#MARAC Chat Channel

Last Update: 08-28-2008 by W5UGD - HTML version by AD1C

One popular IRC ("Internet Relay Chat") client for Windows is mIRC

The IRC server is irc.superhosts.net and the chat channel is #MARAC

The #MARAC channel stats can be found at http://marac.superhosts.net/

Commands:

!sfi

Returns the current solar conditions from www.qrz.com/solar.html.

!marac <callsign>

Returns a callsign that is listed in the http://www.marac.org/ callsign database. Similar to the "ibot callsign <callsign>" command below

!marachelp

Sends you the latest version of this help file.

!maraclog

Sends you the full #MARAC channel log. This can be VERY LARGE.

!lotto

Gives you the next powerball numbers, as requested by Ray/WG6X. When you win, please share the wealth. We all need new radios.

!page <nickname>

Replace "<nickname>" with the callsign of someone and it will page them if they are around and have the page script setup.

!temp <zipcode>

Replace "<zipcode>" with any 5-digit ZIP code to see the current weather conditions there.

ibot callsign <callsign>

Replace "<callsign>" with a callsign of your choice. Returns information direct from http://www.qrz.com/.

Spots Info:

!getspots

This command by itself gives you a summary of !getspots usage options.

!getspots all

Sends the entire log. This will grow to be quite large as time goes on.

!getspots today

Sends the log of spots made since 00:00z of the day.

!getspots mm-dd-yyyy

This format is specific, you must enter the data correctly. To get the log for Feb 20, 2004, you would type:

!getspots 02-20-2004.

Please note that spots are only available dating back to 02-12-2004.

!last

This command by itself shows the very last spot posted to the channel

!last2, !last3, !last4, !last5

Displays the last two, three, four or five spots.

Another way to get the spots is to visit: http://www.n4jne.com/spots/

How to spot a county you hear running:

The format is:

spot: CALLSIGN County, ST frequency mode

Let's assume KC1NA is running Dawson MT on 14.336, SSB. To alert everyone to the run, you would type:

spot: KC1NA Dawson, MT

Notice there is no frequency or mode listed. There is no need to type the frequency or the mode of a mobile running on the 14.336 county hunter net since it is normal procedure for everyone running on 14.336 to use SSB.

If someone is running off the net, then please, spot them with the frequency and the mode. An example would be WG6X running Clayton, GA on 14.347 CW (an oddball case, yes), spot him like this:

spot: WG6X Clayton, GA 14.347 CW

If he was running on 14.347 phone instead of CW, you could use:

spot: WG6X Clayton, GA 14.347

Again, SSB and 14.336 is assumed if no mode or frequency is specified.

If you make a mistake in a spot, such as the county, frequency or call, please just respot it. You can include a comment that indicates it is a correction, for example:

spot: W5UGD Anderson, SC 14.347 CALL CORRECTION

Making TEST spots:

Please limit your spot tests to the following format so people don't misunderstand what is going on:

spot: TEST TEST TEST TEST TEST
spot: T3ST TEST, TS TEST
or some variation of that... use the word TEST at the very least.

If you require help, please feel free to email w5ugd@amicon.net