[ct-user] Multi-multi serial numbers...

[Alastair Beaton]

> Can anyone give one good reason why the serial
> numbers have to be unique?

1. Because it gives you more data to copy correctly (increasing the
"challenge")
2. Because, in the days of all-paper logs, it was much easier and faster to
check logs against serial numbers than against time (which we all know is
never linear in contests!)

However, the real question is probably "Should software define the contest
rules, or vice versa?" Given that all the major contest organisers are
gradually increasing the pressure on us to submit electronic logs (to save
time and money, and rightly so), maybe a slight tweaking of the exchange
rules to acknowledge this specific limitation wouldn't go amiss.

Maybe M/M stations could be allowed fixed sequences of unique numbers on
each band. Something like this:
160m - 001, 007, 013...
 80m - 002, 008, 014...
 40m - 003, 009, 015...
 20m - 004, 010, 016...
 15m - 005, 011, 017...
 10m - 006, 012, 018...

The PC sends the numbers, so the operator's not going to get too confused.
If you miss your incoming serial, and don't want to "AGN", listening to the
next 2 QSOs will give you the sequence - something you can't do currently
with a M/M.

73
Al, GM4BAP


--
Submissions:              ct-user@contesting.com
Administrative requests:  ct-user-REQUEST@contesting.com
WWW:                      http://www.contesting.com/ct/
Questions:                owner-ct-user@contesting.com