HOW NEEDED IS A COMPUTER

[W5HTW]

Self explanatory.

[n2nh]

I can't wait to see how many click on answer #1...
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

WOOOOH!!! 1st reply and the poll shows:
100%-Absolutely.I have a computer but do not use it for ham radio.
But if you try to talk to me on the radio while I am playing a game on it...well I get distracted easily.
the guys I rag chew with every night usually can tell when I am on it.
I really don't even need it on the same desk as the radios.In fact I think I will move it tonight when I get off work(if you want to call it that. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[K6BBC]

I sold my ham gear to buy software.

darn.wasn't fast enough.
ok # 2-but the poll remains the same:0

Quote[/b] (k6bbc @ Sep. 01 2005,18:14)]I sold my ham gear to buy software.
why?


never mind. i saw which vote was yers.
good luck with that.


# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[W0LPQ]

My TR-4C and computers do not equate.! Computer is not connected to the others either...funny, we ... years ago ... had no idea what a computer was and the old radios worked just fine. A lot less QRM in those days also, before Part 15 came along to "help" us.

Good poll Ed...!

73

Bill, W0LPQ

[ai4ep]

Shucks I messed with CB and early years of amateur radio ( began as a NCT in 1991 ) without a computer in the house. Computer did not come along till around 1998 or so. Radio area and computer area are at seperate ends of home...no radio sounds can be heard in computer room and likewise in reverse.

Computer ( by me ) is used mostly for
qrz
nws radar sites
e mail
home made letters
a few other radio oriented web sites ( cb & amateur )
water depth at rain guage on Sipsey River in Bankhead national Forest
amateur radio CLUB web site
skywarn web site

and that is about it for me

others in home use computer for their things they need to do ( no list provided )

But on a normal day I get on-line and check e-mail, then come here (qrz ), or check radar if rain is in forecast...then go back OFF-line and shut system down till I come back later that day or next day....never leave computer on unattended ( no one else does that here either ).

I know this bores the living heck out of most of you, but it is being furnished for the 2 folks that really DO need to know...your patience in this matter is appreciated.

Thanks for everything

ai4ep http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[kf4lne]

you know. if you dont use a computer for ham radio you are probably having more fun http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[W5HTW]

Wow, my first attempt at a poll! It actually darn worked!

Reason I put number one in there is I happen to know a ham who doesn't own a computer, but borrows a laptop from his daughter pretty often. I don't think, though, he uses the thing for ham radio. Probably just plays games. I'm going to have to ask him one of these days.

Thanks for the replies

[n8yx]

I have several operating positions which do not make use of computers...

...and I have several which DO.

I find myself spending the majority of my time operating the stuff which doesn't require a PC for "support". This includes RTTY and packet; dedicated controllers, modems, dumb terminals and so forth enable me to use these modes without all the RF noise that a P4-class PC generates.

[K9STH]

I finally moved a computer to my main shack for the last CQ World Wide DX contest to use for logging. Keeping the "dupe sheet" has just gotten too involved. Other than that, I really don't use it. None of my radios have the ability to be computer controlled and I don't use the computer for any data mode (I still send CW using a Vibroplex Vibro-Keyer attached to a cheap mjf keyer and use the old cebreal filter to decode it).

I did change from a 13 inch monitor to a 17 inch monitor out in the main shack when I acquired a 19 inch monitor for the main computer. Had to rearrange several radios because the new monitor would not "fit" where I had the old one.

Glen, K9STH

[kj5t]

My option is not there. "Yes. But I choose to use a computer". I am a computer nerd, and all of my logging is on the computer, I telnet to the DX clusters. I use IRC and the internet to share ideas with other hams, usually while talking or listening to the radio. Now Of course if I was in the field with a radio, and no computer it would work just fine.

[nz3m]

As a VHFer, I have found all of the WSJT modes quite fun when nothings happening.

Dave

[K8YS]

are you kidding?

My favorite mode of communication is PSK31. While I can copy code (morse that is) in my head, PSK31 is still not exactly a manual detection mode.

My computer in the "shack" has two sound cards and two monitors, the other computer does logging and lets me look at the internet. Of course, these are part of the domain.

Even my portable station computer is set up for logging, PSK31 and equiped with 802.11G wifi.

I think it was 1980/81 or so, the FT-ONE had "CAT", and I asked myself WHY would anyone want to connect a computer to a radio... now, any new radio for me MUST have the ability to connect to a computer.

[w8znx]

computer
don't need any stinking computer

but
PSK 31 seems like fun
bought a Small Wonder psk 31 xceiver kit
but yet to hook it up to an computer

maybe this winter will fire it up

yours truly
Mac

[WA2ZDY]

In the late 80s I replaced my TTY Model 28KSR with a computer. #Subsequently I ran various modes that used the PC as well. #The PC and ham radio can interface well and that's a good thing. #But no, it's not necessary. #

I've made plenty of contacts while mobile and trust me, the only computers in that Ranger were the ignition timing computer and the one between my ears. #And the one between my ears was the best for the mode in use - CW.

[K6UEY]

I operated my shack on HF,VHF, UHF for over 30 years before I even learned to spell "Computer" and never missed what I never knew.
I now have a computer dedicated to the Ham Shack,however I seldom remember to turn it on.

Not all changes are necessarily good or required !! Some are just to give the impression of being PC. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[W3MIV]

Hate to simply be a sheep or lemming, but I fall in with the majority: real radios do not need computers.

But they sure as hell can benefit from computers.

Some of the new soundcard modes have saved many a bored ham from RF-deprivation. Logging with the computer is faster and surer, particularly for those who are inveterate contesters.

Overall, the computer is a definite plus to any ham shack, whether the main rig is a new IC-7800 or a hollow-state doghouse from the Harry-Truman era.

The thing that makes the difference is, as with all other aspects of life, knowing when to and when not to.

http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[w5alt]

I use computers with my radios sometimes and I use radios with my computers sometimes. And sometimes I use my radios without computers and sometimes my computers without radios. Then there is my software defined radio - I'm not sure whether the computer is the radio or whether the radio is the computer.

To me they are two very interesting and different, but complimentary forms of technology.

[K0RGR]

I've always been almost as fascinated with digital modes as I am with plain old radio. The magic of touching a telegraph key and knowing somebody can hear it in Australia is only matched by the thrill of touching a letter on a keyboard and knowing somebody can see it appear on a display in Australia. It was even more fun back when touching that key made a teleprinter print that character on paper in Australia, but those days have been gone for a long time.

With the digital modes, I do not QRM the TVs and stereos in my house, because they don't mind the nice, constant key-down RF signal. I don't wake up my kids who are sleeping in the room next to the radio shack, because I can turn off the receive audio completely and just watch the displays.

The next best thing is CW with headphones on, which I do fairly often. And, I do that without a computer when I'm travelling. Otherwise, I use one for logging.

[KA4DPO]

For many years I got by just fine without a computer, cell phone, microwave oven, and a host of other high tech goodies.

I could certainly get along in amateur radio without a computer but I'm not sure I would want to.

[w8cbc]

I might hook one up to see what all these newfangled digital modes are all about. Am not too motivated as yet though. The gear will have to come out of the bedroom first. I'm sticking to my plan - no computers in there.

[KD6NIG]

My computer is integral to the station-Can't packet without at least a dummy terminal of some sort, and although not really a computer, its computerish, so I have to take that option.

[AG3Y]

The digital sound-card modes are what revived my interest in ham radio. Years ago, I built my own "Terminal Units" to copy RTTY, and eventually worked up to a complete model 28ASR, which I still have occupying several square feet of floor space in an upstairs bedroom !

A Commodore VIC 20 with the appropriate software eventually gave me a whole 40 column screen ( imagine, 40 columns ! ) but was never a satisfactory replacement for the 28ASR. An IBM XT clone soon became my "glass terminal".

After seeing RTTY become almost exclusively a "contest mode", and Packet radio took over the airwaves, I stepped back from the hobby for a while. But when the soundcard, keyboard-to-keyboard modes caught on, I joined the frenzy. And I haven't looked back since. Last night I sent my first SSTV pictures. I'm still learning and having a blast!

73, Jim

[W5MJL]

I use it for logging purposes only. I have no interest in modes that make me feel like I am on the internet.

[AG3Y]

MJL, "keyboard to keyboard" is far different than the internet! Like code is a different language and becoming proficient at it requires time and dedication, keyboarding is also a learned skill, and becoming good at it is hardly equivalent to the Internet! You still have to improve your station so you can work that other person with accuracy and under many varying conditions. You have to learn which mode works the best for you at any given time, and it certainly doesn't hurt if you are adept at the "art of conversation" !

No, ham radio will NEVER be the internet, and computers are just a tool ( like a morse code key ) to be used to further our ability to communicate with one another !

73, Jim

[W5HTW]

I guess I should mention my own status. I have several computers. I am not, though, a computer hobbyist, though I was a computer consultant for a while. The result is I kept winding up with computers other people didn't want. A few of them are still here.

My primary computer is an internet machine that is also used for photoediting, business/technical writing (I do some of that freelance) and the standard response - "research." Which for me amounts mostly to medical or ham radio stuff.

My secondary computer (both of these are in the home office which doubles as the radio room) is primarily used for a weather station. It compiles weather data from my weather station and puts it in a logged form so I can check back on highs, lows, humidity, winds, etc, for any given time in a month.

That computer, though, also has sound card stuff on it - MMTTY, MMSSTV, MixW. And I do have a sound card interface. I've even used it to copy RTTY, and a few PSK31 stations, but have made only one contact using it. That was on PSK31, and it made me think too much of Instant Messaging, so I have not been motivated to try it again. I think I'd enjoy RTTY ragchewing (Used to do that with the old metal monsters) but the very short types of RTTY contacts I hear don't interest me. So for months, all this computer has done is log weather data.

Therefore in my own case I would have to say I would do very well with no computer, since that is indeed how I operate. It's kinda nice to have the computer handy so I can look up folks on QRZ, though!

Ed

[WA9SVD]

It seems to me...
Amateur Radio got along JUST FINE without computers until about the mid 80's. Or maybe that wasn't REAL Ham Radio because they didn't use computers in the old days??? ... SMIRK...

Are they necessary? Absoultely not. Can they make operating more enjoyable? In some ways. But they make packet better than a TTY machine clacking away; they allow us to check calls and addresses without having to buy or look through a big, (and wasteful) paper callbook, and the monitors can make a nice night light. But not an absolute requirement.

[W5MJL]

Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ Sep. 02 2005,11:15)]MJL, "keyboard to keyboard" is far different than the internet! #
Well now I am confused. Keyboard to Keyboard is not like an instant message on the internet?

[KA4DPO]

Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ Sep. 02 2005,09:15)]MJL, "keyboard to keyboard" is far different than the internet! #Like code is a different language and becoming proficient at it requires time and dedication, keyboarding is also a learned skill, and becoming good at it is hardly equivalent to the Internet! # You still have to improve your station so you can work that other person with accuracy and under many varying conditions. #You have to learn which mode works the best for you at any given time, and it certainly doesn't hurt if you are adept at the "art of conversation" ! #

No, ham radio will NEVER be the internet, and computers are just a tool ( like a morse code key ) to be used to further our ability to communicate with one another !

73, Jim
I like your analogy of the computer being another tool to communicate. Lets face it, computers have not only changed the way we live and work, but have become a part of our lives as well.

When I was a freshman in college the HP-35 calculator had just come on the market. The price was far beyond my reach, 500 bucks was a lot of money in 1969. We had to use slide rules instead. I didn't realize it at the time but using that old slipstick gave me far more insight into the rationale of the problems I was solving than using a calculator.

Since digital communications is the wave of the future I would encourage new hams to learn the processess that define DSP, SS, and basic A to D algorythms.

My encouragement is to be an experimenter with technology, not just a user.

[WB2WIK]

I use computer automation for contesting, but for casual operating/rag chewing/DXing I leave all computers in the shack turned "off."

DX cluster "spotting" makes DXing too much like "shooting fish in a barrel" for my taste, and removes a lot of the thrill of the hunt. I have no need to look anybody up as I contact them, and would rather hear what they have to say or send. I keep a spiral-bound logbook, same as 40 years ago. I have no need to look up somebody to see if I've worked them before because it simply doesn't matter. Besides, "remembering" if I've worked somebody before, and what the last conversation was about, is really good brain exercise. It keeps one young.

In a contest, all that philosophy goes out the window and my rig is computer-controlled, and largely computer operated. Can't compete without it.

WB2WIK/6

[WA9SVD]

Quote[/b] (w5mjl @ Sep. 02 2005,10:13)]Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ Sep. 02 2005,11:15)]MJL, "keyboard to keyboard" is far different than the internet!
Well now I am confused. Keyboard to Keyboard is not like an instant message on the internet?
NO, "keyboard-to-keyboard" is like instant messaging WITHOUT the Internet. THAT'S the difference. It is by radio, just as RTTY used to be in the old days, except now you don't have a "gawdawful" machine clacking away at 95+ dB in your shack! And you don't waste as much paper and you don't need a paper tape puncher or paper tape reader. See? It's just like RTTY... (only better.)
Now, if RTTY wasn't (or isn't) your cup of tea, then packet, PSK31 or most of the other digital modes may not appeal to you, either. But that's your preference, and there is (or at least should be) room for all users in Amateur Radio.
To paraphrase Mr. Spock: "Operate long and prosper!" By what ever mode (or modes) you prefer.

[AG3Y]

Thanks guys, for jumping in there with your comments! I couldn't have said it better myself !

73, Jim

[W5MJL]

Quote[/b] (wa9svd @ Sep. 02 2005,12:56)]Quote[/b] (w5mjl @ Sep. 02 2005,10:13)]Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ Sep. 02 2005,11:15)]MJL, "keyboard to keyboard" is far different than the internet! #
Well now I am confused. #Keyboard to Keyboard is not like an instant message on the internet?
NO, "keyboard-to-keyboard" is like instant messaging WITHOUT the Internet. #THAT'S the difference. #It is by radio, just as RTTY used to be in the old days, except now you don't have a "gawdawful" machine clacking away at 95+ dB in your shack! #And you don't waste as much paper and you don't need a paper tape puncher or paper tape reader. #See? #It's just like RTTY... #(only better.)
# #Now, if RTTY wasn't (or isn't) your cup of tea, then packet, PSK31 or most of the other digital modes may not appeal to you, either. #But that's your preference, and there is (or at least should be) room for all users in Amateur Radio. #
# #To paraphrase Mr. Spock: "Operate long and prosper!" #By what ever mode (or modes) you prefer.
For me, radio to radio instant messaging would still remind me of the internet instant messaging. When I got divorced 5 years ago, I spent so much time with instant messaging that I am plumb wore out on it. CW and phone will probably be the only thing I ever use in amateur radio.

[WA9SVD]

Quote[/b] (w5mjl @ Sep. 02 2005,11:05)]For me, radio to radio instant messaging would still remind me of the internet instant messaging. When I got divorced 5 years ago, I spent so much time with instant messaging that I am plumb wore out on it. CW and phone will probably be the only thing I ever use in amateur radio.
Well, there's still SSTV and ATV to play with! Not really keybored to keyboard, by any means! (And SSTV is hardly "instant" messaging!)
We all have our likes, dislikes, desires, and dream modes of operation. But that's what makes Amateur Radio enjoyable, a challenge, and keeps it alive and kicking! We are all able to use the mode or modes we wish, without anyone forcing us one way or another. And I foresee many new modes coming along in the future. Somehow, I think we will all survive, from the lowly straight key (meaning ONLY it's the simplest, but most reliable interface, no offense meant against CW!!!) through the mic to the keyboard modes to the video of ATV. We CAN do it all! And no other radio service (at least in the U.S.) can make THAT claim