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ARRL Content Submission Guidelines
Learn how to submit your content to ARRL's Learning Library.
Submit Your Photos, Videos, and Articles
Do you have pictures of videos of ham radio in action you want to share? The ARRL would love to see pictures and/or short videos of your station, portable operations, contesting, or other aspects of amateur radio! You may even see your submission shared in ARRL programs and media outlets!
Guidelines for Photos & Videos:
- We can accept digital images if the resolution is sufficient. Generally speaking, this means using at least a 4-megapixel (or greater) camera with the image resolution (sometimes referred to as “image quality”) set at maximum. This is usually the setting that allows your camera to store the LEAST number of pictures.
- Video submissions should be limited to thirty seconds or less. Resolution for video submissions should be a minimum of 720p. Video file formats should be .mov or .mp4.
- All photos, digital or otherwise, must include captions. Tell us what is going on in the photo, where it was taken and so on. If people are shown prominently in the photographs, you must supply their names and/or call signs. If any minors are shown in photos, we require written permission from the minor’s parent or legal guardian before the minor can be depicted in QST. The permission release form for minors is available at http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Model%20Release%20/ModelReleaseForm.pdf
- DO NOT send images captured from websites, or scanned from magazines, newspapers, catalogs, or other media without obtaining the written permission of the author, webmaster, company, etc.
- If your camera has a date stamping function that adds the date to every photograph, please TURN IT OFF when shooting photos for possible publication.
Disclaimer:
- I, the undersigned, freely give to the ARRL, the American Radio Relay League, and their legal representatives, successors, and all persons, organizations, or corporations acting with their permission unrestricted permission to copyright and/or use, and/or publish photographic portraits or pictures, and the negatives, transparencies, prints, videotapes, or digital information pertaining to them, in still, single, multiple, moving or video format, sounds, audio.
- I hereby waive any right that I may have to inspect and approve the finished product or copy that may be used in connection with an image, or the use to which it may be applied. I further release the Photographer, the ARRL or others for whom he/she is acting, from any claims for remuneration associated with any form of damage, foreseen or unforeseen, associated with the proper commercial or artistic use of these images.
Calling All Authors!
We're always on the lookout for new authors and new material to publish in QST, QEX, NCJ and the ARRL website itself. Download a copy of our Author Guide here and get started!
Library Guidelines
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ARRL Library Submission Guidelines:
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Here are some guidelines for getting your PowerPoint into the ARRL Library :
1) You must have all rights or permissions to all material presented in your PowerPoint, including photos and illustrations.
2) If your presentation includes photographs of children under the age of 18, we must have a signed waiver from the minor's parents or legal guardian to be included. There are no exceptions. Photo waivers may be found here.
3) We strongly suggest that you not use embedded video or audio in your presentation if possible.
4) Be sure to spell-check your presentation.
5) It is very difficult to present another person's PowerPoint. If there are specific points you wish the presenter to expand on, be sure to use the "Notes" feature, found on each slide during the PowerPoint design process. Don't assume other presenters will cover your material with the same approach you would. Make it as easy as possible for others to present your material the way you would present it. Microsoft Office Support shows how to use and create notes in PowerPoint.
6) If you are submitting a PowerPoint you created some time ago, please review it before submission to ensure it is still relevant (latest info, web links still work, notes for other presenters are clear, etc).
General PowePoint Tips
Use Conversational Language: Use words your audience knows. If you are creating a presentation for newcomers to Amateur Radio or the general public, keep ham radio jargon to a minimum. Craft your presentation in the same way you speak, and let your personality and experience shine through.
Use Active Language. Specific, active verbs will engage the viewer and keep the presentation moving. Find and use action photos; a photo of four hams installing a Yagi is better than four hams standing around a Yagi.
Make Technical Presentations Benefit-Oriented. When you present technical material, your audience wants to know: (A) what they can learn from your presentation, and (B) how your presentation can help them solve their problems. This isn't the place to tell your life story or your ham radio history; if you'd like to do that, consider an Oral History presentation.
Keep Sentences Short. When your audience sees a presentation with long sentences, long paragraphs, and no bullet points or subheads, they stop reading. Lists and bullet points can help keep the screen from seeming full of text. Remember, a PowerPoint slide should give the outline of the material you will speak about in greater detail; it shouldn't do all of the talking for you.
Front-Load Your Slide. Making your audience wade through lots of text to get to the point will cost your audience their attention. Get to the point in the first few slides, then go step-by-step in later slides, informing the audience about the important details.
External Resources:
There are many web sites devoted to constructing better PowerPoint presentations. Search for "creating better PowerPoints" with your favorite search engine for more suggestions.
The Leaders Institute offers tips by Doug Staneart on their website on "How to Deliver PowerPoint Presentations Designed by Someone Else."
Submissions should be sent by email to [email protected]
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Basic Guidelines for Doing an Oral History Interview:
1) We can accept most file types. You are welcome to use popular sharing sites such as Google Drive, Dropbox, Youtube, etc.
2) Record your interview in a quiet place without a lot of extra noise or other distractions, so you can stay focused.
3) Place your recorder's microphone so that both the interviewer and interviewee can be heard well and understood on the recording. Do a "test run" before you begin your interview so you can listen and make sure everybody can be heard.
4) Be sure to start your oral history recording with the names and calsigns of everybody heard on the recording, along with the date and location the recording was made.
Example: "It is Saturday, January 3, 2015. I'm John Smith, W1ABC and I'm talking with Frank Jones, W1XYZ at his home in Newington, Connecticut about his experiences with Amateur Radio."
5) Try to keep your oral history to no more than an hour or so. If you have less than that, that's fine.
6) Prepare a list of questions before you start. Howeve,r be flexible enough that if an interesting topic comes up, you can ask more questions about it. A sample list of questions is listed below.
7) Once you begin recording, keep the recorder running. This is a casual interview, not a produced and edited radio program.
Other Resources:
The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress has an excellent web site on how to plan an oral history project and interview that is well worth reading.
Sample Oral History Questions:
Where did you grow up?
How were you introduced to Amateur Radio? How old were you?
Who was your Elmer or mentor?
When did you get your first license? What was your first call?
Did you belong to a club? Who were the notable members?
What was your first station like?
What did you especially enjoy about Amateur Radio?
Has what you enjoy about Amateur Radio changed over the years? Do you find other areas of interest now than when you first got licensed?
What's your favorite Amateur Radio story?
What are some of your most memorable contacts?
How have you given back to Amateur Radio?
Submissions should be sent by email to [email protected]
