[Elecraft] CW Decoding - Your Brain is best

[Andrew Moore]

Hope anyone who's interested in getting into CW isn't put off by the
thought of spending hundreds of hours to train or being bored by just
another digital mode. Larry is 50% right here. I mean that in a positive
way (i.e. not "50% wrong"!)

To say that CW is just another digital mode, or that it takes hundreds of
hours to train, isn't necessarily correct.

Some of the most exciting moments I had doing CW were when I was studying
code before I got my ticket, (barely) copying 5 WPM in Mass. from a station
in Florida which seemed like pulling magic out of the air. At that point I
had only about 24 hours of CW training. When I got the ticket, my first QSO
was on a straight key from Tenn. to Washington state (still have the QSL
card, N7CEY!) was equally thrilling, largely because it was hands-on
(Internet wasn't even mainstream yet).

It's a very different *experience* than having a computer do it for you.

I agree with Larry's recommendation to just jump in and immerse yourself in
the mode, in whatever form. One way isn't better than the other. For
upcoming CW enthusiasts, only by trying the different methods available to
you - digital or analog makes no difference - will you find what you like
and what you can do without. Find your niche and enjoy it; it's YOUR niche
and there's a lot of fun out there when you find it. Decode-by-brain comes
quick for some, especially when they enjoy it. And then, training is
ongoing - so yes, it can certainly require hundreds of hours, but for some
those hours seem like a thrill not a chore.

--Andrew, NV1B
maineware.net
..



On Thu, Nov 8, 2012 at 1:15 PM, Larry Libsch <llibsch at bellsouth.net> wrote:

>
>          Your brain IS best at CW decoding - but only after you've spent
> many hundreds of hours training it. You can work CW DX NOW by getting a
> Keyer and learning one thing in CW - the sound of your callsign.  Let CW
> Skimmer decode for you. It's not as good as your brain, but this setup
> will have you working CW at any speed without dedicating hundreds of
> hours you might wish to spend otherwise. CW is just another digital
> mode. Decoders will improve. Get in the CW game now.
>
>                                                      K4KGG,    Larry
>
>