Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC made DARC honorary member
by m5aka

Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC circa 1988 - Credit AMSAT-DL
Former AMSAT-DL President Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, who was first licensed in 1957 aged 17, has been named a new DARC honorary member. He was awarded the AMSAT-UK G3AAJ Trophy in 2000.
A translation of the DARC post reads:
This was announced by DARC chairman Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG, at the virtual conference of the amateur council - in replacement of the canceled general meeting - on November 13th. Meinzer developed an enthusiasm for amateur radio at a young age. At the age of 17 he obtained his amateur radio license in 1957.
He passed the Abitur [educational qualification] along with a degree in physics and graduated with a doctorate. He spent his professional life at the University of Marburg, especially in the development laboratory for electronics until his retirement in 2005. The rooms of the ZEL were also the headquarters of the AMSAT-DL. Numerous OSCAR satellites were created in the laboratories in Marburg: AO-10, AO-13, AO-21, AO-40. Phase 3E is de facto finished, but is still waiting for a suitable start. A special operating system works in all satellites built by AMSAT-DL, on which Meinzer played a key role.
Meinzer doesn’t skimp on sharing his expertise and so he is still in close contact with the board of AMSAT-DL today. It is not surprising that DJ4ZC was one of the first radio amateurs to work on QO-100.
In addition, Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer carried out further technical radio tests. He was obsessed with testing whether radio signals could be reflected off the planet Venus. In fact, he succeeded in doing this with 5 kW at 2.4 GHz, including a water-cooled magnetron. He had a special permit from the Federal Network Agency [BNetzA] specifically for these experiments.
But even in earlier years he achieved amazing things: In 1964 he set a course record of 70 cm between his home town of Iserlohn and Switzerland. And even then he was QRV on 433 MHz EME and contacted Puerto Rico. "He is one of the few old-timers who keeps pace with modern technology," explains Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG.
"There are only three Keplerian laws, everything can be done in them," said Meinzer once, according to DL3MBG. "Unfortunately, he is reluctant to present his skills, but the AMSAT board always likes to refer to his expertise," said the DARC chairman, who later wishes him a happy 82nd birthday.
“The DARC has unanimously decided to award you honorary membership for your services. I am happy to welcome you as a new honorary member, ” concluded DL3MBG.
DJ4ZC expressed his thanks. “My life has always been shaped by amateur radio. Some of the services were only made possible by other people, ”explains Meinzer. “I hope to continue to contribute something for amateur radio and DARC in the future.
Unfortunately, communication behavior in society has changed. So it's a challenge for the DARC. However, I have the hope that technology will gain more importance again. Ultimately, amateur radio has to prove that it is useful for society,” said Prof. Dr. Meinzer in conclusion.
Source DARC https://darc.de/

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

And a bit of context:

https://amsat-dl.org/en/ips-high-level-programming-of-small-systems-for-the-amsat-space-projects/

When I saw the documentation a few years back, I started email exchange with Karl Meinzer and he agreed., so it is now part of my Forth Bookshelf:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07SGWCSKT/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i11
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Juergen-Pintaske/e/B00N8HVEZM

a note from there:

Robin

5.0 out of 5 stars The classic description of IPS
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 April 2021
Verified Purchase
IPS was originally developed as a real-world application oriented version of FORTH. The additional features make it more useful for various classes of problems. If you want to know how how to build real-time systems in severely resource limited environments, then this book is for you. If you want to build reliable microcontroller systems without excessive dross, then this book is for you. If you are merely curious as to how a FORTH like language can be implemented on low specification machines, then this book is for you.. Or if you are merely curious about alternative system architectures, it's well worth a read.

Congratulations again, and I wonder, if this software is still running somewhere?

Probably nowadays it would be running on 2 ESP8266:
One as the satellite with sensors
One as Earth Station.

If you know any other IPS links please add them here.

On Sunday, 14 November 2021 at 08:25:14 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC made DARC honorary member
> by m5aka
>
>
> Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC circa 1988 - Credit AMSAT-DL
> Former AMSAT-DL President Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, who was first licensed in 1957 aged 17, has been named a new DARC honorary member. He was awarded the AMSAT-UK G3AAJ Trophy in 2000.
> A translation of the DARC post reads:
> This was announced by DARC chairman Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG, at the virtual conference of the amateur council - in replacement of the canceled general meeting - on November 13th. Meinzer developed an enthusiasm for amateur radio at a young age. At the age of 17 he obtained his amateur radio license in 1957.
> He passed the Abitur [educational qualification] along with a degree in physics and graduated with a doctorate. He spent his professional life at the University of Marburg, especially in the development laboratory for electronics until his retirement in 2005. The rooms of the ZEL were also the headquarters of the AMSAT-DL. Numerous OSCAR satellites were created in the laboratories in Marburg: AO-10, AO-13, AO-21, AO-40. Phase 3E is de facto finished, but is still waiting for a suitable start. A special operating system works in all satellites built by AMSAT-DL, on which Meinzer played a key role.
> Meinzer doesn’t skimp on sharing his expertise and so he is still in close contact with the board of AMSAT-DL today. It is not surprising that DJ4ZC was one of the first radio amateurs to work on QO-100.
> In addition, Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer carried out further technical radio tests. He was obsessed with testing whether radio signals could be reflected off the planet Venus. In fact, he succeeded in doing this with 5 kW at 2.4 GHz, including a water-cooled magnetron. He had a special permit from the Federal Network Agency [BNetzA] specifically for these experiments.
> But even in earlier years he achieved amazing things: In 1964 he set a course record of 70 cm between his home town of Iserlohn and Switzerland. And even then he was QRV on 433 MHz EME and contacted Puerto Rico. "He is one of the few old-timers who keeps pace with modern technology," explains Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG.
> "There are only three Keplerian laws, everything can be done in them," said Meinzer once, according to DL3MBG. "Unfortunately, he is reluctant to present his skills, but the AMSAT board always likes to refer to his expertise," said the DARC chairman, who later wishes him a happy 82nd birthday.
> “The DARC has unanimously decided to award you honorary membership for your services. I am happy to welcome you as a new honorary member, ” concluded DL3MBG.
> DJ4ZC expressed his thanks. “My life has always been shaped by amateur radio. Some of the services were only made possible by other people, ”explains Meinzer. “I hope to continue to contribute something for amateur radio and DARC in the future.
> Unfortunately, communication behavior in society has changed. So it's a challenge for the DARC. However, I have the hope that technology will gain more importance again. Ultimately, amateur radio has to prove that it is useful for society,” said Prof. Dr. Meinzer in conclusion.
> Source DARC https://darc.de/
>
> +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>
> And a bit of context:
>
> https://amsat-dl.org/en/ips-high-level-programming-of-small-systems-for-the-amsat-space-projects/
>
> When I saw the documentation a few years back, I started email exchange with Karl Meinzer and he agreed., so it is now part of my Forth Bookshelf:
>
> https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07SGWCSKT/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i11
> https://www.amazon.co.uk/Juergen-Pintaske/e/B00N8HVEZM
>
> a note from there:
>
> Robin
>
> 5.0 out of 5 stars The classic description of IPS
> Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 April 2021
> Verified Purchase
> IPS was originally developed as a real-world application oriented version of FORTH. The additional features make it more useful for various classes of problems. If you want to know how how to build real-time systems in severely resource limited environments, then this book is for you. If you want to build reliable microcontroller systems without excessive dross, then this book is for you. If you are merely curious as to how a FORTH like language can be implemented on low specification machines, then this book is for you. Or if you are merely curious about alternative system architectures, it's well worth a read.
>
>
> Congratulations again, and I wonder, if this software is still running somewhere?
>
> Probably nowadays it would be running on 2 ESP8266:
> One as the satellite with sensors
> One as Earth Station.
>
> If you know any other IPS links please add them here.

Just found the github link
https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS
and
https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS/tree/master/Documentation

On Sunday, 14 November 2021 at 09:10:34 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> On Sunday, 14 November 2021 at 08:25:14 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> > Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC made DARC honorary member
> > by m5aka
> >
> >
> > Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC circa 1988 - Credit AMSAT-DL
> > Former AMSAT-DL President Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, who was first licensed in 1957 aged 17, has been named a new DARC honorary member. He was awarded the AMSAT-UK G3AAJ Trophy in 2000.
> > A translation of the DARC post reads:
> > This was announced by DARC chairman Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG, at the virtual conference of the amateur council - in replacement of the canceled general meeting - on November 13th. Meinzer developed an enthusiasm for amateur radio at a young age. At the age of 17 he obtained his amateur radio license in 1957.
> > He passed the Abitur [educational qualification] along with a degree in physics and graduated with a doctorate. He spent his professional life at the University of Marburg, especially in the development laboratory for electronics until his retirement in 2005. The rooms of the ZEL were also the headquarters of the AMSAT-DL. Numerous OSCAR satellites were created in the laboratories in Marburg: AO-10, AO-13, AO-21, AO-40. Phase 3E is de facto finished, but is still waiting for a suitable start. A special operating system works in all satellites built by AMSAT-DL, on which Meinzer played a key role.
> > Meinzer doesn’t skimp on sharing his expertise and so he is still in close contact with the board of AMSAT-DL today. It is not surprising that DJ4ZC was one of the first radio amateurs to work on QO-100.
> > In addition, Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer carried out further technical radio tests. He was obsessed with testing whether radio signals could be reflected off the planet Venus. In fact, he succeeded in doing this with 5 kW at 2..4 GHz, including a water-cooled magnetron. He had a special permit from the Federal Network Agency [BNetzA] specifically for these experiments.
> > But even in earlier years he achieved amazing things: In 1964 he set a course record of 70 cm between his home town of Iserlohn and Switzerland. And even then he was QRV on 433 MHz EME and contacted Puerto Rico. "He is one of the few old-timers who keeps pace with modern technology," explains Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG.
> > "There are only three Keplerian laws, everything can be done in them," said Meinzer once, according to DL3MBG. "Unfortunately, he is reluctant to present his skills, but the AMSAT board always likes to refer to his expertise," said the DARC chairman, who later wishes him a happy 82nd birthday.
> > “The DARC has unanimously decided to award you honorary membership for your services. I am happy to welcome you as a new honorary member, ” concluded DL3MBG.
> > DJ4ZC expressed his thanks. “My life has always been shaped by amateur radio. Some of the services were only made possible by other people, ”explains Meinzer. “I hope to continue to contribute something for amateur radio and DARC in the future.
> > Unfortunately, communication behavior in society has changed. So it's a challenge for the DARC. However, I have the hope that technology will gain more importance again. Ultimately, amateur radio has to prove that it is useful for society,” said Prof. Dr. Meinzer in conclusion.
> > Source DARC https://darc.de/
> >
> > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> >
> > And a bit of context:
> >
> > https://amsat-dl.org/en/ips-high-level-programming-of-small-systems-for-the-amsat-space-projects/
> >
> > When I saw the documentation a few years back, I started email exchange with Karl Meinzer and he agreed., so it is now part of my Forth Bookshelf:
> >
> > https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07SGWCSKT/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i11
> > https://www.amazon.co.uk/Juergen-Pintaske/e/B00N8HVEZM
> >
> > a note from there:
> >
> > Robin
> >
> > 5.0 out of 5 stars The classic description of IPS
> > Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 April 2021
> > Verified Purchase
> > IPS was originally developed as a real-world application oriented version of FORTH. The additional features make it more useful for various classes of problems. If you want to know how how to build real-time systems in severely resource limited environments, then this book is for you. If you want to build reliable microcontroller systems without excessive dross, then this book is for you. If you are merely curious as to how a FORTH like language can be implemented on low specification machines, then this book is for you. Or if you are merely curious about alternative system architectures, it's well worth a read.
> >
> >
> > Congratulations again, and I wonder, if this software is still running somewhere?
> >
> > Probably nowadays it would be running on 2 ESP8266:
> > One as the satellite with sensors
> > One as Earth Station.
> >
> > If you know any other IPS links please add them here.
> Just found the github link
> https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS
> and
> https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS/tree/master/Documentation

Hidden in the github collection is this BYTE article

https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS/blob/master/Documentation/BYTE_January1979_IPS_An_Unorthodox_High_Level_Language_by_Karl_Meinzer_DJ4ZC.pdf

IPS - an unorthodox High Level Language

On Tuesday, 16 November 2021 at 14:55:34 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> On Sunday, 14 November 2021 at 09:10:34 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> > On Sunday, 14 November 2021 at 08:25:14 UTC, Jurgen Pitaske wrote:
> > > Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC made DARC honorary member
> > > by m5aka
> > >
> > >
> > > Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer DJ4ZC circa 1988 - Credit AMSAT-DL
> > > Former AMSAT-DL President Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer, DJ4ZC, who was first licensed in 1957 aged 17, has been named a new DARC honorary member. He was awarded the AMSAT-UK G3AAJ Trophy in 2000.
> > > A translation of the DARC post reads:
> > > This was announced by DARC chairman Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG, at the virtual conference of the amateur council - in replacement of the canceled general meeting - on November 13th. Meinzer developed an enthusiasm for amateur radio at a young age. At the age of 17 he obtained his amateur radio license in 1957.
> > > He passed the Abitur [educational qualification] along with a degree in physics and graduated with a doctorate. He spent his professional life at the University of Marburg, especially in the development laboratory for electronics until his retirement in 2005. The rooms of the ZEL were also the headquarters of the AMSAT-DL. Numerous OSCAR satellites were created in the laboratories in Marburg: AO-10, AO-13, AO-21, AO-40. Phase 3E is de facto finished, but is still waiting for a suitable start. A special operating system works in all satellites built by AMSAT-DL, on which Meinzer played a key role.
> > > Meinzer doesn’t skimp on sharing his expertise and so he is still in close contact with the board of AMSAT-DL today. It is not surprising that DJ4ZC was one of the first radio amateurs to work on QO-100.
> > > In addition, Prof. Dr. Karl Meinzer carried out further technical radio tests. He was obsessed with testing whether radio signals could be reflected off the planet Venus. In fact, he succeeded in doing this with 5 kW at 2.4 GHz, including a water-cooled magnetron. He had a special permit from the Federal Network Agency [BNetzA] specifically for these experiments.
> > > But even in earlier years he achieved amazing things: In 1964 he set a course record of 70 cm between his home town of Iserlohn and Switzerland. And even then he was QRV on 433 MHz EME and contacted Puerto Rico. "He is one of the few old-timers who keeps pace with modern technology," explains Christian Entsfellner, DL3MBG.
> > > "There are only three Keplerian laws, everything can be done in them," said Meinzer once, according to DL3MBG. "Unfortunately, he is reluctant to present his skills, but the AMSAT board always likes to refer to his expertise," said the DARC chairman, who later wishes him a happy 82nd birthday.
> > > “The DARC has unanimously decided to award you honorary membership for your services. I am happy to welcome you as a new honorary member, ” concluded DL3MBG.
> > > DJ4ZC expressed his thanks. “My life has always been shaped by amateur radio. Some of the services were only made possible by other people, ”explains Meinzer. “I hope to continue to contribute something for amateur radio and DARC in the future.
> > > Unfortunately, communication behavior in society has changed. So it's a challenge for the DARC. However, I have the hope that technology will gain more importance again. Ultimately, amateur radio has to prove that it is useful for society,” said Prof. Dr. Meinzer in conclusion.
> > > Source DARC https://darc.de/
> > >
> > > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> > >
> > > And a bit of context:
> > >
> > > https://amsat-dl.org/en/ips-high-level-programming-of-small-systems-for-the-amsat-space-projects/
> > >
> > > When I saw the documentation a few years back, I started email exchange with Karl Meinzer and he agreed., so it is now part of my Forth Bookshelf:
> > >
> > > https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07SGWCSKT/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i11
> > > https://www.amazon.co.uk/Juergen-Pintaske/e/B00N8HVEZM
> > >
> > > a note from there:
> > >
> > > Robin
> > >
> > > 5.0 out of 5 stars The classic description of IPS
> > > Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 April 2021
> > > Verified Purchase
> > > IPS was originally developed as a real-world application oriented version of FORTH. The additional features make it more useful for various classes of problems. If you want to know how how to build real-time systems in severely resource limited environments, then this book is for you. If you want to build reliable microcontroller systems without excessive dross, then this book is for you. If you are merely curious as to how a FORTH like language can be implemented on low specification machines, then this book is for you. Or if you are merely curious about alternative system architectures, it's well worth a read.
> > >
> > >
> > > Congratulations again, and I wonder, if this software is still running somewhere?
> > >
> > > Probably nowadays it would be running on 2 ESP8266:
> > > One as the satellite with sensors
> > > One as Earth Station.
> > >
> > > If you know any other IPS links please add them here.
> > Just found the github link
> > https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS
> > and
> > https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS/tree/master/Documentation
> Hidden in the github collection is this BYTE article
>
> https://github.com/amsat-dl/IPS/blob/master/Documentation/BYTE_January1979_IPS_An_Unorthodox_High_Level_Language_by_Karl_Meinzer_DJ4ZC.pdf
>
> IPS - an unorthodox High Level Language

Why was not just a standard Forth used?

From an email from Dr. Karl Meinzer,
when I tried to find out how of if to proceed with the IPS book project,
I got the following background from Dr. Karl Meinzer,
translated part from German of the email:

Dear Mr. Pintaske,

James Miller forwarded your letter on your Forth project and your inquiry regarding IPS.

First a little background:
For the AMSAT satellites, we needed a suitable software in the mid-1970s
that would run on the COSMAC from the RCA company.
Dr. Sommer from RCA had drawn my attention to Forth,
and in principle it seemed like a good basis for our project.
But since we couldn't get Forth on affordable terms,
I recreated such a system from scratch
and at the same time tailored it to our needs.
(e.g. interaction via screen and not teletype,
and multitasking as an integral component.)
..
For our satellite application, the primary focus was
on designing the system in such a way
that the susceptibility to programming errors is minimal.
We therefore had the system tested by a large number of users
at the University of Marburg,
under the condition that they give us feedback
on all programming errors they encountered.
The evaluation then resulted in a revision,
which also resulted in most of the deviations from Forth.
The system has been stable and absolutely error-free since about 1979,
and it was used in all P3 satellites
in the on-board computer to operate the satellites.
It must have been a major contributor to the success of these missions.

There is more in this email, but I cut out the background I was given.