Very thoughtful and measured analysis, Chris. One of my issues is that
so many, possibly a majority, of new hams have no real interest in in
the hobby but merely want transmitting privileges in connection with
public service activities, such as Search and Rescue. Obviously,
these are worthwhile activities, and I don't mean at all to criticize
those participants. However those are different activities from
amateur radio. Those folks should probably be part of the FRS or
citizen band groups, rather than amateur radio.
73,
Jim w8zr
Sent from my iPhone
> On Apr 26, 2017, at 11:43 AM, Chris Hays <chris@chrishays.com> wrote:
>
> <<soapbox mode on>>
>
>
>
> I apologize for the length of this and that it is only in a peripheral way
> related to amps. I monitor this list because I'm a technical person, and
> there are a lot of smart people here that I can learn from. I'm more of a
> tinkerer than a big project builder. Now retired from broadcasting, that may
> change. Enough about me.
>
>
>
> What prompted this was the statement that the old Novice license may have
> had more theory than today's technician license. That might be a small
> overstatement, but I happen to have a license manual from 1957. Here is a
> sample of a few questions from the novice license chapter:
>
>
>
> "What is ohms law?"
>
> "What is meant by a 'parasitic oscillation'?"
>
> "What is the relationship between a cycle, a kilocycle, and a megacycle?"
>
>
>
> Basic stuff but important nonetheless.
>
>
>
> The description of the technician license indicates it is to encourage
> experimentation in the VHF and UHF portion of the spectrum. It was never
> designed to be entry-level, but with the loss of the Novice license, it is
> what we are now stuck with.
>
>
>
> A recent piece in QST looked at the growth of amateur licenses. But it also
> found that a large number of new licensees are getting licensed in the name
> of emergency preparedness, not because they are really interested in
> pursuing the hobby. I don't have to tell this group that the real fun is on
> the HF bands! Thus I feel an entry level license that does not give some
> meaningful Limited HF privileges is not a true entry level license. (Ten
> meters is not meaningful as it isn't reliably open). Oh, and back then the
> Novice was a one year (later increased to two) non-renewable license. So it
> gave a taste of the hobby and a big incentive to upgrade. Making the Novice
> renewable was a mistake. There are still quite a few Novice licensees in the
> database. Why do I get the feeling that the approximate number of Novices
> active on the bands is pretty nearly zero?
>
>
>
> I was first licensed in 1959. A phone station was AM, and stations had
> separate transmitters and receivers. AM and CW transmitters were simple and
> within the reach of beginner hams. SSB changed that. Previously, the most
> complicated item in the ham shack was the receiver. With SSB, the
> transceiver became dominant, and the complexity of a typical ham station
> jumped exponentially. There is no turning back at this point.
>
>
>
> A cw station is still simple enough, but with the loss of the Morse Code
> requirement, learning code will rely on the initiative of the person
> entering the hobby.
>
>
>
> All this is leading to the renewed idea of a true entry level license. So,
> what were the defining characteristics of the old Novice license? Limited
> power, limited privileges, a limited non-renewable term, and a basic exam
> covering regulations and basic theory. What will interest a techie just
> entering the hobby? I contend that digital is the new CW, so limited
> privileges should include some psk31 spectrum.
>
>
>
> <<soapbox mode off>
>
>
>
> I hope this is some food for thought. Like I said, there are a lot of smart
> people here. We might just come up with a good solution!
>
>
>
> Chris, AB6QK (and yes the extra is a real one with 20wpm code)
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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