[CW] Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy, English Edition !

Thu Jan 21 13:01:39 EST 2010

Bill, I have taught code to multi dozens of Boy Scouts, and adults over the past 40 year period.  I devised my own method of teaching way back around 1960, and it was done with a hand key on a one on one type situation  (I sent, and the student or students listened and copied).  I never had one student, who half tried, fail to learn the code.  I started them out by sending characters at 13 or more wpm, one character at a time, till they had it down, then added another then another character, until they had a group of about 6-7 characters down pat.  Then I used those letters to makes words and once they copied the words, sent short sentences or statements     (the first group(( E T A I O N S)) are the most used letters in the English language).    (A MAN ATE TONS TEA AT ONE)  I then started adding characters from the second group, the same way.  The characters were at 13 wpm, but the spacing between them was at 5 wpm.  As we went along, the spaces between characters, and later groups, was shortened, until at the end of the alphabet, they were probably copying 10 wpm.  And by copying, I do mean written out on paper.  

So to answer you question, Yes, there is no reason that the normal student , under normal teaching methods, should not be able to copy at 5 wpm within two weeks.  In fact, that was the cut-off standard when I went to military school in communications.  If the student didn't pass 5 within two weeks, he was bounced from the class.    Under those same conditions, I think that 20 wpm is too fast to expect in 4 weeks (20 HALF DAYS OF CODE) .  In fact the students were given 6 months to pass 25 wpm.  Some students barely attained that.  Others did exceed those expectations.  Others, like myself  (who already knew the code from Boy Scouts (flashing lights, beepers, flags)  exceeded 30 or more.  Two of us copied 40 wpm - out of the class of 120.  

Under my method, I have been successful in having student pass 13 wpm, for the old General class, in less than 5 days of classes.  I had one Boy Scout, out of my troop in Ethiopia, sit with me for 30 minutes, going from not knowing what code sounded like, to passing his 5 wpm for Novice.  An exception by all means, but doable.  That was a strict one on one situation, and as he learned one letter, I just added the next, and was keying at 13 wpm, giving him plenty of time to recognize and write down the letter: not counting the stupid dits and dahs - a big mistake in most teaching methods of the day.

Look up my call and include National Scout Jamboree.  In 1985 I took a group of newbies completely thru the Novice test, in 1 hour a day sessions, and less than one week - and that included two days for them to all pass the CW test and several days  (one hour sessions per day) of electronic/antenna/rules etc. instructions.  Those that want to learn will !  It is what was so laughable about all those reports from people saying they "couldn't" learn the code.  They just didn't have either 1. the will power,or 2. The instruction needed.   I have had a couple of those in my classes, and they were successful in passing their ham CW tests. 

I personally do not think tapes/discs/whatever - recordings, is the best way to learn code.  Doing one on one is best, and after that, simply sitting down and copying real live code, with its QSB/QRM is the back up support system.  W1AWs code broadcasts are good for that, and of course real live on-air contacts are harder, due to the operators keying methods, etc. but is the way to go.

Being an intercept operator certainly didn't harm my abilities, and being a ham first didn't hurt me in those classes either.  Having that under my belt is what got me a job as a civilian communicator, and I was probably the last operator sitting on the last State Department CW traffic link in existence.  

Danny Douglas
N7DC
ex WN5QMX ET2US WA5UKR ET3USA SV0WPP VS6DD N7DC/YV5 G5CTB
All 2 years or more (except Novice). Short stints at:  DA/PA/SU/HZ/7X/DU
CR9/7Y/KH7/5A/GW/GM/F
Pls QSL direct, buro, or LOTW preferred,
I Do not use, but as a courtesy do upload to eQSL for those who do.  
Moderator
DXandTALK
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DXandTalk
Digital_modes
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/digital_modes/?yguid=341090159

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: wealsowalk at aol.com 
  To: cw at mailman.qth.net 
  Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 12:03 PM
  Subject: Re: [CW] Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy, English Edition !

  Danny, Would you agree that it is about 2 weeks to 5 WPM and another 4 weeks to 20 WPM if your are really working on it, say in Monterey?
  Bill Isakson
  AC6QV
  WD2XSH/44
  E

  -----Original Message-----
  From: DANNY DOUGLAS <N7DC at COMCAST.NET>
  To: CW Reflector <cw at mailman.qth.net>
  Sent: Thu, Jan 21, 2010 8:54 am
  Subject: Re: [CW] Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy, English Edition !

Yeah,. I understand that Hans, but not only we, but the enemy are going to 
be in the same shape, as far as satellite communications is concerned.  Im 
looking at this as a setback to communications, and in fact is the big one 
hits (solar storm - EMPs) even so-called hardened equipment is going to be 
mostly useless- because you will have little if any long range propagation. 
This is not a likely event, but is possible.  At that point, I believe hf 
propagation would be the first to return, but we best have the hardened 
equipment to work with it then, and CW is likely to be the best mode, at the 
first.  Ive been off the clock for almost 12 years now, so havent kept up 
with the most modern equipment/facilities/modes, but in my experience with 
the nuclear testing back in the 60s-70s and observations of the hf bands 
then, I cant see that anything else will be able to do that command job. 
Something as simple as PSK just might work, but I see it dropping in and out 
under even todays propagaion conditions.   At that point, all the surface 
mounted data collectors/streams would probably be out anyway.

Danny Douglas
N7DC
ex WN5QMX ET2US WA5UKR ET3USA SV0WPP VS6DD N7DC/YV5 G5CTB
All 2 years or more (except Novice). Short stints at:  DA/PA/SU/HZ/7X/DU
CR9/7Y/KH7/5A/GW/GM/F
Pls QSL direct, buro, or LOTW preferred,
I Do not use, but as a courtesy do upload to eQSL for those who do.
Moderator
DXandTALK
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DXandTalk
Digital_modes
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/digital_modes/?yguid=341090159

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Radio K0HB" <kzerohb at gmail.com>
To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 11:32 AM
Subject: Re: [CW] Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy, English Edition !

>
>> Its still messages, about movement and targeting.  Just more of it.  Same
>> users, in the long run - the commanders.
>
> Not actually, Dan.
>
> Yes, of course, there are still messages drafted by humans and read by 
> human
> eyes, but human-readable traffic comprises only a minor share of the
> communications load.
>
> Most of the "activity" on modern Navy communications channels is data
> streams between "machines" --- google "Aegis"  --- then imagine that 
> system
> integrated across an entire battle group where several ships (and their
> aircraft) share all threat, targeting, countermeasures, and weapon 
> response
> data in real time, untouched by human "operators".
>
> 73, de Hans, K0HB
>
>
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