Become a Ham
Are you interested in Amateur Radio (also known as “Ham Radio”)? Or just curious to find out what it's all about?
If so, here's some good information to get you started.
The Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) has some great information to get you started.
First, they have a New to Ham Radio page that will answer all your questions about Ham Radio.
Then you can go to their “Licensing, Education, and Training” page, which will explain the process to get your license, and a “Glossary” page that will help you get familiar with all of the terms.
Finally, when you are ready to get your license, there are several clubs in the El Paso area that offer classes, and they also have “Volunteer Examiners”, or “VE's” that will administer the tests. Check the Classes link on this web site for more information, or stop by one of the Clubs, and they will be happy to help you out and get you started. You can even take Practice Tests right here on this web site and test your knowledge.
Ham Radio is a lot of fun and a great educational hobby! There are so many things you can do and get involved with, from low tech to high tech, all sorts of public service, emergency communications, and the fascination of radio communications and the ability to communicate all over the world. And if you aren't a “techie”, there's also the social side, where you can attend lots of meetings and events and meet and make new friends. It's fun for the entire family, and a lifelong enjoyable hobby!
You can also get some good information on Ham Radio on Wikipedia.