45 min
Be useful when the weather turns

Spotter training, net discipline, the emcomm alphabet, and a family plan that works without the phones.

  1. 1Become a SKYWARN spotter
  2. 2What to say on a weather net
  3. 3EmComm 101: ARES, RACES, AUXCOMM, CERT, REACT
  4. 4GMRS when the power's out
  5. 5Mesh in a grid-down
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Tools

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Recently improved

What changed, not just what’s new.
MeshCoremeshcoreUsing the Tulsa weather bot on MeshCoreStep by step: add the #tulwx channel, find the T&T WX BOT in your contacts, and every command it answers - forecasts, river gauges, fire and air quality, and mail for radios that are switched off.Lee Odom · 6d · 8 minMeshCoremeshcoreMeshCore Observer HowTo:Step-by-step how to get an observer node reporting to corescope.tulsa-mesh.comSean Widdows · 3w · new pageGMRSgmrsApply for your GMRS licence on the FCC ULSFifteen minutes on a clunky government website. Here's every click.Lee Odom · 3w · first draftOff-grid powermeshtasticGo solar: the power budgetHow much panel and battery a rooftop node really needs to make it through a winter.Lee Odom · 3w · first draftHam radioHAMWork the ISSThe space station is a repeater you can reach with a handheld. What that actually means, and how to make your first contact through it.Lee Odom · 3w · first draftMeshCoremeshcoreWhat MeshCore is (and how it differs from Meshtastic)Roles instead of a free-for-all: companions, repeaters, room servers - and why only repeaters relay.Lee Odom · 3w · first draft

Needs a hand

Stubs and pages members have flagged.
State pagesHAMStubOklahoma 2 m band planRepeater pairs, simplex calling frequency and coordination in Oklahoma.4w · if you know this, it's yours