ICOM 802- with KISS-SSB and Pactor III - Sailmail?


Just got off the phone with Carl Nichols from KISS-SB and he was very persuasive. He also said there is a good article coming out in Blue Water magazine about his product.

It seems the way to go. 

Thoughts on the Pactor 4 versus III modem and the Ham test with WinMail.

 It seems the difference between the two modem is not enough to justify the price of $600.00. Especially for a retired cruiser. Does it matter if your email takes 10 sec to send or 20 sec to send for example?

 As for the Ham test and Winmail it seems that there are a lot of hams retiring, and they are the ones supporting Winmail for free. They are also in a crunch because of the economy and the equipment cost a lot to keep running all the time. Hence a decline in Winmail. Winmail also requires a Ham license, a General type. I have heard it said that it is not questioned if you have at least a technical license. 
 Also Winmail is handled by ham operators, they do not need a licence for a station. They can simply put up a station any time which means they can also take it down if it becomes a hassle. Each month you should check for published station. Not so with Sailmail. Sail Mail requires a FCC license for a station and it requires FCC approval to move it or change it. That is a hassle and it costs hundreds of dollars. The Sailmail system is owned by its dues paying members and thus very reliable. But WinMail is FREE!


That may not be true or you could be challenged or not supported. It seems a lot of studying for something that is not needed except to save $250.00 a year for Sailmail.

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