By Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor

This week, your Surfin’ editor gets his mind out of the snowbank and explores the new Mac App Store searching for Mac ham applications.

“This is insane!”

Those were the words of my sister Jeanette, after discovering  another 10 inches of snow had fallen overnight.

Our first measurable snowfall occurred one month ago. Since then, there have been seven  -- count ’em, seven! -- snowstorms that have left a total of 57 inches of snow on the ground here on Compounce Mountain -- and most of that 57 inches of snow is still on the ground.

Around here, February is no slouch snowfall-wise, so who knows when I will see my lawn again! New antennas were in the works for early spring, but I may be to Hamvention and back before I can get that new copper and aluminum up in the ether!

Ether is one thing, but Aether is something else. It’s a ham radio logging application from Open Reel software for the Mac OS X that I just discovered on the Internet. Being a longtime Mac ham, I am always on the alert for new Mac ham apps, and when I discover them, I pass the discovery along to you readers.

Open Reel Software’s Andrew Madsen, AC7CF, mentions that Aether is available at the Mac App Store, so I decided to see what other ham radio applications were available there.

The Mac App Store opened on January 6, so I did not know what to expect ham radio-wise. I was happy to find three other ham Mac apps, in addition to Aether:

• Ham Log from Nicolas Garner, N3WG. As its name implies is another ham radio logging app.
• Ham Tests -- also from N3WG -- provides practice tests for US Technician, General and Extra class exams.
• iCluster from Marcus Roskoch, DL8MRE, is an app that connects to the DX-Cluster database to let you know what’s on the air in real-time.

I imagine as the Mac App Store grows, more ham radio apps will be available there, so I will keep on looking.

Until next time, keep on surfin’!

Editor’s note: Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, has been Mac hamming for over a quarter century. To contact Stan, send e-mail or add comments to the WA1LOU blog.