[CQ-Contest] Getting back into contesting

[Ron Notarius WN3VAW]

Rusty,

A year ago, you would have been fine with the latest/last version of CT 6,
which was available free for the download (but basically no longer
supported) on your 286.

However, several months ago CT 9 (the current release level) also became
available free for the download.  I don't recall if it would work on a
286 -- and if you stick with the DOS version, it might -- but frankly, with
the availability of low-end Pentium I class machines (close to free for the
asking from many sources), I'd suggest coming up with one of these and
putting CT 9 on it.  (In fact, I have a P133 just sitting here, and if you
lived nearby I'd just give it to you, but it's not even worth the cost of
shipping.  And besides, unless your 286 has a VGA card & monitor, you'd have
to come up with a monitor for it).  Even better, see if you can get your
hands on a low-end Pentium laptop; takes up less real estate and it's more
portable too.

Since you're already familiar with CT, and there's no longer a cost
associated with it, I'd suggest sticking with it.  There are a lot of good
programs out there, some free, some not, some DOS only, some Windows only,
some with options for both (Log-EQF/Win-EQF, WriteLog, NA, TR, N1MM, N3FJP,
and many more) which you could and should check into at your leisure, but
for now, stick with what you know.

Any "modern" (ie recent) program should support Cabrillo output.  This is
now standard for ARRL contest electronic submissions and is becoming so for
many others.  ADIF output is also popular in some circles.  This also makes
uploading logs to the online logbook services (Logbook of the World and eQSL
come to mind) easier, should you so desire, since they accept one or the
other or both formats.

You will probably also notice that you're not going to see much of a
consensus amongst the many comments you will receive.  Such is life in the
contesting world!

Welcome back, and good luck!

73, ron wn3vaw

"People hear what they want to hear,
And Disregard the Rest..."
"The Boxer," Simon & Garfunkel, 1970


----- Original Message -----
Date: Tue, 18 Nov 2003 06:56:05 -0900
From: "Russell Hill" <rustyhill at earthlink.net>
To: <cq-contest at contesting.com>
Subject: [CQ-Contest] Getting back into contesting

After being out of contesting for most of 10 years, except for occasional
sporadic activity, I am going to try to get on the 10M contest in Dec, and I
need some "modern-day" advice:

I have an old CT program running on my equally old 286 DOS machine.  I am
trying to decide whether to update it and run it on the 286, or on my
current Pentium laptop.  Or maybe I might buy a copy of TR or NA.  I have no
basis on which to make a comparative decision.  I do plan to run other
contests, including state parties, and do not wish to be limited in the
contests covered by the contest software.  I would really appreciate some
advice.

Is getting the output (report) into a Cabrillo format any big deal?

What is the URL to send my contest log for the most people to see?  Is
"Eskimo" or some other site the preferred public post for claimed results?

What else should I have asked that I am not knowledgeable enough to know
about?

Many thanks in advance,

73, Rusty
NA5TR


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