[UK-CONTEST] Re Skimmer - was QTC in WAEDC RTTY

[Clive GM3POI]

Also  how long before Skimmer is totally integrated with Contest logging 
programmes. I think VE3NEA has a lot to answer for. 73 Clive GM3POI
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Lawley" <dave at g4buo.com>
To: "UK Contest Reflector" <uk-contest at contesting.com>
Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 2:44 PM
Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] Re Skimmer - was QTC in WAEDC RTTY


>I think it's a question of degree Peter.
>
> A machine code reader of whatever sort, listening in a 500Hz or even
> 2kHz bandwidth, is one thing. CW-Skimmer when hooked up to an SDR can
> read Morse across the *whole* band or bands.
>
> Just imagine in AFS. You stop keying for 30 seconds, and ALL the
> stations that are CQing anywhere from 3.510 to 3.580 get shown in your
> PC display.
>
> That looks and feels very much like an extremely effective packet
> cluster system. In fact, even more so. No-one spots G4BUO CQing, because
> I'm not DX, not a mult, I'm "just another G" but Skimmer is democratic
> and spots everything.
>
> So, the art of S+P becomes the art of pounce alone. The searching has
> been done for you, by a machine. Lord help us.
>
> Dave G4BUO
>
> Peter Hobbs wrote:
>> Hi Paul
>>
>> So I'm not allowed to use an automatic CW decoder??  I can recall working 
>> a
>> fully automatic KH6IJ back in the late 1950's.  SD encourages you to 
>> operate
>> CW as a data mode in the TX direction, so why not the other way around? 
>> And
>> what about my hand-crafted master.dta file - another time saver?  Surely 
>> any
>> arrangement of my station that I may care to make is my business, as long 
>> as
>> I don't receive real-time help from others . . .
>>
>> Don't get me wrong, I enjoy copying CW as much as any, but I'm one of the
>> Old F***s and we really shouldn't close our eyes (or ears!) to new ways 
>> of
>> doing things (or are they so new? - morse undulators* were widely used
>> during WWII)
>>
>> 73
>> Peter G3LET
>>
>> * for those of more recent vintage, an undulator is a bit like a 
>> telegram,
>> except the paper is inked by a solenoid driven pen, coupled to the
>> (rectified) receiver audio output.
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "Paul O'Kane" <pokane at ei5di.com>
>> To: "UK Contest Reflector" <uk-contest at contesting.com>
>> Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 1:58 PM
>> Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] Re Skimmer - was QTC in WAEDC RTTY
>>
>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>>> From: "Peter Hobbs" <peter at tilgate.co.uk>
>>>
>>>> ... but I've never understood the hang-up over Skimmer
>>>> anyway.  It's a single op using *another* fancy radio.
>>>> No different in principle to SO2R or a spectrum display.
>>> Sorry, can't go along with that :-)
>>>
>>> It's one thing having a spectrum display, or a second radio,
>>> showing you where there are other CW signals, but it's another
>>> thing entirely when they are identified in advance.
>>>
>>> Skimmer decodes multiple CW signals in real time.  In effect,
>>> the use of Skimmer moves CW closer to "just another data mode"
>>> - as does any CW decoder.
>>>
>>> What's the difference between CW and "just another data
>>> mode"?  Copying by ear.
>>>
>>> 73,
>>> Paul EI5DI
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