Hi Joe,
Gee, I hate to get on these reflectors with such questions, because
things just seem to snowball and next thing you know, I have horns
coming out of my head, and one big eye in the middle of my forehead! I
was just curious of the League's stance vis a vis these modes. I know
we were trying to get some long haul meteor skeds for the Sept contest,
and had trouble as many did not want to run unless we did HSMS or WSJT.
Someone,(I forget who) mentioned that you could have the computer decode
the information for you which prompted my question and the reference to
Peter Laakman, WB6IOM and the 1968 era eme QSO. The league did not buy
their QSO then. I was wondering what they thought about it today. I
have not heard anything about HSMS, so asked the question.
I want to try WSJT, to check it out. It is a bit difficult for me,
since there is no permanent ac power at my ham shack, no telephone line,
no nuthin! The shack is unheated and we have a bad "critter" problem. I
just found a red squirrel had moved into the generator hut, and built a
nest in the wiring above the generating unit itself. Naturally, the
squirrel ate the insulation on all the wiring in the generator. Now I
have another project that I didn't ask for!
I'll get to it soon. I guess I need a laptop that I can remove when
it is not being used. The best thing is to try it and see what I think.
What I want to avoid is having the whole bottom of the 144 band filled
with blips and burps and see ssb and cw activity drop even more at the
same time. Along these lines, If you use a packet spotting system, I
believe you are not a single operator station anymore. I would also
assume that if you use the internet and log onto the propagation pages
that you are not a single operator either. I look at the 144 propagation
page sometimes to see if condx are good before I trek up through the
woods to my shack, and see meteor scatter QSOs there, that use the
internet for confirmation of the QSO. ("I'm sending calls & EM00 now."
" Now I',m sending RRR." and such. This is quite common, and totally
against any rules outlining a valid QSO. I have not looked at the
internet sites during contest periods. I guess that some people will
seek the path of least resistance for any QSO especially if there is
some reward attached to it such as a new grid or state or country, or a
vhf contest award. I saw this happen on eme as people started chasing
countries. There were so many bogus QSOs, that I lost interest in the
pursuit. I am not implying that WSJT or othere systems are bogus, just
that we should be doubly sure that they cannot be abused, or used
counter to the rules for VHF contests as outlined by the League.
It sure is fun to talk about, but I should probably reserve any
comments until I run the program on my own. I was hoping to snag you on
all the bands this weekend. I hope you can make an appearance!
73
Dave K1WHS
Joe Taylor wrote:
> Dave (K1WHS), Tree (N6TR), and others --
>
> Shoot, if I had thought a mode like WSJT might not be allowed
> in VHF/UHF contests, I might not have put all the work into
> developing it!
>
> Contests are one of my biggest thrills in ham radio, from the
> SS to the 160 and 10 meter Tests to the DX Tests, and especially
> the VHF QSO parties and SS. Yes, Tree, I use your TR software in
> all CW contests, and I love it! I don't run a big station, on
> any band, but I've collected my share of ARRL wallpaper for all
> of the above events.
>
> VHF/UHF contests are inherently weak-signal oriented, and I fail
> to see how using PSK31, WSJT, PUA43, or whatever mode might fit
> the available propagation conditions in any way compromises the
> spirit of the competition.
>
> Anyone who has tried the WSJT mode for doing VHF meteor scatter,
> or watched it being used, knows that making a 1000 mile QSO on a
> dead 2-meter band is still anything but "automatic". This is
> definitely *not* a set-it-and-forget-it,
> computers-talking-to-computers mode. You do keep the headphones
> on, for sure; you do listen for the pings. When you get a weak
> one, and the computer fails to decode it on the first try, you
> click on it and use several other options designed to extract the
> most from the available signal. And you surely *do* get that
> adrenaline rush when you catch a "blue whizzer" (and maybe even
> finish the QSO on SSB, if you can find the mike in time!).
>
> I would not even have a problem with longer-duration
> "integration" modes of operation in the VHF/UHF contests. After
> all, the thing is self-regulating to a large extent. If QSOs
> take a half hour each, and you concentrate on them alone, your
> grid total might look pretty good but your score will be lousy.
>
> A few of us have been doing HSCW meteor scatter in VHF contests
> for a few years now. No questions have been asked about its
> "legality", as far as I know, nor should they have been. What
> the operator does during a WSJT-driven HSMS QSO is very nearly
> identical to what he/she does during an HSCW QSO, right down to
> the very last step -- either using the computer to play back
> the recorded HSCW ping so can copy it by ear at 25-35 WPM, or
> letting the computer play some weak-signal DSP tricks with the
> recorded signal.
>
> Same goes for PSK31 -- it's a good weak-signal mode, and why
> shouldn't it be an allowable mode for VHF/UHF contests?
>
> Alas, my time in the September VHF QSO party will be very
> limited this year. Hope to work you in the hours I have
> available, though, whatever the mode!
>
> -- 73, Joe, K1JT
>
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