[DX-CHAT] VU4/VU3CHE report 2
Friday afternoon over here in VU4 Did some shopping while bands were filled with other VU4ANs I will continue to try mostly WARC bands. The new ROOF on Hotel Sinclairs is very slippery and steep... big change from Dec 2004 when it was ideal So ants will not be tweeked... hi hi. We know of the demands and are trying... thanks to all who stand by when a partial call is called-out... there is no help for doing parials due to noise and other VU4ANs plugging away. Best of luck to all 73 Charles Harpole [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
[DX-CHAT] Gentlemen hams
Hi Folks,
Yes, that is the type of guy you hope you don't meet in traffic on the day the handgun is under his seat!
I don't see the problem as "dumbing down" of the exams. It seems more of a problem that the tests don't cover the right stuff. The basics are missing. New hams have the chance to learn thebasics while studying for the exams, after that there are not many elmers, and folks are to busy to buy and study books the way we used to when getting into ham radio.
We need to train the new guys in the basics, rather than try to use examsas a way to keep out people who might be viewed as not qualified. Anyone is capable of being a ham, but will they be trained in the basics?
For example- How many Extra Class hams out there understand how close to the band edge one can operate and still keep his signal confined to the band or segment? Not many. Is it covered in the exam? No.
Yesterday, listening to the YX0A pileup, I heard some old geezers get their qso on 14.210 wiped out {they were there first, for a long time before the DXpedition came on}. The DX was listening 200-210. Guess what? The DX was listening almost exclusively at thebottom of the range. The interruption of the on-going qso was not only rude, it was useless. The DX never listened there, and a good many operators from theUS obviously lacked the basic skill of discovering where the DX was actually listening. As a result, the DX end of the hobby was given a black eye for nothing but a waste of breath and electricity.Is this skill covered in the exam? No.
What about asking if the frequency is in use and listening before making a call, etc. On the exam? We also fail to instill any regard for obeying Amateur Radio regulations. Just listen to the pileup for any major DXpedition, and take note of the General Class hams calling out of band. These guys need to beupgrading, not building their DXCC scores by operating beyond their privileges. Why bother studying when you can just work the DXpedition anyway, and you can get a nice DXCC certificate sent to you.
How do we instill some of this basic knowledge, and greater regard for getting along in the community of ham radio by being a good neighbor? Making a harder technical exam of electronics theory doesn't seem to fit the bill. How about covering more of the basics on the exam, so at least new licensees have been able to study how they are supposed to act on the bands?
Covermore stuff which will actually be put to practice by amateurs, we know those rigs are going to get sent back to Kenwood for service anyway, cover the important stuff.
Just my thoughts.
73, Duane, WV2B"Nothinggreatiseverachievedwithoutenthusiasm."-RalphWaldoEmerson.
Re: [DX-CHAT] VU4/VU3RWO
At 08:44 04/21/06, Bill Hawkins wrote: Bring on BS7. For that one, bring on some sunspots first, please! Mind you, if it stays inactive much longer, global warming will solve the BS7 problem for us once and for all - Peter W2IRT Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
Re: [DX-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S
I would have to respectfully disagree with Norm's comment that years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of. It may not have been at the level that you seen nowadays, but it's always been there. I can still recall one evening in college (about 30 years ago... *sigh*), when a bunch of us were operating K3CR on 20 phone, when a small pile-up developed (don't ask me why, we weren't a special event, just a college club station, and a pretty active one at the time to boot). 5 minutes or so into the pileup, we got hit with carriers and various rude comments. Then someone else jumped on and informed the jammers that he'd called the local FCC monitoring station... and someone else taunted him back that the FCC wasn't going to do anything... and so on. As I remember, we eventually just gave up and QSY'd. I've had carriers and other QRM wipe either me or my intended QSO out in contests and DX chasing situations going as far back. Again, maybe not as often as you can see nowadays, but it happens. Why is it more prevalent today? For one thing, IMHO, sheer numbers. We have more hams today than we did 30 years ago, and as a result, while the percentage of lids has (hopefully) remained small, the actual number has risen. And when it takes only 1 or 2 ding dongs to create havoc... We also as a society seem to have grown more tolerant over the years of rude and obnoxious behavior. There are many reasons for that, too many to list here. Suffice, when rude behavior is tolerated in other parts of society, it gets reflected on the bands too. And in some situations, the testosterone (or equivalent) takes over. Sometimes, some of those win at any and all costs take no prisoners hams will do anything to make sure that THEY make the contact, and will sometimes prevent YOU from doing so -- so that they can claim I WON and, by default, you lost. It's against the true spirit that amateur radio once had and still aspires too... but it happens all too often. 73, ron wn3vaw From: Norm Gertz [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri Apr 21 07:45:47 CDT 2006 To: Dave [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'WC7N' [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Subject: Re: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S My observations through the years is that the bad apples who generate QRM and engage in outrageous behaviour on the air are also comporting themselves in the same manner in their everyday lives. I disagree with one of the writers who alleged that most of the violators are old timers, extra class etc. Years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of and operators did not have the luxury of split nor a VFO. You were limited to a handful of crystals. Perhaps newer is not always better in spite of the sophisticated equipment we now have. If you have a poor operator at the helm then you expect low grade performance. 73 Norm K1AA - Original Message - From: Dave [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: 'WC7N' [EMAIL PROTECTED]; 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 8:56 PM Subject: RE: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S Short of someone's life or limb being in danger, there is no excuse for transmitting on a DX station's frequency. Its hard to look someone in the eyes and firmly say what you're doing is wrong, and here's why. At least your friend had you to tell him; for all too many ops, there's no one. We reap what we sow... 73, Dave, AA6YQ -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of WC7N Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 20:11 PM To: DX-CHAT Subject: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S Today I have been setting here in the Ham Shack, reading a book, because I couldn't hear any of the DX but did check frequencies. (Easy to do whey you are retired and an old F...) I was really amazed at the language I was hearing and first put it on the dumbing down of the ham radio license requirements but then remembered recently I was visiting a friend who has been a ham for probably 12-15 years, he was calling a dx station on CW and some body came up on freq and he went critical with the UP UP UP FU FU FU etc. I asked what are you doing. His answer I work hard all day and when I come home and have time to ham I don't have to put up with that s... Well maybe that is the problem now, not the dumbing down of the license but working hard to support a family, taking too much sh.. from the boss and just no patience when you get home. Rod WC7N Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message,
Re: [DX-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S
On Fri, 21 Apr 2006 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I can still recall one evening in college (about 30 years ago... *sigh*), when a bunch of us were operating K3CR on 20 phone, when a small pile-up developed (don't ask me why, we weren't a special event, just a college club station, and a pretty active one at the time to boot). 5 minutes or so into the pileup, we got hit with carriers and various rude comments. Then someone else jumped on and informed the jammers that he'd called the local FCC monitoring station... and someone else taunted him back that the FCC wasn't going to do anything... and so on. As I remember, we eventually just gave up and QSY'd. I was looking through some of my old logs recently and saw a notation for a DX station in the log (remember when you had to log your transmissions, even if you didn't work the station?). I forget the DX call at the moment but it was something fairly rare back in 1969. My note was Huge pileup + lids. I don't recall it vividly, but evidently it was something similar to what you hear today. 73, Zack W9SZ Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
Re: [DX-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S
Years ago there was no DX Cluster network that announced to the world the instant the rare DX appeared and on what frequency. Also, in the old days, there was no implied guarantee of a QSO, or multiple band-mode QSOs, with each DXpedition. You had to tune, tune tune, be in the right place at the right time and hope propagation was favorable. Sometimes luck played a role, too. Now, if someone doesn't work a DXpedition, they start insulting the operators (or QRMing the operation) for ignoring their part of the world. Maybe we need to involve the cable TV industry in Dxpeditions to provide the technology for on-demand QSOs :.) 73, Barry W2UP On 21 Apr 2006 at 8:55, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I would have to respectfully disagree with Norm's comment that years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of. It may not have been at the level that you seen nowadays, but it's always been there. I can still recall one evening in college (about 30 years ago... *sigh*), when a bunch of us were operating K3CR on 20 phone, when a small pile-up developed (don't ask me why, we weren't a special event, just a college club station, and a pretty active one at the time to boot). 5 minutes or so into the pileup, we got hit with carriers and various rude comments. Then someone else jumped on and informed the jammers that he'd called the local FCC monitoring station... and someone else taunted him back that the FCC wasn't going to do anything... and so on. As I remember, we eventually just gave up and QSY'd. I've had carriers and other QRM wipe either me or my intended QSO out in contests and DX chasing situations going as far back. Again, maybe not as often as you can see nowadays, but it happens. Why is it more prevalent today? For one thing, IMHO, sheer numbers. We have more hams today than we did 30 years ago, and as a result, while the percentage of lids has (hopefully) remained small, the actual number has risen. And when it takes only 1 or 2 ding dongs to create havoc... We also as a society seem to have grown more tolerant over the years of rude and obnoxious behavior. There are many reasons for that, too many to list here. Suffice, when rude behavior is tolerated in other parts of society, it gets reflected on the bands too. And in some situations, the testosterone (or equivalent) takes over. Sometimes, some of those win at any and all costs take no prisoners hams will do anything to make sure that THEY make the contact, and will sometimes prevent YOU from doing so -- so that they can claim I WON and, by default, you lost. It's against the true spirit that amateur radio once had and still aspires too... but it happens all too often. 73, ron wn3vaw From: Norm Gertz [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri Apr 21 07:45:47 CDT 2006 To: Dave [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'WC7N' [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Subject: Re: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S My observations through the years is that the bad apples who generate QRM and engage in outrageous behaviour on the air are also comporting themselves in the same manner in their everyday lives. I disagree with one of the writers who alleged that most of the violators are old timers, extra class etc. Years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of and operators did not have the luxury of split nor a VFO. You were limited to a handful of crystals. Perhaps newer is not always better in spite of the sophisticated equipment we now have. If you have a poor operator at the helm then you expect low grade performance. 73 Norm K1AA - Original Message - From: Dave [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: 'WC7N' [EMAIL PROTECTED]; 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 8:56 PM Subject: RE: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S Short of someone's life or limb being in danger, there is no excuse for transmitting on a DX station's frequency. Its hard to look someone in the eyes and firmly say what you're doing is wrong, and here's why. At least your friend had you to tell him; for all too many ops, there's no one. We reap what we sow... 73, Dave, AA6YQ -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of WC7N Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 20:11 PM To: DX-CHAT Subject: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S Today I have been setting here in the Ham Shack, reading a book, because I couldn't hear any of the DX but did check frequencies. (Easy to do whey you are retired and an old F...) I was really amazed at the language I was hearing and first put it on the dumbing down of the ham radio license requirements but then remembered recently I was visiting a friend who has been a ham for probably 12-15 years, he was calling a dx station on CW and some body came up on freq and he went critical with the UP UP UP FU FU FU etc. I asked what are you doing. His answer I work hard all day
[DX-CHAT] More VU4 In The Future?
All, I was rather disappointed that the various groups weren't able to try and make a more cohesive effort during this short opening. They probably could have had fewer but better equipped stations and had more luck giving all the deserving at least one QSO while minimizing the guys who have worked 5 different VU4's on 20 SSB. That being said - I'll take what I get and sure appreciate the effort. So now that there seems to be an opening for some activity on VU4 I wonder what the chances on VU7 are and whether there might be the possibility of yearly or at least maybe every few years operations from these areas. I'm sure all of us would benefit from a large multi- national VU4 or VU7 operation a couple of years from now. Given time to plan I would think that some of the major groups could have a 24-7 multi station effort and have us saying Remember when VU4 was in the top 100 needed list?. It will be interesting to hear feedback from W3UR, K4VUD and some of the others over the next couple of weeks about how the climate looks concerning future operations. George (K8QM) Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
Re: [DX-CHAT] More VU4 In The Future?
At 11:10 04/21/06, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: All, I was rather disappointed that the various groups weren't able to try and make a more cohesive effort during this short opening. More effort?? Are you *kidding*? Last night alone there were three different stations easily workable from the centre, south and northeast bits of the U.S. I don't have a massive tower and stacked array here -- just a pair of yagis (one tiny one for WARC and a modest one for 10-15-20) on top of a 70' tower, and was able to work all three very easily within 15-20 minutes using about 500W. Two CW, one SSB. They've also been very workable mid-day for the last three days. Heck, I got them first-day after only a few minutes of trying. Again, no super-station here. They probably could have had fewer but better equipped stations and had more luck giving all the deserving at least one QSO while minimizing the guys who have worked 5 different VU4's on 20 SSB. While part of me says work 'em all while you can, I personally won't be calling again on any band I already have them on. Time for the little pistols to have a shot at getting 'em at least once. Anybody with even a modest yagi and beam should have them on at least one band by now (if their work/operating schedule allows, of course). That being said - I'll take what I get and sure appreciate the effort. I hear ya! My thanks sure do go out to everybody involved who made this happen. First Desecheo, then VU4. Now, for Navassa!! - Peter W2IRT Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
Re: [DX-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S
Ron..my recollections of behaviour were of the time periods in the late 30's up until WWII.. After resumption of amateur radio activities following the war intentional QRM seemed to grow in frequency and in intensity. Vulgar language was unheard of in those early days. Poor operators in those days had chirpy signals, raw AC and over modulated. In spite of more primitive techniques the FCC appeared to be very vigilant and not many violators escaped that pink ticket. In self defense, some DX operations ran list operations by the numbers; not loved by one and all but it gave out many new countries to the multitude. Those that lose their cool and cause disruption are akin to those oddballs that exhibit road rage on the highways. I can also recall that now and then a DX station would pull the big switch when frustrated by these characters. Yes, 30 years ago there certainly was such behaviousr For at least 15 years the 14313 three ring circus was in full swing and you could hear almost anything vulgar on there all day long. To his everlasting credit Riley Hollingsworth cleaned up that mess and those perpertrators hopefully are now put to rest for good. God bless Amateur Radio and the good guys. 73 Norm K1AA - Original Message - From: Barry [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Sent: Friday, April 21, 2006 10:35 AM Subject: Re: [DX-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S Years ago there was no DX Cluster network that announced to the world the instant the rare DX appeared and on what frequency. Also, in the old days, there was no implied guarantee of a QSO, or multiple band-mode QSOs, with each DXpedition. You had to tune, tune tune, be in the right place at the right time and hope propagation was favorable. Sometimes luck played a role, too. Now, if someone doesn't work a DXpedition, they start insulting the operators (or QRMing the operation) for ignoring their part of the world. Maybe we need to involve the cable TV industry in Dxpeditions to provide the technology for on-demand QSOs :.) 73, Barry W2UP On 21 Apr 2006 at 8:55, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I would have to respectfully disagree with Norm's comment that years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of. It may not have been at the level that you seen nowadays, but it's always been there. I can still recall one evening in college (about 30 years ago... *sigh*), when a bunch of us were operating K3CR on 20 phone, when a small pile-up developed (don't ask me why, we weren't a special event, just a college club station, and a pretty active one at the time to boot). 5 minutes or so into the pileup, we got hit with carriers and various rude comments. Then someone else jumped on and informed the jammers that he'd called the local FCC monitoring station... and someone else taunted him back that the FCC wasn't going to do anything... and so on. As I remember, we eventually just gave up and QSY'd. I've had carriers and other QRM wipe either me or my intended QSO out in contests and DX chasing situations going as far back. Again, maybe not as often as you can see nowadays, but it happens. Why is it more prevalent today? For one thing, IMHO, sheer numbers. We have more hams today than we did 30 years ago, and as a result, while the percentage of lids has (hopefully) remained small, the actual number has risen. And when it takes only 1 or 2 ding dongs to create havoc... We also as a society seem to have grown more tolerant over the years of rude and obnoxious behavior. There are many reasons for that, too many to list here. Suffice, when rude behavior is tolerated in other parts of society, it gets reflected on the bands too. And in some situations, the testosterone (or equivalent) takes over. Sometimes, some of those win at any and all costs take no prisoners hams will do anything to make sure that THEY make the contact, and will sometimes prevent YOU from doing so -- so that they can claim I WON and, by default, you lost. It's against the true spirit that amateur radio once had and still aspires too... but it happens all too often. 73, ron wn3vaw From: Norm Gertz [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri Apr 21 07:45:47 CDT 2006 To: Dave [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'WC7N' [EMAIL PROTECTED], 'DX-CHAT' dx-chat@njdxa.org Subject: Re: [DX-CHAT] [dx-CHAT] Gentlemen HAM'S My observations through the years is that the bad apples who generate QRM and engage in outrageous behaviour on the air are also comporting themselves in the same manner in their everyday lives. I disagree with one of the writers who alleged that most of the violators are old timers, extra class etc. Years ago intentional QRM was almost unheard of and operators did not have the luxury of split nor a VFO. You were limited to a handful of crystals. Perhaps newer is not always better in spite of the sophisticated equipment we now have. If you have a poor operator at the helm then you expect low grade performance. 73 Norm K1AA -
[DX-CHAT] W3UR
Prop to 9 land this evening, and Bernie's signal, were magnificent. Solid strength 9 even through the jamming. Thank you Bernie, two more to go. vy 73, Nick W9UM Subscribe/unsubscribe, feedback, FAQ, problems http://njdxa.org/dx-chat To post a message, DX related items only, dx-chat@njdxa.org This is the DX-CHAT reflector sponsored by the NJDXA http://njdxa.org
