[CW] ?"Morse Therapy"

Tue Aug 26 19:57:36 EDT 2008

This is just too damned good to remain silent!
I promise to be brief.
Danny,
You make a valid point.
With the boundless thrust of modern technology there has appeared a brand
new species of Ham Radio people.
Here in the Southeast, some of the brightest lights on the DX Honor Roll and
the Contesters of the year are
people who can neither recieve nor send Morse code.
They do it with COMPUTERS, and then complain bitterly about imperfect code
from keys and bugs
which their computer is unable to decode for them.  The computer sends morse
code rather well when you type in a call sign or contest exchange.
Then the computer reads the response in machine-generated Morse and prints
it for you right on the screen.
WOW!
Trouble is, as you said, if you ask an off the wall question...or use a
straight key or bug to  interrupt the flow of mindless babble that we've all
heard at speeds around 30 wpm.....these DX Gladiators are LOST.   They'll
make lots of
mundane excuses, but the truth is they can't copy code worth a damn, or send
it either.  Thanks to
our current licensing structure, most of these are extra class
operators....with megabuck stations to
insure they remain at the top of the pile.  Well, they give me an extreme
case of the piles.   Sorry for the vent and thank you for reading.
George
W4GFA

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Danny Douglas" <n7dc at comcast.net>
To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, August 26, 2008 5:29 PM
Subject: Re: [CW] ?"Morse Therapy"

> As one who learned "Morse" in Scouting (via light, sound and wig wag
flag),
> then later worked as a senior intercept operator in the Army Security
Agency
> and then signals NCO in a Green Beret Bazillion, and then finally worked
> circuits as a telecommunications officer with the State Department and
> Department of Defense for 29 years - I find this all somewhat familiar.
> But, one must realize, that "skimming" for information as we mostly do as
> hams is not quite what the rest of the world would consider "copying"
code.
> Yes, we can hear and write down calls, names, QTH, bits about antennas
etc;
> sometimes at a quite rapid rate.  Many of these rapid exchanges we are
> hearing, especially today, are guys who send only a word or three, or at
> most a sentence with the above info, and then turn it over to their QSO
> partner- and some have become quite proficient at it.  They can knock QSOs
> off at astounding rates: 2-4-6-12 , who knows, a minute -0- and get them
all
> in the logs too.  But, I have noted, when talking with some of them, that
> the minute one asks an "oddball" question, even simply for a repeat of
> something, that suddenly ones on signal just got bad!  We drop from 599 to
> 349.  Strange occurrence.
>
> Copying, by the way, means transferring it from sound to written language,
> missing nothing, getting it 100 percent correct, and if not, asking for
> repeats and fills, until you do.  Those of us who got paid for it, were
held
> to high standards.  After all, you the citizens paid for it, and do you
want
> us to send us a message from some embassy or military unit, saying the
world
> may come to an end if we dont do A -B - C about it, and then leave out the
> C?  Do you want to order 1000 shares of GM (Today?- you gotta be kidding)
,
> and then find out we passed the word you only wanted 100 (In that case it
> woud be more kind).
>
> Now, I am not saying its most or a majority of operators who I have notice
> this from, but the numbers have certainly been going up.  They, most often
> than not, do seem to have nice clip-along code.  Its almost like you could
> probably read it with a computer!  That's quite different from the days of
> old too.  I used to be able to sit and jazz along (writing each and every
> character on paper) and at the same time, recognize exactly who the op was
> on the other end - even before hearing his call.  It was like hearing
their
> individual "voice" and recognizing them as an old friend, or at lest
someone
> who I had talked with from time to time. Back then- we called it "swing".
> Today, it all sounds the same.  Must be my ears?  Thought so anyway.  Even
> went to the doctor and had them checked recently.  He said I "have" lost
> some upper range hearing.  My wife gets my attention, but I cant always
make
> out that she is asking me to take out the garbage.  But - she usually
> manages to get the message across anyway.
>
> Anyway, all this hasn't stopped me from listening-in, nor will it, if I
have
> any say in it.  Ill still be hear listening to the CW bands for another
> expedition like the "TI KI" to holler "help we are sinking", or another
> motor sailor down in the Caribbean asking for someone to pass on that
their
> motors have quit, and their sails have torn, to their embassy in
Washington,
> or any number of other smaller items that we hams may be able to help with
> as the days go on.  ((I just hope those ships maintain some type of
> equipment whereby they "can" get on the ham bands, when all else has
failed.
>
>
> Danny Douglas
> N7DC
> ex WN5QMX ET2US WA5UKR ET3USA
> SV0WPP VS6DD N7DC/YV5 G5CTB
> All 2 years or more (except Novice)
> Pls QSL direct, buro, or LOTW preferred,
> I Do not use, but as a courtesy do upload to eQSL for
> those who do.
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Ron Zond" <k3miy at csonline.net>
> To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 26, 2008 4:38 PM
> Subject: RE: [CW] ?"Morse Therapy"
>
>
> Right on Hans. That's why they called them "fists" 73.
>
> Ron
> K3MIY
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net]On
> Behalf Of K0HB
> Sent: Tuesday, August 26, 2008 1:47 PM
> To: CW Reflector
> Subject: Re: [CW] ?"Morse Therapy"
>
>
> That's a very nice piece, David, but I have to take issue with this
> sentence.
>
> > The words appear right inside  my head, words that were never
> > spoken; uncorrupted by  accents, verbal peculiarities, oddities
> > of vocal intonation.
>
> Good Morse.....
>
> (not the popular robotic-sterile machine produced morse but real
> hand-produced Morse sent by a skilled radioman)
>
> ..... >>DOES<< contain "accents, peculiarities, and intonation".
>
> That's not called "corruption", it's called "communications enhancement".
>
> 73, de Hans, K0HB
> Most Reverend Keeper of the Codes of Q
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> CW mailing list
> CW at mailman.qth.net
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/cw
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> CW mailing list
> CW at mailman.qth.net
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/cw
>
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG - http://www.avg.com
> Version: 8.0.138 / Virus Database: 270.6.9/1635 - Release Date: 8/26/2008
> 7:29 AM
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> CW mailing list
> CW at mailman.qth.net
> http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/cw
>
>
> -- 
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG.
> Version: 7.5.524 / Virus Database: 270.6.7/1632 - Release Date: 8/25/08
7:05 AM
>
>