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

[Jim McDonald]

While we're on this nostalgia trip, the voice announcements were made with a voice synthesizer called the DX Alert, which was invented and sold by Tim Pearson, KU4J (the call has since been reissued).

The control software made it possible to filter the voice spots to desired entities.

Jim N7US


-----Original Message-----


I remember when it started on the West Coast. It was Dxers spotting DX stations for use by DXers. It was 2 meter packet spots. Charlie, W6KK (N7QQ at the time) was a major contributor to the backbone of the Southern California DX Club Packet Cluster System. He installed some 6 meter links to connect some packet clusters together and set up voice announcements on 2 meters and on 220 MHZ. You could be sitting watching television monitoring the 2 meter frequency and if a DX Country that you needed got voice announced you could go to the shack and see if you could work it.
 
We started using it later on in the contests integrating with CT software.
 
Fun memories! de Mike W6RW


-----Original Message-----
 
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