In any case, tell us all about that enhancement.

In my neighborhood it allows the snowbirds who migrate every winter
southwest to communicate daily with their familes back in the Poconos when
HF conditions suck.

The National Weather Service Forecast Office that serves my area is approx
100 miles from my QTH.
They run Skywarn nets on a Long Island, NY VHF repeater that I can not get
into via radio due to terrain up in my parts. Echolink is the only way I can
get into these nets.

The Mount Holly, NJ NWS Forecast Office also uses echolink to run nets into
areas that they serve that can not be reached using VHF repeaters.

I seriously doubt Echolink would be reliable during a real weather
emergency like a hurricane.

How many new licensees has IRLP brought into the hobby?

Wild Ass Guess = none.

What bands and modes do they use?

Who is they ?

Same questions for EchoLink.

Same answers for Echolink.

Where did you get your data?

My data in general ? From a legacy mainframe running db2 and QMF version
7.1. I'm an SQL coder in real life.

My ham radio data.. well that is from actual real time observations.



If you equate good things for amateur radio = more new licenses you are
never going to be a happy guy.

My nephew in his late teens is into music, hot rodding cars, and computers.
no interest in radio.

I recently gave a ham radio pitch to a troop of Boy Scouts at our Emergency
Management Office.

I'd say about 10 percent had a minor interest in the radios. 1 percent were
real hot about ham radio.


Steve
N2UBP