[CQ-Contest] QSLing.

[DXer]

W0MU wrote:
>>Postage overseas is beyond ridiculous these days. K1ZM said it costs
more to ship his book overseas than the book costs!

Tell me about it. :^) I'm a bit of a books 'addict'. I only buy used 
books now to lower the costs. Most of them are shipped from the US, and 
postage is almost always more than the cost of the book. I ordered a 
couple of books last week for 1 cent each. Postage was $6.49 each, and 
that was cheap as far as postage goes.

Jim K9YC wrote:

>>Yes. The cost of international postage and shipping have made paper
QSLs a luxury that few of us can afford.

I had to endure direct QSLing before LOTW. I dislike direct QSLing with 
gusto. But it has become even worse now with the major increase in 
postage costs, and don't tell me about IRCs, please. :^))

Jim K9YC wrote:

>>From where I sit, LOTW is one of the very best things ARRL has done
for ham radio in the last 20 years. I no longer bother with awards that 
won't accept LOTW or eQSL. That rules out county awards and it rules out 
IOTA unless and until IOTA gets a workable and user-friendly electronic 
method going that doesn't require paper cards.

I agree 100% with you on this, Jim. I had some 'doubts' about eQSL, but 
I have changed my mind. I'm also looking forward to the IOTA system. It 
has lit the IOTA flame for me. I applaud the DARC (German association) 
for the implementation of DCL. A good and affordable way to apply for 
DARC awards.

Jim K9YC wrote:

>>I agree with Charly that the biggest problem with LOTW is getting
more hams to use it. I don't know what the obstacles are, but it needs 
serious attention.

I wonder what the difficulty is. I have been using it for years, changed 
computers many times, and was never 'offline'. I do keep backups of 
certificates, profiles, and etc., but the problem seems to be setting it 
up for the first time.

Jim K9YC wrote:

>>LOTW has saved my thousands of dollars in postage as I've filled
nearly 2,200 band and mode slots. That's enough to buy a couple of nice 
radios!

I moved countries a couple of times, it would have cost me a small 
'fortune' to start DXCC from each of them using paper QSLing. Like you, 
I prefer to use the money on improving the station, or even other 
non-radio pursuits. :^)

73 de Vince, VA3VF