Charles Brabham wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...

It seems to me that one of the limitations of amateur packet radio
is
that
it hasn't evolved much past the 1200 baud/BBS mindset of 20+ years
ago.
Heck,
even trailingedge computer types like me have been running 56k
dialup
modems for almost a decade!

Does your 56kb dialup modem work pretty good with your 2-meter rig?
Wow! -
Why didn't we BBS operators think of this YEARS ago!

Ya missed the point, Charles.

1200 baud packet is a make-do, chosen to be quick and cheap. All you
have to do is interface to an FM voice radio.

Getting a significant improvement in bandwidth would mean actually
*building radios* designed for the purpose. Which simply hasn't
happened in large numbers.

Kind of a sad commentary. When SSB became popular in amateur radio,
hams built entire transmitters, receivers and transceivers for the
mode. Once its popularity was established, manufacturers followed.

When VHF/UHF FM voice became popular in amateur radio, there was a mix
of homebrew and converted-land-mobile equipment used by hams. Once its
popularity was established, manufacturers followed.

But from what I can see, the packet folks aren't much interested in
*building radios* from scratch. That's why the old standards are still
in use.

73 de Jim, N2EY