[Elecraft] RE: CW Recognition
By the way...one last point that I don't think has been mentioned (probabaly because it is "obvious?"). You can copy CW much better using headphones than via a speaker. The faster, the more important. de Doug KR2Q ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
On Fri, 22 Sep 2006 08:05:32 -0500, Tom Hammond <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >If you have a PC that'll play DOS programs (even if you just wanted >to boot to DOS from a floppy or CD), I'd be happy to try modifying my >program for you to play with. > >Interested? > Tom, I don't know what to say, you and the rest of the guys on the Elecraft reflector are so helpful and encouraging, I'm proud just to be a member of such a group. I had two goals in mind when I first responded to this thread; one was simple curiosity concerning the physiology of listening to CW and the second was another approach to learning. I've had the G4PHON software fro over a year, but have used it only sporadically. I opted for the Adams' CD because I could take it with me. When I'm seriously studying code, I always write down the characters as I hear them (my penmanship has never been better!) and I try to do two 15 minute sessions per day with each session broken into three 5 minute segments. Occasionally, though, I'll just slip on the headphones and listen to Adams' CD while relaxing in my easy chair or enjoying the evening air on my balcony. I do think it's time for me to give G4FON a fair shot; make it my primary learning tool for serious CW study. I'll have to maintain a certain proximity to the computer, but that's easy enough to do. I would like to thank you, Tom, and all the rest of you for your comments, thoughts and advice. It really means a lot to me. Besides, how could I ever let such wonderful people down? ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW Recognition
Doug, I'm glad someone else confirms the weird mental state (I like your description as Zombie Copy) and yes I am trying to keep this related to Elecraft so now back to the KXB3080 module build. Bob WA4MQW --- DOUGLAS ZWIEBEL <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hi all: > > Well, before this thread is terminated by the moderatorI really > know what the "military" folks are talking about, even though I never > partook. > > One year, I decided that it would be cool to copy using a typewriter, > so I "started over" learning the code in sync with typing. And it I > really did have to relearn "what to do" as I copied each sound. What > ended up happening is just what has been described. > > The sound (not words, not dits, not dahs) would enter my ear, be > processed by brain without any comprehension at all, and my fingers > would magically hit the correct keys (on the typewriter). When I was > done with solid copy, I would have read what I had typed because I > had > no idea. It was like "I" was passive...I was just the shell for my > brain-to-finger connection. I called it ZOMBIE COPY. Very Weird. > > After a year, I decided to stop that nonsense and go back to > copying...in my head, which meant relearning again. Now I hear words > again (well, for the last couple decades)...that's a lot better for > hamming. > > de Doug KR2Q __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
[Elecraft] Re: CW Recognition
Hi all: Well, before this thread is terminated by the moderatorI really know what the "military" folks are talking about, even though I never partook. One year, I decided that it would be cool to copy using a typewriter, so I "started over" learning the code in sync with typing. And it I really did have to relearn "what to do" as I copied each sound. What ended up happening is just what has been described. The sound (not words, not dits, not dahs) would enter my ear, be processed by brain without any comprehension at all, and my fingers would magically hit the correct keys (on the typewriter). When I was done with solid copy, I would have read what I had typed because I had no idea. It was like "I" was passive...I was just the shell for my brain-to-finger connection. I called it ZOMBIE COPY. Very Weird. After a year, I decided to stop that nonsense and go back to copying...in my head, which meant relearning again. Now I hear words again (well, for the last couple decades)...that's a lot better for hamming. de Doug KR2Q ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
>After I learnt the code I discovered this wonderful (&free) on line >book >The Art & Skill of Radio Telegraphy >http://www.qsl.net/n9bor/n0hff.htm I came across this same book through the FISTS (www.fists.org) web site. I found the book very helpful in understanding a good approach to learning code. FISTS also has a Code Buddy program (www.qsl.net/w9em) that matches you up with a on-the-air buddy to help you with your code. I am currently using the G4FON software to learn code and plan on using the Code Buddy program when I get my K1 built. 73 Larry KB5DXY ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition (speed increase)
Fred, K6DGW wrote:
Right Jim, this strategy works poorly at most everything. Aside from
the fact that mental and physical skills vary from one day to the next,
copying CW as an amateur radio operator is not a perfect art, nor does
it have to be, unless you're handling record traffic.
---
Fred, your comment reminds me of the Novice who got frustrated, saying,
"Sheesh!! I can only copy CW half the time!"
His friend replied, "So? Then just get on the air every other day."
I operate a lot when I'm doing other things. My shack used to be in one
corner of the kitchen, and I'd often be operating and cooking. Sometimes I'd
make noise (grab hot handle and shout "##$%@&&!!!") and miss something. It
should be no problem to say, "SRI OM -- PSE AGAIN ABT THE SKUNK THAT GOT
INTO THE SHACK?"
We don't get all of it anytime, even listening to people talk. Often it
doesn't matter. Language has so much redundancy that we can grab the message
even without a bunch of the words. (Indeed, when I was a Novice, my biggest
problem was anticipating the next letter or word, and when it was something
different I got flustered and missed a whole lot of letters or words! It was
only when I quit trying to out-guess the sender that my speed really picked
up!)
But don't go overboard guessing. For example, don't get caught saying "FB OM
ABT THE GREAT NEWS ABT UR AUNT BESSIE" when in fact he told you she just
died! When you miss it, ask for a repeat! If you're too embarrassed, blame
it on a mythical op ("HVY QRM HR..."). I'm more likely to say, "SRI OM QRM
IN SHACK PSE AGN..."
__
AR
Ron AC7AC
___
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Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition (speed increase)
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > A mistake I see too many hams making is that they will practice > at one speed until they are 100% at that speed before trying > anything faster. Right Jim, this strategy works poorly at most everything. Aside from the fact that mental and physical skills vary from one day to the next, copying CW as an amateur radio operator is not a perfect art, nor does it have to be, unless you're handling record traffic. I once took my neighbor to FD. He had a trailer whose bed I really coveted in the dead of the night in the cold Sierra, we both had five kids and it was the Dads' turn to escape (we had planned that, with a lot less hardship when we returned home Sun afternoon than we would have gotten without the planning). He had never heard the code before, so he was going to log for me (this was pre-computer), I would tell him what was sent, he'd write it down. After about 2 hrs, he was copying the exchanges nearly flawlessly ... after all, in FD, they are simple and repetitive. He'd figured out the pattern for the sound of the numbers (there's only 10 of them, for Pete's sake, and in those days, call signs still pretty well suggested valid vs invalid sections), and he was well on his way to copying call signs. They too aren't real long, and we never had any that began with a number. If you can understand (note, not "copy" verbatim) slow speed code, just go for it in QSO's. Admittedly, there are a few real turkeys in ham radio but not very many and the rest of us non-turkeys will gladly stand up and help you at a speed you can copy, or maybe just barely, and we'll give you fills. If you need 15/5 WPM Farnsworth just tap it out to me, and I can do that. Best advice I ever got as a 13yr old from Art, W6RMK who was my Elmer, was "don't stress, it's a hobby." Today's W6RMK is Art's grandson, Jim. Fred K6DGW Auburn CA CM98lw ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition (speed increase)
In a message dated 9/22/06 1:11:34 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > I'm interested in methods other ops successfully use. > > (to increase Morse Code speed). One thing I have found that works well once you have the basics down pat is to practice copying code that you know is too fast for you. The following speeds are for illustrating the principle only! Adjust to your own level of skill. For example, if you can do 15 solid and are pretty good at 20, try listening to 35 wpm at the start of a session, then 30, then 25, then 20. (W1AW code practice does this). You may only get 10-20% copy of 35 wpm at the beginning, but that's OK. The point is that by trying to get even that much, you will increase your reaction speed. You'll find you get more of the 30 wpm, even more of 25 wpm, and 20 will sound almost poky by the time you get there. A mistake I see too many hams making is that they will practice at one speed until they are 100% at that speed before trying anything faster. Then they move up a few wpm and work at the new speed until they are 100%, etc. That method works but is painfully slow. It's like trying to run faster without doing any speedwork. Of course the practice I described above should not be tried during QSOs! --- For many folks, the "total immersion" effects of a long contest can increase code speed and skill dramatically. 73 es ZUT de Jim, N2EY ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
I have been watching this thread with interest. I learnt CW the farnsworth method and it took me a long time to progress to the 25-30 ish WPM where I am at now After I learnt the code I discovered this wonderful (&free) on line book The Art & Skill of Radio Telegraphy http://www.qsl.net/n9bor/n0hff.htm Anyone with an interest in code regardless of their current skill (or lack of!) will find something of interest in this well written and researched book. On the basis of reading this book one of my former exam students (& Current Elecraft Owner!) used the Kooch method and progressed rapidly to a very high standard of code. 73 Brendan Ei6IZ ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition (speed increase)
Pete and all, My experience is similar. I spend time consciously working on improving my speed and then time on the air both for enjoyment of qsos (the main reason) and for becoming comfortable at that speed (the lesser reason). I seem to plateau at a given speed for a few months and the qso'ing seems to fully build the ability there. One other thing I recommend that I discovered recently are CW traffic nets. They require a different kind of copying where every letter counts. I've been in a slow speed net for a couple months working on plowing through their 75 training messages & it's great fun. I've been a ham 3 and a half years, and summarizing my routine: 1) W1AW or Morse Academy (powerful, free program) to increase speed a little bit 2) QSOs to reach comfort level at new speed 3) CW net to sharpen copy skill I'm interested in methods other ops successfully use. But I'm guessing the best approach is simply practice, practice, practice, like everything else in life. 73, Mike ab3ap [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > ...My persuit of reliable 20+ copy Has taken > some time, and it seems to have several parts to it. At the core is Listening > to W1AW and on the air QSOs > -73s, > Pete ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
This is a interesting thread, as I was recently volunteered to give a "CW presentation" at our local club. Also, I plan on taking my Extra next month, and as a personal goal, I want to complete a qualifying run at 20 wpm in concert with the exam. I got my novice as a kid in the late 70s and a general around 1980. Back then, I learned "the old way" by paper tape, Ameco cassettes, and listening on the air. After getting back into radio a few years ago, I realized that cw was still my favorite mode, and with a little practice, got back up to the 13wpm. My persuit of reliable 20+ copy Has taken some time, and it seems to have several parts to it. At the core is Listening to W1AW and on the air QSOs. IMHO, this is the most important part of the whole deal. I dont think the QSO speeds need to all be at the goal speed, as 'time in the saddle' is more important. Also, working with a slow speed op that may have less than perfect technique is good training as well. I am also using the G4FON software, and find the ability to taylor the character speed and actual speed, add qsb & noise very helpful. I usually copy a newspaper article into a text file and try to copy it. I also found that it takes a while to get the writing muscles in shape so that my pencil can keep up. Lastly, while I'm doing something else in the shop, I keep my radio on the cw portions and listen to cw in the background. The 'word recognition' that people speak of starts to take place for me while doing that. Well, enough rambling. Now, if I can find away to master my set of vibroplex iambic paddles. I have to keep my straight key in parallel with my keyer as a bail out when I get too frustrated with the paddle thing. -73s, Pete > > From: "Ron D'Eau Claire" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: 2006/09/21 Thu PM 06:11:56 CDT > To: > Subject: RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition > > There may be value in going back to the way many of us learned in the middle > of the last century. Start at whatever speed allows you to hear the elements > - 1 or 2 WPM if needed - and learn A, B, C, and so on, Pete Axson WD4LST 17901 NE 18th Ave Citra, FL 32113 ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
Steve, G4GXL wrote: On 22/09/06, Karl Larsen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: My webpage is at: www.zianet.com/k5di and click on CW. And download Koch. Matt The file on Karl's website is actually a copy of the excellent G4FON software from Feb 2004. - version 6.0.11 You would do much better to go directly to Geoffs website at http://www.g4fon.net/ and download the latest version 8 software which is better suited to WinXP Steve the version 6 is what I wanted Matt to use. I know it's an older version but the later version's have refinements I do not understand. 73 Karl K5DI ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
On 22/09/06, Karl Larsen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: My webpage is at: www.zianet.com/k5di and click on CW. And download Koch. Matt The file on Karl's website is actually a copy of the excellent G4FON software from Feb 2004. - version 6.0.11 You would do much better to go directly to Geoffs website at http://www.g4fon.net/ and download the latest version 8 software which is better suited to WinXP -- 73 Steve, G4GXL -- QRP ARCI Webmaster - www.qrparci.org Member: QRP ARCI, G-QRP, TAPR, AMSAT-UK ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
Matt Osborn wrote: Hi Tom, Nice to hear from you. On Thu, 21 Sep 2006 18:28:12 -0500, Tom Hammond <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Hi Matt: Sorry to hear you're having problems. You wrote: I'm really disappointed that CW isn't working for me. A week after I received my tech license, I ordered my K2 and the Elecraft Hex Key to go with it. After building the K2, I started the CW work with Adams' CW course and was happily working my through the letters before I even looked at dots and dashes. You can imagine how I felt when I discovered that many of the characters I had learned were actually the opposite of what I thought they were when listening to them. This is un-usual Matt. I used the Chuck Adams MP3 cd-rom in a CW Class I started in town and had about 10 people. I set it up as a 3 week one hour a day meeting where everyone had the portable MP3 player with earphones. There were 2 students that got no-where with Chuck Adams. There were 5 that needed more time to finish the whole cd-rom. And three did just fine. With the two that could not use the Chuck Adams method I had them get the Koch CW Trainer off my web page. It is software for your windows computer and it sends CW at an adjustable rate and character speed. My webpage is at: www.zianet.com/k5di and click on CW. And download Koch. Use this set to 5 words/min with character speed of 15 words/min. Try this and see if it stops your character reversal Matt. 73 Karl K5DI ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
Re: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
Hi Tom, Nice to hear from you. On Thu, 21 Sep 2006 18:28:12 -0500, Tom Hammond <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >Hi Matt: > >Sorry to hear you're having problems. > >You wrote: > >>I'm really disappointed that CW isn't working for me. A week after I >>received my tech license, I ordered my K2 and the Elecraft Hex Key to >>go with it. After building the K2, I started the CW work with Adams' >>CW course and was happily working my through the letters before I even >>looked at dots and dashes. >> >>You can imagine how I felt when I discovered that many of the >>characters I had learned were actually the opposite of what I thought >>they were when listening to them. > >Obviously, I've missed something major here... are you saying that >the Adams code course taught you the wrong characters? No, no, Tom, I started listening to the course before I ever looked at Morse code charts. When listening to a string of 'A' for example, I was hearing 'dah dit' instead of 'dit dah'. I had worked my through the first five or six characters before I realized that something was wrong. I recognized A B C D & E when heard individually (as strings of each), but when heard together, they fell apart. It was then that I looked at the actual charts and realized that the sounds I thought I was hearing were not the sounds on the CD. It slowly dawned upon me that I couldn't tell the difference between the dits and the dahs. I could tell that they were different, that something changed when going from a dit to a dah, but I heard an identical change when going from a dah to a dit. In other words, I seem to perceive only a sound, the information necessary to know which sound (dit or dah) is lost. >>Somewhere along the way, I tried sending CW instead of listening to >>it and found that I could learn Morse code and send all of the >>letters, but it just didn't help when listening. > >SENDING CW is almost always much easier than receiving it, that's >why, when I teach CW classes (and I've been teaching them for 25-30 >years), I never even give my students a key until they have already >completed learning CW BY EAR! That was my approach as well until I realized the errors I was making. Then I thought perhaps if I learned the Morse alphabet first, it would help me identify the sounds I was hearing. That is, if I knew that an 'A' was dit dah and then listened to 'A' I would hear the 'dit dah' instead of 'dah dit'. At first, it seemed to help. After awhile, though, I realized I was simply memorizing the sequence to which I was listening. When unknown characters were heard, I was right back to square one, I couldn't tell a dit from a dah. >>I still practice CW several times every week just in case there is a >>break through of some sort (infernal optimist), but I no longer have >>any realistic expectation of success. > >Although it'll be hard to accept, I'd recommend you start again FROM >SCRATCH... as if you've never heard a CW character before... and >NEVER (EVER) even think about looking at DOTs 'n DASHes... that'll >kill you... I have experience... that's the way I learned Morse 48 >years ago (age: 14) and had to completely UNLEARN it before I started >to learn it by ear. > >Generally, my students have found that learning the first 10-15 >characters is pretty easy. To the point that they become a bit too >'cocky' and 1) start shirking daily training, and 2) start 'hurrying' >what training they do continue to pursue. > >They get the idea that since the first several groups of characters >have come to them so readily, that the rest of the characters will >come as easily, and as quickly. Unfortunately, this is not always the >case. As your head fills with newly-learned characters, there will >probably be more effort required to fit additional characters in >among those already 'learned'... and it's all too easy to become a >bit disheartened if/when you find that you're not making progress as >quickly as you once did (when you had learned the first, usually >easier to learn) characters). > >TAKE HEART!!! This is NORMAL and just about each and every one of us >HAS experienced the same thing, and we ALL have managed to work >through the problem. > >Some suggestions for (hopefully) continued success: > > 1) Practice 2-3 times a day, for no longer than 30 minutes at a sitting. > After 30 minutes, your brain can tire and it sometimes seems that > it just flat turns to mush. TIME TO TAKE A BREAK! > > 2) Try to practice when you're not tired. If possible, practice in the > morning, and an hour or so after you're returned home from work, > after you've had a little change to 'decompress'. If you can find > time at lunch, you have a third opportunity for a short practice. > > 3) Learn characters in small 5-7 character sets. DO NOT move on to the > next group of characters until you can (in your heart) say that you > can copy all of the previously presented characters at an accuracy >
RE: [Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
There may be value in going back to the way many of us learned in the middle of the last century. Start at whatever speed allows you to hear the elements - 1 or 2 WPM if needed - and learn A, B, C, and so on, even if you have to count dits and dahs. It's fun to group letters to make little words and learn those letters - sort of a CW equivalent to "CAT" in first grade. (Actually a first grade reader would probably provide a lot of neat words to learn on). All the high-tech methods aside, I taught many people CW in our Ham study classes in the early 1950's sitting in my buddy's back yard on warm summer evenings with a code practice oscillator and straight key going: "Dahh - dit - Da - dit. Until they could write down "C" when they heard it. After the alphabet came building speed, all the way up to the stratospheric speed of 5 wpm for the Novice test. And many of those hams went on to be great QRQ ops. All of them had fun. The new "high tech" methods might be more efficient for many people, but the old fashioned, learn the characters, then build speed, is a perfectly viable alternative if it's gibberish with the other techniques. Shoot, the first CW I ever copied, I wrote the dots and dashes down on paper. Fortunately I was listening to commercial stations that kept repeating something over and over. After much labor I figured out it was CQ CQ CQ DE KPH KPH KPH and then a bunch of gibberish that turned out to be listening frequencies . I may not be a world-class operator but from that humble beginning I got my Novice and have used CW as my primary medium for more than 99% of my operating for over half a century and enjoyed every second of it. I tell people I'm a pure CW operator because, after all the effort I had to put into learning it, this is the way I get the biggest return on my investment . One of the things I've noticed again and again is that I don't have any problem switching between 30 wpm and 5 wpm, sending or receiving. Many ops I've known who learned using the more current methods had to stop and "learn" the code all over again because they couldn't handle the range of speeds actually found on the Ham bands, especially the slower speeds. Some seem to have never learned to copy below 12 WPM or so. Ron AC7AC ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
[Elecraft] Re: CW recognition
On Thu, 21 Sep 2006 21:31:29 +1200, Ron Willcocks <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >Hi Matt, > I know how you feel about not "hearing" CW ..I have a >very good friend who I spent months with, trying to teach him CW, and he >tried listening to all the "good" CW methods in an attempt to learn. He >just couldn't, for exactly the same reason you mention. >At that time here, CW was a requirement for Grade 1 (your Extra I guess) >and he was eventually given a dispensation from having to sit the CW after >a report from me and an interview with the head CW Tester here in NZ. It is >a real fact that there are some who just *can't* read CW how much they >trywhich is a pity, but certainly not the end of the World as some >might think [G] >They have dispensed with the CW test here now. You can still sit it and get >the paper work if you need it for other Country licensing requirements, but >the sky didn't fall as some thought it might, when the test became redundant! >Cheers...Ron ZL1TW Hi Ron, I'm really disappointed that CW isn't working for me. A week after I received my tech license, I ordered my K2 and the Elecraft Hex Key to go with it. After building the K2, I started the CW work with Adams' CW course and was happily working my through the letters before I even looked at dots and dashes. You can imagine how I felt when I discovered that many of the characters I had learned were actually the opposite of what I thought they were when listening to them. Somewhere along the way, I tried sending CW instead of listening to it and found that I could learn Morse code and send all of the letters, but it just didn't help when listening. I still practice CW several times every week just in case there is a break through of some sort (infernal optimist), but I no longer have any realistic expectation of success. As you know, the FCC is studying the CW issue, but has received a great deal of pressure from the community to keep the testing, so that's undecided at this point. I can still listen world wide on my K2 and I've had the pleasure of building all four of the XV Transverters so I can operate the K2 on the high bands. With the 6 meter openings this year, I've managed to work stations from Maine to New Mexico from my QTH in Minnesota, but it sure would be nice to reach Europe and Asia, even if only to demonstrate that I built the K2 properly. ___ Elecraft mailing list Post to: Elecraft@mailman.qth.net You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
