To clarify my earlier post, the unmanned operating position is next to the one
who is occupied is easily controlled by reaching over by hitting the enable tab
and making sure everything is working properly. I don't mean in a literal sense
of being unmanned, such as remote. Think of the 2BSIQ style of operating FT8
instead of CW/SSB from one chair. Also, the sequences are probably out of sync
for S/O stations.Peter
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Tue, Sep 16, 2025 at 3:23 PM, Alan Larson<wa6azp@gmail.com> wrote: Peter
writes:
>My few cents worth. For quite some time now, a number of serious contest
stations, whether they're Single Operator or >Multioperator have figured
out a method how to maximize their scores, by having unmanned stations
running on FT8 >simultaneously in order to stay competitive.The operator at
the manned station is either on analog or digital. This operating
>technique encourages FT8 activity and deters analog activity. Why? The FT8
mode is on a designated channel per band and it >doesn't require operator
skill to generate points.?We're becoming "lazy". It's too much work to
actually tune the bands for finding >stations to call, or to call CQ in
hopes that a random station answers.?
>I'm guilty of this practice and the gratification is minimal at best. If
you're not taking advantage of this, you're losing!
>I like W8ZN's idea of splitting the contest into two parts. Day one for
analog and day two for digital. I don't mind which one starts.
>73,Peter WW2Y?
A while back I suggested that it would not take much programming effort to
build software around the FT8 software that
would listen for contacts, and make the contest contact without human
intervention - no pushing the button or entering
the callsign of the other station. Since everything the human received was
presented by the computer, it already had all
the information necessary to make the contact.
The program could even look on web sites for active stations, listen to the
incoming signals, tune the radio (if necessary),
make the contact exchange, and log the results.
I was quickly told that the rules prohibited automated stations. From the
ARRL rules:
"OPRG.4. Each contact must include contemporaneous direct initiation by
both operators making a
contact. Initiation of a contact may be by either local or remote
control."
( https://contests.arrl.org/ContestRules/JanJunSep-VHF-Rules.pdf )
An "unmanned" station doesn't sound like it would be allowed under this
rule.
Perhaps the thing to do is to change the scoring, radically, so that DX
contests have much less advantage.
If there were no multipliers, for example, working FT8 signals many dB
below the noise level would be less
valuable. Perhaps one of:
a) Instead of multipliers, have "adders". Score would be (# of stations
worked) + (# of grids worked).
b) Eliminate multipliers. Scoe is (#of stations worked). Working
weaker (more distant) stations would
still provide more contacts.
I can already hear the screams on this - "but how can we run up million
point scores without multipliers".
Alan
_______________________________________________
VHFcontesting mailing list
VHFcontesting@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/vhfcontesting
_______________________________________________
VHFcontesting mailing list
VHFcontesting@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/vhfcontesting
|