[Elecraft] Off-Topic - Straight-key speed cpontrol

[David Cutter]

Well, you could knock me down with a feather !  (As mum used to say)  I 
cannot imagine sending for more than a few minutes like that.  From your 
description, the upper arm must be at a considerable angle to the body, 
whereas the way I'm used to, the upper arm is vertical, ie in a 'natural' or 
relaxed position.  Similarly, with the lower arm horizontal, the wrist has 
an easy time because it is also in an easy, relaxed position.  With your 
description, the wrist must be bent quite sharply and I can imagine glass 
arm following quite quickly, hence the bug key invention so the whole arm 
rests on the table.

I had a quick look in that book but couldn't find a picture of the method 
you describe.  I drew a side view for RADCOM several years ago showing the 
sitting position and received no comments.

There's a modern equivalent: the computer key board and mouse.  I use these 
several hours a day and need my chair raised quite high to get my arms as 
near horizontal as possible, but it's never quite right, hence I use wrist 
supports for both.  That's why typist chairs are so much higher than desk 
chairs.


The way I've explained it to trainees is that the wrist and fingers are like 
a gearbox, or, perhaps in modern parlance - an interface - between the heavy 
weight of the arm and the delicate instrument which is the fingers.  The 
fingers stay flexible and springy as the wrist bounces up and down over a 
range of 2 to 3 inches which is translated by the fingers into a movement of 
perhaps only 2 to 4 thou, ie less than a paper thickness for high speed 
work.  By the way I used a spring setting around 2oz.

I could go on...

Thanks for the education Ron, Ken and all.

73

David
G3UNA




> Ha, ha David. We're separated by more than a "common language"!
>
> The first time I saw the form of sending you describe with the arm in
> mid-air was about 10 years ago and I was astounded!
>
> Here in the USA since the the military and so civilian services taught
> everyone to lay their arm on the desk as Ken described. That goes back to,
> at least, the mid 1930's. That's how I've always used a straight key.
>
> I visited a buddy in Holland for the first time a few years ago and took
> with me as a gift a nice straight key. He immediately put it on the edge 
> of
> his desk and wailed away on it with his arm in the air. My jaw dropped.
>
> We did do that here but only in mobile units where the key was strapped to
> one leg. In that use we also cranked the spring tension down much tighter
> than normal when the key was on the desk.
>
> Ron AC7AC
>
> -----Original Message-----
> "The elbow should rest on the desk and the fingers on the key's knob. "
>
> I couldn't disagree more!  I have always taught as I was taught that the 
> key
>
> is at the edge of the desk and no part of your body touches the desk, 
> except
>
> perhaps the other hand.  The forearm should be horizontal, sit up straight
> and relax the shoulders.  It's very similar to typing.  The telegraphers 
> of
> old had to send for hours and this is the way they did it; I was one once.
>
> 73
>
> David
> G3UNA
>