E-mail over HF radio

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E-mail over HF radio

• S.R. Chanzi
• Manager Wino Development Association,
• Songea Rural District, Tanzania

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WINO WARD SONGEA RURAL DISTRICT, TANZANIA
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WINO WARD
Communications are sometimes hard due to e.g.
heavy rains
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WINO village shop
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WINO DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION A LOCAL NGO
(WIDA)

• WIDA was established in 1990 by the support of
  Malmöhus Läns Hushållningssällskap
• Support also from Forum Syd (SIDA) and Voluntary
  Service Overseas (VSO)
• Agriculture Marketing Cooperative (WAMCS)
• Microfinance Bank (SACCO)
• Over 40 female groups
• Youth program
• Self help programs

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E-MAIL OVER HF RADIO IN TANZANIA

• Connects remote sites without access to a
  telephone line via "E-Mail via HF Radio" to the
  Internet and the world.
• Uses standard HF Radio and Terminal Node
  Controller (Modem) to connect to commercial
  Internet and E-mail Server Nodes to- Send and
  receive E-mail from/to everywhere within Tanzania
  and worldwide
• Send a fax by email to any fax in the world (via
  e.g. faxaway)
• The Radio E-mail system can be used with standard
  amateur HF radios and does not require expensive
  proprietary hardware.

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E-MAIL OVER HF RADIO IN TANZANIA.. (cont)

• The data is individually encrypted and therefore
  eavesdropping by other stations is not possible,
  unlike with amateur radio data transmission
  systems.
• Easy to use, automatic software and robust
  dependable hardware. Support that is only a
  radiocall away. Remote control capability to help
  with troubleshooting the setup of the system.
• SIDA donated a modem in
  January 2002 to WIDA

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HOW IT WORKS

• Microwave, high bandwidth frequency technologies
  like 802.11b provides line-of-sight connection of
  10 miles or so. This won't do for the vast
  distances and wild terrain we need to cover in
  rural Africa.
• HF radio is different. Its longer waves roll out
  across the landscape, reflecting off the
  ionosphere to follow the curvature of the earth.
  This gives HF signals a range in the hundreds of
  miles.
• However, where HF wins the wireless game in
  range, it loses in data capacity. If 802.11b is
  considered broadband, think of HF as
  slim-to-none-band. The radio modems we are using
  are speed at an anorexic 2400 baud! (With
  compression perhaps 4800 baud)

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HOW IT WORKS..(cont.)

• Two-way radio is the classic half-duplex medium
  of communication that is, you are either
  transmitting--push to talk--or receiving, not
  both at the same time. Forget about on-line
  browsing, chat, video-conferencing and the like.
• But for classic store-and-forward applications
  like text-based e-mail, the bandwidth
  limitation of HF radio is
  
  workable.

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WHAT EQUIPMENT IS REQUIRED?

• Radio license, 80
• LapTop or Desktop computer (WIN95 or later).
  Preferably Pentium class, but a 50 MHz 486 will
  work.
• A TNC (Radio Modem) 250-450, (Pactor I)
  650-1100 (Pactor II-III)
• A stable Radio Amateur type SSB radio. 50 watts
  is plenty! 1000
• An antenna. 50-400
• A power supply, for LapTop installation,
  typically1-2 12V batteries 50-701-2
  solar panels 500-10001 charge
  controller 150-300

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TYPICAL MONTHLY CHARGES

• The current monthly rental for BushLinks Pactor
  III Clients is 15/month. (30 for the 3 times
  slower Pactor II )
• Then there are volume charges (sending and
  receiving) depending upon message size
• Messsage Size (kb) /kb 1-4 0.094-25 0.08
  25 0.03
• Typically the monthly cost would be around
  60-70 for only text messages, but more if lots
  of attachments are sent.

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EXPERIENCES

• During the period February 1 to December 13 2002
  in total 1285 messages were sent and 1569
  received.
• Costs were TSh 1000 or 1500 for
  member/non-member
• A number of power outages
• No appended files (lt100 kb)
• Best coffee prices in
  Tanzania, 20,000
  generated
  through better
  communications

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BENEFITS

• The e-mail service has provided easy
  communication with outside world. Like
• -Information to/from Gov. and other organizations
• -Information to/from relatives
• -Market prices for agro products
• -Communication with NGOs
• -Communications with WIDA
  Dar Group

Dispensary
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THE NEAR FUTURE

• A Ku-band VSAT, with 0.9 m dish is beeing
  installed for Internet connections to SatComNet
  Tanzania by local ISP Uhuru Online
• Initial speed is 32/32 kb/s
• Monthly airtime fee 199
• Upgradable to 1 Mb/s

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THE NEXT FUTURE

• A commerical Company, (limited by guarantee)
  WETCO will operate the power supply and
  telecommunications in Songea Rural District.
  (Wino, Mahanje, Madaba etc.)
• More than 100 km underground 11 kV power cables
  including optical fibres will be constructed
  together with the successive development of hydro
  power capacity.

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CONCLUSION

• Good experience from E-mail over HF radio
• Commercially viable
• Many people and organizations benefit from easier
  communications
• Next stage a VSAT with 32 kb/s Internet
  connectivity
• Optical fibres to be distributed in the area by
  new Commercial enterprise WETCO
• Telecommunications, Internet,
  TV etc. to follow.