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August 31st 03, 02:06 PM

(N2EY) wrote in message om...
"Jim Hampton" wrote in message ...
I do remember folks back when using "the handle here is ...".
My question is did that start with CB or did CB pick it up from amateurs
originally? It seems (at least back then) more like the Southern "y'all
come again real soon". Sort of folksy and warm if grammatically incorrect.

The term "handle" goes back to before ham radio. It was commonly use
by hams as an alternative to "name" or "nickname", because often a
"handle" was not related to the person's actual name ("Slim", "The
Duke", etc.) Just a bit of jargon.

And originally the cb term meant the same thing. But over time,
"handle" in cb lingo came to mean something quite different from a
person's name or nickname.
"Handles" were used instead of callsigns as a way of concealing a cb
user's true identity, both from others and the FCC. Thus, they became
the antithesis of callsigns.

And that's why the term has dropped from amateur usage.

Not entirely. I picked up the habit of using "handle is Brian" back
when a number of spot 10M AM freqs were functionally the equivalent of
today's neighborhood 2M FM reperaters and I still use it. It's just
ingrained reflex from 'Wayback days and I've never gotten any
"feedback" about it.

As you point out the big difference between ham usage of the term
"handle" and CB usage of the term is in the handle itself. "My handle
is Brian" is obviously my legitimate given name. "The handle here is
Road Snake" is another whole pure CB ballgame.

In defense of the CBers ever since the FCC dropped CB licensing CBers
they don't get FCC callsigns so they can't use 'em like we can ours
even if they wanted to. 'Cept in the case of us 'Wayback licensed
CBers who do have FCC issued callsigns. On those very rare occasions
when I get on 27 Mhz you'd hear "This is KLK 1937, the handle is
Brian" . . . Works fine.

73 de Jim, N2EY

w3rv