[CQ-Contest] NCJ Article RE: Sweepstakes Change Suggestions

[rjairam at gmail.com]

FT8 has blown out the other modes on 6 meters at least. There are few
doing SSB and CW during band openings and in contests many are on FT8.
Now most don't even bother getting on CW and SSB. They just get on FT8
and let it run.

I do agree that on HF it is likely that CW and SSB will remain king
for a very long time, for a number of reasons, chief among them the
ability to make good rates on HF.

BTW it still requires skill. Skill to aim your antennas and skill to
work the openings, as well as weave in and out of QRM. The computer
just does the "QSO" part for you. It's definitely a different
experience and I think next VHF contest I'll try a serious effort
mostly focused on FT8, just to see where it can take me. "Just for
giggles"

73
Ria, N2RJ

On Sun, Mar 18, 2018 at 11:57 PM, Stephen Bloom <sbloom at acsalaska.net> wrote:
> Ria:
>
> True you can't decode by ear, but unlike the WSJT/WSJT-X modes, you are (or
> at least I am) still using my ears to pick out what to work when I'm S&P,
> and even sometimes when running if I have a pileup.  The other thing is
> ...don't confuse computer to computer with "operator skill doesn't matter."
> I'm pretty new to RTTY contesting, and extremely new (as in a few months) of
> taking it at all seriously, and it is just as much of a challenge as CW, in
> terms of going from "decent" to "competitive."  Lots of things to learn, in
> terms of multiple decoding, what decodes best with certain propagation
> patterns, the rhythm of "stacking" (I'm still struggling with this one) etc.
> W0YK gives a talk each year at Contest U about some of this.  I know I'm
> planning on having the KL7RA team do some multi ops for the big RTTY
> contests next season.  I also expect to see the use of other digital modes
> grow in the contest space, but at least for HF, it's not going to be FT-8.
>
> 73
> Steve KL7SB
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: CQ-Contest [mailto:cq-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of
> rjairam at gmail.com
> Sent: Friday, March 16, 2018 5:56 AM
> To: xaxaxaxa yayayaya <cqtestk4xs at aol.com>
> Cc: CQ-Contest Reflector <cq-contest at contesting.com>
> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] NCJ Article RE: Sweepstakes Change Suggestions
>
> Computer working computer also applies to RTTY, because you can't decode the
> didle.
>
> I've used FT8 in contests and it's basically just another mode.
>
> Ria
> N2RJ
>
> On Thu, Mar 15, 2018 at 8:32 PM, Bill via CQ-Contest
> <cq-contest at contesting.com> wrote:
>> Let's not go there with FT-8 as part of the SS.  My computer working your
> computer...boring!
>>
>>
>> FT-8 only SS is OK with me...I'll sort my sock drawer.
>>
>>
>> Bill K4XS/KH7XS
>>
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Jack Haverty <k3fiv at arrl.net>
>> To: cq-contest <cq-contest at contesting.com>
>> Sent: Thu, Mar 15, 2018 11:21 pm
>> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] NCJ Article RE: Sweepstakes Change
>> Suggestions
>>
>> On 03/15/2018 09:48 AM, Bill via CQ-Contest wrote:
>>>
>>> No code licenses are an death knell for SS CW.
>>
>> Perhaps it's time to consider adding other digital modes to the contest?
>> RTTY has been around for decades, PSK for a while, and newest methods
>> such as FT8 are popular.  SS used to be CW and AM; then SSB appeared.
>> So change is part of how to keep SS alive.  If it were still SS/AM,
>> SS/Voice probably wouldn't exist now.
>>
>> Such a move would probably bring more newcomers in to the game.  It
>> might also give the CW experts a new challenge to learn how to use new
>> technologies and how to compete using them as well as CW.  And
>> everybody might have more fun?
>>
>> /Jack de K3FIV
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