[Milsurplus] CW "de" ?

[Hubert Miller]

Answering my own question, sort of....
What i referenced must be the written text message as submitted
or received from the radio section. I looked at "Manual of WIreless Telegraphy for Naval Electricians 1915" and yes indeed, "de" is there. My imagination, my mistake.
-Hue 

-----Original Message-----
From: Milsurplus [mailto:milsurplus-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Hubert Miller
Sent: Saturday, June 4, 2016 5:28 PM
To: milsurplus at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] CW "de" ?

So this from "Digest of Naval Communications 1928", p 75:

" (a) The Call, which consists of the call(s) of the station(s) called (in alphabetical order) followed by "V" ( from ) and the call sign of the station calling." 

only applies to the written message form, or?
Your example uses ham-type callsigns, so i could question that as evidence for the non-ham sphere. 
However, i did consult "Marine Radio Manual", Strachwitz, 1943, and so it's yes, "DE" is the marine radio "from". 
-Hue 

-----Original Message-----
Sent: Saturday, June 4, 2016 4:52 PM

Hue asked:

> Why did ham radio adopt the C.W. signal  “de” instead of the “v” used 
> by the commercial services and the military?

That is an incorrect premise.  DE and V have no relationship and therefore no equivalence, nor were there significant differences in usage between services.

The military and commercial radiotelegraph services always used DE as the hams have.  DE simply means "this is".  For example, before 1975 communications between Sixth Naval District Naval Reserve Center station N6ABC with a similar station in the Eighth Naval District might go:

N8XYZ DE N6ABC ZKE QRU K

The use V by a station has no special meaning, certainly not "this is".  It was used by commercial maritime coast stations as a filler in place of specific station call signs in generally-directed continuously running radio calls like this very typical example:

VVV VVV VVV DE WCC WCC WCC AMVERS QSX 4 8 16 22 K

which means Chatham MA coast station WCC is listening on its assigned frequencies in the 4, 8, 16, 22 MHz maritime Morse bands for Atlantic Merchant Vessel Emergency Reporting System reports and other incoming ship traffic.

Or another common continuously running transmission like this:

VVV VVV VVV DE WLO WLO WLO QTC D5LA D5MN HPLL HPVE KANW KKHF (list of ship call signs) QSX 4 8 12 468 K

which means New Orleans LA coast station WLO has traffic for ship stations listed and is listening on its assigned frequencies in the 4, 8, 12 MHz maritime Morse bands and on 468 kHz.

The use of DE to break the other stations transmission was common commercial practice.

One small thing I liked about commercial practice was the universal use of TU instead of that awkward ham TNX.

Mike / KK5F
Second Class Radiotelegraph License with Ship Radar Endorsement, almost 40 years ago.
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