[Dx-qsl] AR - VE7CC

[Danny Douglas]

I dont know what to say.  I certainly understand one wanting to have a card
on hand, but I also know the financial part of this, and one of the main
reasons for the LOTW to start with.  It is now costing at minimum $3.00 per
card to get direct cards.  That is probably on the low side, considering
having to print the card, buy envelopes and stamps and provide the 2 green
stamps many are now saying they must have.  Just yesterday I was working on
a bunch of direct cards and looking at qrx.com info.  Several were asking
for 2 IRCs, and that is even more than $2.00.   Personally, I would like one
card from every country I work, but am more than willing to electronically
confirm and receive fills.

Look at just one band alone:   Lets say 300 countries, with cards needed for
SSB, CW, RTTY at minimum.  That is 900 cards needed (of course if we are
lucky we can cover several modes and bands with one card- but that doesnt
always happen as many do not work more than 1 or 2 modes.
That is $2,700 for confirming just one band, or $24,300 to confirm 9 bands
with the three modes.  I dont know about the rest of you, but my budget
constrainments wont do that.  Thus, I use the bureau for as many as
possible.  But, many of the big guys dont even want the buro, so its direct
or nothing.

In the 21 years I have been at this address, I have only 21,090 contacts in
the electronics logs (a few contests dont appear there).  There are 333
countries worked and confirmed with cards.  In almost every one of those
instances, I made a card out for the bureau, but of course the bureaus dont
cover the world, and some people say right off the top that they are not
bureau memebers, so we know if must be direct, or to a manager.  I finally
managed to get over-the-top and get the final cards in, by having to go
direct on a couple of dozen stations.

Now I would like to get the fills, but it is becoming more and more
exasperating with bureaus dropping out right and left, and fewer and fewer
DX stations having access to one, or simply refusing to use the one they
could.  Even more irritating is the refusal of  some of those same hams to
accept the services of a manager who could take over QSL dueties for them,
and give them more air time.  Believe me, when Joe , W3HNK, first offered me
his services, I snapped it up and have been very glad ever since.  Of course
I wasnt one of the "poor" hams who wanted to collect green stamps to pay for
my hobby.  I provided him with money for postage, card printing, etc. as
should be done.  I certainly understand there are people with very limited
means who need and deserve the help that managers provide and applaud those
guys/gals who do it, but I also dont like to pay for Holidays to Majorica,
or some such place for a guy who works 20,000 contacts a year so he can do
so.

As to LOTW being an alternative way, Fred, that is certainly true, but YOU
are the one that wants cards.  The other guy simply wants the confirmation
for an award.  Times are surely changing and the whole idea of a simple
exchange of cards has gotten out of hand financially.  I just cant afford it
any more.  Now if you could just figure how to get my retirment to increase
at the same percentages and amounts as the present employees, I might think
differently.  But, meantime, QSL IS VIA LOTW, THANKS.
Danny
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Alfred Laun" <hs0zar at gmail.com>
To: "Ernie Walls" <vk3cew at ozemail.com.au>
Cc: <dx-qsl at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Friday, December 30, 2005 9:08 AM
Subject: Re: [Dx-qsl] AR - VE7CC


On 12/29/05, Ernie Walls <vk3cew at ozemail.com.au> wrote:
> Very interesting to note the (scarcity) of 'big gun' DX'ers and
> contesters from the list of LOTW participants!!!
>
> Yes, yes, I know, no one HAS to be a member, and no one should join just
> to please others, like me, but it, NEVERTHELESS, is interesting!!

Ernie seems to forget that many of us are QSL card collectors more
than just awards chasers.  We really do want to have and keep the
QSLs, a fine tradition of the Amateur Radio service.  Therefore we
don't want to provide the people who we work an alternative way of
getting a confirmation from us.

73, Fred, K3ZO

&quot;Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got...till
it's gone.&quot; from Big Yellow Taxi (Joni Mitchell) but also true about
QSL.NET if more users don't open their wallets and help financially. Please
contribute TODAY !!


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