October, 2007   The Milliwatt   < Prev Page 3 Next >

 

Teen hacks iPhone, then trades it for new car
The teenage hacker who managed to unlock the iPhone so that it can be used with cellular networks other than AT&T will be trading his reworked gadget for a new car.
George Hotz, of Glen Rock, N.J., said he had reached the deal with CertiCell, a Louisville-based mobile phone repair company.
Hotz posted on his blog that he traded his modified iPhone for “a sweet Nissan 350Z and 3 8GB iPhones.”
“This has been a great end to a great summer,” Hotz wrote
The 17-year-old Hotz said he will be sending the three new iPhones to the three online collaborators who helped him divorce Apple Inc’s popular product from AT&T’s network. The job took 500 hours, or about 8 hours a day since the iPhone’s June 29 launch.
Hotz made the deal with Terry Daidone, co-founder of CertiCell, who also promised the teen a paid consulting job.
“We do not have any plans on the table right now to commercialize Mr. Hotz’ discovery,” Daidone said in a statement.

 

The K7RA Solar Update
In little more than two weeks the Northern Hemisphere will see the autumnal equinox, marking the start of fall north of the equator and the beginning of spring south of the equator. The exact time when both northern and southern hemispheres are bathed in equal sunlight is 0951 UTC, September 23, 2007. Even with few sunspots, this is the best time for long distance communications between hemispheres.

 

Three Satellites Spur Activity on 145.825 MHz Packet
The ARISS system aboard the International Space Station has frequently enabled its packet digipeater for APRS on 145.825 using the path of “VIA ARISS”. Additionally, by mid-September PCSAT-1 should enter a FULL SUN OPERATING PERIOD. This may present a period of a few weeks when we will have THREE APRS satellites flying in constellation: ISS, PCSAT-1, and ANDE, all operating 145.825 MHz. This will assure over 18 passes per day. And since they all respond to the same path “VIA ARISS” then which satellite is in view is transparent to the user. Two-hop paths via ARISS,ARISS might also be possible. Bob, WB4APR noted, “In order for the global APRS internet system to capture all these packets, we do need volunteer ground stations to place an IGATE to monitor all packets on 145.825 MHz downlinks. In many cases, a simple omni antenna connected to APRS is all that is needed.” Successful packet digipeating on 145.825 can be seen on either: http://www.ariss.net or http://pcsat.aprs.org Bob added, “We are also working on getting GO-32 enabled for APRS operation at 9600 baud. But since it uses different uplink and downlink fequencies, it cannot be used for multiple-APRS-satellite operations.”

 

Satellite Shorts From All Over