I agree with Phil. There is little doubt in my mind that the cheapness of
PSK31 and the other so-called sound-card modes is what really got hams
interested. After all, one does not need to purchase ANYTHING to get into
PSK31. If you have a rig and a computer, you are good to go.
Pactor is a dying mode, except for the mailboxes. I deeply regret this. I
have been mostly digital since the late 70's and came up through RTTY, Amtor
and Pactor, which, in my opinion, is the best of all digital modes,
especially Pactor-II and -III. But it is difficult to find a Pactor ragchew
these days. And so I am operating the soundcard modes, and RTTY nowadays.
One thing about Pactor-II and -III that is little known, apparently, is that
this is the one mode that does what the FCC regs really require: it sets the
power to that necessary to sustain the QSO. It does this automatically and
without operator intervention.
Happy New year, Phil. I hope to see you one of these days on the air.
Duane Budd
w5ben@arrl.net
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