Nothern Utah WebSDR Logo - A skep with a Yagi Northern Utah WebSDR
   
Results of the October-November 2019 Survey

From approximately 24 October through 24 November 2019, a voluntary user survey was open to users of the Northern Utah WebSDR:  205 people responded and we thank them for their time.  This survey consisted of just eight questions and other than apparent IP address of the participant, it was anonymous.

The purpose of the survey was to determine if we were properly determining the needs and desires of the users of the Northern Utah WebSDR and it is only by feedback from our users that we can possibly know what it is that we are doing right, doing wrong, or (perhaps) ought to consider doing in the future.

What follows below are the questions themselves, the results, and brief discussions.  If you have additional questions, feel free to use the "contact information" at the bottom of this page.

Please note that for most - if not all questions - more than one answer could be selected, hence the results often adding up to more than 100%.

Important comments about the survey data:

Under the heading of "I should have read the fine print", when I went to analyze the survey, I discovered that the survey web site that I chose (Survey Monkey) severely limits the access to the results of the survey for the "Free" version.  If I wish to pay $25/month (for a minimum of a 12 month subscription) I could get all of the data - but that isn't going to happen!

I have made the best of the limitations of the platform:  If/when a survey is run again, I'll likely do it differently!

If you use an Apple product and have audio issues:

Frequently mentioned were issues like "I get no audio on my Apple" or "I used to hear audio on my Apple and don't anymore".  For the most part, this has to do with two types of changes that Apple has recently made:



Question #1:  "Why do you use the Northern Utah WebSDR?"

The #1 answer was:  "Geographical diversity (it often hears stations that I can't due to my location)" - 49%

The other answers were:

As a general-purpose remote receiver
47%
For spotting DX
9%
My QTH is too $@^! noisy!
23%
I don't have an HF station of my own and I like to listen to the bands
16%
Other (please specify - 100 char, max.)
16%

More than one answer could be selected which is why the percentages - which have been rounded off - add up to more than 100%

For "other", comments included more detailed answers to some of the questions above - but a few answers not anticipated include:
An alarming comment was this:
Discussion:

These responses line up pretty well with the feedback we've been getting all along, with "diversity" (e.g. a receiver in a different location than the one at your house) being the expected "winner".  We were surprised at the indicated importance of the "convenience" factor - that is, how easy it is just to fire up a WebSDR and casually listen on (nearly) any convenient device with a browser.

The most "unfortunate" reason for using WebSDRs has got to be the problem that many users have where they simply can't hear much due to the local noise - possibly due to nearby electronic devices, switching supplies, light, solar electric system, etc.  When we run this survey again (next year sometime) it will be interesting to see how much that answer, in particular, has changed.



Question #2:  "What other WebSDR systems do you use?"

KFS (Half Moon Bay, CA)
65%
KK3EF (Milford, PA)
36%
NA5B (near Washington D.C.)
24%
N4BBQ (Georgia)
14%
University of Twente (Netherlands)
19%
Others WebSDR systems?  (100 chars. max)
18%

Discussion:

The top answer, "KFS", is not surprising as it is "close" (geographically speaking) to the Northern Utah WebSDR and in many cases, between the two WebSDRs, one can hear stations that might fall into "dead zones" where other stations may simply be too close to your station - or a WebSDR - to be heard.

A few other answers included:



Question #3:  "To what bands do you most often listen?"

160 Meters
10%
80/75 Meters
58%
60 Meters
8%
40 Meters
73%
30 Meters
6%
20 Meters
45%
17 Meters
14%
15 Meters
8%
12 Meters
3%
10 Meters
7%
6 Meters
5%
2 Meters
9%
AM Broadcast Band
10%
Shortwave broadcast bands
14%
Longwave Bands (2200 and/or 630 meters)
5%
Other bands?  (Really?  How?)
4%

As expected, 40 meters is the clear winner, followed by 80/75 and then 20 meters in a "reasonable" 3rd place.  Not surprisingly, the "higher" HF bands and 6 meters are pretty low - but it will be interesting to see how this changes once the sunspots make their reappearance and conditions on these bands improve.

In the "other" column, here is one of the results:



Question #4:  "What band(s) are missing to which you might be interested in listening?"


This was a "fill in the blank" question - and most respondents said "none", but here are a few of the other answers:



Question #5:  "Would you consider donating to help keep the Northern Utah WebSDR online?"

No
25%
Yes - PayPal is fine
50%
Yes - I prefer direct donation (e.g. check)
21%
Is there another method of support other than the above that you have in mind?
13%


The good news here is that most respondents would consider donating to keep the Northern Utah WebSDR online.

I made a mistake in the survey in that I had only one "No" response:  I should have had a "No" selection for "No, I cannot support the WebSDR at this time" and another for "No, I choose not to support the Northern Utah WebSDR".   No matter why you might have said "No", you are still welcome to use the WebSDR:  If your circumstances/opinion changes in the future, please consider helping and if you are an avid user, please suggest to others that they consider helping out this - and other - WebSDR systems that you might use.

Some of the responses to the question about "another method of support" include:



Question #6:  "Amateur radio license class?"

Extra Class
54%
Advanced Class
6%
General Class
22%
Technician Class
5%
Novice Class
1%
Not licensed - I just like to listen!
9%
Licensed in another country - what class?
4%

Not surprisingly, most of the respondents indicated a license class that included HF privileges.  We hope that more of those that are "HF Curious" - but don't have a license that offers wide HF privileges - will "discover" and use the WebSDR and get inspiration from it, eventually getting an appropriate license and get on the air.

We are pleased that those who "just like to listen" are using the WebSDR:  Be sure to spread the word!

Responses to the "Licensed in another country" question include those who have Canadian licenses, a UK user with the "Class-A" license, and another from Germany that has a "Class-A" license.




Question #7:  "What new feature(s) would you like to see implemented at the Northern Utah WebSDR?  (We can't promise anything - we're just curious, but we'll see what we can do!)?"

This was a "free form" question and most answers were along the lines of "None - it works great for me!".  Some of the other answers include:
Comment:  It turns out that the calibration procedure (from the WebSDR author) to minimize image response was incomplete and this was realized - and accommodated - during the 21 December, 2019 trip (see that entry on the Latest News page).  The image response was improved from 45dB (worst case) to 60+ dB, typically.  This doesn't cause the images to be "gone" entirely, rather a "strong" signal (10-20 over) will be heard as a rather weak signal, not too far above the noise floor on a quiet band.


Question #8:  "Did you know that there are pages with FAQs (frequently-asked questions), technical information and news about what's going on at the Northern Utah WebSDR?"

In response, 57% percent said "Yes" and 43% said "No".  It's worth noting that links to these "other" pages may be found along the right side of the landing page and all of the WebSDRs themselves.

In case you missed it, here are some of the many pages on this web site that include a wealth of information:


Contact information:

If you wish to find out how you can contribute to this project, or if you have any questions/comments that weren't answered on the "latest news", "FAQ" or "technical info" pages, you may send an email to the following address:

            sdrinfo@sdrutah.org.

Alternatively, you can send email/snail-mail to KA7OEI using the information found at QRZ or the FCC database.

Important:

If you wish to contact us, please avoid using an email service that has one of those "Please fill in this form to reply" type of SPAM filters.  If you really want a reply, please have the courtesy to allow us to do so without having to fill out a form and supply extra personal information to who knows where, etc. - I wasn't planning to sell or give out your email address, anyway!



Additional information:

Go to the Northern Utah WebSDR landing page

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