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E-Mail on SSB

Our email comes via ham radio, using Pactor on the HF frequencies rather than packet radio. Packet is very popular, especially in Europe, but since it uses VHF radio frequencies it has a limited range similar to marine VHF, about 25 miles. Pactor uses HF frequencies and distances up to a few thousand miles are quite reliable but only during certain times of day, just like SSB radio.
The required equipment is a computer, an ordinary marine or ham SSB radio, a special controller (basically a radio modem), and a ham radio license of course. The best controller is made in Germany by SCS ( http://www.scs-ptc.com/ ), and costs about DM 1500. Data rates up at about 150 characters per second are possible, which slow by telephone standards but quite sufficient for email especially considering the cost (free!).
A less expensive controller is made by Kantronics ( http://www.kantronics.com/ ) in the US for US$300, and data rates up to about 40 characters per second.
Sending or receiving messages first requires making contact with a ham radio "mailbox" station. There are a few dozen such stations worldwide, operated by enthusiastic hams. From the eastern Med we generally connect to either station AP5ARS, operated by Tariq in Pakistan, or OE4XBU, operated by Rudi in Austria. Tariq operates his own email gateway, and Rudi forwards email messages to the gateway at ZS5S in South Africa.
Sending email is as simple as addressing it to our callsign:

callsign@pak.win-net.org for AP5ARS
or
callsign@dur.win-net.org at ZS5S.

We have written a client program for Pactor email, download and information available from http://winlink.org/airmail/ .

There is also a comprehensive "how-to" guide at the same site called the "Pactor Primer" ( http://winlink.org/airmail/pprimer.htm ). More information on the Netlink email gateways is available from http://win-net.org , and some information on individual stations is http://users.iafrica.com/z/zs/zs5s/ , http://home.earthlink.net/~winlink
and others if you follow the links.
The advantages of the Pactor radio system is that there are no charges for connecting and the equipment is reasonably priced. The disadvantages are that a ham license is required, there is usually some difficulty in getting a computer, controller and radio to all work together as a team, and there are some rules on ham radio messages such as not conducting business.

Jim Corenman, s/y Heart of Gold