Moderator Note: I had previously asked where this announcement would be most appropriate because the project has evolved considerably. It is no longer intended as a contest or one-time event, but rather as a year-round amateur radio operating activity. If another forum is a better fit, I'm happy to have this thread moved. Hi everyone, I've been working on a new amateur radio operating activity called Birthday QSO Party (BQP). The idea is simple: operators register their callsign and birthday, and during their Birthday Week (three days before through three days after their actual birthday) they can post their live operating status—frequency, band, and mode—so other hams can find them, wish them a happy birthday, and make a contact. The seven-day Birthday Week was chosen to accommodate time zones, work schedules, propagation, and other real-world factors that can make operating on one specific day difficult. Some of the features include: Free registration. Anyone can see who's celebrating and where they're operating—no registration is required just to make contacts. ADIF import support for popular logging programs, automatically identifying Birthday QSOs without manual re-entry. Privacy-conscious by design—only callsigns are shown publicly; names and locations are not. Confirmed Birthday QSOs are tracked for both the birthday operator and the well-wisher, with certificates and awards planned. The goal is simply to create another fun, year-round reason to get on the air, make contacts, and help celebrate fellow amateur radio operators around the world. If you'd like to learn more or participate, the site is: birthdayqsoparty.com I'd love to see more operators join in and help make birthdays on the air something the amateur radio community looks forward to. 73, Mark, VA3VBE
Birthday QSO Party update for those following along here in General Announcements. A few improvements have gone in recently, based on feedback from operators who've tried it out: - DMR and Echolink are now properly supported as their own modes - frequency is optional for these (a hotspot or internet-linked node doesn't always have one worth reporting), and there's a field for your Talkgroup, Reflector, or Node number so others know where to find you. - Automatic Birthday Week reminders - if you're registered, you'll now get an email 2 days and then 1 day before your Birthday Week begins, so it doesn't sneak up on you. - An optional weekly digest email, for anyone who wants a heads-up on who's celebrating each week without checking the site daily. birthdayqsoparty.com is still growing based on real operator feedback, so if you haven't checked it out yet, this is a good time to register - and if you have, thanks for helping shape it so far. 73, Mark, VA3VBE
A couple more small updates to Birthday QSO Party (birthdayqsoparty.com): - Home page now shows a "Recent Birthday QSOs" feed - a quick look at recent confirmed contacts, so you can see the activity happening. - Added a friendly heads-up if your entered frequency doesn't match your selected band (e.g. picking 20m but typing a 15m frequency) - just a nudge to double-check, doesn't block anything. As always, feedback welcome. 73, Mark, VA3VBE
Thank you very much. I finally worked on search optimization and hopefully word continues to get out and more users register. I'm following the "build it, and they will come" philosophy. Thanks again.
