[CQ-Contest] Update on QSL Online by SK0UX

[goran at tjansteforbundet.se]

Hi,

I recently posted an item on 'Instantaneous QSLs' at our Internet site and
want to give you an update on the comments that we have received: 

POSITIVE REACTIONS. The interest has been enormous with mostly very
positive comments, like 'A grand idea which could become very important.'
Most people ar thinking about the potential savings in $$,
effort, hazzle... 

I am more a contester than a hot-blooded DXer, but the last days I have
been following the
reflectors and see that there is a lot of 'I didn't get QSL fm VK..., how
come " and 'JY... hasn't answered to a number of letters/e-mail with green
stamps all over, what should I do'.  All these costs, in monies and effort,
would essentially go away if this concept became commonplace.

One guy is concerned that QSLs Online would cut down on profits DXpeditions
make from green stamps accompanying cards.


VERIFYABILITY. We get some questions: Will the ARRL/CQ awards committees
accept such QSLs, and a number of people are concerned about the tampering
issue. 

The answer is:  We certainly hope so. The key thing to realize
is that any awards/contest committee can verify a QSL at any time 
by looking up the QSO at the QSL Server again. So this concept in fact
offers  *greater* proof against tampering than traditional QSLs, which hams
have
been known to falsify (isn't that amazing). In view of this, unbreakable
check-sums etc may not be necessary.

In fact, it would be a simple matter to write a program where the DXCC
committee types in one line for
each QSL to be verified with the QSO info and the server who issued the
QSL. Then the program goes around and asks for verification of those QSLs
and comes back and says OK or not, without the need for interactive surfing
to each QSL server. Untouched by human hand, so to speak.


OTHER QSL SERVERS. We have already received requests for the source code.
We have been fairly reluctant about that, yet, since there might be
interesting ideas popping up from the collective brainstorming being
conducted (they already have!) which may influence the setup.

One U.S.  ham has received the code to become our first beta tester and is
well on his way to set up a QSL Server of his own with cards from some
interesting operations he has made over the years.


"The losers are the post offices and printers of this world, the winners
are the trees." Check it out for yourself at
http://ham.te.hik.se/clubs/sk0ux.  Suggestions are very welcome since new
possibilities are developing almost daily, mail to
goran at tjansteforbundet.se.


Sincerely,

Goran/SM0DRD


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