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Why You Might Want To Set Up Your Raspberry Pi Internet Web Server on 44Net

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  I had a big problem with my blog. Since it’s hosted on Blogger, there were issues with Google and Bing indexing it. I must have spent nearly two weeks trying to figure out why search engines were having trouble with redirects and couldn’t index the site. After some research, I found out this is a common problem with Blogger. So, I decided it was time to set up my own web server. That way, I’d have full control over everything—from which content management system and plug-ins I use to how the site is hosted. I had a spare Raspberry Pi sitting around that I could use, since my site doesn’t get a lot of traffic. All I needed was a static, internet-addressable IP address. But those are generally hard to come by without an expensive business-class internet connection. As hams, we have access to millions of IPs for free, thanks to some forward-thinking operators from the 1980s via 44Net. Here’s a link to an article and a short video on the history of 44Net: https://www.ardc.net/ardc-ki...
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Why You Should Use SSH Keys Instead of Passwords on Your Raspberry Pi

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  If you’re running a Raspberry Pi that’s reachable from the Internet — such as through 44Net, or any public-facing IP — security should be your top priority. One of the most important steps you can take is to disable password logins and use SSH keys instead. Why Passwords Are a Problem Password authentication over SSH might feel convenient, but it’s one of the biggest security weaknesses for exposed systems:      • Brute-force attacks — Bots continuously scan IPv4 and IPv6 ranges trying common usernames like pi, admin, or ubuntu.      • Leaked credentials — If you’ve reused a password elsewhere and that service gets breached,             attackers can easily try it against your Pi.      • Keylogging and phishing — Passwords can be intercepted if you log in from an insecure machine or network. Even strong passwords can’t match the security of asymmetric cryptography used by SSH key pairs. What SSH...
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A Non-Programmers Guide on How To Use AI to Write Your Own Custom Ham Radio Computer Applications

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  These days you can’t get away from the Artificial Intelligence (AI) hype, it is unavoidable.  Supposedly it can do anything and everything with no limitations. But beyond the marketing, there is a lot that AI can do to help make your life easier. I’m going to walk you through how you can utilize AI for ham radio applications.  It is a great way to solve problems and create software for your projects, even if you are not a programmer.  I think the best way to show you how to use an AI Large Language Model (LLM) is to run through the prompts I used on a project for remote station temperature monitoring. I needed a way to get sensor readings from an external sensing board on a Raspberry Pi for display on a computer data dashboard.  I decided I wanted a script that could collect the readings every few minutes and transmit them to a second computer that served up all the dashboards for the station.  Some call this a “single pane of glass” since you can go to...
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Internet Remote Software Defined Radio (SDR) Receivers – A Starter Guide

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  What do you do when you are stuck in an apartment, condo or HOA and you want to experience what HF is all about?  You can try to hide a wire antenna and use a low cost SDR dongle like the RTL-SDR but your experience is going to be very limited in what you will be able to hear.   The best solution (and it is free as well) is to use a remote internet SDR receiver. Here are a couple of sites you can go to get started: WebSDR.org: A directory of receivers around the globe, usually accessible with nothing more than a browser. These are often university or club stations that welcome public use. KiwiSDR Network: Shows active KiwiSDRs on a map. These small receivers are deployed by individuals and groups worldwide and often cover 0–30 MHz. Let’s use KiwiSDR as an example of how to operate a remote SDR.  If you go to rx.linkfanel.net on your web browser, you will see a screen like the one below. Listed here all the receivers that are available worldwide as well as an...
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Automated Server Failover for Remote Stations

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  Overview Here's a cool trick for anyone with a remote station that wants to have an automated computer failover. This router setup will allow you to have multiple redundant computers on site and if one fails, your remote users will automatically be sent to the backup machine.  When the primary comes back online, users are sent back there.  Any failures can be emailed to you from the router, so you can troubleshoot. What you need 2 computers - can be Windows, Linux (Raspberry Pi, etc) or Mac Mikrotik Router - In my case I'm using the hAP ac3 - which goes for about $110 on Amazon Step By Step Setup (using the Mikrotik Web Gui or Winbox) - this is the IP you give to your users 1. Add a Virtual Service IP This is the “VIP” your LAN clients will always use (e.g. 192.168.1.100 ).     A.  Open IP → Addresses     B. Click Add New           •   Address: 192.168.1.100/24          •...
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How To Set Up Your Own Remote Station

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  I’m going to share with you an inexpensive way you can control your station from a web browser on your home network.  This is the first step in setting up a remote station for yourself.  Once you have the radio  working locally, you can explore more advanced access solutions like Tailscale or Zerotier VPNs for operation outside of your home network. I found a great free program to remote control radios from F4HTB called “Universal_HamRadio_Remote_HTML5”.  Here is a link to his Github with more information - https://github.com/F4HTB/Universal_HamRadio_Remote_HTML5. Since there are a lot of steps to setting it up manually, I have put together a script that will do a large portion of the work for you.  I have tested the script with an Icom IC-705 and Yaesu FTDX10 utilizing both radio soundcards so there is no need to construct the hardware interface for these radios that he mentions.  The difference between the two radios is which version of Hamlib is...
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