[CQ-Contest] Determining ASSISTED vs NON-ASSISTED -- was: =>RE:Chea

[Tom W8JI]

I think the goal should be to enjoy making things as difficult and 
complicated as we possibly can, and making sure the fewest number of people 
possible have a good time or any fun.

Why should anyone be allowed to make a note when they make an entry mistake, 
or operate if anything is messing up that would require notes? What we 
should do is have logging programs that are uneditable, and require a key or 
password  from someone in authority to change, or the whole entry is tossed. 
That stops the whole problem.


> On Sep 28, 2011, at 6:14 PM, Mike Fatchett W0MU wrote:
>> Bob,
>> I think this is a big stretch.  The contest period to me is the period
>> of time where valid contacts can be made.
>> What you are suggesting is at the end of the contest much like the Iowa
>> Tests of Basic Skills put your pencil down and you are done.  At the end
>> of the contest all loggers will lock down the log and you can't change
>> it.  I don't think this is the intent of CQ or ARRL.  We all make
>> mistakes in the heat of battle.  Most believe that obvious errors or
>> notes can be addressed after the contest period has ended.
>
> It's not unusual for me to run into situations in a contest where I note 
> something that needs to be fixed. Like in NAQP where I obviously logged 
> someone's name incorrectly on another band, or have someone who gives me 
> enough duplicate contact information so I can fix his callsign in the 
> previous QSO.
>
> I don't always have time right at that moment to fix the log entry. I keep 
> a pad of paper handy to write things down. If I have time during the 
> contest, I'll follow the note and make the fixes. However, if the contest 
> is going really well, I won't have time to execute my note until after the 
> contest.
>
> I don't consider this "cheating" in any way. I'm using the information 
> gathered during the contest to fix my log.
>
> Back in the old days of paper logs, it wasn't unusual for people to 
> re-write their logs before submission. In the course of that process, 
> innumerable  little issues would be fixed. Certainly a note such as the 
> ones mentioned above would be followed.