[Elecraft] OT: CW Sign "All Caps" ?

[kc4kgu@ENTERZONE.NET]

On Fri, 22 Mar 2002, [iso-8859-1] "D.R. Weiss KI=D8RP" wrote:

> I had a hard enough time learning the International Morse Code.  I'd=20
> probably just use SSB if I had to learn another version of code.

I know what you mean here.  I don't think I would want to go through
learning code again either as a whole.


> Plus, for US licensees at least, use of that "Phillips Code" may run
> afoul of the prohibition on "codes or ciphers intended to obscure the
> meaning," section 97.113(4).
>=20
> Dave Weiss KI0RP
> K2 #2249

This is where you're a bit off.  Unless there is a clear intent on the
part of sending party to obscure the meaning of the message, it is not a
violation of 97.113(4).  This is first hand experience.

We had some fruit who had been licensed all of two weeks, no-code at that,
try to make a big stink about our use of police 10-codes on one of the
local 440Mhz repeaters. =20

Since 99% of the operators on the repeater in question *ARE* active police
officers who understand the prosigns, and the vast majority of the
remaining one percent are former law enforcement, PLUS the fact that the
CPD codes are public information, there was no INTENT to obscure the
meaning of the message. It is just second nature for me to call a drunk a
"24", a drug user a "24a" and minors "34s" to give some simple examples.

If you think about it, the use of "amateur" prosigns, including K, AR, SK,
QSL, QRO, QRP, etc is in fact a form of codes and cyphers to the
uninitiated.  The fact that their meaning is published and the INTENT of
the operators is efficiency and not obscurity is what makes them legal.

Our local fruit found a dummy load to talk to now and drives his vehicle
very carefully since he torqued off all of the other people on the
repeater AND most of the police in his town (not a very smart move on his
part).  All the guy had to do was *ask* what we were talking about or for
that matter, let himself be known and we would have been glad to welcome a
new ham to the conversation but, he was a lurking fruit who never even
spoke on the air.  He just wrote slanderous letters and emails to internal
affairs, the ARRL and the FCC.  What a fruit.

Anyway, I know I got off on a tangent.  This is just a sore subject with
me.


73 de John - KC4KGU
K2 #2490