[UK-CONTEST] RSGB Contest Committee - IOTA EXCHANGES

Sun Aug 8 15:21:26 PDT 2010

Been trying to keep out of these emails, but have read them all.

IOTA has been a phenomenal success really; and enjoys a huge following.  I
think it is a third of the size of CQWW contest in terms of entry size.

For RST  or number issues - I too have felt that the exchange was long (or
longer than other HF exchanges; vhf have been used to other criteria for a
long time). I would never support dropping RST; as Roger said - on CW, it
forms a "framing sector"; for what you expect next. Time sent is the same
for everyone (ignoring the fact that some of us will use "Speed up" for this
part !!!).  Dropping numbers for IOTA entries only causes too much confusion
for non-island entries; dropping for all means that Non Island entries would
have to say "none Island".  Be a pain on CW though, I suspect! It ain't
broken, so leave it alone !!

For Band entries - there are already MANY categories; and many winners; with
12/24 hour, Differing power levels, mixed mode/SSB/CW categories; Island
Home, Island DXpedition and Non Island entries. I really think that Single
band (and whether G3MZV wants all mode combinations covering too !!) is a
step too far !!  As was said previously, most workable islands are already
in EU, so you don't need a megastation to put in a reasonable performance on
HF !

Should we really be trying to head for rewards for all; it's not about
winning, but taking part  - political correctness?? !!!   I hope not !!
Too much like a modern school sports day if we are wanting to head that way
!!  There is still big scope to set your own goals, and pick a section that
you might do well in. I did this around 1996; from a home QTH with just a
Butternut and a 132ft end fed, and won my section. 

73

Dave
G3NKC
(4 times outright IOTA winner too from MW7Z / MD4K)

-----Original Message-----
From: uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:uk-contest-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of cris at gm4fam.plus.com
Sent: 08 August 2010 21:38
To: uk-contest at contesting.com
Subject: [UK-CONTEST] RSGB Contest Committee

Roger SXW is 100% right.

Can someone please explain to this simple soul why changing anything to
affect an ever increasingly well supported event will make it more popular
than it is already ?  Just what is wrong with IOTA's steady growth?  Has any
opinion been sought from non-Island operators?

Sounds like we are on the verge of a modern-age British phenomenon ie
"steady chaps, this is all going too well - how can we screw it up a bit"?

Or even the Japanese golf experience - they just loved the concept of
hitting a little white ball until it went into a wee hole in the grass, and
were getting very good at it; then some bright spark called in a sports
psychologist a few 1000 miles west of here to tell them what a complicated
game it really is, with the only predictable result.

73 Cris
GM4FAM

> Paul - you are repeating yourself, old man! Your case for IOTA 
> stations may have some logic, but this is how it'd look for non-IOTAs:
>
> Me:    F5AA TEST
> You:   DL1AA
> Me:    DL1AA E  (you log 5)
> You:   A (I log 1)
> Me:    TU F5AA
>
> Pretty silly!  At bare minimum there must be (now it's me repeating) 
> at least two exchange-elements: signal report, serial number or IOTA 
> reference.
> Or force call-sign exchange at every transmission - no thanks! Or IOTA 
> stations drop RST but non-IOTA still send it. Also pretty daft! There 
> has never been a contest with only ONE exchange-element - for good reason!
> It's
> too late to exclude non-IOTA/non-IOTA contacts from the contest.
>
> The broader issue here is QSO rate. If we CQ with replies every five 
> minutes then this discussion is irrelevant. But running three QSOs per 
> minute at 33wpm requires skill & accuracy and where the QSO 'shape' is 
> essential.
> Let's encourage operating-skills, not revert to the old days of 'Hello 
> old man, nice signal, 579 peaking S8'.
>
> Back to basics: it ain't broke, it's hugely popular, growing like 
> wild-fire, could become the biggest contest in the world after CQWW. 
> Let's not mess with it for minor gain! Drop it, mate!
> 73 de Roger/G3SXW.
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Paul O'Kane" <pokane at ei5di.com>
> To: <uk-contest at contesting.com>
> Sent: Sunday, August 08, 2010 1:46 PM
> Subject: Re: [UK-CONTEST] RSGB Contest Committee
>
>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Andy Cook G4PIQ" <g4piq at btinternet.com>
>>
>>> RST adds structure and makes us look a little less ridiculous to 
>>> non-contesters.
>>
>>
>> I'd suggest that it's precisely the meaningless exchange of 59(9) in 
>> IOTA and other major HF contests that makes us look ridiculous to 
>> non- contesters and to many VHF+ contesters?
>>
>> Does anyone disagree?
>>
>> As for structure, we all know that when we call another station and 
>> hear our callsign, we expect to have to log whatever comes after the 
>> callsign.
>> None of us needs extra time to get ready - we are contesters, and the 
>> Sprints have already shown that "what you don't expect, you don't 
>> miss".
>>
>> At the risk of stating the obvious, the only way to shorten the IOTA 
>> exchange is to remove one or more of the exchange elements.
>>
>> The IOTA Reference has to stay because it affects points and 
>> multipliers.  The leaves 5NN or Serial to be dropped - and why drop 
>> an element that has to be copied on-air, and can't be pre-filled by 
>> logging software?
>>
>> Here's what the structure of an IOTA QSO would look like.
>>
>> Me:    EI5DI TEST
>> You:   G2XYZ
>> Me:    G2XYZ 091 EU115  (you log 091 EU115)
>> You:   026 EU5          (I log 026 EU5)
>> Me:    TU EI5DI
>>
>> A change too far?  Hardly!
>>
>> 73,
>> Paul EI5DI
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
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