[Elecraft] QSO logging

[Paul Huff]

Recently several people on the list offered some excellent advice to a new ham 
about keeping a log.  One person said that they still liked to log by hand and 
several others offered comments about the many advantages of using a computer to 
keep your station log.  I thought that I would briefly describe how I try to 
have the best of both worlds.

I initially use a computer to log all of my contacts during the actual QSO. 
This gives me all of the great features like awards tracking, checking for 
previous QSOs, DX spotting, etc.  But at the end of each month I print out a 
copy of these contacts, hole punch the pages, and put them into a 3-ring binder. 
In addition I add any other kinds of "radio news" to the binder.  Things like 
antenna experiments that I am trying out, newspaper articles and cartoons 
related to ham radio, propagation observations, email messages exchanged with 
other hams, etc.  Over the years my binders form a rather complete autobiography 
of my radio activities.

Several years ago I actually wrote an article about my logging that was 
published on eham.net.  If anyone is interested I think that the article is 
still on line at http://www.eham.net/articles/5252  (BTW, I now use a different 
software package than the one described in the article.  I use a freeware 
program called Logger32.)

73,
Paul - N8XMS