[CW] methods to increase code copying speed

[Jan Robbins]

The Datong "Morse Tutor" model D70, battery operated in an attractive, 
small gray cabinet suitable for carrying anywhere, even in a coat 
pocket, provides excellent practice at speeds up to about 40wpm.
Letters, numbers, or mixed characters can be selected, as can delays 
between sets of characters.  there is a built-in speaker and volume 
control.  These can be found from time
to time on ebay for very reasonable prices.  They aren't common, but if 
you can get hold of one you have the perfect small portable 
code-learning system.  I carried one in my car for
awhile and played it while driving, just to make myself more fluent at 
35wpm and up.

GL es vy 73 to all!  Jan N0JR

David Ring wrote:
> Don's suggestion of "code reader" is a good one.  For years I
> struggled with the "copy words" and "copy letters" systems.  I would
> copy some 70 wpm fellow and say - that doesn't make sense.  Years
> later when I bought a DGM keyboard SRT-2000 with CW/RTTY decoder, I
> started to see why.
>
> The 70 wpm keyboard sender was typing wrong letters!
>
> So after this, I strongly decided - use canned code practice - then
> you can gain confidence.  What I hear is what was sent.
>
> Still with on the air received copy, you are going to find
> circumstances where a micro-fade (very short phase distortion) garbles
> a dash and makes a dot out of it, or takes a dash and makes two dots
> out of it by causing the middle of the dash to fade out.
>
> So remember phase distortion, QRN (static), QRM (man made noise like
> power tools and nearby radio signals) all will cause problems copying.
>
> Just a thought for today:  Back in 1910 QRN and QRM both sounded alike
> - because all there was at the time was lightning (spark), and motor
> noise (spark) and nearby transmitters (also spark).  The only problem
> was man caused QRM and nature caused QRN.
>
> 73
>
> David Ring, N1EA
>
> On Thu, Apr 10, 2008 at 3:01 PM,  <K8MFO at aol.com> wrote:
>   
>> If I had answered this question 50 years ago,  when I was first licensed, I
>>  would have suggested joining CW traffic nets,  operating contests on CW, and
>>  just plain rag chewing with whomever you encounter  on the air.
>>
>>  Now, with modern technology, even though I have to be dragged  kicking and
>>  screaming (!) into some of it, I would suggest the same  things.   However, you
>>  could also find a CODE READER program and watch  while it decodes the signals,
>>  and compare it with what you hear.    There is not a computer program written
>>  that is as good as  the human  brain, but they can be useful.    My Elecraft
>>  K3 radio has one  built in.
>>
>>  PRACTICE is still the key.      As is  the case with golf, "the more I
>>  practice, the luckier I  get"...
>>
>>  73
>>
>>  Don K8MFO
>>
>>     
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