Who cares, and does it make a difference using skimmer or a cw decoder?
Here is why I state this:
This year at K2NNY during CW sweepstakes, we did the following at the RUN
station:
John, W3OAB hooked up the audio coming from the rig (Icom 746Pro) and split
it to
a set of headphones and a laptop computer running CWGET. John is not an
experienced
CW contest operator but does know the code around 13-15 wpm. He wanted to
see what
CWGET could copy during contest conditions.
Contest starts with me in the "chair" on 40 meter CW, First CQ and an
instant knee
Deep pile-up. Away I go, running them as fast as I could at around 30-35
wpm. I look
Over at John and he has this expression on his face like What the heck? I
started
Laughing, the only thing that CW GET was decoding was our exchange, and it
decoded
Our exchange perfectly, everytime. After the end of the QSO and the TU
K2NNY, this is
What CWGET decoded, each and everytime *&%&*%&*%*(&%-10982hjbe861r38tr91
then it would
Decode W2AAA NR 12 M K2NNY 95 NNY (example) most of the time it would not
decode the
Other stations exchange, because there is always qrm or someone else trying
to tail
end and stick their call in there for the next qso.
John is very patient, and he did this on and off all week-end and we have
this to say
About cw decoders in a contest situation - "GOOD LUCK".
Our bottom line, nothing woks to decode CW any better than that computer
between your ears,
Nothing can even come close to the human brain as a decoding machine. That's
my story
And I am sticking to it. So, if you want to use a decoder, in my opinion, it
will hurt
You more than help you, because you never know if it decodes the other
station 100% copy.
So let the log checking software figure that out and deduct all of your
miscopies and
Delete the penalty qsos as well. Like I said "GOOD LUCK"
So here is my take on ASSISTED vs UNASSISTED (or whatever else you want to
call it)
And this would be for SINGLE OP UNASSISTED ONLY:
Single OP, TRANSCEIVER, ANTENNAS, LOGGING SOFTWARE ONLY; no internet,
clusters, skimmers,
decoders, cell phones, email or anything else other than that "computer
between your ears"
ANYTHING ELSE is ASSISTED or MULTI-OP. If you needed anything other than
your BRAIN to help
You, you are ASSISTED.
Paul K2DB
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