Update: Ham radio study and practice exam websites
NC4FB:
Check out www.nc4fb.org, which is a site
we recently learned about. It offers an extensive array of ham radio learning and study materials. You
can find study plans, flash cards, PowerPoint presentations, specialized
explanations of concepts, such as "Ohm’s Law for Technician License
Exams", and even commercial exam prep materials. Everything is free
and available to anyone. A great feature is the practice exam
section. This site also offers Canadian amateur radio license
preparation and commercial study for the GROL + ship radar endorsement.
AA9PW:
We have recommended www.aa9pw.com for
years, and it is a special favorite of Jerry, N0VOE, who has worked with
beginners in ham radio for us. Jerry likes AA9PW.com because of its proven
accessibility to blind users. There is an option for "no
figures" in the exam and our blind users do indeed report that this site
works well for them. Additional features include on line Morse code training
and a Morse code app available from the iTunes store. AA9PW also
includes practice exams for commercial licenses.
QRZ.com:
www.qrz.com offers practice exams for the
amateur radio licenses, but also includes a "Practice Tests 2.0 Large
Print Edition" that features scalable fonts for those users who can see
the screen but who require large print. The font size can be scaled to
the user's needs. Since QRZ.com is a large site, you may want to go
directly to http://www.qrz.com/exams in
order to quickly access the practice exam page.
eHam.net:
Do a search for some kind of ham radio transceiver, in or out of
production, and you will usually end up with a link to eHam reviews, which can
be exceptionally helpful in doing research on a particular radio or
accessory. But eHam also has a straightforward exam generator available
at http://www.eham.net/exams/.
You can test for all three licenses, but as far as we can tell the site does
not offer a "no figures" option. Still it does look to us like
it is easy to use and probably screenreader accessible, aside from the figures
included in the exams.
HamExam.org:
http://hamexam.org/ has up to date exams
on line and includes a "flash card" learning option. What is
unique here is that you create an account (it's free) and as you use the site,
it learns which questions are giving you trouble and will emphasize those in
subsequent practice exams.
RadioExam.org:
http://www.radioexam.org/ offers
exams for all three levels, but interestingly enough it allows for testing on
each section of the pool separately as well as selecting questions from the
complete pool.
HamTestOnline®:
Ham Test Online is a commercial site that is not free but that has
received good reviews. It incorporates some learning features designed
to minimize memorization and better prepare you for the actual exam. The
cost varies between about $20 and $35 by license class for a two year
subscription. Canadian Basic and Advanced are also offered. The General course
automatically includes both the current question pool and the new one which
will be used for exams after June 30, 2011. Learn more at http://www.hamradiolicenseexam.com/.
KD0FNR:
This website offers lots of links, but features exams for all three USA
licenses as well as Canadian Basic and Advanced. The website is http://copaseticflow.blogspot.com/.
Fair warning! This website is chock-full of interesting and eclectic stuff, so
it's easy to get distracted with the many interesting links and topics.
As long as you put your studies first each day, you will enjoy the
"copaseticflow".
W8MHB:
http://www.w8mhb.com/exam/ offers
the three exam levels with a customizable list that allows you to mix and
match from sections of the pool or simply "select all" sections of
the pool from which to generate your exams. There is no option for "no
figures" and the JavaScript calls pop-up windows for the exam that are
blocked by pop up blocking browser add ins. Probably not the best choice
for blind users, but useful for others.
HamTesting.com:
http://www.hamtesting.com/ offers
free exams with a review system to help you build your skill from an initial
baseline test. We especially like the pages that allow you to simply browse
the question pools without taking an exam, and you can do so by choosing the questions
with all possible answers or with only the correct answers. How cool is
that?!!
ARRL:
While ARRL.org does not provide a
web-based exam practice option, it does offer the ARRL VE Exam Maker software
as a download. This software installs on your computer and may be used
in places where internet access is not available. It is available for
Windows and Mac, and can update via the web when internet is available.
It uses Adobe Flash, and its accessibility to blind users has not been tested
by us. If any blind users can give us a report, we would sure appreciate
it and will share your comments with our readers and listeners. The ARRL VE
Exam Maker software is available at http://www.arrl.org/ve-exam-maker-software.
We find that it is highly customizable, allowing the user to lock out
particular sections of the pool and choose a no figures option. There are
"print" and "show answers" options. Accessible keyboard
commands like CTRL-G to bring up the generate exam dialog are useful, but we
are still looking for input on overall blind accessibility. Please report your
findings to wa0tda@arrl.net.
