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Radio
One of the things I discovered about short wave radio is that it is hard to find things that are actually worth listening to. When thinking about setting up a radio receiver that I could use in emergencies, I remembered this enough to know that I didn't want a regular old radio. Certainly not the kind with the analog tuner. No. That led me to the cool computer-radios. If you look at the graphic on this site, you can see the "waterfall", which is a radio spectrum, and you can just click on the bright spots to listen. That's cool. (You can also tune digitally.) However, while I can now reliably find FM radio stations on the online radio servers, I can't find much else yet. So, that's my new plan: I won't set up computer-radio until I know how to use it and am sure that I'd be able to use it in an emergency. Even then, it might not be terribly useful, as we are kind of down in the valley. But, I'll worry about that later.
Thoughts
We have a multifuntion emergency radio that includes a hand crank, a flashlight, and a warning siren that will sound in case of a weather emergency. We mostly tune it to the emergency weather station, which has been very useful when the weather might spawn a tornado. YMMV.
>>I won't set up computer-radio until I know how to use it and am sure that I'd be able to use it in an emergency.<<
Sensible.
>> Even then, it might not be terribly useful, as we are kind of down in the valley.<<
It's useful all right, but possibly not until an actual emergency. First responders and disaster workers tend to use radio for announcements and communication. They have roving equipment to broadcast and receive. So you should be able to pick up on that from whomever would be in the valley. Especially if you plan to get a HAM license, talk with whomever does emergency planning in your valley. They should know the radio communication plans, any local emergency channels, and would probably like to know that you have a rig.
Also check the nearest college. They often have a media department that sometimes includes a radio station, but they don't all publicize it. If you ask, they may let you in on it, especially if you're willing to interact with students.
Re: Thoughts
Emergency services are different here, I think, compared to the US (and even compared to when we lived in Russia). Of course, the most important thing on that front is to improve my Portuguese, since speaking the local language is essential.
I won't get an amateur radio license here, although I do have a HAM license for the US. I don't have any interest in broadcasting. I'm mainly looking to get access to the news, which would have been useful during the big blackout a couple of weeks ago. I'd prefer if it was in English, but we'll see. Our poor elderly neighbor thought it was the end of the world, so I'd like to be able to say that she could come inside and listen for herself. Since there are like maybe 30 people total in our part of the valley, I think I might be on my own with emergency management. Even cell towers went out during the big outage, so I'm guessing that if I want to get access to news I'll need news that isn't local, which is why I'm concerned about reception.
Well, I'll have to think about it.