[CQ-Contest] Re; Skimmer Ultimate Setup

[Joe Subich, W4TV]

David, 

> Any amateur radio communications between two or more 
> individuals is already using a signal path that "other than" 
> RF, unless of course, you are getting RF into your microphone 
> cable.

The local connections (microphone, headphone, etc.) are necessary 
and part of amateur radio.  When these necessary connections are 
replaced or extended by commercial means of communication, the 
amateur nature of the communications is changed.  

I have no philosophical objection to remote control as long as the 
controls are entirely by amateur radio (e.g., RF above 220 MHz).
It is when you and those like you replace amateur frequencies 
with AT&T, Sprint, etc. that the line has been crossed.  The 
next step is to move all of the big remote stations into a small 
are to make the RF part of the path more "reliable" followed by 
elimination of the "unreliable" ionosphere with redundant servers. 

Eventually, amateur radio becomes nothing more than a multiplayer 
computer game that anyone (located in developed countries with 
access to a laptop and WiFi) can play.  Amateur radio with the 
thrill of wireless, long distance, person to person, communication 
has been turned on it head.  Instead of person to person, long 
distance communication, it becomes wired person to server 
communication and the only thing "wireless" is the short range 
network access hop.  
   


> -----Original Message-----
> From: cq-contest-bounces at contesting.com 
> [mailto:cq-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of David Kopacz
> Sent: Saturday, March 22, 2008 6:14 PM
> To: Paul O'Kane; CQ-Contest at contesting.com
> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] Re; Skimmer Ultimate Setup
> 
> 
> 
> >This may be a reactionary viewpoint but it seems to me
> >that when any part of the signal path, between the two,
> >(or more) individuals concerned, is anything other than
> >RF, something is lost - at least in amateur radio terms.
> 
> >73,
> >Paul EI5DI
> 
> Paul,
> 
> Your statement is not only reactionary, but wholly incorrect.
> 
> Any amateur radio communications between two or more 
> individuals is already using a signal path that "other than" 
> RF, unless of course, you are getting RF into your microphone cable.
> 
> Remote operation is simply extending the microphone cable (AF 
> signals) and control signals (typically low level DC control 
> signals) and extending them a longer distance than normal. 
> Many amateurs already control their radios with a computer 
> using low level DC signals (RS-232), so why do you think 
> extending those control signals a bit further, such as across 
> the Internet, with AF included in both directions, is 
> "debasing" amateur radio?
> 
> The "radio" communications between two or more individuals is 
> still accomplished using RF signals between the antennas of 
> each station.
> 
> David ~ KY1V
> 
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