Q
Hello,
I have decided to buy one of your spy pen cameras but I also want you to supply a memory card
I can come to any place near Stockholm central station.
Regards
Meester
A
Hello Mr Meester,
I am sorry but I rarely go into Stockholm, which is many km South of me. You could use the telephone and tell me which of the following locations you may visit during the week. This week I will be travelling to:
Alternatively you could pay for the camera and postage, then I will send it to you by post.
I do not sell memory cards but you can buy these from almost any phone shop.
Very best regards from Harry
Q
Hi Harry Lythall,
I have visited your homepages frequently and I respect your knowledge and experience. I
especially liked the projects regarding radio control for models. It is about that project
that I write.
I am a moviemaker and I need to arrange a ON-OFF function so I can set off a detonator
for an explosive charge. Can you help me with a schematic drawing so I can set off the
charge by radio. If you can build the project I will gladly pay you well for your efforts.
I hope to hear from you soon Mr XYZ.
PS You can also call me on the telephone at 01 XXX XXXX.
A
Hello Mr XYZ,
It is interesting that you even expect a reply to such a question. You are probably a film
maker as you claim, but people can say anthing they want to, but it does not make it true.
There is no way will I ever help anyone to set of an explosive charge by radio, or any
other way.
Please do not pursue this or I shall have to pass this question over to my local police.
For all I know you could be a terrorist, disgruntled tax-payer, or just a plain old loonie.
Whatever you are, I shall take no chances.
Very best regards and best of luck with the film making.
Q
Hello mister Harry Lythall
This may be an unusual request, but I have been
a fan of your homepages for many years. I am very impressed with your wide
knowledge and experience and I would like my 14-year old son, Rittar, to
benefit from your tuition. He is very interested in radio and electronics
but has no friends or anyone who could become a "mentor" for him. Since he
will be on a 4-week holiday during July I would like him to come and stay
with you and your beautiful wife, Maj-Lis, in Sweden where he could benefit
from your expert guidance. I look forward to hearing from you.
Very best regards from Antonio
A
Hello Antonio,
I must say that I was very flattered by your letter. Your praise made me feel
quite "big headed"! Unfortunately I think that your suggestion would not
really be very practical for a few reasons:
I am very sorry Antonio, but the answer must be a firm NO. I hope you
understand. If we were close friends, not strangers and had known each other
for many years, and if we lived closer together then, we may have
been able to work something out.
Very best regards from Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Hello again Harry
My VHF rig has gone kaput and the local rig-doctor
wants loads-o-money to fix it. Can I send it to you, you fix it and
return it back to me?
BR from your friend Piper
A
Hi Piper,
Sorry, but it doesn't really make much economic sense. Your rig weighs several
kilograms, probably around 12Kg. Will YOU pay for it to be sent by post from
Canada, then again from Sweden back to Canada, plus my repair costs? I
think that your local shop may be a bit expensive, but his work is guaranteed
and still cheaper than sending the rig 1/2-way round the world - twice!
BR from Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Hello friend Harry
I have a large school project here that does not work
and so I have posted it to you for you to fix for me. I did e-mail you about
it last night but I have not received a reply from you, so I posted the
project to you anyway.
Your good pal Ckaptir
Q
Hello again Harry
About 6 months ago I sent you my project for you
to fix. Have you done anything with it? Is it fixed yet? I need it back
urgently so can you post the parcel back to me?
Regards Ckaptir
A
Hello Ckaptir,
I have not had the time to fix your homebrew project, but I never agreed to
do it in the first place! Send me the money for postage and I will return
your parcel.
BR Harry - SM0VPO
Q
But why do you need the money? You can afford it, surely!
Ckaptir
A
Hello Ckaptir,
I'm not (yet) a millionaire and the parcel is a few kilograms. Send me the
postage if you want the parcel back.
BR Harry - SM0VPO
Q
The money is in the post.
C
A
Hello Ckaptir,
Then so will your parcel, when I receive the money.
BR Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Harry
I tried to save a few pictures from your homepages and it called
me a thief. I will never ever visit your homepages again.
Annoyed
A
Hello Annoyed,
I know exactly how you feel. My own computer has many times called me
"invalid" and even
"corrupt"! I have, however, resisted the
urge to break something, and accepted that the programmer is not happy
for me to do that "something", for some reason.
Many servers (Angelfire, for example) do not allow "external linking" to files. All pictures and other files shall be accessed via an HTML file on that server. When you right-click and choose "save target to file" then it could look as if the file was downloaded from an external link. I have already had a new site on Angelfire closed down because of that.
Besides that, I am megga pissed-off with people copying MY work and
putting their own name to it, even though I have had a few "out of court"
cash settlements. Below are a some existing copies (at the time of
writing this article) that may be on my list for legal action. Note that I
do NOT give permission for anyone to copy any project for use on the web.
BR from Harry - SM0VPO
| http://www.cros.net/dougd/thunt/vhfdf.htm | VHF DF antenna |
| http://reverse-bias.org/icrx1.htm | IC Receiver |
| http://coulomb.raf.is/haukur/RS/fr/calc-is.html | Radio Calculators |
| http://media.iet.hist.no/el2/kjolefinner.htm | Radio Calculators |
| http://rn9aql.aiq.ru/antenna.htm | Colinear antenna |
| http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/special/crateant.html | Crate antenna |
| http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/wire/dipole1.html | Dipole antennas |
| http://www.krasnodar.online.ru/hamradio/ca.htm | Radio Calculators |
Q
Harry
That code you put on your pages wont stop noone copying nothing. I think it
is just iritating all the time and besides it caused me to get a virus so i had to
re-install windows again. I will probably copy all the projects on your pages
and sell them as my own. Besides that, they are all childish.
Arganought
A
Hello Arganought,
If you want to open a new window then "CTRL+N" will do it. If you have the
limited inteligence required to defeat the code then you do indeed have enough
knowledge to create your own homepage without copying. As regards the computer crashing,
are you still running an 8080 or the more modern 4MHz 80286? You cannot catch a virus
via computer if there is no virus there. If my projects are so childish, then why
would you want to copy them? If you wish to engage in more normal conversation then
I am always willing to receive your messages
BR Harry SM0VPO
Q
Dear Mr. Harry Lythall (sm0vpo)
I have got a nice project for you, i want to
detect low level signals from a few feet away. I know the signals are somewhere
in the low audioband, so if you can help me i can put a transducer on the front door
and tell when someone is calling on me by sencing the brain activity signals. Any
circuits will be credited to you if they are published.
Thanking you - Dick
A
Hello Dick,
I somehow do not think that the
idea will work very well. If you attach wires directly to someones head then you
would only see typically 15Hz to 30Hz at about 5uV to 10uV in adults. The amount
of signal power actually radiated is therefore just a minute fraction of this. Now
if you were to place a sleeping tablet on the door knocker and place a sign saying
"Please do not knock, simply swallow the tablet"
then when sleep overtakes your visitor, his electrical brain activity would typically
double and fall within a much narrower band (about 8Hz - "sleep spirals" or "sleep
spindles"). This would simplify the detection circuit from ridiculously stupid to
just plain impossible. Sorry Dick, but if the idea was sound then the US government,
for example, would have been monitoring peoples brain-patterns many years ago!
Regards from Harry SM0VPO
Q
Thank you for reserving the kit V4 for me. Sending cash is unacceptable. Can you
send the kit postförskott?
Staffan
A
Sorry Staffan, the kit price is only SEK40
within Sweden. Postförskott (COD) will cost an additional SEK50 for the service
and I would also need to open a post office account to receive the SEK40 ($3). I
rather think that 2x SEK20 notes in an envelope will be fine and cheaper for us
both.
Regards from Harry
Then you know what you can do with your damn kit!
Q
... and what's more I never received any of your e-mails, not until the fourth one ...
A
... and how did you know I sent four e-mails? I
never mentioned quantities in any of them!! ...
Q
Hello Harry,
Please find the enclosed V5 assembled kit
which was damaged in the post. I would be gratefull for a replacement ready-built
transmitter.
The fibre-glass PCB was folded in 1/2, but the polystyrene packaging was un-damaged! The damage to the PCB was not possible without damage to the packing or the envelope!
Q
... No, the envelope was not broken and it arrived,
but in the damaged state you saw.
It is quite obvious that the damage was deliberate, most probably by an upset "victim" of the project when used for eavesdropping. My projects are NOT intended for eavesdropping or other illegal activities. They are for education to give the enthusiastic some practical soldering experience in preparation for better projects.
Q
Hi Harry,
I
have managed to aquire the prestige e-mail address
sm0vpo@hotmail.com which you are probably very
interested in aquiring. I see that you have many visitors to your
homepages and ~acz732c@mail.telenordia.com is not
an easy address to remember. For only $25 I would be willing to sell you the
e-mail address.
Oh! Conner
A
Hello Oh! Conner,
Please feel free to hold the e-mail address for yourself; that means that I am not
in the least bit interested in it. E-mail takes me away from the workbench and the
less of it I get then the happier I am. I already have
harryvpo@hotmail.com and I
hope soon to have a messageboard to eliminate the need for posting any E-mail
address on the web. I may possibly consider taking the address off your
hands for a fee of $25, but if you do not use it then the unused address will become
available in 180 days anyway.
Very best regards Harry - SM0VPO
Q
... do I need to kill someone?
A
Dear sir,
Do you seriously expect me to answer that? If I were less polite I would tell
you exactly what to do, but I will tell you anyway - #4ck off!
Harry
Q
Hi again Harry,
Many thanks for your help. Now I have an E-Mail problem,
I have tried sending you a 1Mb BMP circuit diagram three times but I never
received a reply from you. I am getting kinda sick of sending it again
and again. Any ideas?
Regards Stewart
A
Hi Stewart,
I know exactly how you feel - I am getting kinda sick of
deleting it!
A 1M-byte picture in black/white GIF format will only be about 25K so
you are wasting your time on the telephone trying to send me a picture
in BMP format. That is the reason that I have a program to delete E-mail
before wasting my time downloading it. Any message greater than about
30K-bytes will always be deleted, unless I requested it.
Regards Harry.
Q
Hello mr Harry,
Thank you for the TDA7000 kit. It worked when i first
esembld it but my soldring is no too good. Some components kept coming
loos. My mom said that she fixed larmclocks by boiling them for 15 minuts
so i tried it. When i connect up now the batterie the ic gets hot so i
wonder if i have did anything dumb?
Please help me de Antonio.
A
Hello Antonia.
Er! Yes! You may say that you have done something a little
dumb - but you have earned a place in my FASQ pages. The TDA7000 IC is very
sensitive and did not like the temperature you used, the wet water didn't
help matters either. You may have damaged other components so my advice
is to throw it away. I am sending you another kit for free but I do not
do this for everyone. If you have any further problems then please drop
me a line before you do anything drastic. If you have problems then
I could build the kit for you.
Very best regards Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Hi Harry,
I want to buy your 4watt amp kit so i can boost the output of my CB
to 8watts. Will you also give info on how i connect it? Do you include the plugs
i need?
Hank
A
Hello Hank,
That's a new one! The 4-Watt amplifier circuit is for AF (that's Audio Frequency
or speech signals). The output of your CB-set is RF (that means Radio Frequency)
so the amplifier will not do what you want it to do. Secondly, you cannot use two
4-Watt signals to give you 8-Watts, it is a little more complicated than that.
Finally, an increase from 4-Watts to 8-Watts will only give you perhaps 25% more
range or a slightly stronger signal at the receiver. To increase your CB-set output
you should not consider anything less than about 5x the power. Many thanks for
visiting Harry's Homebrew Homepages.
Best regards Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Harry,
I urgently need a circuit for a BUG with 4 miles long range. Can you
make one for me or send me the circuit. Thank you.
Saile
A
Hello Saile,
You would be surprised how often I am asked this same question. Got a divorce
or something coming up? Sorry but I do not have the time to spend hours designing,
building and testing. I think I have already stated, all the circuits I have in
electronic format are on my homepage. Many thanks for visiting Harry's Homebrew
Homepages.
Best regards Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Hi Harry,
Great page. I got a copy of Protel-99 a pcb drafting program. Have
you got a crack for it so I can use autorouting? You can email it to me or put
it in the links so everyone can use it.
Lord Blood
A
Hello Lord,
I am sorry but I do not have any illegal programs or cracks, nor do I want any.
I have even bought my own legal copy of Windoze98 using real money. Should you
succeed in your quest for an illegal crack for the program then please keep it
to yourself. I draw circuits and PCBs using Microsoft Paintbrush, the one that
came with Windoze. It does everything I want it to do for ham-radio and at the
right price.
Very best regards from Harry
!Interesting, over the last 3 years I have had a few messages on this or similar subjects.)
Q
Hello Harry, my name is Trebor,
You have a great page, and it has been very
helpful with some of my projects. My latest project involves making an induction
furnace. Im using a coil of copper refrigeration tubing as my primary. I am then
cooling it with water running through it... i have been able to get things hot
using regular current comming out of the wall, but to melt metal, i need high
frequency alternating currents. the current that comes out of the wall in the US
is only 60Hz....i need all the way up to 60000Hz...the house voltage is 120v, or
if i use both hot wires, 240v. i cant just plug this into any oscilator circuit.
would you have any sugestions as to how i can achieve this? it would be a pretty
neet project, if i could do it,... then anyone could make, and cast their own
alloys.
Sincerely, Trebor
A
Hello Trebor,
You are not by any chance related to Ahmad (see below), are you?
Yes, it
could be pretty neat but I wonder if many radio amateurs have experience of
this sort of thing? Making metals melt is usually one of the things that radio
operators try to avoid, although we do not always succeed!
Sorry Trebor
but I cannot help you.
Very best regards from Harry
Q
Harry
You said you would not give away names, but there the hell did you get
these fake names from? Who could ever be called Rannug or Nairod? You
could have used a little more imagination
Trauts.
A
Hello Trauts,
Try reading those names backwards!
Regards Yrrah
Q
HELLO!
I AM INTERESTED TO PROMOTE SOME OF YOUR KITS.
SO, IF IT IS POSSIBLE, PLEASE SENT ME 2 CONSTRUCTIONAL KITS:
1.High power Wireless Mic Kit v5
2.TDA 7000 VHF FM RX Kit
at the followig address:
Blah blah blah etc ...
From Nairod
I get loads of such letters asking for free samples. Since I am NOT running a business I am not really interested in selling thousands of kits (orders are currently about 1 to 3 kits a month). So how do I tell this berk to politely go away and multiply? Talking money usually shuts people up a treat. I never heard anything from this guy after I sent:
A
Hello Nairod,
If you would like to place a guaranteed order for multiples
of 100x of any one kit with advance cash payment, then I could
produce them for you with at least 15% discount. The TDA7000
Receiver for example I could let you have for $12 each if
the order exceeded $1200. I regret however that I cannot give
away free samples since I do not really make a profit.
I look forward to hearing from you, possibly with discussions
towards a large contract.
Very best regards from Harry - SM0VPO
I occasionally get some really weird mail. Here is a dialogue between myself and Middle-Eastern gentleman whom I shall call Ahmad (but his real name is Saleh). He sent me about 26 letters asking me to design a 2000 watt HF generator so he could cure wood for a business idea he had. Here are a couple of extracts from our letters:
-----Message number 23-----
... and without this circuit i cannot make the business work. I urgently
neet the information you are supposed to give me ... (etc)
Regards Ahmad
... but I can only repeat that my homepages are about my hobby, Amateur
Radio. I do not spend hours designing circuits for other people unless I have
some vested interest in the subject. I have absolutely no interest in drying
wood and I do not intend to spend any time doing it. I apologise ...
Regards Harry
-----Message number 24-----
... and i pay my Internet payments so i am ENTITLED to this information.
I now DEMAND that you supply the circuits or else i will report you to the
internet authorities to ... (etc)
Ahmad
My homepages are voluntary and I also pay an Internet subscription.
No-one pays me for providing information on these pages and I receive no
payment for answering ridiculous letters. I have no obligation, legal or
moral to anyone for providing or advising on electronic matters ...
Harry Lythall
-----Message number 25-----
I AM TAKING STEPS TO SEE THAT YOU ARE SHUT DOWN AND THE SM0VPO
COMPANY CLOSED FOREVER. YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO SOCIETY AND YOU DO
NOT DESERVE TO HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET OR SHARE ANY OF THE
PROFIT FROM MONEY PEOPLE LIKE WE PAY YOU. I HAVE CONNECTIONS ...(etc)
I receive no money from your Internet connection. SM0VPO is not a company
but an Amateur Radio callsign. Please feel free to contact whom you
like with your complaints. I will not design ...
H Lythall, SM0VPO
There was one more letter with several more threats before this gentleman finaly gave up. At least he won a place on these pages!
Q
Hello again Harry,
I wonder if you remember me? I now live in Scunthorpe
but I met you in Saudi Arabia, Jeddah 1986. I am going for an interview
next month and I would like you to make a reference to me on your homepages
as though I am an authority on something technical. My prospective employer
I know is a radio amateur and he will be impressed by your homepages.
By
for now mate, drop you a line when I get the job - Stevie
A
Hi Stevie.
Certainly, anything to oblige. You will find a reference to
you in my Stupid Questions page. Hope you get the job.
Very best regards
Harry
Your participation has now been suspended because at least 6 recent messages
have been either bounced by your email system, or could not be delivered at
all. Please send the command "unhold" to cyril@a.spammer.com Note that if
your email address continues to reject mail your service will once again be
frozen. You may wish to contact the people concerned for your E-mail to
find out why your email address has been having trouble.
---For your information, a non-delivery report is included below:
Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah
(five more pages of) blah ...
This occurred because I started "bouncing" all SPAM back to the originator. I use a program called BSM18.EXE and you can find it on the net if you search for BSM18.ZIP or follow the anti-spam links on my index page. The above message was also "bounced" back to the originator.
Q
Hello Harry.
I like your homepages very much. Can you send me the circuit
of a UHF direction finding transmitter so that I can locate my model
aeroplane when it dissapears into the sunset?
A
Hi Fred,
I suggest that you write your name and address on one of the
wings and perhaps offer an unspecified reward to the finder. Besides that,
All the circuits I have in electronic format are on my homepages. Those
that are not in electronic format I am unable to send to you. Many thanks
for visiting Harry's Homebrew Homepages.
Best regards Harry - SM0VPO
Q
Hi OM
I have visited your homepages and I have found many of the projects
very interesting if not familiar! I seem to recall seeing some of your projects
previously published in hobby magazines. The article about cavity filters was
particularly familiar!! Have you thought to contact the original author for
permission to publish? If not then I suggest you do so if you are not to find
yourself in serious trouble. Copyright laws exist on most published works and
copying articles to the internet is no exception.
Sincerely yours xxxxxxx
A
Hi Mr xxxxxxx,
Yes, you will find that many of my articles are indeed
familar to you if you are active in your hobby. The resonant cavity was
published in Practical Wireless in the UK around January of 1998. I suggest
you look at the authors name on that article - a Mr Harry Lythall!
Most of my articles have been published in at least 50 club news-
letters and 30 periodical magazines. I have even translated half-a-dozen into
Swedish for publication here in Sweden. My latest is the 2-valve
7-watt HF transmitter (QTC November 1998). My articles have also been published
in Canada, Australia and the USA. They have even been translated into French
for publication in France and Belgium. I am the author of all but two of the
articles on my homepage and they were written some 50 years ago - credit is
also given to the original author (deceased). I hope that this sets your mind
at rest?
Best regards and thank you for visiting Harry's Homebrew Homepages.
Best 73s de Harry.
(He openeth his mouth and therein doth he place
his foot!
Q
I think your projects suck! Your QRP SWR/Wattmeter conversion cannot be accurate
in the VHF region as well as HF and you have even got the FWD and REF the
wrong way round. This is a simple mistake showing just how little you know.
Mr French
A
Hello Mr French,
Many thanks for your interesting E-mail. Doo miy mistaikz
bover yoo? If you think that mixing the FWD and REF terminals is a huge mistake
that could have serious consequences for the amateur constructor then I think
that you are insulting the intelect of the average constructor. I personally
do not even bother to mark my own meter since the largest reading is usually
the FWD and the smallest reading is usually the REF. Perhaps you also lack
practical experience? As regards accuracy, the meter will give a reasonable
indication, as described, well into the UHF region. How accurate do you want
it to be? Did you notice that it was based on a ready-made SWR meter that
is only intended for "indication only"?
Best 73s de Harry.
Have fun, de HARRY, Lunda, Sweden.
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