Let me try to answer this. It has been answered before but for some unknown
reason it seems to fall on deaf ears. I am ex-packet-cluster sysop from the
earliest days of packet clusters. The packet cluster system was designed and
implemented as a contesting aid. It's primary use was to find/spot the
harder to get multipliers. During non-contest periods a side benefit of the
clusters was DX spots. So asking sysops to shut off a system that was
designed to be used in contests is a little ludicrous.
The packet-cluster system is a valuable tool in contesting not only for the
guys who use it but also for the guys who benefit from being spotted thereby
increasing their scores.
I'll use my friend Jim, N6TJ, as an example: While Jim is one of the premier
contesters those big scores he has racked up at D4 & ZD8 are partly a result
continuous packet-cluster spots. Jim's signal was always so good even guys
with poor antennas could always hear him and therefore he got would get
spotted continuously. Prior to the advent of the packet-clusters 2 meter
spotting nets were used for the same purpose.
To use the previous speeding analogy from Dallas, W3PP, if everyone is
speeding take away the gasoline. Everyone could still have their cars they
just couldn't speed. Shutting down the packet-clusters make just about as
much sense.
Let's find an incentive to bring back honesty/integrity to contesting.
Again my -2cents worth....
73
MAL
N7MAL
BULLHEAD CITY, AZ
http://www.n7mal.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Dick-w0raa
To: cq-contesting
Sent: Thursday, December 13, 2007 15:52
Subject: [CQ-Contest] Shut down the clusters during a contest. SImple.
Has anybody given thought to asking the people who own/operate the various
clusters, to voluntarily shut them down during contest periods? What did we
do before there were clusters and packet? We fouind stations to work, the
old fashioned way. We turned the knob and looked for them. God forbid we
should have to do that today. What a horrible thought.
So, why not just get all of them to voluntarily turn them off at the onset
of a contest and then turn them back on at the end of the contest? I think
it's doable, so why not do it? Then we'd find out if these big gun winners
are as big gunned as they claim to be. It's certainly worth considering.
Also, all contests should be limited to 100 watts. Now there's where the
cheating would go. Cheaters would be saying: "Me, more than 100 watts? Not
me, I follow the rules!"
Dick
W0RAA
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