Winlink: Keeping You Connected “When All Else Fails”
Consider this scenario: What if you had no power, no access to cell service and internet, and you needed to let loved ones far away know that you are safe and sound during a localized disaster (tornado, explosion, ice storm, hurricane)? How would you reach them? One answer: A mobile setup or home station powered by a generator, and Winlink.
Winlink ® is a means of sending and receiving email via ham radio on HF and VHF. The purpose of this article is to provide you with a starting point for Winlink on HF. It’s not nearly as fast as a true internet connection but it has its place in ham radio because in a mobile setup, it is independent of local power, cell and internet availability, and will get the message through. If you have a generator for power, Winlink can get a message through to the internet then on to its final destination. Think of it as going through a wireless router hundreds of miles away. You probably already own the hardware required to use Winlink. The hardware is the same as that used in the newer digital modes (FT8, etc.). You only need to spend around $100 for membership and the latest, greatest, software.
A (Very) Brief Overview of Winlink and Modes Used With It
Using a PC, an HF transceiver, and an audio interface between the radio and the computer’s audio in / out ports and PTT, you “connect” over the air to a gateway station. The gateway has a local high-speed connection to the internet. Once connected, you send and receive email. Attachments are handled the same as when using your “regular” email.
The modes I’ve experimented with are WINMOR, ARDOP (Amateur Radio Digital Open Protocol) and VARA. Each is successively faster and more robust than its predecessor. (Robust here means being able to get through during poor band conditions –JK). WINMOR is quite slow, ARDOP is faster but VARA is much faster and more robust. In fact, I’ve been able to transfer a test email using VARA when the gateway station was barely audible. The data transfer wasn’t as fast as when band conditions
