[VHFcontesting] FT8?- tarnation!

[chetsubaccount at snet.net]

Yes, and my goal for the contest is to make as many Q’s in as many grids, on as many bands as I can.

 

For me most satisfaction is in the journey- do something myself to my station or operating to make it better and then try it out. This time I built a small table to hold a laptop instead of using a cardboard box on a chair. And I moved the 2M amplifier with the noisy fan behind the wall to lower shack noise. During the contest I make a few notes on things to think about improving before next time. 

 

Interesting note from The ARRL Contest Update for January 20, 2021:

Experiential Density-

A term coined by Valve Software's Half-Life team to characterize the number of events per unit time that a game player experiences. Too many, and a game can become tedious. Too few, a game may be boring. Different people may prefer different levels of experiential density. This term could be a characteristic of contests, or even certain ways to approach contest operating, for example, S&P vs. running.

 

Chet, N8RA

 

 

 

 

From: Sean Waite <waisean at gmail.com> 
Sent: Wednesday, January 20, 2021 10:57 AM
To: Chet S <chetsubaccount at snet.net>
Cc: VHF Contesting <vhfcontesting at contesting.com>
Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] FT8?- tarnation!

 

Some people like FT8. Some people find it dull. Some people like CW. Some people find it dull. Some people like Amateur Radio. Some people find it dull.

 

It's a wide hobby and many people have many different interests. You're not doing it wrong, nor is anyone that finds it boring.

 

The goal is to figure out how to get as much activity on as many of our bands as possible, and get as many people on the air having fun as possible.

 

Personally I don't think that's another contest, and that we need to find a way to co-exist inside the same contest. I'm not sure of the best way to do that. We have 3 contests in a year - we should try a different approach on each one (and yes, I realize there are weather and band conditions that change these contests) and see what approaches work well and which don't.

 

On Wed, Jan 20, 2021 at 10:53 AM <chetsubaccount at snet.net <mailto:chetsubaccount at snet.net> > wrote:

I must be doing something wrong. 

FT8 is supposed to be dull, the computer does all the work and shovels
contacts into your log while you eat donuts with coffee. 

When I am using FT8, I have both 6M and 2M going on it using more than one
antenna on each band. I am continuously looking from window to window to see
what is coming in from where, and if I want/need it then switch to or rotate
an antenna that will favor my chances of logging that QSO without screwing
up the other band. Check what grids are needed and move an antenna that way
to occasionally favor that direction.  Look at telnet spots. Try the other
sequence. Are 6M E's now strong? Time to switch to SSB or CW? Are you sure
the other station heard your RR73? If not take back manual control of the TX
message and send that a few more times. Don't click "log it" yet. Decide
when to give up, clear the messages, and restart a CQ.  Yell at the screen.
Constantly on the go. An hour or two of doing this takes much more energy
than being on USB eating donuts with coffee while pushing the F1 key to send
your CQ message. 

I must be doing something wrong.but having a lot of fun.

73,
Chet, N8RA

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-- 

73/Yours in Scouting

Sean Waite, WA1TE