[Qcwa] A different complaint

[J Craswell]

I know everyone wants to refight the elimination of 20 and 13wpm but I want
to complain about the following statement.  Besides being pro-cw was hard
enough on me the first time around! <grin>

"Now before I get slammed for hating modern technology, please
refrain.  I am someone who devours it;  I have 3 computers, 3 PDA's, MP3
Players, GPS's, and of course all that Ham gear overflowing my house.  I
love it, but I can't build it.  There's the rub;  A Ham of 50 years ago
most likely understood and could build all the consumer electronics
around him, providing he had the parts.  Those days are over."

Now, I would agree that there are many people who don't "get" today's
technology.  SMT parts, CAD programs, firmware all are just Magic.  However,
this statement "Those days are over" really rubs my fur the wrong way.  Did
you know there is a guy who wants the FCC regs to insist that all amateur
radios be field reparable to the average ham.  The general thinking is that
all the "cool" stuff like FT-100s, HTs etc will be replaced with Harvey
Wells Bandmaster type sets that us big dopes can repair with our 100 watt
soldering irons.  I took this (And statements like the above) as a challenge
/ slap to the face and I went out of my way to buy a broken FT-100 for a
couple hundred bucks from an Airline Pilot on egroups.  I spend maybe a few
hours diagnosing the problem and repaired it myself.  Now, some of you guys
are saying "So what?" and others (I guess) think I must have a special high
tech lab and I must be a genius.   The so what guys are much closer to the
facts.  I have one of those magnifier lens with built in lamp.  An
adjustable temp soldering iron and a little roll of some small diameter
solder and a solder sucker.  A tweezers, wire cutters etc.  I own a pretty
old surplus scope and a beat the heck signal generator all "junk" I bought
at the local surplus outfit.  Total cost of repair was under $10 or parts of
which postage was the prime concern.   Oh, and I'm a high school graduate -
No Genius level IQs busting out here.

p.s. I just replaced the SMT transistor (front end) of KA0KLV's little
multiband UHF/VHF set.  It looks like lightning has struck twice or maybe we
are not ALL in awe of the current state of the art.  *nor (I think) should
we be.  It's still electronics.  Packaged smaller but so - what!

73 de Jay Craswell W0VNE