Who's responsible for it?
The WAN repeater system is run by a team of thirteen 'core' members. These are the folks who represent the majority of the full time connections. Along with the core members, there are other individual owners and clubs who participate in the system. These auxiliary nodes may be connected occasionally or full time, depending on their own preference. The system is comprised of mostly 2 meter and 440 MHz repeaters, but it isn't uncommon for 222 MHz and 6 meter repeaters to also be connected. Some of these auxiliary nodes are located in other parts of the US, like Texas and Florida, and it's not uncommon to have repeaters in Canada, the UK, or other countries be connected.

What is used to connect to it?
AllStar is a linking technology that takes analog audio and immediately converts it to a digital stream. As a digital signal, it can be transported over great distances without degradation, and can be relayed over the Internet or other Ethernet network. Each repeater uses a computer or Raspberry Pi with a free LINUX software distribution and a radio interface, which together takes the place of a conventional repeater controller. The computers we use are a mix of new computers and discarded (donated) desktops, and Raspberry Pi 2's and 3's.

Why not give it a try?
The WAN system is like any other publicly available AllStar system - open for you to try. You don't even need a radio! You can sign up for your own (free) AllStar account and connect using the "WebTransceiver" or you can connect through one of many conventional repeaters. We invite you to give it a try.