[CQ-Contest] Original application of "spotting" network

[Richard F DiDonna NN3W]

The first SoCal cluster sprung up in about 1988 or 1989.  The San Diego DX
cluster was housed IIRC on one of KM6Ks computers and radios at HRO in
Kearney Mesa and also at N6ND's home QTH in Ramona.  It expanded to the
N6ND-1 node in Point Loma which had very good coverage.  At the same time,
the SoCal DX club was developing their own cluster and at some point SoCal
and San Diego were bridged - I believe via 440 MHz links.  The
cluster expanded up the coast to Santa Barbara and as far north as Paso
Robles.  It then expanded east by 1991 or so to Arizona where we had a
tenuous connection to the Arizona DX and contest guys.

IIRC at times there were 200+ users stretching from Paso Robles to Baja
California on the network and the network really bogged down during major
contests as each packet spot went out and had to be acknowledged by each
connected user.

Fun times that was.

73 Rich NN3W

On Mon, Dec 6, 2021 at 1:51 PM Douglas Zwiebel <dougzzz at gmail.com> wrote:

> To the best of my recollection....
>
> The original digital "spotting network"was done using 2m packet.  It was
> making use of packet radio.  DXing had nothing to do with it.  It was ALL
> contest driven.
>
> My understanding was that YCCC tried to develop an approach to increase the
> mult count for W2PV.  I would like to think that our operation at K2GL
> using the call N2AA was at least part of that motivation.  It might have
> been in 1985.  Our best guess was that the idea was to feed mult to W2PV.
>
> It was very primitive.  At K2GL, we aimed a bunch of 2m boomers north to
> intercept the traffic  originating from Mt Greylock.  It was a shaky
> connection and we had to reconnect every couple of minutes.  We had one guy
> (a WB2 whose call I do not remember) who sat at the 2m radio.  I don't
> think we gained much, if anything.  It was interesting.
>
> But in December 1986, K2GL went SK and that was the end of that.
>
> Even later, it was still a concept for contesters who also liked to DX.
> When others started to post spots, us original guys (snobs?) sould often
> comment on "another useless spot."  Is that right AR?  LOL
>
> As for the above statements, YMMV
>
> de Doug KR2Q
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