[QCWA] the future of CW

[Jim Wilhite]

Boy are you ever correct Paul.  The thing that will damage CW is spectrum 
pollution more than malaise.  There are many dedicated operators that 
utilize CW only.  As with AM, there will be a following even though fewer 
new hams spring from ranks of younger people.

Once a highway to employment, it is now viewed mostly as a hobby.  An older 
person, who has time, can adopt amateur radio to give a diversion from day 
to day life.  Copying CW by ear is a great method to teach concentration and 
one that taught me how to study to some degree in my younger years.

Many of the teaching methods utilized in schools today pale in comparison to 
learning listening and cognitive skills used in CW.

73  Jim
W5JO
Subject: RE: [QCWA] the future of CW


> Jim, I can see your point, but I think we're discussing definitions more
> than anything else.  It seems to me that the skill to operate AM is
> "behind the scenes."   It takes no special talent to ragchew where
> crystal-clear signals are the rule, but as you point out, it takes a
> certain level of technical skill to keep that signal crystal-clear.  The
> skill to operate CW on the other hand is an inherent part of the
> operating.
>
> Another point which I meant to make in my original posting, but I guess
> I didn't express too well is that while I don't think CW is anywhere
> near the death-bed, I do expect that with the advancements in data
> communications, the importance of CW will tend to diminish somewhat.   I
> just think that to quote someone (Was this Mark Twain, W. C. Fields or
> someone else?), "Reports about the death of CW have been greatly
> exaggerated."
>
> 73's,
> Paul
> WD8H
>
>