N2EY wrote things. They're marked like this: N2EY
KF6TPT (me) wrote things in a prior post. They're marked like this: TPT


N2EY The Senate has to ratify the new treaty first.

I keep hearing this getting thrown around, and certainly, my civics
teacher told me this. However, I can't seem to find any mention in the
congressional record of the ratification after WRC-2000.

Can someone point me at it?


TPT Michael Powell is rather busy these
TPT days, what with all the brouhaha surrounding ClearChannel and the media
TPT consolidation. If we think that he, or anyone all that high on the food
TPT chain at the FCC gives a rat's patootie about what's going on in
TPT Amateurland, we're fooling ourselves.

N2EY I doubt Mr. Powell has much knowledge of what the ARS is, let alone
N2EY what the issues are. That's his staff's job.

That's exactly my point. Chairman Powell (and other high-ranking FCC
staff) doesn't need to know or care about the ARS. It makes absolutely
no difference to those in charge of the FCC, whether we have a code
requirement or not.

In this current incarnation of the FCC, I think it's reasonable to say
that if code testing doesn't provide a benefit to the FCC, then the FCC
will be eliminating it as quickly as they reasonably can.

TPT As far as I'm concerned, it should have happened years ago.

N2EY Why? Hams still use code. It's very popular.

I would even just say "Hams use code". But hams use AM, and RTTY, and
PSK, and FSK and yes, even phone. Some of us like satellites. Should
you have to prove that you're capable of tracking and hearing UO-14
before being granted a license to transmit on 145.975 MHz? Or that you
know all 26 phonetics and how to locate your grid square (a useful item
for a VHF+ operator to know)

CW is the only mode that is -required-. Sure, even hams who
never use RTTY had to answer written questions about it... but the
difference is, you don't have to get all written questions correct. A
person can become at least a General, if not an Extra, without ever
answering a question about RTTY... just skip them, and make sure you
know the rest of the material.

The end of code testing does not mean the end of CW, nor should it. But
as far as I'm concerned, CW is just another mode, albeit one with a
certain history and artistry to it. With regards to testing, it should
have about as much importance as the rest of the modes (i.e. a handful
of questions in the pool, and perhaps a reference in the questions on
frequency allocations, nothing more, nothing less)


N2EY Learning enough code to pass the test is about as hard as
N2EY learning to recognize about 40 words in a foreign language.

That's not the point. The fact that just about anyone can learn it
given enough time and practice really just means that all that is really
being tested is a potential ham's level of dedication (and how much free
time he's had in the last few months)

There are plenty of people out there who will say that testing someone's
dedication is a _good_ thing for our hobby. They're the ones that want
to keep the "riff-raff" out. Or at least, that's how it seems.

I just don't see that. The enforcement actions taken by the FCC don't
reflect that either. Many of the people cited for illegal operating
practices have taken 13 and 20wpm code tests.


What I see is a generation of people to whom technology is second nature.
I see hardware engineers and electrical engineers building amazing
commercial applications up in the SHF frequencies. Most of these people
aren't hams. I don't see them knocking down the doors to come join our
ranks, but I don't see us reaching out to them and giving them a reason
to join us, either.

We're doing just the opposite, not entirely with the code test, but with
the attitude that goes with it.

I'd love for some of the current high-tech talent to bring their
knowledge into the Amateur HF arena. We've seen what happens when we
bring them into VHF (I'm thinking about APRS, WSJT/JT44, lots of
software DSP stuff).

But to do that, we need to change. By telling a 22 year old
engineer with a 10-hour a day job and a girlfriend that he needs to
spend "just an hour a day" sitting and listening to code on headphones
for the next month, we are essentially telling him to get lost. He
won't have that kind of free time until he's retired. Plus he's got
other methods of global communication, so the overall gee-whiz factor of
HF is definitely not as much of a draw as it was years ago.

But show the same engineer a PSK31 pileup and his eyes light up.
Perhaps he's thinking of a better way to discriminate between the
colliding warbles and pull yet another call sign out of the morass.
Maybe he's a software engineer. Maybe a DSP guru. Whatever he is, he
could be an asset to the ARS, and play a part in enhancing the radio
art. But he's probably not very interested in CW. Perhaps he will
grow to work CW, perhaps not. But he definitely won't learn it until he
has been exposed to other modes of HF. So, under today's rules, he
moves on to other things... and we'll never know whether his DSP ideas
would work.


There was a time when children were frequently exposed to ham radio, but
those days are past. Not every EE graduate has a dipole in his attic
anymore. The fact is, if the kids and the geeks aren't joining us...
something's wrong, and maybe we should fix it.

I think that it's time for us to grow up, evolve with the times, welcome
newcomers into our ranks, and continue furthering the radio art.


-Jeff

PS.

TPT and I think you should re-test when you renew your license.
N2EY Nice idea - are you volunteering to be a VE?

Yes. I'd be happy to be a VE.