[CW] CW training software...

[Fred Adsit]

HI, Gene. For the moment I will pass on Nu_Morse. Gotta think about that a
while.

But you asked 'what is FIST?' Since you put it in caps, I assume you are
referring to the FISTS organization, which has various chapters all a part
of The International Morse Preservation Society. Their website is as
follows, and be careful not to use .com, use .ORG. Also if you send a
message with it in the title, some ISPs reject it, so space the letters as
F I S T S . See www.fists.org .

In the site you will find the simplest answer from the founder: A "FIST",
as you know, is nothing more than a CW ops' reference to another ops'
keying characteristic." We didn't used to have keyers or programs to type
CW, we had hand keys (straight keys, take your pick) and semi-automatic
keyers called bugs, which I think is a tradename that Vibroplex began
using but is used generically by others without their objection. Some of
us still prefer the manual keys (straight keys and bugs) and unless we are
really proficient, you will be able to tell us by our "fist", for few of
us are free of oddities in our spacings and dit and dah lengths.

And oh yes, there is the sideswiper. The letter H for example, on a
sideswiper, takes four swings to create. The 'swing' is just about
unavoidable with them, often called a Lake Erie swing or a banana boat
swing.. but oh they are inexpensive to build using a piece of hacksaw
blade and some small parts. :-)

Check out www.fists.org. It is a good organization, is a good jumping-off
point to other CW websites, and above all, "WHEN YOU'VE WORKED A FIST
YOU'VE WORKED A FRIEND." Not very expensive to join but that is an
individual matter - most of us can't afford to join every CW organization
and as in all things in this life, we have to set priorities in making our
choices.

WELCOME to ham radio, Gene. Also, you have a very interesting website at
http://www.f15sim.com/ .

73
ZUT!
Fred Adsit, NY2V - FISTS 1293
ex-W2ZOJ - 1948
W2ZOJ - ZUT ARC -FISTS 7900
ZUT: "CW Forever" use approved by
Coast Guard CW Operators Assoc.

 -----Original Message-----
Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 14:23:46 -0700 (PDT)
From: Gene Buckle <geneb@deltasoft.com>
To: cw@mailman.qth.net
Subject: [CW] CW training software...

I purchased a copy of Nu-Morse Pro (http://www.nu-ware.com) to help me
learn the code so I could pass the test.  Now that I've passed the test,
is this a good package to continue on with?  Am I looking at problems
using a system that requires I type the character as opposed to writing it
down?

Oh, while I'm thinking about it, what is FIST?

tnx!

73 de kc7afe
gene