Passport to World Band Radio
This is the definitive guide to the world of shortwave.

Before buying a SW radio system, this book goes through the options and what to look for in both radios and antennae.

When you have your system, it lists all the frequencies of the SW services throughout the world, by listening zone and time of day.

It's an annual publication from the International Broadcasting Services Ltd, with the 2004 edition being ISBN 0914941844. It is available through Amazon, and most SW radio specialists.

Don't be put off by it's ranking as the 67,197th most popular choice of ordered books on Amazon.co.uk. If you're doing anything with SW radios, this book is a fantastic reference.

Konexx Accoustic Koupler (sic)
This is what you need to connect your laptop to the internet (limited speeds) while on the road.

It's what used to be used in the days when telephones were hard-wired to the socket on the wall.

The Konexx plugs into the modem port of your laptop, and is then attached to the handset of a telephone, through which the connection to the internet is established.

Pictured left connected to a public telephone in Australia, the Konexx and handset are held together by a velcro strap: the handset is on top and the Konexx is below.

As there is very little demand for such a lump of electronics nowadays, you'll have trouble locating one. Despite internet stores advertising them, in reality, they were not available. I therefore puchased directly from Konexx at www.konexx.com.