we should not let morse code die

[kg6kzp]

http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif when i think of what thay want to do with CW it just makes me mad first thay make CW 5 W.M now i hear thay want to not have the code at all we need to stand up and tell the FCC and wright our goerment we need to have standerds the peple that gave thier lives and time for ham radio thay was it in vain we should go back to do at least 10 words a min for the general class 15 we willl need the code it is fun if i can do it any one can. so help keep the code if not get a cb radio

[KB1GYQ]

I will take your fine post as an example of the benefits of morse code use upon ones diction; and thus declare that it should be banned before its use totally destroys the proper use of language.

[KC2JCA]

I would also like to take a moment to interject the words "freebanders" and "qrp".

Thank you for your time.

Keep the flames alive!

73, Jim - kc2jca

[w3sy]

wal ah like morris code an ah kin spel an wright a compleat senntense so it dadburned aint true wut thay say abowt morris code messing up youre grammer an youre speling an another thing mah puntufication is very good two do dont tell me dat mag standerds aint no good.

and wut not.

[KD5KUF]

Amen my modern ham brothers! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[n7wsb]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (w3sy @ Aug. 15 2002,09:12)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">wal ah like morris code an ah kin spel an wright a compleat senntense so it dadburned aint true wut thay say abowt morris code messing up youre grammer an youre speling an another thing mah puntufication is very good two do dont tell me dat mag standerds aint no good.

and wut not.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
O come now - he sounds like most CW qso's I've heard.

I means what's a ur?

[KB1GYQ]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (n7wsb @ Aug. 15 2002,14:55)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (w3sy @ Aug. 15 2002,09:12)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">wal ah like morris code an ah kin spel an wright a compleat senntense so it dadburned aint true wut thay say abowt morris code messing up youre grammer an youre speling an another thing mah puntufication is very good two do dont tell me dat mag standerds aint no good.

and wut not.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
O come now - he sounds like most CW qso's I've heard.

I means what's a ur?[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
And to think, the Morse Code proponents say that removing code is &quot;dumbing down&quot; the service... well I say it is high time to start &quot;HAM's for the preservation of language&quot;! Their first goal should be the removal of what is the biggest threat to language within the Amateur Radio Community, Morse Code; its use promotes incorrect spelling, nonstandard abbreviations, and atrocious grammar; it must be eliminated in order to preserve and respect the thousands of years of effort that has gone into our glorious spoken and written languages.

[EI1457]

Come on guys, cw has its problems but some of the ssb qso's are as bad. I think that cw should be optional, yes - get rid of it from exams but have it as an optional extra for those of us who are fond of it. I am only a low life swl but I am doing my level best to get the required 12 wpm to pass the test here in Ireland. I can't wait to get my ticket and I believe I will spend more time using cw than ssb or any other modes.

Something does need to be done about cw but getting rid of it as a way of communicating is not an option

[n7wsb]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (EI1457 @ Aug. 15 2002,14:26)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Come on guys, cw has its problems but some of the ssb qso's are as bad.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
I know - I was just giving him a hard time http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif.

I was listening to a repeater here in portland. There's a guy you can catch on there most any time of day and he always says &quot;oh roger&quot; before saying anything.

[n0xu]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (n7wsb @ Aug. 14 2002,16:45)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">There's a guy you can catch on there most any time of day and he always says &quot;oh roger&quot; before saying anything.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
At least he doesn't say &quot;QSL, QSL, yeah, I know what you mean, QSL&quot; every time he keys up his rig.

[W1RFI]

&gt; Something does need to be done about cw but getting
&gt; rid of it as a way of communicating is not an option

It sure wouldn't be an option for me -- I am 99% CW in my operation on the ham bands. :-)

When discussing &quot;eliminate CW,&quot; keep in mind that what is really on the plate is the elimination of CW testing, at least in its present form. Although there are a few embittered people who would seek to outlaw CW use (probably out of spite), I would bet a week's pay that the FCC would never go along with that one.

I agree with the premise that if there is no CW test, fewer hams will learn and use CW. Some see it as a mountain to climb and wouldn't learn it and later find out how much fun it is without a test. (Of course, some old timers are telling us that it is a mountain to climb and that it should be retained as a requirement because &quot;effort&quot; is needed to make a ham license valuable.)

But everything that is good and valuable about CW operation with a test will still be good and valuable about CW operation without a test. It is the simplest weak-signal mode I can think of. It can be operated effectively at QRP levels, or with 100 watts and a poor antenna. The easiest rigs to homebrew are CW rigs. With all this going for it, how can we think it will die without a test?

Let's face it, fellow CW ops, the test may not be around forever. Let's be careful that our discussions about CW include some enthusiasm and encouragement. Right now, we have more CW tested hams than at any time in ham radio history. Let's help turn them into CW ops by encouragement and elmering.

Now, one of these days, I will have to post my opinion on how the CW test issue should be handled, but if I don't show up on work on time, my boss will not be pleased with me. :-)

73,
Ed Hare, W1RFI

[WA6CAW]

CW is the equivalent of the Latin language. Is it used today? Yes but not for general communications. Should it be outlawed? #No, but it should not be a requirement for any thing. Can people use if they want, to communicate? Sure, practice it, use it, write it, use computer programs to store, covert and transpose back and forth to the English language.

Does this sound familiar? Morse code can be easily compared to the same language. #

As for getting through with a weak signal, I don’t remember any theory that differentiates the propagation of a CW signal vs. a ssb, RTTY, packet, or any other digital signal, like CDMA, TDMA, OFDM. On the contrary, narrowband digital signals have been proven to be detected in the worst noise and propagation environments.

CW is the first language that a cave man used after exiting his cave. It should be stored with the history of him and the first radio communications used by Homo sapiens.

Face it; CW is used as a hurdle to slow the entrance of mass quantities of people applying for amateur radio licenses. I think there are more up-to-date methods that can be used to control the amount of the ham population.

That can start another debate, but I’ll say that my opinion, which is just that, is to use technical knowledge as the limiting factor. We need more knowledge based hams, with the ability to advance the state of the art; not cw experts with the ability to hold back technical advancements.

Morse code communications is old (I am too) outdated, and not of any relative use for modern day communications. Morse code is a nice past time for those that have learned it and can use it in a unique way to communicate. Playing the piano is a nice way to communicate and can usually be done by those that have practiced it, and can do it professionally. Nothing wrong with cw and piano players, more power to them.

But don’t make it a requirement for everyone………..

I'll add this edit: The point I was trying to make, among the rambling metaphors, was this;
1.) We do need a limiting factor for acquiring an amateur radio license. CW(Morse code) has been that factor, and has, in my view, served that purpose. This is what I call &quot;skill based &quot; limiting, and Morse code was a needed back-up communications method in the past. But technology has surpassed that back-up need, so a new limiting factor is needed.

2.) Why not have a &quot;knowledge based&quot; limiting factor? I don't want to open the amateur radio hobby to any person not interested in advancing and promoting it's use. I think everyone knows who I'm trying to de-limit!

With that, I'll end my edit, and take up the newer thoughts on the subject on a new post to the thread.

[K9STH]

For CAW:

Actually, Romansch, which is a dialect of Latin, is still spoken in some areas of Switzerland (about 3 percent of the population of Switzerland speak it as their primary language). Therefore, Latin is not a completely &quot;dead&quot; language. However, I do admit that its use is not widespread.

Gallia est divisos in tres partes!

Glen, K9STH

[kd7set]

I thought i was the only one to notice the &quot;oh roger&quot; guy here in PDX. Its kind of funny.... http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[KB9BVN]

We use latin about every day. Especially on Sunday when we go to Mass. Latin Mass. It's easier to speak english, like it's easier to speak SSB. CW and latin both take some extra effort to do well. That's about the ONLY similarity I see.

I'm sure the CW test will go away in the next 5 years or so. But CW will be used on the airwaves forever.

73 de KB9BVN

dominus vobiscum

[kf4lne]

I saw the word &quot;freebanders&quot; so im going to go off on freebanders for 3 pages http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif seriously now, CW is cool. i used CW as a child, my GI-Joe 49MHz walkie talkie had it stamped on teh front. some of the kids in my neighborhood realized that we could use the &quot;battery eliminator&quot; to run the radios and me being me i wired a key that came with a kids electronics kit into the radio. i think we were working about 2 wpm by then, but eventually we all grew out of playing &quot;war&quot; in the woods (my team used morse to communicate) and then quit playing with the radios and I eventually discovered 11m (while it was still resonably clean) and went on to amateur radio. I wish i had played more with morse, but thats been 10 years ago and i can only copy a few letters now. Now I just tap out code on a CPO plugged into my HT and send it few miles to a friend who taps out a reply. i guess you could call it fun to spend a hour a night involved in 10 minute conversation in an effort to learn code. I really wish I had learned it when I was younger. It was nice then to know a language someone else didnt and be able to communicate with that language and its nice now too.

[K9STH]

Actually, most all of us speak some Latin every day. Although English is not considered a Romance Language, at least 50 percent is from a Latin source.

Glen, K9STH

[WB2WIK]

...ad nauseum!

The only Latin I regularly use is Domino, as in the pizza delivery place.

But I use CW every day (almost), and if the requirement's dropped, I'll mourn. But I'll keep on using it!

WB2WIK/6

[KB1GYQ]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (WB2WIK @ Aug. 16 2002,18:43)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The only Latin I regularly use is Domino, as in the pizza delivery place.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Perhaps it's time for a new language, opps, perhaps I mean pizza place... IMNSHO Domino's is the cardboard that a good shop puts under their pizzas.

[wb0wao]

CW will NEVER die! We hams will be operating CW when the 200th anniversary of Marconi's Trans-Atlantic contact was made comes around. Sure, in a couple of years there will no longer be a &quot;requirement&quot; for Morse proficiency. Those of us who love it, will keep on using it, new ops will discover the thrill of it and become the next group of Morse ops.

The threat is the loss of protected segments of the band for narrow band, non voice signals. This is where the challenge will be at - having an area of the band where one can (if they so choose) operate CW without dealing with wide band signals, i.e. AM, SSB, SSTV, etc.

Face it, the requirement will end and it will end soon. My suggestion is to channel all of that &quot;activism&quot; from trying to prevent the inevitable and channel it into preserving protected segments on all the band - both current and future.

73

[KB1GYQ]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (wb0wao @ Aug. 17 2002,04:39)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">CW will NEVER die! #We hams will be operating CW when the 200th anniversary of Marconi's Trans-Atlantic contact was made comes around[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Yup! And like spark gap was banned and was used by special permission during the last anniversary, so shall Morse Code be used in the 200th... by special permission because it's general use had been banned. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

The question is not if we want CW around, tested on, and used, but do we want all these numb-nuts around in #the amateur community. I still believe we are encouraging a lazy, dumb down mentality into our ranks, which represents about 1% of 1% of our total population (of the United States). Now, why do that?? It's only those degrads that moan about CW, because CW is initially &quot;WORK&quot;. Oh my !! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

[KB1GYQ]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (ny7q @ Aug. 19 2002,11:11)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The question is not if we want CW around, tested on, and used, but do we want all these numb-nuts around in #the amateur community. I still believe we are encouraging a lazy, dumb down mentality into our ranks, which represents about 1% of 1% of our total population (of the United States). Now, why do that?? It's only those degrads that moan about CW, because CW is initially &quot;WORK&quot;. Oh my !! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Oh my! I looked up the astronauts participating in &quot;Amateur Radio in Space&quot;, and the majority of them are &quot;only&quot; techs. #( http://www.nerc.com/~gjurrens/astrohams.html ) I guess they are all &quot;lazy&quot; and &quot;dumbed down&quot;; unwilling to &quot;work&quot;!

http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

GYQ, READ MY NOTES AGAIN. 1% OF 1% !!!! YOU INCLUDED THE SHUTTLE FOLKS, NOT ME!! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif

GYQ, READ MY NOTES AGAIN. 1% OF 1% !!!! YOU INCLUDED THE SHUTTLE FOLKS, NOT ME!! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif and, the hearing disability precludes you, so what's the problem?? Guilty complex or what??

[KB1GYQ]

So... what you are saying is that 99.99% of those people who do not use M.C., and do not want M.C. are of that opinion because they have better, more important uses for their time? I can agree to that. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Why do the M.C. fanatics vilify the majority for the sake of an extreme minority? http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/confused.gif

[n7wsb]

Trust me - morse code isn't that hard to learn - it does take dedication and commitment though. I've noticed that most of the people on here (qrz.com in general) that are anti-morse code are also no-code techs.

Few weeks ago I was in the same license class - nothing wrong with it - there's a lot you can do with a no-code technician license (everything from 6 meters to satellites to tropospheric ducting). Whenever I meet someone that asks me about amateur radio its what I encourage them to do. Its a good gateway drug http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif.

But I have a documented learning disability - I have a hard time expressing whats in my head on paper - its like thinking one thing and for some reason not being able to write it down without a lot of thought. Sure it took me three months of practice to sweat it out and pass element 1, but I did it. And if I can do it ANYONE can. And frankly the journey between the code, and the theory (extra and general) has made me better more compitent ham. I still practice so that when I get my own telegraph key I'll be better equiped to handle traffic.

CW is the most basic of all the digital modes - its one of the few digital languages your brain can use. Its also the most fundamental of all the modes - it requires a whole lot less electronics and power to actually get a readable signal into the airwaves. I don't think its so rare for someone to use it - I can tune across any of the sub bands most any time of the week and hear lots of qso's going on in morse code.

[kg6kzp]

http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif I would like to thank every one for saying what was on thier mind we as new and old hams need to ban togther .
be cause if we do not use cw bands our outher bands we will lose them the old saying says if you do not use it you lose it
so let us work toghther to keep the bands thank you

[VE6DDT]

I just wanted to add my $0.02 worth Cdn ($.06493506 U.S.)