Since reclassifying 160 DXCC totals to exclude FT8 would be terribly
unfair to those who submitted FT8 confirmations toward DXCC in good
faith, it seems like a possible solution would be to add provisions for
a CW endorsement to the 160 meter DXCC award. If it were workable
administratively, it would provide a way for those who made the majority
of their DXCC contacts on CW to compare themselves with others who have
done similarly. It would also provide a way for those who enjoy FT8 to
compare their progress with others in the "unlimited" category. Who
knows, it might even encourage a resurgence of CW activity, since that
endorsement would carry a certain cache.
73, Mike W4EF....................
On 2/19/2024 1:51 PM, Wes Stewart via Topband wrote:
It is unreasonable to assume all FT8 QSOs are with robots, however, many are. Technically, some
"I" (my computer) makes are made with me not in attendance. When I can disable transmit
and walk out to the kitchen to get another beer and come back to see that my software has tuned my
radio to the Fox frequency and called him to complete the QSO, I think that's a "robot."
And that is exactly why I do not submit WSJT contacts for DXCC credit. If others want
to, that's between them and their ethics. Why do I make the contacts then? you may ask.
Because one of my DX clubs has an internal competition where certain expeditions are
designated as targets for "band slot Bingo", where we compete for the greatest
number of slots worked. You can't win if you don't play.
As to efficiency, I think FT8 wastes a lot of time. Other modes, including RTTY, are
simply faster, although they require more operator skill on both ends. F/H is
particularly bad in this regard. You can call and call and might actually be in the
queue but not know it until you go to the kitchen for that beer and come back and see
that "you" made the contact.
Another particularly distasteful thing about FT8 is that the DX can set filters
to exclude certain callers based on signal strength, distance, country, etc.
and the callers never know it. I know there will be vehement denial of this
but I know it happens.
WSJT will never replace RTTY.
On Monday, February 19, 2024 at 12:56:59 PM MST, Jim Brown
<j...@audiosystemsgroup.com> wrote:
On 2/19/2024 7:27 AM, Saulius Zalnerauskas wrote:
Look's like this "Sherlock Holmes" not understand what CB0ZA Robot doing.
It is unreasonable to assume that all FT8 QSOs are with robots. I know
some of the very experienced CW ops who run FT8 on expeditions. WSJT-X
software makes the mode quite time-efficient for expeditions. It's a
replacement for RTTY, not CW.
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