Dee Flint wrote:
"Alun L. Palmer" wrote in message
.. .

wrote in
groups.com:



[snip]


It's the classic case of a red herring diversion. Blame the code test
for everyhting bad while the real problems are not addressed.

73 de Jim, N2EY



It depends what you mean. Will repealing the code test provide a vast
increase in numbers? No. Will it provide some increase? Yes.


I'd say that's more like a maybe rather than a yes.


Are there
thousands of hams that could pass the General or Extra theory trapped
above
30 MHz? Yes.


There are no hams "trapped above 30Mhz.


Will there be a large increase in HF use? Yes.


That is also a maybe. If the code is dropped this year, many will buy the
rigs and try it but may be sadly disappointed in the results since we are in
the trough of the sunspot cycle and results are so often poor right now.
They may not stick with it until conditions improve since they won't have
the skills to participate in the second most used mode of shortwave
communications.

Wow, good point, Dee! When I first got my license, the band conditions
were very good on average. The "work the world on a wet string" days.
Now 20 meters is usually half dead around 7 p.m. and the broadcasters
are starting to flood 40 meters. So a new HF'er is going to wonder just
exactly what those new privileges are worth. As the sunspot cycle winds
down, the conditions are only going to get worse. 80 meters will be a
crowed pool for the next few years.

Personally I think that anyone who is feels trapped by having to learn
Morse code will feel equally or more trapped when they discover what
they have to do to get a good signal out on 80/75 meters!

Maybe they can get the F.C.C. to repeal those stupid propagation
conditions! 8^)

- Mike KB3EIA -