[QCWA] the future of CW

[Robert N Meyer]

newsline at ix.netcom.com wrote:
> I would not go so far as to call it a precourser of things to come (or to be deleted from Part 97), but if I were a betting man (and I am not) I would almost wager that the next "restructuring" completely does away with mandatory Morse testing.  I would also almost wager that within 5 to 10 yars of this happening that Morse will fall in  interest to about the level of full carrier AM oprations.  That being, it will never really disappear but it wll no longer hold the place of prominence that it did, or even does today.

I don't believe a Morse requirement for testing has anything to do with 
CW use on the air.  It's too efficient at getting through when no other 
signal gets through.  The problem with CW is that, in our era of instant 
gratification, it's just too much work.  The generations that get 
satisfaction from overcoming the challenge of CW and that feel that you 
get out of something what you put into it are getting along in years and 
are becoming SKs.  I know there's a lot of over-generalization in what 
I've said, but I'll bet there are a lot of heads nodding right now.

I don't believe the Morse requirement should be a rite of passage into 
ham radio because there are plenty of ways to enjoy the hobby without 
CW.  But, we need to snag the younger generation with modes that'll 
reach out and grab 'em (satellite, PSK31, etc.) ... and that includes CW 
at the right place and time.  Brag it up at every opportunity, but be 
careful so that the poor non-CWer doesn't think you're being a snob 
about it (perception is everything, they say).

Me, I happen to hate CW.  :-)  I greatly respect the people who use it 
and are good at it, but it's too much work for *me*.  I've made a grand 
total of *1* CW contact in my life and that was back in the late '70s 
right after I received my Novice license.  I was able to stumble through 
the 13wpm test up through General and Advanced back then, but I never 
used it.

-- Bob Meyer, KB0GT