[CW] CW and Dancing Radio Stations

[k0ng@inebraska.com]

David: I think you love CW. I do too. Ham Radio WILL survive without it.
We will too, I think. I will find a way to operate CW even if......

Regards,  Charlie,  K0NG



Quoting w8okn@charter.net:

> David,
> 
> You sound depressing.
> 
> Sean
> W8OKN
> > 
> > From: "David J. Ring, Jr." <n1ea@arrl.net>
> > Date: 2004/02/02 Mon AM 06:55:00 GMT
> > To: "George,  W5YR" <w5yr@att.net>,  "Anthony W. DePrato"
> <wa4jqs@mikrotec.com>, 
> >         <cw@mailman.qth.net>
> > Subject: [CW] CW and Dancing Radio Stations
> > 
> > George,
> > 
> > I think we're close on our feelings about CW, but perhaps I go a bit
> > further.  I have an excellent track record at some of my predictions, and
> I
> > still believe that without CW, someone in Washington will soon realize
> that
> > there is no real reason to have "operators" for radio, and thus no reason
> > for "ham" operators.  If there was no CW proficiency, if I were a
> > politician, I would quickly see that ham radio has no use.  I would
> probably
> > get rid of it, or make it pay its way with high user fees.  It would
> become
> > even more of a "rich man's" hobby as it was in the early days - if it
> > existed at all.  Ham radio without CW has about ZERO usefullness to our
> > nation.  We are much better served by professional people who use radios.
> > 
> > We have no need for radio operators - because "anyone" can do it.
> > 
> > Now, if we STILL had hams who "upgraded" and became radar techs, AM/FM/TV
> > techs, radio officers, telegraphists, and point-to-point technicians, I
> > would say we needed ham radio.  But we have none of those jobs left.  Nor
> do
> > we have the requirement of a commercial license for those jobs.  The jobs
> > aren't special, because "anyone" can do them.
> > 
> > If I were a youngster, and I became a ham because it looked interesting, I
> > probably would quickly loose interest.  SSB, my cellphone is better.
> > Slow-Scan TV, nice but I can send pictures over the internet.  DX that's
> > interesting, but what's the point?  --- I can get everywhere on the
> > internet.  CW, too much work translating the dots and dashes to letters. 
> (I
> > hear some people doing it faster, but they must be using computers... :-)
> > 
> > Some of the newcomers say it's "boring" and the others are offended by the
> > self-centeredness of the hobby - the bragging about equipment, and the
> "I'm
> > bigger" than you are, of the hobby.
> > 
> > Was it always this way?  If so what is the same, and what is different?
> > 
> > Personalities?  If my first experience was 2 meter FM, I probably would
> > never turn my 2 meter rig on again.  Fortunately I grew up with 2 meter AM
> > and then FM - and I gave up FM for about 30 years because the
> personalities
> > were so self-centered, non-helpful. Many hams have had this experience -
> not
> > just the new hams.
> > 
> > HF SSB - in my early days, the "big boys" didn't want to talk to you
> unless
> > you had a BIG signal.  Many of the others had nothing to say, so it was a
> > waste of time.
> > 
> > RTTY - that was enjoyable.  I liked the whirring of the machines and the
> > clattering of the typebars as they struck paper.  I bought a small scope
> at
> > a auction and hooked it to my homebrew terminal unit and started copying
> > W1AW broadcasts, and later got a varicap and got it adjusted correctly so
> > that I could put out frequency-shift-keying on my transmitter.  But this
> > soon lost its appeal also - there are only so many times you can say
> "hello,
> > rig here is and goodbye".
> > 
> > But on CW there were beautiful sendings going on!  This was an art.  I
> > didn't hear much of the "I'm bigger than you are" on this mode, I didn't
> > hear the self-centeredness.  What I did hear was a lot of code practice! 
> I
> > was a Novice, and if I didn't get up to 13 wpm in a year, I would have no
> > license!  When I did upgrade, I still didn't hear the stuff that I was now
> > hearing on SSB.  I had a "bigger" signal on CW.  So more people could copy
> > me.
> > 
> > When the CW operators went up to SSB, they really had a grip on THAT mode,
> > too.  There was something about a CW operator that (do I dare say it?) was
> > ... ... better than the guys up on green keys (rtty) or SSB.  Not all of
> > them, there were the gifted in the other modes, the guy who was an
> announcer
> > on AM radio whose voice was beautiful, or the guy who used to be a UPI
> > teletype operator who could "loop" the paper tape as he prepared his
> > transmission.  These guys ALSO knew the "tricks of the trade".  But the CW
> > operators that I met - many of them - were just incredable operators. 
> They
> > made a radio station dance.
> > 
> > We certainly need knowledgeable people, but I think we also need people
> who
> > can make a radio station dance.
> > 
> > 73
> > 
> > David Ring, N1EA
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > _______________________________________________
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> > CW@mailman.qth.net
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> > 
> 
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