Hf SSB and CW operation is a nostaligic activity akin to horseback riding.
If amateurs were demanding "black box" compter operated
rigs then Icom, Yaesu and Kenwood would have already produced
one. The Kachina 505 is no longer around. The Pegasus is the
only "thinking outside the box" rig available. I do not want to be
forced to have a computer to operate my rigs. If this makes me
a backward thinking boob, then so be it.
The use of amateur radio, be it HF, VHF or UHF is absolutely unnecessary
until the other services are down in a disaster. I believe most of us
operate radio because we find it to be fun. With internet chat sessions
in either text or voice, cellular phones and cheap long distance rates
there is very little personal communications either short haul or long
haul that cannot be done better using means other than amateur radio.
Yet we still do it because it's fun, and it provides a backup when those
other systems fail. It is possible using computer controlled black boxes
and digital modes to communicate using amatuer radio spectrum without
even learning radio operating skills, and with the right boxes and help
from others we could do that with out learning anything about
propagation, rf systems or much of anything else other than what to
click on. We could set up our stations so we could not even distinguish
their use from just another modem connected to our PC. This may appeal
to some. It does not appeal to me, and I do not think that type of
operation on the ham bands would be a good use of the bandwidth it would
occupy. I think this is why Kachina is not marketing to hams anymore,
and why Jupiters are sold as well as Pegasus. If the computer is doing
the radio operating, it may as well be on a wire or fiber network
instead, leaving the amatuer spectrum for people who like to operate
radios... My point is that there is perhaps some limit to how advanced
the technology can become before it's just not fun anymore, for me at
least....I realize there are all kinds of people with all kinds of
tastes, or lack therof. There are people who would rather ride a
snowmobile than cross county ski. There are people that would rather
drive a motor boat than sail. There are those who would rather use a
high tech modem than operate a radio.
DE N6KB
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