[CQ-Contest] Skimmer

[Scott Robbins]

W4ZV:
>This may present an interesting dilemma for contest
>sponsors.  Skimmer is pure hardware...no external help from other
>ops.  How could you disallow Skimmer (effectively gleaning spots
>like Packet) and yet allow SO2R?  Both are purely hardware, so
>why allow one and not the other?

You can't legislate it effectively, I think.  And my gut reaction is if you're
using a piece of computer software to decode CW signals on radios that you are
sitting in front of, with no outside assistance, that's just one more tool for
SO2R if you can manage some way to use it effectively.  How is it much
different from decoding multiple digital mode signals at the same time?

I'd be interested to see how well in a major contest with a band full of
signals the software works.  I don't see (unless I missed it) a dynamic range
specification for the software.  What is it?

If you decide to use a top-shelf HF rig for decoding CW signals, likely you're
going to need more bandwidth than 3 kHz for watching signals up and down the
band -- goodbye narrow roofing filter -- sayonara receiver performance -- now
you're looking at a band full of big signals with a compromised receiver
front-end.  Is that practical?  

There are a couple more possible limitations that come to mind ... let's see
what comments we get here.

VERY INTERESTING!  

Scott W4PA



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