From: krikket@meltdown.chi.il.us (D. 'krikket' Krick)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Re: Walkie-Talkies (was  Re: Police And Conventions)
Date: 14 Aug 92 11:44:17 GMT
Organization: The Meltdown - A Team Star BBS

In article <1992Aug12.204023.14957@cbnewsj.cb.att.com>, ecl@cbnewsj.cb.att.com
(Evelyn C. Leeper) writes:
>In article <1992Aug12.192415.25175@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>
>sschend@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (Steve E Schendel) writes:
>> You bring up good points about walkie talkies at cons.  I always have some
fun
>
>> tuning my ham handy talkie on con security frequencies.  Most of 'em get
>> real 
>> upset
>> that someone else "unauthorized person" has access to "their"
>>  communications.
>> In other words, someone else has a toy just like mine, and I wanted to be
>> the
>> big shit with the only one.
>> At Marcon here in Columbus, I was asked to take the radio away (which I
>> didnt'
>> do).  Back in another city I lived, I was actually booted from the con.
>> The point is you really don't need radios at a con.  If you have them, the
>> security people get an "attitude".  Phones are private, realiable (no
>> batteries), and cheaper.

If you're going to use radios, expect people to occasionally crash the
frequency.  Unfortunately, not all ConComs realize this.  So you get radios
that can handle multiple frequencies, and have sideband capabilities.  (This
goes a LONG way to block out people you don't want to hear, and from hearing
you.)  To do less is simply foolish on the ConComs part...

(Then again, there was the incident where I was stupid enough to sell the
ConCom on Radio Shack 49 megahertz radios to use for security...  Not only
could you not hear between floord and were therefore next to useless...)

>And then of course there are those of us attendees who want to use
>walkie-talkies.  Mark and I were labeled "techno-dweebs" by a friend of
>ours who found us using walkie-talkies in the Dealers Room at Noreascon
>to converse while separated by most of the room.  "Did you want a copy
>of ACCOUNTANTS OF GOR?"  "No, but if they have LIBRARIANS OF GOR, I'm
>still looking for that one."  Or, "Where are you?  I'm by the north
>door and it's time to leave."
>
>And so on.  At a small con they're not really necessary; in a worldcon
>dealers room they're practically a necessity (okay, I exaggerate.)  We
>don't stay on them constantly, but having the con committee try to say
>we can't use them is a good way to annoy me.  (I will make exceptions;
>if they are using walkie-talkies to do crowd-control for the Hugos or
>such, and ask me to refrain, I will.)

The last con I worked, we had a radio channel picked out, and then had to
change it TWICE because Fen decided to use that channel while going shopping,
etc...  A minor annoyance, but that's about all..

Krikket               ! krikket@meltdown.chi.il.us ! USnail:3 Danada Square E.
a.k.a Doug Krick      ! Team Star Charter Member   !        Suite 246
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