In article , Steve Bonine wrote:

It amazes me to think that there are people who are reasonable in other
respects, but who can say with a straight face that there is no evidence
that using ham radio while driving results in distraction.

If you read the 2009 article mentioned in the ARRL press release,
you'll see that the National Safety Council said that "there indeed
is some elevated risk" from operating amateur radios while driving,
but that the NSC has "no evidence that using two-way radios while
driving poses significant crash risks."

Somehow hams
have a mysterious ability to tune around looking for a QSO, check the
antenna match, and carry on a conversation without this activity
distracting them from driving?

Well, you're talking about a small minority of mobile hams who are
on HF, or surfing around VHF. Most mobile operations are surely by
hams who chat away on their favorite preprogrammed repeater(s).

Now, that still raises the issue of talking and driving (not to
mention holding a microphone), but I'm still not sure it's quite
as bad a situation as cellphones. If necessary, a ham can drop
the mic and the other people listening will realize immediately
that something came up that required his/her attention. I think
people who've never operated two-way radios don't have that under-
standing. Also, let's admit that most chatting on repeaters doesn't
take much brainpower. :-) It isn't like trying to discuss the marketing
campaign for a new computer on a cellphone. Oh, and quite often, there
are more than two people in the conversation, so any given ham isn't
even talking half the time.

I don't want to leave the impression that I think mobile operations
are completely safe, but I think they do have some clear differences
from cellphone conversations.


Patty N6BIS

On 12/18/2011 9:47 PM, Patty Winter wrote:

Now, that still raises the issue of talking and driving (not to
mention holding a microphone), but I'm still not sure it's quite
as bad a situation as cellphones. If necessary, a ham can drop
the mic and the other people listening will realize immediately
that something came up that required his/her attention.

I do agree with you, and have dropped the mic on occasion.

I might add.. The POLICE do the very same thing.. Though some
departments train the shotgun rider to hold the mic and use the radio,
what do you do when you patrol Solo? The department I dispatched for
always trained the driver to drive and talk at the same time.

So do Cabbies, Firemen, EMS drivers, Tow Truck drivers and many more.


Several major differences.. The microphone on my radios is tethered, If
I drop it I can recover it without taking my eyes off the road (later)

All 5 of the 2-way radios in the cockpit of this motor home, and the
"main" Radio elsewhere are like that, Same with the police cars and
other emergency vehicles I've seen.. but in today's world of hand held
cell phones that is NOT the case.

cell phones are held to the ear for the most part.

Another thing I have found... My Attitude when using a cell phone is
very much different from my attitude when talking on 2 meters (or one of
the other radios) On the phone I switch considerable attention to the
phone..

Someone (Einstein was creadeted on the page I saw it on but I doubt he
ever said this) said anyone who can safely drive a car while kissing a
pertty girl is not paying enough attention to the girl.

Cell phones are like that.. Safely driving and using a cell, not easy to
do.. But the radio does not require the same level of concentration
because we 2-way users... Well we are used to providing "Fills" for one
reason or another.
--
Nothing adds Excitement like something that is none of your business.

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In article ,
John Davis wrote:

Several major differences.. The microphone on my radios is tethered, If
I drop it I can recover it without taking my eyes off the road (later)

Been there, done that. :-) Dropped the mic on the passenger seat
or wherever it happened to land, then used my hand to feel for
the mic cord and run along that until I found the mic again. No
need to look down for it.


cell phones are held to the ear for the most part.

Don't most states prohibit that now? I realize that such laws are
widely disregarded, but aren't most mobile cellphone users using
Bluetooth headsets now? (I presume the phone itself is in some
kind of mount or on the passenger seat, so not subject to dropping.)


Another thing I have found... My Attitude when using a cell phone is
very much different from my attitude when talking on 2 meters (or one of
the other radios) On the phone I switch considerable attention to the
phone..

Yeah, I can't quite explain it, but there *is* a tangible difference.
I think some of has to do with cellphones being (or at least behaving
like) full-duplex devices, whereas ham radios are very much an "over
to you" situation.

(And let me make it clear that I'm referring to talking on a cellphone
in general, not just in a car. I rarely use a cellphone anyway, but
never in a car. I don't even have the necessary setup for it.)


Patty

On 12/20/2011 11:18 PM, Patty Winter wrote:
In ,
John wrote:

Several major differences.. The microphone on my radios is tethered, If
I drop it I can recover it without taking my eyes off the road (later)

Been there, done that. :-) Dropped the mic on the passenger seat
or wherever it happened to land, then used my hand to feel for
the mic cord and run along that until I found the mic again. No
need to look down for it.


cell phones are held to the ear for the most part.

Don't most states prohibit that now? I realize that such laws are
widely disregarded, but aren't most mobile cellphone users using
Bluetooth headsets now? (I presume the phone itself is in some
kind of mount or on the passenger seat, so not subject to dropping.)


Another thing I have found... My Attitude when using a cell phone is
very much different from my attitude when talking on 2 meters (or one of
the other radios) On the phone I switch considerable attention to the
phone..

Yeah, I can't quite explain it, but there *is* a tangible difference.
I think some of has to do with cellphones being (or at least behaving
like) full-duplex devices, whereas ham radios are very much an "over
to you" situation.

(And let me make it clear that I'm referring to talking on a cellphone
in general, not just in a car. I rarely use a cellphone anyway, but
never in a car. I don't even have the necessary setup for it.)


Patty

You may have hit it there in that last comment Patty (About the "over to
you" nature of ham radio)

And yes, many states do (And there is a federal movement to) prohibit
hand held Cell phones... That does not stop folks (Including in many
cases Police officers and government officials) from using them.

--
Nothing adds Excitement like something that is none of your business.

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Version: 2012.0.1901 / Virus Database: 2109/4704 - Release Date: 12/26/11

This year Nevada (where I live) passed a law (S.B. 140,
http://www.leg.state.nv.us/Session/7...B/SB140_EN.pdf )
outlawing certain practices regarding communications devices while
driving. Primarily aimed at texting and cell phone use, it also
impacts amateurs. Specifically:
1. No text or data entry while driving.
2. Cell phone OK only if no-hands.
3. Hand-held cellphone OK in emergency.
4. Police and Fire exempt while on duty and responding to emergency.
5. Amateurs exempt while in a real emergency or in a emergency drill.
6. Anyone can use voice communications with no-hands equipment.
6. Licensed radio users (amateurs, GMRS, etc, but not CB) may use
hand-held microphones in non-emergency non-drill, if the microphone
has only a push-to-talk (PTT) switch and no other switches.

Regarding item 6, all amateur radio mobile rigs I know of have a
multiplicity of buttons on the microphone. I don't know how I would
get a mike with only a PTT. It's possible that GMRS radios have only
a PTT switch.

I do know about arrangements using BlueTooth earlobe transceivers. But
that's not an option for me because I am deaf in one ear (due to an
attack of the disease Shingles), and a BlueTooth in the other ear
would prevent me from hearing traffic noise.

In the year 2000, just after upgrading from Technician to Extra (Thank
you, FCC, for lowering the code speed), I bought a Icom 706MkIIG
mobile HF tranceiver and a screwdriver antenna. While driving along a
back road, I tried tuning across the 20 meter phone band. In a very
short time I ended up in the ditch. (Fortunately, southern Nevada is
all desert with no naturally growing trees, just tumbleweed.) I shut
off the radio, and when I got home I uninstalled it and the antenna.
Now the only use the radio gets is on Field Day.

Dick Grady, AC7EL