[CQ-Contest] Reverse Beacon Network News - hopefully ofgeneralinterest

[Tom W8JI]

> On 8/13/2012 7:20 AM, Martin , LU5DX wrote:
>> I surely also understand Jim's concerns about gigantic pile ups with
>> all stations calling exactly in the same frequency due to the RBN
>> spots. I hope it is just a matter of time till ops realize we need to
>> start calling stations a little off the spotted frequency.

> I'm not a BIG contester, But have been contesting since 1975, LONG
> before any of this existed. And as soon as I heard a pileup made by a
> RBN spot I did notice how everyone was "Spot On" (pun intended)
>
> And my first thought if I was to use this RBN network, I would at the
> same time turn on my XIT to slide a tad off the mess some. I thought
> everyone would do that and that this was not a unique thought.  But I
> guess not.


I wonder what other's think about that method.

I think just tuning off frequency by pushing a button to avoid a pileup 
center is poor operating practice, because it can jam someone already using 
a frequency. I wonder if this practice is common, and if it why when running 
on a frequency a long time, some random person will show up just sending his 
callsign over and over, outside the "pileup range".

IMO a much better policy is to NOT spread out unless we listen first and 
make sure no one is using the frequency.

Of course I dislike the whole notion of just saying "up", or saying "up" 
without a specific frequency split, because it causes needless QRM. Of 
course it is understood good manners go away in contests because it is 
competition, but I wonder if some consideration of others still exists in 
some form, and to what extent it reasonably exists.

73 Tom