Random Wire 154: New AllScan device coming, the Holy Cluster, a Debian Blend for ham radio, and an AnyTone DMR radio.

October 24, 2025: I'm spending a lot of time in the hospital, so much of Random Wire #154 is not hands-on radio content, but that is not to say it isn't interesting!

A brief personal note

With my wife in the hospital, unable to swallow or speak or move, this is a very difficult time for us. The fundraiser put together by friends has helped offset some of the exceptional medical and transportation costs we’ve incurred.

I know you didn’t subscribe to the Random Wire newsletter to read about our medical issues. At the same time, some subscribers do want to have more connection with those who write the newsletters they read. I’m trying to balance these two points of view by offering brief glimpses into our personal situation while keeping the focus on radios and technology. I very much appreciate all the personal interactions from subscribers who have reached out to express their support. It helps and proves to me that each of us is dealing with something. This is the very definition of sonder:

“Sonder” Definition — noun. the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own — populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness — an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk. (via the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows)

I feel very fortunate to be part of a community of people interested in amateur radio and technology. It helps, particularly during difficult times.

Short Stack

HRO catalog published

The fall/winter 2025 catalog for Ham Radio Outlet is published online. The interactive version includes links to product pages where you can see pricing. I’m not shilling for a particular vendor, but HRO has treated me well in the past. From their page:

The redesigned Ham Radio Outlet Interactive Catalog is available. Inside you’ll discover the thousands of products we carry. With our new “interactive” version you can simply click on a product and we’ll take you to our website for more detailed information. You can also request a printed version of our catalog. Please fill out the request form at the bottom of this page and we will mail you our latest printed catalog as soon as possible.

New AllScan device

This one looks like the Swiss Army knife of all the AllScan devices: the AllScan URI160. David NR9V posted on October 18, 2025 about it: “The AllScan URI160 is now in production, finished units will be shipping in November.” With I/O formats including K-1 plugs, miniDIN, serial, and TRRS, this device should work with many radios. I’m looking forward to learning more about this new all-in-one solution.

ZimaBoard 2 mini NAS kit

I’ve bookmarked the ZimaBoard 2 mini NAS kit. It looks like an easy way to get into network-attached storage with open source software. The price for the kit (not including data drives) seems fairly reasonable at $349 (pre-order price).

The Holy Cluster

What is it? The Holy Cluster is a live map with real-time spots, smart filters, band colors, and alerts. They also have a CAT server so that you can connect your radio directly to the cluster.

The Holy Cluster is being developed by a group of Israeli amateur radio enthusiasts,
with the support of the Israeli Association of Radio Communication (IARC). We hope this platform will serve as a valuable tool for radio operators worldwide,
fostering collaboration and enhancing the global radio communication experience.

It looks like this:

Screenshot of The Holy Cluster

Video tutorial by VE9CF:

I first found the Holy Cluster information on Reddit.

Quantum radio antenna uses Rydberg states for sensitive, all-optical signal detection

This seems like a curious discovery: an antenna powered by laser light.

A team from the Faculty of Physics and the Center for Quantum Optical Technologies at the University of Warsaw has developed a new type of all-optical radio receiver based on the fundamental properties of Rydberg atoms. The new type of receiver is not only extremely sensitive, but also provides internal calibration, and the antenna itself is powered only by laser light.

Something Weird Is Happening to Earth’s Magnetic Field

As a geologist, this is both interesting and a bit concerning:

The weak spot in Earth’s magnetic field, a region over the South Atlantic where the field’s strength is significantly reduced compared to its surrounding area, has grown by an area nearly the size of the European continent over the past 11 years.

MIT finds traces of a lost world deep within planet Earth

And again, with my geology hat on…

Researchers have discovered chemical fingerprints of Earth’s earliest incarnation, preserved in ancient mantle rocks. A unique imbalance in potassium isotopes points to remnants of “proto Earth” material that survived the planet’s violent formation. The study suggests the original building blocks of Earth remain hidden beneath its surface, offering a direct glimpse into our planet’s ancient origins.

Debian Hamradio Pure Blend

While I was evaluating fiddling with different Linux distributions this week, I ran across something hitherto unknown to me: Debian Blends. Blends are packages of different softwares, selected for a particular interest. They have one for astronomy, one for science, and to my surprise, one for amateur radio: https://www.debian.org/blends/hamradio/

I installed the ham radio blend on a spare machine for a few hours to see what it looked it. Each software package is part of a metapackage, and each metapackage contains individual software applications. For example, the hamradio-datamodes metapackage includes applications like fldigi, js8call, and wsjtx.

Installing the hamradio blend looks like a great way to load up on amateur radio software on a Debian-based machine.

Updates

Zorin OS: I wasn’t the only one to install it

It turns out that the sunsetting of Windows 10 sparked a big increase in downloads of Zorin OS 18. The Zorin release was announced just in time to capture people migrating away from Windows 10. One report even called it the “ultimate alternative to Windows 11.”

As I noted in Random Wire 152, I installed Zorin OS 18 on a MacBook Air. So far, that has been a very comfortable decision.

Here’s what the desktop looks like on that machine: clean and uncluttered!

Zorin OS 18 desktop

I have not resolved the inability of the built-in Broadcom wifi chip to work under Zorin OS. I did try to install the correct Broadcom driver but that resulted in an error. It turns out that the installer is pinging an address that no longer works. The fix to remove the error was to point the installer to a GitHub repo that has the correct driver with the correct checksum.

To apply this fix, I ran the following command in the terminal:

sudo sed -i ‘s,https://www.lwfinger.com/b43-firmware/${DOWNLOAD},https://github.com/minios-linux/b43-firmware/releases/download/b43-firmware/${DOWNLOAD},g’ /var/lib/dpkg/info/firmware-b43-installer.postinst

After making this change, update and upgrade the package list with:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

This replacement URL points to a GitHub release mirror that hosts the required firmware files. Once the update is complete, the firmware-b43-installer package should install successfully…but it turns out that firmware-b43-installer is “already the newest version.” Nevertheless, I still can’t get the built-in chip to work. Instead, I’m using the Edimax N150 Wi-Fi 4 Nano USB Adapter (affiliate link) for $11.95. It worked without installing any special drivers. It’s a small device, very unobtrusive. I plug it in next to where the MagSafe power port is and don’t even notice it’s there except for the tiny blue LED that winks at me.

Pairing my Logi550 Bluetooth mouse was a snap. Easy peasy.

I also installed KeePass 2, my preferred password manager. (Directions for various Linux flavors at https://keepass.info/help/v2/setup.html#mono.) However, I keep my password file in OneDrive. I thought that would be a problem, but it’s relatively easy to access a OneDrive file from Zorin: go to Settings —> Online Accounts —> Microsoft 365 + OneDrive, then authenticate over a web browser. Boom, there were my files. When I found my password file, I right-clicked and specified that KeePass 2 open the file. I entered my master password and there were all of my logins, codes, combinations, etc.

My work email is available through a browser, as long as I go through the multi-factor authentication steps properly. With these things set up, I can now use the Zorin machine for work, if needed.

And I’m typing this section of the newsletter on the MacBook Air (the “ZorinBook”) just because I can.

One of the things that attracted me to Zorin OS is it is based on Ubuntu, one of the most popular Linux distributions. This means that a large community of users is available to help answer questions and that Ubuntu repositories should also work with Zorin. When I run sudo apt update, I get a list of 14 repositories, and 4 of those are Ubuntu repos. Good stuff.

My Mac Stack grew

I added one more Mac Mini with an i5 processor and 16 Gb of RAM to my stack of mini’s = the Mac Stack. That makes three. Each is running something different: macOS, Debian, and MX Linux. Away from the Stack, the MacBook Air is running Zorin OS 18 Pro.

I’m enjoying these platforms, despite not being able to get the internal Broadcom wifi chip to work in the flavors of Linux I’ve installed. I’ve enjoyed them so much I’m upping my game with two new acquisitions:

• I just purchased a 2020 16-inch MacBook Pro running macOS “Tahoe.” This device I’ll keep on macOS.

• For the desktop, I also pushed the button on an iMac 2020 All-in- One with an i9 CPU, 32 Gb of RAM, and a 27” Retina display. I expect to enjoy the display so much I may never want to move away from the desk again!

While digging around on the internet and thinking about how to utilize all the different PCs that I have, I ran across Ceph clusters.

Ceph makes it possible to decouple data from physical storage hardware using software abstraction layers, which provides unparalleled scaling and fault management capabilities…The main advantage of Ceph is that it provides interfaces for multiple storage types within a single cluster, eliminating the need for multiple storage solutions or any specialised hardware, thus reducing management overheads. Use cases for Ceph range from private cloud infrastructure (both hyper-converged and disaggregated) to big data analytics and rich media, or as an alternative to public cloud storage.

This looks interesting. What I think it means is I could dedicate a number of machines to storage, forming a Ceph cluster to provide a single resource for storage, and gain some fault tolerance, all without having to use costly cloud storage or building a single network attached storage (NAS) box. I need to learn more.

Meshtastic

I haven’t forgotten about radio while spending my days at the hospital. The hospital is in a neighborhood called Hilltop because it’s (wait for it) on a hill.

One thing I’ve done each day is park my pickup truck on the top (8th) floor of the parking garage so that my Meshtastic node will have the greatest reach. My truck is in the approximate center of the image below. You can see just the top of the cab poking above the 8th-floor barrier. I’m guessing that my node has been able to reach and relay a lot of Meshtastic traffic.

Running Meshtastic from the top of the parking garage

I don’t see the node on the MeshMap (https://meshmap.net/) even though I’ve enabled MQTT, GPS is enabled, and I approved posting the node location. I’ll figure that out later.

At the hospital

For radio while at the hospital, I’ve been able to use iaxRPT on my laptop via a Tailscale connection to one of my AllStar nodes at home. DroidStar on my Android phone and on the laptop also works. While I type this, I’m listening to the Kansas City Wide network on DroidStar on the laptop. The pizzanbeer.net build from May 2025 continues to work fine for me.

It’s also been awfully cold in the hospital room, so I bought my first ever electric vest.

Heated Vest with Battery Pack Included, Warming Polar Fleece Smart Heating Vests (affiliate link)

For $50, this was an affordable experiment. When I slipped it on, I was dismayed by how tight it was…until I found the expansion zippers on the sides. It is very comfortable with the zippers undone for a looser fit. I also bought a different brand vest and found that the second vest could only be used with the battery supplied with it, as it needs a special barrel connection to the battery (although I’m a ham, so I could certainly rig a USB-to-barrel adapter). The $50 vest uses normal USB power banks with a USB-A port, so I’m able to tuck a spare battery into my bag for all-day comfort. I have an old (1985) back injury, so the heat on my back is particularly welcome in the chilly fall weather we’re currently experiencing in the Pacific Northwest.

New DMR handheld radio

I want to get more involved with DMR radio (and I need another radio, right?!) so I ordered an Anytone AT-D878UVII Plus. The price was acceptable and overnight delivery is available. While I’m not a big fan of BridgeCom, the package is a good one. I’m very pleased that it includes the newer battery that can be recharged over a USB-C connection.

AnyTone AT-D878UVII Plus – Dual Band DMR/Analog 7W VHF, 6W UHF Handheld Radio w/FREE $97 Training Course – Bluetooth PTT, Digital/Analog APRS RX & TX - 500K Contacts Plus Great Support from BridgeCom! (affiliate link)

Our local Yaesu System Fusion repeater (W7NEE) is accessible via DMR and AllStarLink, so adding DMR to my Lake House kit (and to my suite of MMDVM hotspots) makes sense.

Based on my last foray into DMR, I’m pretty sure I’m going to need some help getting the codeplug set up right. We have a very active regional group—PNWDigital—and I have an amazing cousin (Greg AC7RX) who is part of PNWDigital, so I know I can get some help there. I also know that some of our local ham club members are quite knowledgeable, so I have good options for getting the radio set up right.

Antennas: we love them

I’m sure you’re like me in noticing antennas wherever you go. Most people probably don’t understand how we can find something special to say about an antenna farm. And when you see that rare vehicle festooned with dozens of antennas, it always elicits a reaction from radio amateurs—maybe a genuine grin of appreciation, maybe a more sardonic shake of the head, but always a reaction.

So it won’t come as a surprise that I had to look at the antenna at the hospital. It is on top of the first floor emergency room, but is blocked by buildings to the north and east. That location does not seem optimal, but then I wondered if maybe it is just for communicating with ambulances arriving at the emergency room. That could make sense.

Seems like a strange place for an antenna

Possibly, it’s really just used mainly for receiving signals from stations that are not blocked by the tall buildings around it.

I also note that the helipad is located nearby on a taller building, and obviously they wouldn’t want an obstruction sticking up that might be struck by aircraft. I suppose the location could work for aircraft approaching the hospital. In any case, the fact that it is located right over the top of the ER probably has bearing on why it is located in such an odd place. The location, within a few feet, is shown at https://maps.app.goo.gl/CzbSadezz8XDpHwE6 if you want to look for yourself.

Closing

This proved to be another “newsletter from the hospital,” meaning not much radio content as amateur radio inside the hospital isn’t particularly welcome. At best, it’s a bit disruptive.

I’ve missed participating in the weekly M17 net (every Saturday) because I’m spending my days in the hospital with my spouse.

It’s been a not-very-optimistic week, too, until a few days ago when the physical therapist got my wife into a chair. We were able to get her cleaned up and do some good therapy work with her. To be very honest, this is the first indication in a week that she might be able to recover—even in some small way—from her October 13th cerebral hemorrhage. Based on that, I’ll call it a good week.

I did learn something new as I was researching whether changes in blood pressure contributed to hemorrhagic strokes. In the Journal of the American Heart Association, I discovered “pulse pressure.”

Elevated Pulse Pressure and Recurrent Hemorrhagic Stroke Risk in Stroke With Cerebral Microbleeds or Intracerebral Hemorrhage

Essentially, pulse pressure is the calculated difference between systolic blood pressure (the first number when your blood pressure is measured) and diastolic blood pressure. If that calculated number trends upwards, it can signal increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke, according to the study. This was a new concept for me. I already knew that a high pulse rate may suggest a poor outcome, but I had not considered the difference between peak blood pressure and background pressure.

We don’t know what is written on tomorrow’s page, so there is no better time to tell people how you feel than right now. I extend a warm 73 to all. Remember to touch a radio every day!

https://www.qrz.com/db/kj7t