Matt! Yes, this exactly. I'm not that much older than you are (44), and got licensed at 14. In spite of my best efforts, I fell in love with cw. I think a lot of y'all have articulated the why in a way I never could. I approached it as a socially awkward nerdy kid who knew that morse code wasn't cool in any way, but it was a necessary evil. Then I learned it wrong. After I got straightened out on that, it was magic. I took to it like the proverbial duck to water.
Here's the funny thing. Wet up a ham radio demonstration. Play cw. Watch people come to see what it's all about. Do the same with voice. Watch people walk past. Digital, no clue how people react. But cw intrigues. Maybe it's because of the novelty. But it interests people. Oh sure, lots of the people it draws say I could lever learn that", and maybe that adds to the appeal? It's like this magic thing that not many people know. Like, hey, I'm the only guy on my block that knows this. But all I know for sure is that it's a whole lot of fun, and I hope that folks like you and me can help pass it on when all of those old farts® move on to that great big ol' radio ranch over yonder. -- Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV - Erie, PA Mobile (preferred): (814) 431-0962 Phone: (814) 860-3194 Email: bu...@brannan.name "We are all just walking each other home." > On Oct 31, 2017, at 2:38 PM, Matt NQ6N <m...@nq6n.com> wrote: > > I'm comparatively young (41) but I appreciate the musings about CW. I > still remember the first CW QSO I observed at a demonstration at a Red > Cross building in Michigan when I was 11 years old. I'd had a pair of > plastic FM walkie talkies as a young child that had the dots and dashes of > Morse embossed onto the front, but I had not expected the thrill that I > felt as an actual CW QSO was made before my eyes. I was licensed a few > months later. > > Another memorable CW QSO for me was the first time I sat in front of a > friend's K3. The audio sounded so clear and beautiful that I soon ordered > my own. > > I think there is something very special about the art form of CW and the > kind of craftsmanship and passion that it inspires. Thanks to Wayne and > everyone at Elecraft, the CWOps, etc, for keeping the magic alive. > > 73, > Matt NQ6N > > On Tue, Oct 31, 2017 at 1:26 PM, <rkr...@johngalt.biz> wrote: > >> >> On 10/31/2017 2:02 PM, engineercm wrote: >> >>> Thank you so much for articulating the magic about CW. >>> >> >> As a teen I tried to learn Morse Code and never was able to get very far. >> With Morse as a condition for getting a license, I never thought about >> getting a Ham License although I was very heavy into electronics and got my >> First Class Radiotelephone License. (To show my age, the testing only had >> one transistor question; all the rest were tubes.) >> >> When I discovered that Morse Code had been removed as a requirement (2014 >> or so) I began studying for my tests and made Extra within a few months. >> >> I have K3S that I am about to put on the air, on SSB to begin because >> that is what I currently understand. >> >> I have had CW recommended, but am unwilling to repeat the head banging >> experience I went through 50+ years ago. >> >> Now that I've given the history, my question to those of you who are >> gung-ho on CW is; how did you begin the learning process? Is there some >> secret that I missed? >> >> 73 >> >> Ray >> KK4WPB >> >> >> -- >> Furthermore, I believe that islam must be destroyed. >> If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have >> peace.--Thomas Paine >> III% Molon labe. >> >> >> ______________________________________________________________ >> Elecraft mailing list >> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >> Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net >> >> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> Message delivered to m...@nq6n.com >> > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to bu...@brannan.name ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
