Kaikorai Amateur Radio Operators

• Amateur Radio Operator - means a person who has passed and examination on both the appropriate sections of the radio regulations and theory of radio as pertaining to the amateur radio hobby. Often also called 'Ham Radio'.
• (SK) - is the abbreviation for "Silent Key" which is the amateur term used when a person with an amateur radio license dies. This is derived from the early years of amateur radio when the only means of communication was by the means of Morse code - hence, their Morse key became 'silent'.
• QSL - the letters QSL were part of the original series of abbreviations used with Morse code. This overcame the long-winded sending of words which were in common use but wasted a lot of time if the complete word was sent. In the case of QSL, this meant Acknowledge, or "do you acknowledge?", or "yes I acknowledge", so it could be used as both a question or a response. This was a code referred to as the "Q" code, as each abbreviation was preceded by the letter 'Q'. Similarly, QTH meant location, and could mean either "What is your location?", or "My location is__________".
• QSL Card - refers to the printed card, same size as postcard, which was sent by post in the early years of radio communication. These cards were sought after as confirmation of having made contact with another station in some foreign country and the cards adorned many a radio amateurs walls in the room where they used their transmitters. These days cards from the International Space Station or the NASA Space Shuttles are keenly sought where it is more commonplace to be able to contact virtually any country in the World without too much difficulty.
• ZL4 - signifies the New Zealand region for amateur radio ranging from the Waitaki River, South to Stewart Island and encompassing the area from East to West coasts. The two or sometimes three letters after this prefix are the personal identification of an individual amateur operator.