[CQ-Contest] Doug's famous Spot Remover FREE...but wait, there's more!

[Eric Hilding]

Doug, KR2Q, wrote:

> Okay... I can't resist (forgive me).
>
> During a contest (or all the time?), the spotting software should be changed
> so that only the PREFIX is accepted/transmitted.  That way, everybody would
> have to copy the call on their own.  NO errors in spotting, no CORRECTIONS needed.
>
> This way, you still don't have to find the MULT on your own (ashame), but you DO
> have to actually COPY THE CALL (cw and ssb) on your own.
>
> I know...dream on.

IMHO, Doug is more of a true "Visionary" than a Dreamer, and his suggestion is a brilliant idea.  I think even my good friend Jim Neiger/N6TJ might endorse this too :-)

Bringing people back to having to actually copy what they hear (or at least part of it) can only help improve Contesting skills in general, and get many out of the "Slouch Potatoe" mode of operating.

However, there's one glitch I see to be overcome:  If you've worked ZL1XXX and there are still 4 other ZL1's to be had in the Contest, just seeing the ZL1 prefix post *could* bring you full circle back to ZL1XXX who was already worked, and then valuable time will have been lost once you discover you don't need *that* particular "ZL1".

What came to mind was just allowing the first character after the prefix number to show, but of course, for stations like 5A7A, 6Y2A, etc., etc., the cat would still be fully out of the bag.

Gotta be a way to take your basic idea and still make it work I'm sure, unless the logging software could validate the "hidden" (missing") characters after a Prefix number and yield a "Worked Before" :-)  This would be a necessity considering some of the LID operators who don't ID for 10 or 20 QSOs ;-(

73...

Rick, K6VVA