My two cents worth:
For those who so righteously state that the contest is OVER at 2359Z:
If you had signed up to that maxim 25 years ago, and sent your log in
"untouched", you most likely were subject to disqualification for
excessive dupes! Now that we've taken the lazy way out by letting
computer smart guys like K1EA and N6TR figure how to do the duping for
us, suddenly anything "post-contest" is a no-no??
For some of us, tape recording the contest has been an accepted mode for
many years. Rarely do I take the time to play back the contest vs.
computer or paper log, but I'm glad I have the option to do so. Like
most, I haven't the time, but whenever I do, I find it a wonderful tool
for "learning" (nothing wrong with that goal, I hope).
But if I wish to invest the time, I guess that's O.K. For those who
don't, that's O.K. too.
Furthermore, some of us believe that EVERYONE who's seriously in the
contest for top honors, new record, whatever, should be REQUIRED to tape
the contest, and to have the tape AVAILABLE to the judges, if so
requested. I think that many logs would mysteriously become "more
accurate", i.e., fewer uniques, busted calls, fortunate multipliers,
etc., if they knew that someone just may be listening to the tape at a
later date. A GOOD THING, I BELIEVE.
A TAPE RECORDING OF A CONTEST REPRESENTS THE MOST ACCURATE BASIS FOR A
LOG. Experts might be able to alter a tape, but if someone is smart
enough to do that, one can reasonably ask why they're messing around
with something as stupid as a radio contest. PAPER AND COMPUTER LOGS,
HOWEVER, CAN BE COOKED.
And what about data bases? Does everyone disable them during the
contest? Should I disable the zone memory data base in TR LOG?? If I
worked W9XYZ on 20, and the next band/QSO pulls up his state as KS,
should I disable this feature??
And now we have packet (pardon the expression!) that enables stations
today to have someone else (1)find their DX, (2)copy the call sign, and
(3) our smart computer logging software to make the QSY, work the
station, and log it.
At least with tape recording, you still have to COPY the call/exchange
in order to acknowledge which station you're talking to. As a friend so
correctly stated: "A missing letter will always remain missing, no
matter how many play-backs you make."
In addition to being a fun thing to do, a contest operation and log is
supposed to be ACCURATE. I believe that using a tape recording to
enhance these goals is a worthy adjunct to the sport. For this
operator, at least, computers, sophisticated operating/logging software
and tape recordings have made the sport much more fun and accurate. Do
I wish to go back to the good old days when I was sometimes obliged to
hand dupe a 5000+ QSO log?? Nah, I don't think so. Could I have done
that within one minute of the close of the operating portion of the
contest?? Nah, I don't think so. How many of you who subscribe to "the
contest is over when its over" have done that?? Really?
Again, radio contests are rather simplistic, mundane exercises. Is it
ROCKET SCIENCE? Nah, I don't think so. Will anyone ever win a NOBEL
PRIZE for his radio contest efforts? Nah, I don't think so.
As a final note, for those whose sole objective in all of this is to
tell the rest of us, "Hey, I'm such a great and accurate operator, and
my logs are truly works of art", then I must ask why you're wasting your
obvious prolific talents on such dumb exercises as radio contests??
Vy 73
Jim Neiger
N6TJ
"THE PROBLEM WITH DOING NOTHING IS THAT YOU'RE NEVER QUITE SURE WHEN
YOU'RE FINISHED"
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