Packet radio email format

A blast from the past!

Packet radio, also known as amateur packet radio, is a digital communication system used by amateur radio operators to transmit data, including email, using amateur radio frequencies. The format for packet radio email is based on the Amateur Radio Mail (ARMail) protocol, which was developed in the 1970s and 1980s.

Here's a breakdown of the packet radio email format:

Header

• From: The sender's amateur radio call sign (e.g., K1ABC)
• To: The recipient's amateur radio call sign (e.g., K1XYZ)
• Subject: A brief summary of the email (e.g., Test email)
• Date: The date and time the email was sent (e.g., 20230220 14:30:00)
• Message ID: A unique identifier for the email (e.g., 1234567890)

Body

• The actual text of the email, which can include plain text, ASCII art, and even binary files (encoded using techniques like uuencode or base64).

Footer

• End of Message: A marker indicating the end of the email (e.g., EOM)

Here's an example of a packet radio email:

From: K1ABC
To: K1XYZ
Subject: Test email
Date: 20230220 14:30:00
Message ID: 1234567890

Hello, this is a test email sent via packet radio!

EOM

When sending an email via packet radio, the sender's computer or terminal would break the email into packets, each containing a portion of the message, and transmit them over the amateur radio network. The recipient's computer or terminal would reassemble the packets to form the complete email.

Packet radio email was popular among amateur radio operators in the 1980s and 1990s, but has largely been replaced by more modern digital communication methods, such as the Internet and email services like Gmail or Yahoo Mail.