ARRL Contest and DXCC Rules Now Prohibit Automated Contacts

Must be a New York thing. That's not what I hear around here, or even in the DC area when I lived there.

 

SURE HOPE QRZ FOLLOWS THE ARRL'S LEAD. I SEE HOME PAGES HERE STATING PROUDLY "I'M A NEW HAM SINCE LATE 2018 AND WORK MOSTLY FT8" ETC. THEN YOU SEE THEY HAVE EVERY AWARD QRZ OFFERS - IN > 6 MONTHS. WHAT A JOKE. WHILE THEY'RE AT MAKE IT RETROACTIVE AND HANG A ROBO-AWARD DESIGNATOR WHERE APPLICABLE.

 

WRAP YOUR BRAIN AROUND THIS.

ALL THESE PEOPLE ARE GETTING EVERY AWARD ON THE PLANET IN > 6 MONTHS...DURING A SOLAR MINIMUM. WHAT'S GOING TO BE THE CASE DURING A PEAK? EVERY AWARD ON THE PLANET IN A MATTER OF DAYS, HOURS?

TIME TO BE HONEST ROBO-HAMS, SINCE TECHNOLOGY WILL ALWAYS HAVE A PLACE IN HAM RADIO, YOU NEED AN AWARD STRUCTURE OF YOUR OWN.

 

There's something to be said for DXCC, WAS, etc. in particular modes. A WAS, DXCC in FT? is child's play. Doing so in RTTY, still ostensibly "digital" modes is quite another. SSB? Could be tough, even with brazed beer cans. CW? Fun, but it took a while and someone else in your building yelled "Turn that damn thing down" many time unless you wore headphones.

I don't mind the awards if the mode is listed. More modes means more stickers on it. More bands, more stickers. All the stickers? You certainly earned it, and we genuflect when we hear your call. Me? I'm in it for the tech. Although I'm only one digit away from W19Y, and while I like fractal antennas, I'm miles away from his accomplishments.

Don't spank the youngsters. Jim Taylor is a genius, and he's making digital fun for people. It's about fun and communications.

73 Tom W9YW

 

ARLL automaty contest wold good but the saing the time vy73 DJOAJ ekrem

 

OM EKRAM,
Ich freue mich, wieder von Ihnen zu hören, und ich freue mich, Ihre Meinung zu diesem Thema zu hören.
Möglicherweise verwenden wir GOOGLE TRANSLATE, um besser zu verstehen, was Sie sagen. 73.

https://translate.google.com/?hl=en&tab=TT

 

The rules now require that each claimed contact include contemporaneous direct initiation by the operator on both sides of the contact. Initiation of a contact may be either local or remote.

Listen to yourselves this whole statement borders on being ridiculous.. how else are we to make a contact with anyone...if we don't initiate it or the ham on the other end initiates it ? I turned my computer on the other day and opened my FT8 program and my JTAlert and had my log book opened and I turned on my rig and turned on my Signal Link tuned the rig to proper freq.... and waited and waited.... guess what happened yup NUTTIN and no one even knew i was there listening.. no reports on pk reporter. and nuttin went in my log........ WHY ??? Because i never initiated a call ...
Just like calling CQ with CW or RTTY or Slow Scan or Whisper or Jasper or Casper SUMBUDDY has to initiate it and guess what SUMBUDDY had to reply to me to make a contact...complete !!
WHY do you get all excited about a piece of paper..called DXCC Yes I want that award and i would like to have it also on FT8 etc..(I am near 300 already)
IMO I think the vote should go to the general Membership not THE HIGHERGERASTICUS TO MAKE THAT DECISION. if the ARRL wants to have a contest on FT* or whatever then it should have a category that states "ALL CALLS WERE AUTO: Just like field day rules..
One of the main rules for Amateur Radio is that we do not do it for PECUNIARY INTERESTS................ it was on the test...... So if we have folks who write a program to become automated on FT8 etc then we have defeated the purpose of new and exciting ways to have DXCC
So now next step is if your on the moon and make a contact to earth ie My station what country will that count for...or if i get a call from the space station Maybe we need to add them to the list of countries and Planets we have worked ......ahem I think Mars will be next on my most wanted DXCC list
so my MESSAGE IS .. please revisit this and allow FT8 etc contacts to count toward DXCC as that may be the ONLY way some will make a contact to a DCXX most wanted.. an maybe THE FCC should designate an area for fully automated FT contacts................
And if ARRL WILL NOT do it.. then Perhaps our members should migrate to EQSL FOR THE STANDARD IN DXCC Where once a country in on a list of Countries it Should STAY THERE Whether or not it is active or inactive.. I may have already worked it.........and want to see it on my log book and not because some programmer took it out on my logbook program SO I AM ABLE TO KEEP TRACK OF MY DXCC

On another SAD NOTE.. I found out yesterday that the CIVIL WAR RE-INACTORS WILL NOT HAVE A SPONSOR FOR THIS YEAR IN GETTYSBURG.. VERY SAD So it looks like maybe no 157th Anniversary and that may affect my running W1G this coming July If you have not sent off for this years certificate its on my web page W1G and WO4L QRZ 73 all

 

You sure it wasn't Opie Taylor ?

 

Gee Paw, what can we do with an amateur radio station any more?

 

If you speed up the Andy Griffith Show theme song, it kinda sounds like FT8

 

And if you play it backwards there’s a voice that says “Paul is dead”

Ok maybe not. For you young whippersnappers that don’t know what that is about, it’s a ‘60s thing. Don’t worry about it.

 

ANOTHER COUNTY HEARD FROM. IT'S NOT JUST "A PIECE OF PAPER", IT'S AN AWARD FROM A LONG RESPECTED AMATEUR RADIO ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION.

ONE COMMON THEME FROM THE ROBO-AMATEURS IS TO REDUCE THE IMPORTANCE AND THEM COMPOSE AN OFTEN LONG AND WELL THOUGHT OUT POST. ALOT OF EFFORT AND PASSION FROM FOLKS WHO CLAIM IT'S ONLY A PIECE OF PAPER TO THEM. SEEMS LIKE IT IS MORE THAN THAT? CAN'T BE BOTH.

(I HAVE INCLUDED A PHOTO OF A PIECE OF PAPER FOR REFERENCE)

 

Myself, I actually prefer a little conversation. But I will work a contest a little or try threw a pile up.. So I hear qrz and the call. Then I throw out my call and hope? Unless probagation is in my favor others ace me out. But often I am successful?? Maybe I just haven't learned how to use ''automation'? ----Digital mode is silent ( doesn't disturb xyl ) no amp kicked in. Instead of hearing the call I see the call? I throw my call by tagging the call and hope to hell still? Unless probagation is in my favor I don't get it? So instead of hearing ''ur 59 and qrz'' I see RRR73 and out also? But sometimes I get it? So where the hell is the ''automation'?. It feels exactly the same to me.....? How do I get that ''Automation'' to work?.