Hello Team!

First, thanks for being part of a growing community! We are rapidly approaching 1,000 members here on Locals! That means that close to 20% of the AmCon network is here...and it has happened very quickly!

Here are the channels AHRN uses to communicate and what they're used for:
Locals: Community building and long-form, long-lived content
Ham Radio: Local and long-distance voice and digital traffic
Signal: Daily chat and collaboration
Zello: Training in radio communications
YouTube: Livestream nets, training and updates
Skype: Teams collaboration and training
Website & Wiki: Repository for guidelines, best practices & documentation

A lot of our members are new to ham radio and/or many of the apps we've cobbled together to facilitate communication as well as when and what they're used for. So I thought it would be a good idea to catalog the various channels we're using.

Locals (obviously)
Locals is our home base for announcements and long-form content. We also anticipate locals becoming the hub for our training content.

Signal (AmCon Ham Radio Network)
Signal is an end-to-end encrypted text messaging system. If you've ever been in a group text, Signal will feel very familiar to you. The AmCon Ham Radio Network channel is VERY active all day long and is used as an open chat thread that we "try" to keep on ham radio topics. MORE on Signal below.

Zello (AHRN)
Zello is a push-to-talk and chat app that we use each Wednesday night to hold a practice net. This gives us the ability to practice net operations without having to worry about propagation! A number of local AmCon groups have also setup talk groups for their group. Search Zello for "AmCon" to find most of them or ask on the Signal AHRN channel.

"The Wiki" aka The SOI (www.amconham.net/wiki)
This is the encyclopedia of AHRN. As we develop operating procedures, recommended equipment lists, and the like they are stored on the wiki. There is already a lot of valuable information there and it continues to grow every day. To get access to the wiki, you'll need to opt-in to our email list first.

And of course we have the HF Voice and HF Digital nets on Sunday night. Participation is growing on both nets with all regions being activated!

With all these channels and all the activity, it is easy to miss things from time to time. The Signal channel is a great example. We really love seeing the community developing there day-to-day, but it can be tough to know what to listen to and what to tune out as we go about our days. For this reason, the leadership team is working to stand up a new Signal channel dedicated to Alerts and Notifications. Signal users who subscribe to the Alerts channel will be able to mute notifications from the main channel without worrying about missing an important update.

We are also aware that there are other channels being created, such as regional channels for Zello and others. Members of the leadership team may even participate in some of these because, hey...we have a local community too! However, the channels listed above are the only channels we actively use and support for the community at large.

If you have a local group or special interest group that may benefit from a dedicated channel, we encourage you to build that channel! We are even happy to advise if you request.

AHRN Leadership Team