i want to only receive weather transmissions on a single side band
radio and record them to my laptop. i am not interested (in the
expense) of transmission or sailmail. Anyone have suggestions for a
low cost setup? There are several good ssb receivers in the $100 to
$200 range but modems seem to be expensive.

help!

I used Mscan Meteo software and it worked great. Just need the
software, any SSB receiver, a laptop and a wire from the earphone jack
on the radio to the mic input on the computer. I could receive all the
weather FAX info including the satellite photograph. It took about an
hour to install and align the clock on the computer with the signal
coming in, then just turn it on at the right time. No modem. I worked
with a couple other boats, it seemed necessary to run an antenna line
up a halyard in order to get good enough reception to receive the FAX
signal. But it probably depends on where you are and what signal you
are trying to receive.
John