Archive for October, 2007


New Rover Open Crew in Kuching

Eagles2A new Rover Open Crew has been established since April, with the registration with the Kuching District - KUCHING E ROVER CREW (EAGLE ROVERS). In conjunction with that, they have also introduced their crew badge  which features an EAGLE. The membership is opended to all YOUTH in Kuching district especially those with the age ranges from 17½ ~ 35 years old. Ex scouts, guides, ex members of other uniform bodies and those who are not attached to any of the Scout  group in the district are most welcomed to join them. No previous Scouting experience is required. Do check out their BLOG for more info.

If you wish to join them, kindly email them at eaglerovers@yahoo.com indicating "Interested to join Eagles" as the subject and they shall send you a form for registration shortly.

Eagles1

New Rover Crew Badge In Town

Rovers from 40th Kuching Scout Group (SMK Pending) - Tigris Rovers have introduced their own crew badge; adding to a total of 6 Rover Crew badges available in the Kuching District. Give it up to Tigris Rovers! *applause* The crew badge is officially launched with their usage in the District Scout Day celebration in August 2007. Do contact them if you would like to exchange crew badges with them.

Tigris1

New Rover Training Scheme Hoax

Lately, rumours have been spreading that the new Malaysian Rover Scout Training Scheme has been adopted and implemented with the reference book being published and introduction of new series of proficiency badges and BP award. Please be informed that the training scheme has been discussed and reviewed by most of the state’s representatives during the National Rovering Workshop in May 2007.However, the scheme has NOT been finalized yet, even though recommendation report has been forwarded to the national HQ for review.

According to a reliable source in national HQ, the scheme is still under final stage of review (pembetulan ayat) and shall only be published for usage and adoption next year which also includes the possibility of formal introduction and usage of new Rover proficiency badges and BP award.

The book shown below titled "Panduan Skema Pengakap Kelana" is one of the documents used during the national rovering workshop. Please be reminded that information contained inside this book can only be used for REFERENCE only and the new Rover Scout Training Scheme indicated in the book, CANNOT be used for formal training, assessment and evaluation for the BP award later.

Rover_training_scheme

RM2mil Jamboree In The Works

The Scout Association of Malaysia has announced plans to organise a National Jamboree next year to celebrate the centenary of the movement in Malaysia.

The jamboree at University Putra Malaysia, is estimated to cost RM2mil and would cater to about 6,000 participants.

The plan was presented to Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said during her official visit to the association’s headquarters for a dialogue with the commissioners.

"The jamboree is a step towards many new things in the scouting movement. We will see the role of the movement growing and playing a bigger role in the community," National Chief Scout Commissioner Datuk Dr. Kamarudin Kachar said.

M_07azalina Greetings: Chief Scout of Malaysia Datuk Seri Shafie Mohd Salleh (left) accompanies Azalina as she greets some young scouts before the dialogue.

"We will help the scouting movement organise the jamboree and we will discuss the funding of the project further," Azalina said.

The event is expected to take place from May 12 to 18, 2008 and would see the participation of scouts from Malaysia as well as Asia Pacific countries.

At the jamboree, the movement will also launch the 100 Year Book of Scouting History, stamps and shillings. The event will also mark the founding of the International Scouts Camp and International Scouts Academy.

"There are a lot of issues that the scouts will play a big role in including environmental conservation, patriotism and peace" Kamarudin explained.

The association also announced plans to introduce the Rover Scout movement in all public and private tertiary education institutions as well as in countries where a high percentage of Malaysian students are present.

"We are targeting countries like the UK, the US, Egypt, Australia and Russia to set up branches of Malaysian Rover Scouts," he explained.

The King of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustav, the honorary president of the World Scout Foundation, also visited the Malaysian Scouts on October 3.

-The Star, Metro 15 Oct 2007

Quality Badges Now Available in BP Centre

Good News!!

Please be informed that BP Centre is now having High Quality Badges for sale. (Normal quality badges are still sold at cheaper price.)Quality_badges1

The new badges available are;

Tenderfoot badge - RM1.50

Malaysia badge - RM1.80

WOSM badge - RM1.80

"SARAWAK" Shoulder strip - RM1.50

"KUCHING" Shoulder strip - RM1.50

(All prices indicated above are not inclusive of postal charges for outstation orders.)

All these badges mentioned above, are having superb quality with following features;Quality_badges

- 100% Fully embroidered - the badge is full of threads (not using cloth background).

- Plastic backing - say bye bye to loose thread even though if there is a cut. With harder backing, it simply looks better even without ironing.

- Interlocking mellow border - good round-edged finishing whereby loose threads and material are concealed.

The address for the BP Centre is;

Lot 212, Lock-Up Stall, No. 7, Song Kheng Hai Field, Padungan Road, 93100 Kuching (behind Padungan Everise).

Please call 082-251609 (Mr. Poon) or email kch_rover_scout@yahoo.com for enquiries.

What IS “QSL Cards”?

A QSL Card is a written confirmation of either a two-way radiocommunication between two amateur radio stations or a one-way reception of a signal from an AM radio, FM radio or television station. QSL cards can also confirm the reception of a two-way radiocommunication by a third party. A typical QSL card is the same size and made from the same material as a typical postcards, and many are sent through the mail as a standard postcard.

Qsl_cards

QSL Cards derived their name from the Q code "QSL", which means "I acknowledge receipt." Most are collected by amateur radio operators, shortwave listeners, TV-FM DXers, and other radio hobbyists. A limited market for older QSL cards, especially those from rare locations or famous stations, as collector’s items.

QSL cards in Amateur Radio

Amateur radio operators exchange QSL cards to confirm two-way communications between stations. A QSL card sent from one amateur radio operator to another contains details about the contact and the station. At a minimum, this includes the CALL SIGN of both stations participating in the communications, the time and date of the contact (usually specified in UTC), the radio frequency used, the mode of transmission used, and a signal report. One national association of amateur radio operators, the ARRL, recommends a size of 3.5 by 5.5 inches (89mm by 140mm). Some QSL cards contain an image, often something associated with the station or the operator.

Qsl_cards1

QSL cards are often required when applying for an amateur radip operating award. Several alternatives to physical QSL cards that must be sent through the mail were developed in the 2000s. These system use computer databases to store all the same information normally verified by QSL cards in an electronic format. Competing systems differ in their functionality and security requirements. Different sponsors of amateur radio operating awards may recognize only one such electronic QSL system in verifying award applications and many awards sponsors do not recognize any such electronic QSL system. Some awards programs use only electronic QSL information. As for JOTA and JOTI, the eQSL cards used is known as "Validation Card" which serves the same purpose, even though actual QSL cards are also sent among JOTA participants in conventional methods.

[Info from Wikipedia]

11th World JOTI 2007 Validation Post

Dear visitors;

If you happen to visit our blog during the 11th World JOTI 2007 (from 19/10/2007 until 21/10/2007), kindly click "Comment" at the bottom, and please leave us the following information;

1, Your name,

2, Group / Crew,

3, District,

4, State,

5, Country,

6, Email and

7, Contacts (as in MSN messanger, YM messanger, friendster, skype etc.)

If you are registered with JOTA/JOTI.org, kindly let us know your username so that we can send you a validation card.

To Kuching Rovers;

Perform 2 simple tasks below to qualify yourself for a free World JOTA/JOTI certificate (see sample below).

1, Register yourself with World JOTA/JOTI org with an account and a username. Then send a validation card to the username —> roverden from the web site.

AND

A, For friendster user, kindly sign in and click ‘Comment’ button at the bottom of this post and provide us with the details/info listed above with your username from JOTA/JOTI org. which you have registered.

B, For non-friendster user, kindly email us at kch_rover_scout@yahoo.com providing similar info and details.

Note: All information shall be submitted to us by 22/10/2007 to qualify for this exclusive certificate. Please check out our next post below if you wish to know more and participate in the World JOTA/JOTI 2007.

Certificate_joti_1Thank you very much.

*with three fingers*

World JOTA/JOTI 2007

Jota_joti_2007

50th World Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) and 11th World Jamboree On The Internet (JOTI)

Jamboree On The Air

Jamboree On The Air, known by its acronym JOTA, is an international Scouting and Guiding activity held annually on the third full weekend in October. The event was first held in conjuction with the fiftieth anniversary of Scouting in 1957, and was devised by a radio amateur with the callsign G3BHK. It is now considered the largest event scheduled by the WOSM annually.Jota_joti

Amateur radio operators from all over the world participate with over 500,000 Scouts and Guides to teach them about radio and to assist them to contact their fellow Scouts and Guides by means of Amateur Radio and since 2004, by the VOIP-based Echolink Scouts and Guides are also encouraged to send paper or electronic confirmations known as QSL cards (or eQSL’s, when they are sent electronically). This provides the Scouts and Guides with a means of learning about fellow Scouts and Guides from around the world. It is an adjunt to the World Scout Jamboree.

The event is recognised as one of international participation by the various Scout and Guide organizations, and supports several awards which are part of Scouting and Guiding programmes.

Jamboree On The Internet

Jamboree On The Internet, known by its acronym JOTI, is an international Scouting activity held annually. Participants through the usage of designated Chats from all over the world, can contact their fellow scouts by means of the Internet Common communication methods include ScoutLink (IRC), email and VOIP. This provides the Scouts with a means of learning about fellow Scouts from around the world. JOTI org reports that JOTI had over 4,000 participants online at one time in 2005.

In Novemeber 1996, the World Scout Committee, noting that Scouting already had a considerable presence on the Internet, and that was already an informal and rapidly growing Jamboree On The Internet, decided that JOTI should become an official international Scouting event, and that is should be held on the same weekend as the Jamboree On The Air (JOTA).

Special Internet Jamborees may also be organized in conjuction with local, national and international Scouting events which are held at other times of the year.

[information adopted from Wikipedia]

The annual World Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) / Jamboree On The Internet (JOTI) are coming up this weekend from 12:00a.m. 19/10/2007 (Friday) until 11:59p.m. 21/10/2007 (Sunday). Every year, millions of scouts are communicating with fella Scouts and Guides around the world via amateur (Ham) radio and internet. Please also find attached information;

Official JOTA/JOTI 2007 (Circular)

For JOTA;

You would be required to contact your local amateur radio clubs in your area as they can easily assist you with the set up of stations with their equipments. As they are licensed operators and are assigned with their respective call signs, you would be able to communicate using such call signs especially in the exchange of QSL cards. If you wish to enquire which amateur radio clubs are operating near your area, you can contact the Malaysian Amateur Radio Transmitters’ Society (MART) via their web site.

For JOTI;

There are  methods in joining the fun;

1, Chat directly in ScoutLink with the use of Web Chat. (Please click [Web Chat] when you are there.)

OR

2, Configure your MIRC and hook up with the Scout Link server and chat from there. (highly recommended as it’s more user friendly). Follow some simple instructions in the official JOTI web site HERE. (Please click [Join in], once you are at the main page.

When you are chatting using MIRC chat, type [/list], once you are connected to the Scout Link server to search for all chatrooms available in there. Type [/j (chatroom's name)] to join or simply double click on the name of the chatroom. There are more than 200 chatrooms with more than 20 English channels available last year. Of course you can opt to join #Malaysian.

Don’t forget to register yourself in JOTA/JOTI OFFICIAL SITE if you wished to receive Validation Cards (eQSL cards) and print your own participation certifcate from the World Scout Bereau (WOSM) as shown below.Cert

You are also able to chat with others via MSN Messanger, Yahoo Messanger, Skype etc. (provided both of you are having such softwares installed) which can be more interesting if you have web cam, speakers and mics.

This year a new project has been introduced for JOTI and all are welcomed to participate the WORLD COMMUNITY GRID. Read MORE on the projects and HOW IT WORKS. You can simply join by REGISTER yourself and JOIN.

Hurry up!! You are only doing this once a year. Come and make friends and share with Scouts, Guides, Rovers and Leaders around the world. Who knows you might get lucky to bump into the APR Regional Director, Mr. Abdullah Rasyeed or the Secretary General from WOSM itself.

See you there!!

Are You ‘SMS’ Infected?

WARNING!! 150 signs show that you are seriously infected with "SMS - Scout Madness Syndrome" WHEN;

1, You are a member of Kuching City Rover / Scout / Scouter Council.
2, The clerk in the state Headquarter / scout shop / BP Center recognises your voice.
3, The person at the payment counter asks for "Your Card" and you instantly whip out your PPM membership card.
4, 95% of your friends are either Scouts, Girl Guides or former members.
5, You plan almost everything you do because you just want to "Be Prepared"!!
6, You Look at clouds whenever you go out and able to name the type of clouds.
7, You are good at differentiating left and right, thanks to your marching drill.
8, You are crazy about badges / patches and you consider counting your personal collection as your daily chores.
9, You are sensitive to flags and says the flags need to be lowered during rain.
10, You will spring and rise instantly when you hear the national / state anthem playing.

11, Your most memorable time in life is not graduation but receiving the King Scout Award.
12, You love animals.
13, You whistle at all times.
14, You are confused with Scout Law no. 6 whether its "A Scout is a friend to animals" or " A Scout is an animal to friends".
15, You can tie a knot very well and can’t stand rope lying loosely on the ground and will pick it up and whip it nicely.
16, You know what is the difference between a Reef Knot and a Sheet Bend.
17, You carry a Survival kit whenever you go outing. You keep a condom in your survival kit for carrying water rather than safe sex.
18, Your favourite bed time story is taken from "Scouting For Boys".
19, You claimed Lord Baden Powell is your DAD!

Bpfrance 20, When all of the camping gear you own have the Scout logo or insignia on it, and those that don’t, you placed them on them yourself.
21, You have a plague fixed to your car reading "Pesuruhjaya XXXXX".
22, You check out every store selling outdoor gears and scout items and you have all their contacts.
23, When stores selling outdoor gears and Scout items start sending privilages / gold membership cards to you and treated you as their VIP when you visit them.
24, When the term "Shopping" implies buying Scout’s rations and supplies.
25, When driving to Scout Headquarter they reserve a place for you / you have a permanent car park in Scout Headquarter.
26, When you drive to BP Centre, you are no longer required to put parking coupons.
27, You will stand "AT EASE", with left hand holding your three fingers ofyour right hand whenever you STAND.
28, You enjoy "Push Ups".
29, You feel bad after telling a lie for breaking the first Scout Law.
30, You keep Singing and Whistling "I’ve got the BP spirit, right in my head, right in my head…"
31, You like to Steal other people’s Shoes at night, late in the night when everybody is sleeping and there’s no Night Watch!!
32, You clap and applauses "Differently" from other people.
33, You can do many things with Bamboo, A rope and A parang.
34, You like to Sing, Act and Dance.
35, You walk into a Job Interview and say "HELLO AUNTIE! HELLO UNCLE! This week is our Job Week, Do you have any job for us to do?"

36, Your first choice in choosing University course is "Civil Engineers" because you like to build Towers, Bridges and Gates.
37, You will talk to your friends for 3 minutes on how to "Light a fire" giving every details.
38, You are able to give a lecture on how to "Setup a camp" for an 8 hours course.
39, You feel that your life is not complete, if you never been to Jamboree.
40, You see a bunch of students not queueing up, you confronted them for not practising "Patrol System".
41, You have at least One Scout logo on your car.
42, You can tell your colleagues 101 usages of a Scarf (Neckerchief).
43, You always bring a compass in an outing or jungle trekking.
44, You bring a log book with you or at least a "555" cute little booklet just in case you want to write down your observations.
45, Your favourite chat topic is anything to do with Scouts and keep talking about Scouting life and experience ALL THE TIME, i.e. during supper, CNY gathering, lunch hour, in your blog, meeting some old friends, dating, [name you favourie occasions here].
46, You know what is Scout Law No. 11.
47, You carry with you at all times; a Swiss Army Knife or a Leatherman Tool; a small compass; a whistle; two bandaids; a small bit of twine, a poncho; and some gum - and you know how to use them all in ways other than their intended purposes!
48, ALL of your automobiles or tucks have "Scouting names" on them: Your Proton Waja a "Helang"; your Perodua Kembara a "Kelana", the "TT-19" on your car plate refers to your Troop number and they all have Tiger Paw tires.
49, Your favourite color is a combination of Dark Blue and Grey.
50, You arrange your family by using Patrol System.
51, You were arrested by KLIA security because you wouldn’t give up your "Wenger Official World Scout" knife.
52, Smelling a fire makes you long for a camp-out or remind you of camps.
53, After the heavy rain knocks out your power you are happy as a clam cooking for the neighbours with your Camping Gaz stove and a couple of billy cans.
54, The people who just referred others to you, shrug and say "He’s a King Scout" and no further explaination is needed.
55, The Scouts ask you if you were in BP Guild.

P2
56, When in the run of conversations, things get too loud and you raise your hand in the Boy Scout (3 fingers) or Cub Scout (2 fingers) sign…and people shut up!
57, You base your decision on a new vehicle on whether it can carry logs for campfire.
58, Your wife or husband has to give you a "Project" to get you to work around the house.
59, Your "walking stick" is a Scout Stave.
60, In giving directions, you give it using compass direction with bearings and coordinates.
61, Someone asks you the name of a book that you’ve read recently and you blurt out "Impeesa - The Wolf That Never Sleeps" without thinking.
62, You have read these books;

P6 63, When in doing housework, you’re humming or singing Scout Songs….and your children are humming or singing along with you!
64, You put your restless baby to sleep by humming Scout Songs and it WORKS!
65, You know key facilities in town by the closeness to Scouting Meeting Places.
66, Get excited whenever you read the word "Scouting", "Scout", "Campfire", "Girl Guides" and "Camp" in your local newspaper.
67, You save disposobale chopsticks after a meal of Kolo Mee because you want to build a Model of tower, bridges and gates.
68, You barbecue ANYTHING.
69, You throw away your microwave oven and only consume food cooked from fire woods.Cooking
70, You make campfire foods at home and serve them to your family to try out new recipes.
71, All your favourite recipes involve Dutch Ovens.
72, You consider foil packs a gourmet meal.
73, You love your uniforms and always iron them over and over again even when you are not wearing them.
74, You have a pair of black leather shoes and Polish it often until it is as bright as a mirror.
75, You wear your scout uniform to bed.
76, Every now and then you will take out your camp fire rope which is full of patches / badges, admire them and put them back in the closet and repeat the process on daily basis.
77, All your pants and socks are dark blue and all your shoes are black.
78, You’ve got a whole cabinet full of scarves gathered from campfires and jamborees you’ve attended.
79, ALL of your T-shirts have Scouting themes or Scouting logos on them.P3
80, Touching your uniform shirts still give you a tingle.
81, You kept all your Scout uniforms - Cub Scout, Boy Scout, Senior Scout and Rover Scout; including belts, forage caps, socks and scarves; enough to assemble several full sets of Scout uniform.
82, You have a Modern Tent, Sleeping Bag and at least a Rucksack at home.
83, You have the Portrait of Lord Baden Powell as your Mobile Phone wallpaper.
84, When you set this blog / WOSM web site as your default web site in your internet browser.
85, You set your favourite Scouts photos as desktop background in your PC.
86, In your own room, you arrange your matches in campfire style, light them while humming "Campfire’s burning".
87, The most frequent seach words used in your internet browsers registered "Scouts", "Jamboree", "Scouters" and "Rovers".
88, You keep newspaper clipping which have the words mentioned above.
89, You have sent this postcard to all the Scouters you know.P1

90, You ask for backpacking / jungle trekking / mountain climbing / kayaking trips when you book an overseas tour.
91, You enjoy Walking long distance, really long distance.
92, You dislikes HOTELS and prefer to sleep in a CAMP instead.
93, You are more than willing tp pay BIG MONEY to suffer in the jungle rather to sleep at home in your COSY BED.
94, You would not call it a camping trip when you are not bitten by mosquitoes and leeches and having backwood cooking for your meals.
95, You submit your passport sized photo wearing full Scout uniform when you are interviewing / applying for a job. Better still, you wear your Scout uniform to your job interviews.
96, When filling out an application for a job, in the space asking for ‘References", you place "Persekutuan Pengakap Malaysia - Pengakap Raja - 19XX", where XX is the year in which you become a King Scout….and you get hired!!
97, Co-workers ask if you’ve got: - an aspirin, a needle and thread, a safety pin, benadryl…and you always do!
98, A guy in the class is terrified by a very large bug that crawls through his desk and the girl sitting next to him says "[Your name here] will take care of it - She’s a Rover Scout" and you do it …. without killing it or cringing.
99, Your colleagues / friends have long ago stopped asking "where are you going on vacation this year?", because they know the answer is always "I’m going on an Annual Trip with the Scouts."
100, You put up the Scout Sign at a company employee meeting and everyone stops talking. Hands
101, When any mention of the words "BOY" and "SCOUT" together makes you grin or smile widely.
102, You lose count of the total badges you have in collection.
103, A trip to Gilwell Park is a "PILGRIMAGE".
104, when you refer to datings as outings and your date is either a Guide or a Scout.
105, You and your wife attended an international jamboree for your honeymoon.
106, You celebrate your wedding anniversary / wife’s birthday by going on a camp-out with the Scouts.
107, You plan to serve foil meals at your next dinner party.
108, You go for morning walk with a coffee cup and flashlight hanging from your belt.
109, You have a pair of beads for your Woodbadge or more or about to get one.
110, You raise your hand in the Scout Sign at a heated business meeting.
111, You trade your 25 ft centre console fishing boat in on that great little 15 ft sampan.
112, You can start a fire by rubbing two sticks together.
113, Latrines at camp start becoming comfortable.
114, You have your wife a Sleeping Bag rated for -15 deg F for Valentine day.
115, You name your kids; "Robert", "Stevenson", "Smythe", "Baden" and "Powell".
116, Your favourite tune is "Scout Hymm".
117, You can recite the 10 Scout Laws backwards and in 3 languages, in order, in 10 seconds flat.
118, You bought 10,000 shares of Coleman stock on an inside tip where they were about to release a microwave accessory for their camp stove line.
119, You can’t eat eggs anymore unless they are cooked over open fire.
120, You plan on writing a best selling Dutch Overn Cook book.
121, You has a Master degree in chemistry from a local University to help you to develop a better fire starter.
122, The height of your social season is your Scout Group Annual Campfire.
123, You have already seen this list and are still laughing.
124, People stop you at the market and ask how to join Scouting.
125, You always say: "Its never too late or old to join Scouting".
126, When attending college, you roast mini marshmallows on a paper clip over a candle to make mini mores in your dorm room while singing "This is a Scouting Light of Mine".
127, Somebody points to anyone of the boys in your troop and asks "Is that your kid?", you automatically say "Yes!"… When you use the saying "My boys" yet you only have 1 son…or even better - when you use the saying "My boys" and you don’t have "any" children.
128,  You think BP (Boss of Plain) Campaign hats are cool.P5
129, You never throw out ANYTHING without first thinking "Could the troop use this in some way?"
130, Your son knows all the Scout songs (although he probably wouldn’t admit it to any of his friends…)
131, Your husband / wife / boy friend / girl friend registers as an adult member so he / she can see you now and th en.
132, You can’t remember a relative’s birthday, but you do remember Baden Powell’s.
133, You’ve been copying and pasting this thread into your HTML editor program or posting / linking on your website.
134, The greeting in your answering machine provides details regarding troop upcoming events.
135, All your CDs in your cars are all Scout Songs.
136, When you see an open burning or a lit candle, you start humming "Campfire’s burning" to yourself.
137, You wear 2 beads around your neck while attending your company’s dinner. P4
138, You have a mess can, a box of solid fuel, a sleeping bag and a packet of instant noodle packed in your car boot.
139, Marching down the road, you start humming drum beats resemble a March Pass.
140, You declared your own holidays as per Scouting events.
141, You have a replica woodbadge hanging on the rear mirror of your car.
142, Your car windscreen is full of Scout stickers.
143, You have a bumper sticker saying "Never mind the Scouts, Mind the Leaders".
144, You nailed a plate / installed a sign board in front of your house saying "A Scout Lives here".
145, Your kids are expected to do "Morning Inspections" on daily basis.
146, You assemble your family members / kids with the use of Scout’s whisle.
147, Your favourite pass time is to design logos / badges for the next district events.
148, Your family members are terrified when they claimed that you give footdrill commands in your dreams.
149, You read this blog on a regular basis.
150, You finished reading this post, nodding and smiling in agreement.

So are you "SMS-Infected"? Post a comment if you are…

Interesting Photoshopped Pictures

A brother Scout (Pramuka) from Indonesia has creatively produced some interesting photoshopped Scout pictures. Do check out his BLOG !

Bp_justice_league Bp_justice_league1_1