[TowerTalk] Re: [CQ-Contest]Leading zero on SSB

[Jim Lux]

I'd argue that phrases like "please copy" and leading zeros are designed to 
standardize the form of the communication, much as prosigns do in CW or 
headers in digital comm do.  The "please copy" lets you know that the 
"exchange" is about to follow and to get ready to start writing.

I'd much rather have everyone, uniformly, send three or four digits, 
starting with 001, with digits spoken individually, and know that if I 
copied three digits, I got them all, than wonder if that was "nineteen" or 
"nine" with a static crash or QRM. Likewise the check digits and 
section.  I'd rather have the check spoken as two digits, not as "fifty" 
(although, I grant you, "15" would be pretty unlikely... 31 was the oldest 
I heard)

How many times did you hear "Say again check and section" or "Say again 
sequence"?

I doubt that the second or two involved in using verbal prosigns materially 
changes anyone's score.

But then, I'm a rookie at this stuff.  However, bear in mind that the hobby 
can only grow if new operators are encouraged, and standardized forms are a 
way to make that easier.

I was exceedingly pleased to hear contestors, giving out sequences in the 
high hundreds or thousands, slowly working through the exchange with a 
rookie, who was giving out sequences of 1 or 2.  Even with repeats and 
explanations, the QSO still didn't take that long, and there's no question 
that the participant on the other end appreciates it, and will come away 
with a good feeling. This is particularly so when the propagation is marginal.

On the other hand, I wasn't so impressed by operators who, if they didn't 
get perfect copy on the first transmission of the exchange, abandonded the 
QSO and went on to the next. No "say again", no "please repeat".. just "CQ 
Contest, X1XX, QRZ?". Once or twice, you could attribute to fluke of 
propagation, but I heard some stations doing it over and over again. Maybe 
they didn't have the phrase programmed into the parrot?

But then, there's no accounting for taste.. Everyone has different styles 
and preferences, and a useful aspect of ham radio in general is that pretty 
much, you can do as you like.

Jim, W6RMK (with a monster 11 Q's in about 3 total hours of operating, but 
at least I know my antenna works on five bands now, and my daughter thought 
it was fun)

At 03:36 PM 11/17/2003 -0500, Cqtestk4xs at aol.com wrote:
>I can live with the "please copy" guys.  Even the "good luck" is cool.  Lots
>of the old timers from the 50s still use "please accept" or "please take."
>However, in my 25+ years of doing SS, I have never heard as many "zero, zero,
>six" as this years SS SSB.  It drives me nuts to hear some PW KG4XXX or 
>KC9XYZ
>send them.  You know you have to copy three digits in all the mud and then 
>find
>out two of them were useless after all the work.
>
>On the happy side, it appears although there were not a whole lots of checks
>of 00 or higher in the CW SS there were bunches of them in the SSB SS.  Some
>of them sounded like pretty decent ops too.  I only got one "10-4" the whole
>weekend!
>
>Bill K4XS
>_______________________________________________
>
>See: http://www.mscomputer.com  for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless 
>Weather Stations", and lot's more.  Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with 
>any questions and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
>
>_______________________________________________
>TowerTalk mailing list
>TowerTalk at contesting.com
>http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk