Hamshack Hotline

Several club members have joined the Hamshack Hotline network. The Hamshack Hotline {“HH”} is a private telephone network for Hams by Ham Radio Operators.  In order to join the network you must be a licensed ham radio operator.  There is a strictly non-commercial use clause in the operating rules, so you will never get any telemarketers or political call on this phone service.  This is a completely free service once you get the phone. You can call another ham directly leave a voicemail or even join a conference call with others hams.

The recommended phone for use with the Hamshack Hotline system is a Cisco Voice Over IP telephone, such as the SPA303, SPA-504, SPA-525. These phones can be found on Amazon or eBay. Just be sure if you purchase a used phone that it is unlocked, otherwise you may not be able to get it set up. If your phone doesn’t come with a “wall wart” power cable you will need to find one of those as well.

If you want to read more about the Hamshack Hotline, visit https://hamshackhotline.com.

WAARC Hamshack Hotline Directory

While you can program a personal directory for your phone, if you want to have an up-to-date directory of club members with Hamshack Hotline phones, it is easy to add to the phone.

The directions below are for Cisco Voice Over IP phones. If you are using a different model phone, consult the instructions for your phone.

You will need the phone’s IP address to access the browser-based configuration page. To find the IP address, push the settings button on the phone, and choose Network from the list of options. See the photo below to identify the settings button. The IP address is shown in the “Current IP” entry.

Now, enter the phone’s IP address (i.e. 192.168.x.x) into your computer’s web browser. From here, click on Admin Login at the top of the page.

When you are in the Admin Login page, click the Phone tab. Scroll down the page until you see XML Service. For the XML Directory Service Name type in “WAARC HH Directory”. For the XML Directory Service URL the address is “http://k4rc.net/WAARC_HH_Directory.xml”. I recommend copy and pasting the URL (between the quotes) to avoid an error when using the directory.

Finally, click Submit all Changes to save the settings for the directory.

After about one minute you should be able to go into the directory for your phone and see “WAARC HH Directory” in your list. When you select that option you will see the list of names in the current directory.

If you end up getting a ham shack hotline telephone and want to be included in the directory, you can email either Bill NR4C or Will K4MI with your Hamshack Hotline number and we will update the directory with a new listing.