Inside ARDC: Bdale KB0G on Funding the Future of Ham Radio

You opened the door by commenting about "open source," OM.

 

I did indeed: that is the main premise of ARDC, which KB0G heads, The fact that it is not made clear in this presentation called for this fact to be made obvious.

How one absorbs/supports/ disagrees with that approach is up to the individual ham.

Amateur radio is a human endeavor defined by an operating license to transmit. As a human endeavor, people choose how they want conduct their efforts in amateur radio. There is nothing intrinsic to amateur radio that defines and constrains it to 'open source'.

73
Chip W1YW

 

Where did I say that? Don't twist my words.

My point was that in the 'cover photo' for the video the man looks 'thuggish'. Not nice. Not inviting. Watching the video, he doesn't even look like the same person.

'Not nice'. I remember someone () once told me "...lead with nice..."

 

Please go offer your command-and-control services to ARRL as they learn how to load mercury with a pitchfork.

 

Ok, back to topics actually covered in the interview...

Bdale covered the actual financial management of running such a charitable organization. Did everyone get it when he said: maintaining the endowment is the survival of the organization. The IRS demands 5% disbursement each year from the charity, vs the need to grow the capital, vs the purchasing power of the grant dollars after some years of inflation.

Fortunately all of the ARDC is "unencumbered" so can be spent on any grant.

Not so for ARRL, or Harvard, for example; their complex encumberments means some money can only be spent on certain things. Those things may be fully funded but other organizational needs and goals are lacking.

This is all conventional advice but important to understand.

Ok, pop quiz: which organization has the least % overhead for management, vs total disbursed? Best in the world is SSA, at 1%. That's efficient! Followed closely by the Catholic Church, I believe. Check the IRS Form 990 of every charity before you donate.

 

https://www.facesofopensource.com/bdale-garbee-2/
Here is where you can find that photo on the Internet.

 

I have no idea what this means. But it certainly has no relevance to the thread. Perhaps you can send me a PM instead.

Thanks.

 

No. "Lead with friendly".

Maybe the stern look is an open source thing. I dunno. But as Zack points out, the photo is from an'open source' advocacy web site. And BDale is listed as an "evangelist" for open source.

Anyway, doesn't mean anything to me. Maybe to others.

73
Chip W1YW
"Commander and Controller"
"Chief Space Cadet"

 

The jury is instructed to forget the above red herring and slanderous attempt to derail the conversation.

 

Imaging. First impressions. First thing that came to mind was the 1984 themed ad for Apple in the last century with the face on the screen. Just sayin'. Interest piqued by the replies and I'll delve into something new I had not heard of. Hat's off to QRZ for the continuing updates on interesting stuff and events.

 

Ah, KA9Q NOS, JNOS, and... Bdale's Mailer! Back in 1992 or thereabouts I set up a 2m TCP/IP network in the county. We had POP3 mail, and a couple other protocols that my brain has faded on. It was a special time where 2m packet met the future internet, back when most had no idea where it would go, and never thought ver 4 Ip addresses would become valuable. I tried (and failed) to build a 440 backbone to TN Tech university. Bdale, if you're watching... do I still have a block of 44 subdomains allocated that I can use (under my former call, KA8OKH)?
Anyway, fun times. Thanks, Bdale for your contributions... Rich

 

Just pointing this out but the picture look like we just had a ham radio murder case.

 

POODLE FIGHT!!! POODLE FIGHT!!!

 

The answer to that question might best be found through portal.ampr.org, the current user interface for managing allocations.

 

Hi all—Kevin W1DED here. Appreciate all the (let’s call it…spirited?) feedback about the thumbnail photo of Bdale! Just to clarify: I personally pick the images for these interviews. Honestly, it’s really tough to find professional, high-res photography in ham radio—and when I found this fantastic portrait (which also appears on Faces of Open Source, so I assumed it’s an approved image), I jumped at the chance. It wasn’t meant to look stern or intimidating—just a strong, recognizable image to spotlight a great conversation. Thanks for watching the interview itself—that’s where Bdale’s voice and personality really shine. 73