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zs2ok Alisterzs2ok Alister

Sending email to a VarAC user

What format does an email sent from the Internet have to use, or what is the minimum meta data it needs to contain, to be able to send an email to a VarAC user via a specific VarAC email gateway? Alternatively, is it possible to send an email from the Internet to a VarAC user without knowing which VarAC email gateway to use? In the above, I am assuming I know one or more email gateway to which the user will have access. The above process may be needed when you have never received an email via VarAC from that user.

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k4thr
k4thr
2 days ago

No specific format or metadata. When you select the vmail button and then click the email option in the dialog box, you are presented with standard email parameters. The recipient need not even be a ham. It can go to anyone with email. But you will need to connect to an email gateway ham who will in turn send the email in the regular/internet way. Why not send it yourself that way? Perhaps its because you are in an area that has experienced storm damage and the internet is not available. So send it to another ham who has internet and their station will automatically send it for you. Good luck. 73

bill.n3xlbill.n3xl

The backgound information on the MDC Digital EmComm Challenge is posted, in response to Doug Bas question, in the VarAC FM discussion group. If interested in participation, read that Announcement and use the attached Target Station List to hone your EmComm skills.

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w4bzmw4bzm

VarAC V13 AI Gateway

Each of us has his or her own opinions.  I’ll share mine at the risk of being “flamed”.  (Note:  I am an active member of Amateur Radio Emergency Service, but the discussion below is not an official ARES position, only my own.)


Bottom line:  I think the AI Gateway in Version 13 is a bad idea.


VarAC is becoming a good mode for EmComm.  In a “grid down” situation, where EmComm would likely be employed, VarAC has an advantage over Winlink in that VarAC allows a message sender to connect to a station which is known to be on the air (beaconing) rather than having to depend on a Winlink propagation forecast or resorting to hunt-and-try for a usable Winlink gateway.  ( Winlink propagation forecasts are useful when they can be updated via internet, but they rapidly become outdated and in a grid-down situation without Winlink VHF FM, the forecasts…


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irad d
irad d
Oct 30, 2025

Dear Mike,

Let me start with the bottom line — Ham radio and VarAC are hobbies, much like chess. If someone enjoys “doomsday practice” as a hobby, that’s perfectly fine. If another prefers playing chess with friends, that’s fine too. VarAC is not a business — and like any hobby, it doesn’t require a business plan.


Now, to your point:VarAC is not limited to 10 slots. You can QSY to any frequency you wish. You mentioned there’s no problem to solve, but I see it differently. Until now, there was no real way to browse the web via HF radio — and now there is. This opens up real EmComm use cases, such as accessing weather updates or news when completely off-grid. Most organized EmComm groups don’t use the VarAC CF anyway; they have their own designated frequencies.


I fully respect your opinion, but I simply don’t share it. VarAC was created first and foremost as a hobby, and only secondarily does it offer useful capabilities for EmComm. For example, I personally dislike packet radio — but I don’t consider it illegitimate. The same goes for RTTY. Different people enjoy different aspects of the hobby: some are drawn to RTTY, some to packet, some to chess, and some to AI.


And one last note: AI is here to stay. We all use it daily — every Google search already benefits from it. History has shown that opposing technological progress has never been an effective strategy.


I wish you many enjoyable hours with VarAC — and may you never truly need its EmComm capabilities.


Warm regards,

Irad

Edited
rottytoorottytoo

EmComm Checkin Req Button

We are an AuxComm/ARES group in Nassau County Florida and we've set up VarAC FM nodes across the entire county. Our mission is emergency comms without the use of repeaters, anything government and except for Email (Starlink and generators at 2 nodes), the internet.


We ran our first net as kind of a anything goes Broadcast check-in using a middle of the county node as a digipeater. It was a bit of a mess but proved the concept works and the coverage was where we wanted it to be.


My question is using EmComm mode with the Checkin Req button. Can we use a digipeater with this? I don't see anywhere to do this unless it uses the Beacon Digipeat Via field. It seems like a really neat tool but, if we can't get to the other side of the county, it wouldn't be of much use.


TNX,

Mike -…

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rottytoo
Oct 01, 2025

Answered my own question! Slick how it works!

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