From: Dee Flint on Tues, Aug 29 2006 4:25 pm
Email: "Dee Flint"
Groups: rec.radio.amateur.antenna, rec.radio.amateur.policy,
rec.radio.scanner


"George Orwell" wrote in message
Al Klein said:

Eliminating a requirement is dumbing things down. But no one would
expect you to be able to understand that.

Well, let me ask, from the point of view of a potential noob to the hobby.
What use is the code requirements?
I can't really see in today's era, the need for them? I've been surfing
around looking at ham and talking to
an old friend that had a license and it look interesting to me.

But, given that many professional people like myself are stretched for
time, what good does all the licensing
and code requirements do for you besides build up boundries to doing
something new and fun?

If you will read Part 97 (the rules that govern amateur radio), the
government doesn't care about you doing something new and fun.

Dee, the "rules that govern amateur radio" are the ENTIRETY
of Title 47 C.F.R. I don't care that the ARRL pushes ONLY
Part 97. Part 1 has plenty about amateur radio as well as
a few other Parts. Look it up. It's free at the US Government
Printing Office website.

The section
on basis and purpose makes it quite clear that their objectives are quite
different.

The "objectives" of the FCC are to regulate and mitigate ALL
civil radio in the USA, Dee. That's what the Communications
Act of 1934 and the Telecommunications Act of 1996 chartered
them to do (plus quite a bit on wireline comms...which don't
apply to amateur radio).

The "Basis and Purpose" has a lot of POLITICAL boilerplate
in it, just like most of the other Parts for other radio
SERVICES. Get real.

They want people knowledgeable in ham radio and who are
interested in expanding that knowledge.

The FCC is mainly interested in all radio services' users
FOLLOWING THE REGULATIONS, Dee. That's their job. The
FCC doesn't "want" people a certain way, only to FOLLOW
THE REGULATIONS.


I'm in a pretty technical field, and I study to keep up in that field
everyday, the last thing I want to do,
is have to spend my weekends studying to talk on a radio. If less
stringent requirements were there, I could
easily afford the tools of the trade, and would like to just jump in and
start working with a ham setup. I'm
particularly interested in exploring the amateur radio/computer
connections.

"George," you've got a whole bunch in this forum who think
that amateur radio is some kind of veddy formal "JOB" with
absolutes on THE WAY THEY DO IT. It's almost draconian in
the insistence of "correct proceedure." No one will get
fired from that "job" if they don't use "correct" ways but
the way they blabber on you'd think they were "supervisors."

I have no problem informally looking up information and learning on my own
(heck, that's what I'm doing in
the USENET group to begin with)...but, I just don't have the time for
archaic rules, regulations and codes
that as far as I can see...really serve no real purpose but, to keep out
busy people that might like to
participate.

Until and unless you have actually participated in amateur radio in a wide
variety of aspects, it is difficult to asses which rules, regulations,
knowledge, etc are archaic and which should remain as requirements.

Horsepuckey. Dee, "George" is talking about GETTING INTO
amateur radio. Don't give us this olde-tymer morseperson
"I've operated all the modes there are" stuff. Dee, I've
operated lots more modes on radio than YOU are allowed to
as an amateur.

Manual morse code ability IS an ARCHAIC mode of communications
Dee. ALL the other US radio services have either dropped it
for comms or never bothered with it in the first place. ALL.
The ARRL and the olde-tyme morsepersons insist that the manual
morse test "MUST" remain to "show something" about commitment
and dedication. To WHOM, Dee? To YOU? To da Hams in da hood?

Notice
that the majority of people advocating ditching requirements are those who
have not yet passed those requirements, regardless of their age.

Dee, before you get to the downright-bitchy stage, may I remind
you that some of us professionals in radio and electronics
NEVER BOTHERED WITH AN AMATEUR RADIO TEST? I got my First 'Phone
in 1956. Considerably more testing involved than a ham license
test then. Could YOU get a GROL now? Could YOU get a job
working with radio hardware?

Note that
the majority of people advocating keeping the requirements have passed them
and have experience in amateur radio again regardless of their age.

Yes, nine-year-old Extras possess the maturity and wisdom of
the ages, all through having taken that morse test and gotten
that magic certificate (suitable for framing).

As far as "busy people" go, again refer to the basis and purpose as given in
the rules. The government is not concerned about your choice of how you use
your time. It has no bearing on what their goals are.

Dee, you are LECTURING again. [just how long have you been
in ANY radio?]

Dee, go look at some 1990 documents on the creation of the
no-code-test Technician license. There's a copy available for
free download on the NCI website. Over 16 years ago the FCC
said outright that it didn't think the manual morse code test
suited their purpose in granting an amateur radio license.
The FCC said the same thing in last year's NPRM.

I DO have to remind you that the FCC's only job is to REGULATE
all civil radio in the USA. Their only task is to do that and
mitigate matters of interference with other radio services
(plus wireline but that's not concerning amateurs). Theirs
is not to brainwash hams...that's the ARRL's task.


Can you give me valid reasons as to what useful purpose in today's age
they serve?

[stand by for the LITANY from the Church of St. Hiram]

Every piece of knowledge has its uses. The difficult part is winnowing
through it and decide what should be tested and what should not.

Ahem, to olde-tyme morsepersons, manual morse code skill MUST
be tested for any radio privileges below 30 MHz. That's
engraved in everlasting marble and protected by nuclear-blast
armor plate.

Here's why I think code should still be tested:
1. It is still one of the basic building blocks of ham radio.

Horsepucky. It was only the first mode used...had to be
in the primitive-technology of early radio using "spark."
Spark is outlawed now, Dee.

For example,
one of the "hot" digital modes is PSK31. The developer drew upon personal
experience and incorporated features derived from that mode to make a robust
digital mode.

More sinning-by-omission, Dee. Peter Martinez, G3PLX, innovated
PSK31. Using the available Information Theory rules he knew
about, derived from commercial and military technology. It was
field-tested for years in Europe by many amateurs there before
it got any publicity over here. "Hot" is over a decade OLD,
Dee. In 1974 Peter was doing great things with polyphase
networks for voice SSB...it was written up in RSGB's member-
ship magazine. I doubt the ARRL bothered with publicizing it.

2. Because it is not "book learning", too many people will avoid it since
it is different than the type of learning they are accustomed to. They will
falsely think it is hard when in reality it is different. Requiring them to
learn it gets them over that resistance hump.

So...morsemanship really IS a barrier. You admit it.

3. Each and every mode has its strong points and weak points. Each of us
that participate in ham radio should attempt to gain personal experience in
those modes so that we know by that personal experience what those strengths
and weaknesses are.

Oh my, there we go on the lecture circuit again.

Dee, I started out working as an Illustrator. That's an artist
who draws/paints things as they really are. I have an aptitude
for that. It is as natural to me to draw, fairly well I might
add, as a physically-endowed athlete is to sports or another
with a musical aptitude is to playing an instrument. The ability
to "advance" in manual morse code skill is NOT a "natural" one
but an aptitude in only a few of us. The US military even
tested for that aptitude in all recruits of the 1940s and
1950s. [I got okay marks in that, by the way...:-) ]

The first radio operators used manual morse code. First, it was
fine for the primitive state of the art. Second, it was a mature
mode in the wireline communications, a technology even more
primitive than radio of that time. Telegraphers weren't taken
off the street...they either had the aptitude or they didn't.
Once "radio" got going, the telegraphers (downsized from
wireline comms by those new-fangled teleprinter thingies) made
much of their "abilities" using on-off-keying manual morse. The
Morse Mythos was born and grew like wildfire. Good, good
newsprint copy!

But, as time progressed there came NEW modes, much faster and
more accurate, without need of morse specialists at each end
of a circuit. The radio telegraphers were downsized. They
retired and turned to amateur radio of pre-WW2 times. Morse
was still king of the modes and ARRL (by the 1930s) was
hailing the king as the "best" for all amateurs. None of
this newfangled thing called "voice" for them although they
did pay lip-service to it. By 1940 the ARRL was King of
the membership organizations (through their publications)
and they maintained that morsemanship was the epitome of
amateur comms. They kept that up after WW2 and on into the
single-channel SSB start in the 1950s...again paying lip-
service to this newfangled SSB. And you know what? ARRL
is STILL trying to promote morsemanship even if sinning-by
omission once more.

Back before WRC-03 (that's over three years ago) the IARU
took a position that the amateur radio license tests for
morse ability was NOT mandatory...make it an option for each
administration. Lots of folks went along with that, but NOT
the ARRL. League was almost vehement in opposition. OK,
the ITU-R amateur radio regulations were CHANGED, going along
the lines of the IARU position. [that's the International
Amateur Radio Union, Dee] Ah, but NOW the ARRL takes a
neutral position, won't go either way...they just say that
all amateurs must obey the law...but they lobbied last year
to keep SOME manual morse testing for the under-30-MHz
privileges. 92 years after being formed, the ARRL just can't
give up and change to what OTHER folks want...

If you are interested, I could construct various scenarios where mode X is
the best mode.

"X-Files" was cancelled, Dee. [cousin Gillian got a vacation]

However, unless you specifically want to know, I won't
clutter up the newsgroup at this time with discussions that have been
repeated many times by many people already.

Please, go on, Dee. I want to hear from your vast experience
in radio and all your guru-like knowledge of what is "best"
for radio amateurs. Especially WHY everyone has to emulate
the olde-tyme amateur days, the ones before you were born.

Beep, beep,


Life Member, IEEE