"Brenda Ann" wrote in message
...

I can take either side in the code debate... but I think it's a mistake to
do away with it entirely, because there are certain circumstances where
code
is the only way to get through.


I'm sure code would still be allowed, even if the licensing requirement was
dropped. Since there seems to be enough room to expand the SW broadcast
bands, maybe the ham bands could be expanded to give the code capable hams
more of their own bandwidth.



What I DO think, though, is that they need to get rid of the question
pools,
and make books on those pools illegal. Make people actually STUDY to
learn
the law and theory, instead of memorizing a bunch of questions. If there
were those sorts of books around when I got my license, I sure never saw
one
(of course, I was too cheap to have bought one even if I knew they
existed... since I was a youngster with little to no money... good thing
that the testing at the time was free..) As far as I am concerned,
studying
the question pool is cheating... the same as using a calculator in math
class.. what's up with that, anyway??




Well, people are free to ask questions and print the answers to those
questions. Unless the FCC exam can be treated like a state secret. But I
don't see much of a practical problem. Are there really that many
unqualified hams out there? I listen from time to time on SW, and they
generally seem do what they do pretty well. I suppose there's problem
operators out there, but are they problem operators because they don't know
the code or radio technology or just because they have problematical
personalities? Does the FCC administer "jerk tests"?

Frank Dresser

"Frank Dresser" wrote in message
...
Are there really that many
unqualified hams out there?

There are a lot of them that are technically unqualified. I see such
questions in the ham NG's as "Can I run my mobile radio as a portable with a
battery?" or "How do I set the SWR on my antenna?" The latter is something
even most CB'ers know how to do... sure makes a ham look bad..

"Brenda Ann" wrote in message
...


There are a lot of them that are technically unqualified. I see such
questions in the ham NG's as "Can I run my mobile radio as a portable with
a
battery?" or "How do I set the SWR on my antenna?" The latter is something
even most CB'ers know how to do... sure makes a ham look bad..




If they look bad, it's mostly other hams who are doing the looking. I don't
listen in very often, and I think I'm typical of non-ham SWLs. The general
public hardly knows ham radio exists.

Anyway, I think there's a difference between being technically ignorant and
a jerk. Consider driving. A person could be an excellent driver without
knowing how to change their spark plugs. Knowing how to shift a manual
transmission or rebuild an engine isn't much evidence that the person isn't
a maniac or half blind.

If somebody needs some on the air guidance on the basics, I think that is
half a problem, at worst. That somebody is at least interested in radio,
which is increasingly rare.

I'm not a ham, and I don't have strong feelings one way or the other on the
code debate. Both sides want to protect their part of the radio hobby. But
I think disinterest is the real threat.

Frank Dresser