"Guy" wrote in message
news:RDMqe.15605$mC.15053@okepread07...
Scott in Baltimore wrote:

I still always travel with channel 19 in the truck. It still works
better
than a radar detector. Today, I'm frustrated with hams. Back then, my
ham
friends were techies. It's hard to find a techie on the ham bands
now-a-days.

How do hams become techies when all they have to do is memorize some
answers to a preprinted test? I'm for making it an
essay/fill-in-the-blank
test. Drop the code. Don't do away with code-only portions of the band.

Code shouldn't be forced on you, but it shouldn't be brushed away.

I wasn't allowed to use a calculator until I was a sophomore in college.
Reason: What if you don't have a calculator later and you need to figure
something out? You gotta learn how to interpolate with the tables in the
back of the book first! Now calculators are less than $5. Now, when I
figure out some simple math problem in my head, nobody gives a crap.

I wasn't allowed to operate two meters with out first knowing morse code.
Reason: When voice doesn't work, CW will get through! Now cell phones
are
free if you sign up for a minimum contract. Now, when I talk about a CW
contact I made recently, nobody gives a crap.

I passed my extra test more than 20 years ago. If I took it today, I'd
fail
it. Why did I have to take it and pass it more than 20 years ago? Why
have a test at all today? There is no difference between putting a CB on
the air and putting any ham gear on the air today.

Where are today's challenges?



Hello, guy

The fact is that folks should posses some minimal knowledge lest they
conflict with other folks.

There was no regulation of radio back in the early 1900s. No need. Once
radio started taking off, there had to be some coordination or stations
would be jamming each other.

Same with automobiles. At first, no licensing and no laws. Then, when some
horses became scared of a horseless carriage, they put into effect 5 mph
speed limits in some areas. Sometimes, someone had to walk ahead with a
flag to warn folks that a horseless carriage was coming! Eventually, laws
were formed to maximize usage to *everyone*. Otherwise, what if there were
no stop lights, stop signs, and no rules about which side of the road to
drive on?

Orville and Wilbur Wright didn't have to apply to anyone for a license to
fly. There were no laws at the beginning of aircraft. Only once a number
of planes were flying did they start to regulate it. For obvious reasons
LOL.

As to taking your test, why would you have a problem today? I had last been
on the air in 1969 and let my license drop around 1981 (not sure of the
exact year). When I retook it in 1993, I passed the extra first time
around.

If you have copied code past 13 words per minute, you won't forget it. You
might get a bit rusty, but can pick it back up. In my case, I didn't brush
up. Nor on theory either. The basics remain the same; I've been into
computers since 1976, so any questions on gates, cpus, memory, etc. is a
no-brainer.

Of course I missed some questions on where bands were. They've added a
couple. You don't need 100%; in fact, I didn't feel like extracting square
roots by hand (I can, but it is a pain - I'm not talking guessing here), so
I simply checked off some answers. I knew I had already passed that portion
so who cared.

As to no difference; perhaps not to put it on the air, but to understand
what emission you are using and where you can and can not use it may just
make a tad bit of difference.

I have to laugh about folks joking about IRLP and Echolink. I've used my
440 HT to chat with Australia with *no Internet* involved. All rf path,
courtesy of a 10 meter link. Of course, that wasn't really a challenge; I
simply heard the Aussies there.

What is fun is having the ability to change mode in a heartbeat. One guy on
a 440 repeater was squaking that everyone should *have* to use Morse. Since
the repeater owner was in the group, I asked his permission and got it.

40 words per minute MFM sent over the repeater. Shut him up in a hurry.

Is there a difference? I know one guy who *knows* so LOL.

73 from Rochester, NY
Jim