Topband: 160

[kolson at rcn.com]

I was shooting for somewhat interesting, so it's nice to hear that I made it all the way to semi-interesting!

Mark, I am not sure why you felt compelled to defend your software expertise, but I don't think anyone intended to demean you in any way. If it came off that way, I apologize.

Now I have worked new countries on RTTY with my IC-7300 untethered to a computer. All it took was a) tune to the frequency of the DX cluster callout b) push message buttons until I worked the station c) Log it. So someone with your level of expertise surely would agree that that process with todays technology could be reduced to one button push. 

Further, since our computers can tune our radios, access DX cluster callouts, operate skimmer for more stations, decode any digital mode (and for that matter, CW and through voice recognition, SSB), switch our antennas, turn our rotors, access our DXCC records, interface with propagation software and real time solar indices, log the contacts, send the results to LOTW and print labels for QSL's, in principal, the station can be automated to any degree the software designer desires and has the chops to implement. 

Not to say that would be more fun. In fact, when computer contest logging came along I wasn't a big fan. But the world went on and now hardly anyone would (gulp) PAPER LOG! I would rather work CW, but I will work SSB and FT8 when it suits me.

Now regarding your baseball comment I feel on more solid ground. The game of baseball in Ruth's and Aaron's day was almost night and day different. In fact, Ruth had to play most of his games in the daytime summer heat, Aaron played most of his games at night for most of his career. And Ruth didn't have to face any Afro-American pitchers no matter how good they were (for obvious reasons). In Aaron's day, the balls were tighter and more consistently manufactured, the gloves larger (improving defensive efficiency) and the bats had thinner handles (allowing higher bat speeds). In addition, the fields were better maintained (and in some cases, had artificial turf) and the era of dedicated relief pitchers had arrived (in Ruth's day, relief pitchers were generally washed up starters only used in desperation). I could go on, but no one seriously interested thinks you can directly compare the records of players in different eras. And a large contributor to this was technology, like the changes in Ham Radio are.

As far as your Bathroom comment, I have known guys who could do that while working a CW contest with the addition of a low-tech cup, hi hi.

73, Kevin K3OX

  

----- Original Message -----
From: Mark K3MSB <mark.k3msb at gmail.com>
To: kolson at rcn.com
Cc: topband at contesting.com
Sent: Mon, 05 Aug 2019 17:56:34 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: Topband: 160

Semi-Interesting post,  but not really applicable to the issue at hand.
>>
To me, the guys who really have a beef are the guys from after WW2 until the computer era 

I have 4 patents in software engineering.    I've been doing software since about 1978 when I worked as a research assistant in my undergrad years.   I'd be delighted to put my experience in software engineering and computers next to yours or anyone else's on this list,  but I'm pretty sure it's quite beyond the button-monkey level of knowledge required to use FT-8.
>>
Hank Aaron didn't devalue Babe Ruth.
No he didn't, but I suspect he tried VERY hard to beat his record.   Both Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron used a bat, ball, and gloves.    That was a pretty level playing field.     Perhaps one day we'll have robot ball players mixed in with humans.    Do yo think that will fly?    Of course, closer to home,  we're now seeing where transgender issues are effecting competitive sports.     Competition needs to be equal,  and there's nothing to prevent different levels of competition,  but equality and fairness must exist within the same level.
As I mentioned in a related post while I was /HH6 in May,  my FT-8 oriented friend initiated an FT-8 sequence,  went to the bathroom,  and after coming out pointed out he made a QSO while in the bathroom.  He specifically did that to show me it could be done.     And FT-8 people want respect for that?    Sorry Charlie,  not from me.  

Mark K3MSB

















On Sat, Aug 3, 2019 at 11:36 AM <kolson at rcn.com> wrote:


"The dogs bark, but the caravan rolls on" -ancient proverb


As I understand it, some of this discussion is based on the romantic idea that we old timers had it tough but today it's all easy and without real challenge. This charge is nothing new, so a little history might be in order. The history of Ham Radio since the advent of the home computer has been the gradual replacement of operator intervention with computer initiatives in our operating activities. Let's look at some.


FT8: 

Is ultimately just another digital mode, the only real difference is that more of the automation is built in from the start. But, in principal, any of the digital modes (indeed any mode at all) can be made as automated as one desires these days. For those under 45 (hi hi), to operate RTTY back in the day required a thing called a Terminal Unit to translate the mark/space signals to voltage levels to feed a Teletype machine (which was basically a big, noisy, heavy duty typewriter). But that hasn't been the reality for RTTY for a long time. RTTY is now as easy as downloading a program, only marginally more difficult than operating FT8. After all, the packet cluster can give you the who and where and the program tunes your radio to the proper frequency. You press "send" until you get a reply (if you are working a rare DX counter operating split there can be some more to it) and the computer logs it after you make the contact and can even send the logging in to LOTW for credit.


DXing: 

Originally required hours and hours in front of the radio, tuning and looking for the DX. Now there were things like DX nets, and newsletters/bulletins and the like to help a bit and DXpeditions were publicised in magazines and word of mouth. But with the advent of the computer and packet radio, all that changed. Decades ago, a friend of mine developed a computer program to track your DX totals and generate mailing labels for the QSL's. He interfaced that with the Packet and when a new coun... err... entity came on the air, his computer would send "DX" (in CW, of course) and he could walk back to the shack, work the counter and go back to the ball game. Quite a culture shock for the guys still tuning around on their National HRO's. Now the DX cluster is an entrenched reality along with Skimmer etc. No sitting in front of the rig necessary. And QSLing in the day was a royal PITA, now you just print out the labels and download the LOTW credits.


Contesting:

There is a film (now video, produced by a NFL films dude!) from decades ago on YouTube that shows the DX contest from the perspective of a bunch of the Frankford Radio Club participants. Again, if you are not over 45 it may be a bit of a mystery what's going on. There is no Packet cluster, so DX callouts happened on 2m FM! And you will see lots of paper. They are Log Sheets (where you wrote down your contacts) and Cross Check sheets (where you kept track of you contacts by listing them alphabetically so you wouldn't work too many duplicate contacts). After the contest, you would have to "redupe" your log to try and catch dupes that got past in the heat of battle, this would take a week or two of intermittent effort. And a fabulous talent for a contester to have was a good level of call recall (hi hi), the more guys you rememberd you worked the less you had to refer to the Cross Check sheet. Of course, all this is gone, replaced by our computer running a program like N1MM (or CT in th

 e olden times). 


I could go on (but mercifully won't), the point is that this is all part of a natural progression, an inevitable part of human innovation. To me, the guys who really have a beef are the guys from after WW2 until the computer era. You could argue that we have devalued their accomplishments (you can also argue they had more fun, but that's another post). But I would argue that everyone's accomplishments stand on their own according to their time, circumstances and operating preferences. Hank Aaron didn't devalue Babe Ruth. I would also argue that the world keeps turning and the caravan is inexorable...


73, Kevin K3OX  


_________________

Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband - Topband Reflector