Mr. Hinton,
You have hit the nail right on the head! I have a really busy life the last
many months and want to get study in for my Extra class ticket. I have my ARRL
VE Credentials but cannot give a test until I have that Extra ticket in hand.
Your comment about being proud of earning your ticket is right on and it really
resonated with me because even though I am a No Code, I actually wish they
would have kept the code and added skills instead of taking away.
I just came along at the wrong time. I was once very proficient with CW, but
wonder if I can ever pick it up again. I never used it on the bands, as I
didn't have my ticket back then. I wanted to say that my pride in having earned
everything I have is diminished. I am contemplating letting my ticket expire
and giving it up from the experience I have had so far.
I was going to sell my shack many months ago because I needed money, but it
worked out that I didn't have to go that far. I have ambitions such as getting
DXCC and WAS and Triple Play, but I have sadly found that everyone wants to use
eqsl.cc and those don't count!
No one wants to send real cards. I would have cards made, but who would I send
them to when i know damn well I ain't gonna get a REAL card in return? My LOTW
confirmations are a joke. I see many amateurs who can get confirmation on LOTW
like wildfire, but those are powerhouse stations and I think I see that us
lower power 100 watt stations just don't seem to be worth anyone's time.
--- On Tue, 12/15/09, Gary A. Hinton <wb6...@cox.net> wrote:
From: Gary A. Hinton <wb6...@cox.net>
Subject: Re: [digitalradio] Techs on HF digital
To: digitalradio@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, December 15, 2009, 7:27 PM
Hello
Gary,
Gone are the days
of being proud of getting your General or
Extra Class
ticket. Taking a bus to the FCC field office in the city making
a day of it. Now
days just memorize the answers and your a Extra Class.
The system
nowadays is so easy a Cave Man with a IQ of five, could get a
license.
Being a VE here
also, I see testes that know the answers but nothing more about
them.
The basic problem
people are just lazy and want everything on a silver platter.
You should show
these Tech's what they are missing
out on, maybe they will upgrade.
Remember you can
lead a horse to water, but you
can't make it drink.
Now flame
time.
73 Gary
WB6BNE
----- Original Message -----
From:
Gary
To: digitalradio@ yahoogroups. com
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 10:55
AM
Subject: [digitalradio] Techs on HF
digital
I thought I'd run something up the flagpole and see if anyone
salutes:
With the currently extended low sunspot cycle reducing the
occurrence of 10 meter openings to near zero, there is little to offer new
hams for radio operating opportunities besides VHF FM. Many of the people who
attend our Technician license classes are interested in doing much more than
chatting with the local guys on a local repeater. Sure, VHF SSB is a
possibility but for us rural folks, even that provides slim pickings for
distant contacts.
We are seeing a very low percentage of newly licensed
people ever buying a transceiver and getting on the air. We are estimating
that number to be less than 10%. Other clubs in our area are experiencing the
same problem: good turn out for classes and lots of licenses issued but few
new hams getting on the air. It may be that VHF FM is not a viable stepping
stone to getting very many new folks active in Amateur Radio.
Being an
old fart, I naturally began as a novice operating CW on the HF bands. Finding
other stations to make contact with was never a problem as there was always
activity on either 40 or 80 meters, depending upon the time of day. Making
contact with other stations hundreds of miles away was common. While that
same
opportunity is available today, at least theoretically, CW operation is not
part of a new ham's skill set.
So... Here is the idea. Would you be
amenable to allowing Technician Class licensees to operate digital modes in
the Technician CW bands and do you think that would be of interest to new
hams?
I would imagine, the license limitations would have to state
something like a maximum of 300 baud and 500 Hz bandwidth with a 200 watt
power limit. There may be other limitations that might be nice to toss into
the mix but this is a starting point for discussion.
Your
thoughts?
Gary - N0GW
