In article .net, "KØHB"
writes:

"N2EY" wrote

Hans' proposal is nothing like what's in the KL7CC paper. But Hans'
proposal has at least one major problem: forced upgrading.

Is forced upgrading a "major problem"?

It was for the old Novice.

The Novice license is widely
acknowledged to have been the best licensing idea the FCC ever had.

Wasn't FCC's idea, but that's beside the point.

If it was such a great idea, why was it closed to new license issues in 2000?

It
admitted people to the hobby with a sort of "learner permit" in which they
could learn some skills and meet other experienced hams "on the air". It
expired after one year and was not renewable.

Only from 1951 to 1967. And not only was it nonrenewable, it was
"nonretakeable" - one Novice license to a customer, and if you'd ever had any
class of ham license before, you couldn't have a Novice.

In 1967, the Novice went to 2 years, nonrenewable, still "nonretakeable". The
reason given back then was "too many dropouts"

In the early-to-mid 1970s, the Novice went through a period of quick changes.
First, the FCC allowed folks who had been unlicensed for at least a year to get
a Novice, regardless of prior licensure. This meant a ham could be a Novice
forever - two years on, one year off, new callsign and license each time. Again
the reason given was "too many dropouts".

Then the one-year-unlicensed requirement was dropped. And the reason given
was...

Finally the Novice was made 5 years renewable, like all the other license
classes of the time. That was more than a quarter century ago.

If it had any fault, it was
that it tended to isolate newcomers into little "ghettos" mostly frequented
by other newcomers.

The reasons for the limited privileges we

- to simplify the "ideal" Novice station. 75 watts, xtal control, 3 HF bands CW
only meant that almost anybody could have a half-decent station that wasn't
much worse than anybody else's. High point was reached with Heathkit's $100
HW-16 "shack in a box" that needed only a key, speaker, xtals and antenna.

- to encourage homebrewing/tinkering (what a concept). Lot of newbies built
their own rigs, either from scratch (ahem) or simple kits.

- to minimize the chances of Novices straying outside the ham bands. Thus the
xtals. This was not well-thought-out by FCC, because while the xtal requirement
kept Novices inside the bands on the fundamentals, the harmonics fell outside
the bands. Also required a different xtal for each band.

- to keep the level of activity high. Novices could count on other Novices
being on the air on nearby frequencies almost 24/7.

My "learner permit" is different than the old Novice license in 4 ways:

1) Rather than isolate the newcomers into narrow little band segments
crowded with mostly other newcomers, it gives them expanded privileges
on all bands.

I thought it gave them all privileges on all modes on all bands - just limited
power.

The old Novice license got higher power and VFO control in the '70s, too. More
bands and modes in the '80s. Didn't help much.

2) Rather than expiring in 1 year, it would expire after 10 years, giving
them more time to "gain their wings".

Sure. And that's the problem. See below.

3) Power would be limited to 50 watts (in line with prevailing RF exposure
doctrine.)

Not many non-QRP rigs out there limited to 50 watts out. Would it be acceptable
to simply reduce the power level on a 100 W rig?

What "major problem" lies in that? (Give me **your**version of the problem,
not what you think the FCC version of the problem would be.)

First off, the FCC *is* an issue, because there are some things they simply
won't enact. IMHO, they won't enact a nonrenewable nonretakeable ham license.

Second, you're pretty vague about the test requirements. How much test for each
license? How many questions, and from what pools? If the entry license is kept
simple and easy, then the step to Extra is gonna be a *big* one.

But that's not what you asked.

Let's say your idea catches on and the FCC enacts it pretty much as you
propose. And let's say the learner's permit (LP) license is popular, because it
gives lotsa choices for just a simple written test.

Some folks will upgrade, of course. Some will drop out. The problem will be
with the third group - those who are active hams but who are satisfied with
their "LP" licenses. If the jump from "LP" to Extra is not trivial, and
requires some real learning (just like the old Novice-to-General written jump
did), you're gonna have active hams forced off the air at the end of their 10
year terms because they just won't be able to pass the Extra written. Or they
won't try, or they can't get to a VE session, yada yada yada.

And the cry will arise: "why are active hams with clean records being forced
off the air?" Then you'll see history repeat itself, as the "LP" license
becomes renewable, just like the old Novice, to avoid losing those hams.

Since the only difference between your two proposed classes is the power level,
there will be quite logical arguments that such a system forces hams who don't
want to run high power to "jump through a written test hoop" to gain privilges
they have no intention of using. That's gonna be a tough argument to defeat.

Then there's the whole issue of the conversion of existing ham licenses to the
two new classes. How many will drop out rather than take the test?

Just my opinion. But it's based on historical fact and long-term trends.

73 de Jim, N2EY