[RTTY] Point-and-click vs typing

[Ed Muns]

This is an excellent topic, but the questions as stated below imply a much
too restrictive answer.

As our friend Hank W6SX would say, "It depends".  Each of these techniques,
along with others, is "best" in each distinctly specific QSO situation.  In
general, what I've found most effective for me, after thousands of hours in
RTTY contests, is to use the keyboard as much as possible and the trackball
(or, mouse if that's your preference) only where necessary.  Furthermore,
only a very few keys are actually used on the keyboard.  They are used as
single presses for a specific function.  It is very rare that I touch type,
unless I got to keyboard mode to actually converse with someone.  For
example, I may go to keyboard mode and tell someone they are 220Hz low in
frequency.

I try to do everything I can from the keyboard.  I use ESM (Enter Sends
Message) or what some call the stateful Enter key.  The Enter key sends
different messages depending on the state of the QSO.  Very unnerving for
some; very natural for others.

Enter: sends the CQ message if no call sign in the Entry window.  Sends the
QSL message if there is a call sign in the Entry window and the cursor is in
the exchange field.

Apostrophe: Grabs the last highlighted call sign (or a new mult) if there is
no call sign in the Entry window, then sends the Exchange message.  Sends
the Exchange message if there is a call sign in the Entry window.

Semi-colon: Sends 'TU <current call sign> .. NOW' and logs the QSO.  This
key is always followed by the Apostrophe key because it assumes a call has
been popped from the call sigh stack into the Entry window.

Open Square Bracket: Sends my call.

Close Square Bracket: Sends my S&P Exchange message.

Left Trackball button: clicking on a call sign or exchange element copies it
into the Entry window.

Right Trackball button: clicking on a call sign copies it onto the bottom of
the call sign stack.

Therefore, in the simplest case where there is only one caller to my CQ and
their call sign is highlighted by WriteLog, I simply press Apostrophe.  If
their exchange has info I need to put in the Exchange field of my Entry
window, I click on it using the trackball.  HOWEVER, sometimes it is easier
to type the info.  "It depends" on what the info is.  For example in CQ WW
RTTY I often typed the two-letter QTH abbreviation rather than using the
trackball.  That can be done with two presses of the index finger, i.e.,
touch typing not required.  After finishing the received exchange, I press
Enter to QSL the contact.  If the exchange is prefilled, then all I am doing
for each QSO is simply pressing Apostrophe and then Enter.  If no one calls
in, then I press Enter again to send the CQ message.

If I get more than one call sign after a CQ, or if someone tail ends my
current QSO, I right-click their call sign into the call sign stack.  Then,
when I am ready to QSL the current QSO, I press Semi-colon (instead of
Enter), followed by Apostrophe.  If there are more call signs in the stack,
I repeat this sequence, and when the last one is out, I hit Enter to QSL
that QSO.

So, this means I am only using three keys on the keyboard to run stations,
including the handling of multiple call signs available between CQs.  I use
separate PCs/keyboards/trackballs for each radio, so I have one hand on each
keyboard running these three keys.  When I S&P or work a QSO on the sub-RX,
I use the Open/Close Square Bracket keys.  There are a few other keys, like
pushing/popping call signs onto or off of the call sign stack, long CQ, His
Call, special QSL message for my contest club members, etc.  And, of course
all the function keys are available, but they only get used when a QSO gets
screwed up or I need to respond to fill requests, or initiate a fill
request.

The various loggers differ a bit in their features so that affects what can
be done.  N1MM Logger, for example, can run almost all functions with the
mouse/trackball.  This is touted as a plus because you don't have to move
between the trackball and keyboard.  But, for me, it is so much easier to
press one of the 2-3 keys I use 99% of the time and only move to the
trackball for grabbing calls or exchange elements when necessary.

I have trained my non-dominant hand to run the trackball or mouse.  My home
office PC uses the trackball on my non-dominant hand so that I am
reinforcing that training daily.  When a contest comes up, both hands are
equally adept at mousing.

For RTTY only, I use "right-sized" keyboards that are the same width as my
K3 radios.  They are full-size keys and spacing, but without the number pad
and cursor key block that are not needed in RTTY contesting.  The left
trankball sits next to the left side of the left keyboard; opposite for the
right side.

There is no simpler motion than pressing a single key, so that is how I
choose to make as many UI motions as possible.  The trackball cursor and
buttons are used only when a call sign can't be grabbed with the Apostrophe
key or to grab an Exchange element.

If I sense that there might be an additional call sign(s) in the pile-up,
then I usually left-click the call sign into the Entry window so that I'm
ready to right-click any others onto the stack.  I may wait to actually
right-click those stacked call signs until after I've hit Apostophe to
initiate the current Exchange message.  There is plenty of time to do that
and when running SO2R, there may not be time to get all the call signs
stacked beforehand.

In summary, both the keyboard and the trackball/mouse are "best" for
different actions that the RTTY contester needs to take in the course of a
given QSO.  Trying to choose between them for all QSO actions is a
sub-optimal solution.

Ed W0YK

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Tim N3QE wrote:

I have been following the "where to do CRLF" threads for a while now. I did
some RTTY 30+ years ago so I can certainly appreciate that too many CRLF
can waste paper :-)

I can kinda appreciate that scrolling text makes it difficult for some to
point and click on a call. Still I have to wonder:

Roughly what fraction of RTTY contesters prefer to never take their hands
off the keyboard and to type the callsign of the caller (or maybe use the
"grab" function via keybaord)?

What fraction really prefers point-and-click to grab calls?

I personally despise ever having to use the mouse when running on CW, in
part because if I am going to take a hand off the keyboard, I would rather
have it go to the paddle rather than the mouse.

If I am typing in a call, then I get full advantage of SuperCheckPartial to
help me narrow in and fix busted calls before the QSO, no matter what the
mode. I suppose there is still some value in SCP if you click on a busted
call (instead of building it up letter-by-letter) but that's not how I've
learned to use it.