Subj : Morse test, to be or not to be?
To : Steve Bainbridge
From : Michiel van der Vlist
Date : Mon Jun 25 2001 11:59 pm
Hi Steve,
> > The bottleneck is art. S25 of the Radio Regulations.
> Yes, I have a copy of S25, and it states that morse is to
> be sent by hand and received by ear.
For the test of course...
> Which means of course that you can't use a computer, yet, if
> you do pass the morse test, there is nothing to satop you
> sending by any method you choose.
One could use a computer. However morse is a code not designed for automated
use. If one uses automated means, there are methods that are more suitable.
> I send/receive morse on 6mtrs using a computer.
That only makes sense if the other party is human. Letting two machines talk to
each other in morse, is inefficient.
> Don't get me wrong, I think morse is very usful, and no
> doubt it will always be used by the die hards,
It sure will for a long time.
> but with things like PSK31 ect and computer progs, manual
> morse is a dying art.
And so is machine made morse. As I said; letting two machines talk two each
other in morse is inefficient.
But that is not the issue. The issue is not should we retain morse as a
transmission mode, but should we retain the morse test as a requirement for
access?
For that we have to go back to the original reason for the test. The reason was
that we have shared bands. Among the other users are vital and emergency
services. We needed to be able to recognise these services so that we could
stay out of their way.
Note that the above is in the past tense. All other services have stopped using
morse. The military, aviation and marine services, none of them uses morse any
more.
The original reasons for the morse test no longer apply. As a result the
"authorities" no longer insist on it. The only ones standing in the way of
getting rid of it now are the amateurs themselves...
