The Art & Skill of Radio Telegraphy

http://www.qsl.net/n9bor/n0hff.htm

The Art & Skill of Radio Telegraphy3rd Edition

Official Download Site

A Manual For Learning, Using, Mastering And Enjoying
The International Morse Code As A Means Of Communication

William G. Pierpont N0HFF 
"What Hath God Wrought!"

"For those who are interested in telegraphy, for those who would like to learn it,
for those who love it, and for those who want to improve their skills in it."

Official Download Site

You may link to this page, but please do not put the book file on your server.

Below you will see various options for downloading this book.
Last edit: April 20, 2002

Adobe PDF File (948KB)

http://www.qsl.net/n9bor/n0hff.htm

FISTS CW Club

http://www.fists.co.uk/

Welcome to FISTS CW Club

FISTS supports the use, preservation and education of Morse code. The club is devoted exclusively to CW operators, CW operating and people who are passionate about Morse code.

We have three straightforward goals:
Further the use of CW (Morse Code)
Engender friendships among members
Encourage newcomers to use CW (Morse Code)

FISTS UK is the Headquarters of the FISTS Club (International Morse Preservation Society).

Interested in becoming a member?
Find out more about our history.

 

27 Sep 12: Pileup Runner is a simulator of DX pileups. It is intended for the DX-pedition operators and those who are curious how the pileup looks and sounds at the DX side.

Compared to Morse Runner, which is a contest simulator, Pileup Runner has an extra dimension: frequency. In this program just working the callers is not enough. To be successful, you also have to tune your receiver through the pileup in a smart way.

The program is freeware, currently in the beta stage. Grab a copy at http://www.dxatlas.com/PileupRunner !

73 Alex VE3NEA

Interested in becoming a member?

FISTS HQ welcomes new members who have a passion for Morse Code.

Benefits of membership include:
Our popular Quarterly A5 News Booklet
Free use of the FISTS QSL Bureau
Access to our members-only area
Help and support from like minded people

The FISTS Club is one of amateur radio's fastest growing organisations. It's an unique club, founded and maintained on solid principles using radio's oldest and yet most reliable communications mode - CW! Why notjoin us?


FISTS History

The FISTS Club, (International Morse Preservation Society) was founded in 1987 by the late Geo Longden G3ZQS of Darwen, Lancashire England, after recognising a need for a club in which veteran operators would help newcomers and less-experienced operators learn and improve CW proficiency. During the first year, membership reached 300, most of whom were in Great Britain and Europe. The original Introduction to FISTS by Geo holds as true today as it did when he wrote it. Geo also explains how he chose the name FISTS.

The North American Chapter was formed in 1990 to assist 11 members in the USA receive the newsletter and as a banking convenience. Nancy Kott WZ8C of Hadley, Michigan was named US representative, a position she still holds but she now handles the affairs of over 7,000 members in the Americas.

The Down Under Chapter (New Zealand / Australia) was formed in 1998 to provide a similar service to Australasian members, with Ralph Sutton ZL2AOH as the VK/ZL representative. From a VK/ZL membership of four, there are now over 100 members "Down Under", principally in New Zealand. The New Zealand membership is the largest in any country outside England, Wales and North America.

The East Asia Chapter was formed in 2004 by a few Taiwanese and Japanese members to provide East Asian members with various services in their native languages.

Worldwide, FISTS members number over 10,000 members, growing each month.Why not join us?

Acknowledgements: Thank you to Dennis K6DF, Bill NT9K and Billy AB4RH for permission to use photographs from their key collections.

Join or Renew


Joining FISTS is easy; we do not ask for any code proficiency level, just a love of Morse code and a desire to keep it alive.

We organise many on-air activies over the year (rather than the traditional 599 contest type activities). We also attend a number of Rallies each year where many members come and have a chat. Membership brings with it a number of benefits:
Our popular Quarterly A5 News Booklet "Key Note".
Free use of the FISTS QSL Bureau.
Access to our members-only area with details of club projects, members lookup details and free-to-use software for radio amateurs.
Help and support from like-minded people. 

Ready to become a member or renew?
Used to be a member but let it lapse? Please click here to go to the Re-join page.
Never been a member? Please click here to go to the New Member page.

We look forward to you joining us!


FISTS Frequencies

This page gives details of the FISTS frequencies that you can use to monitor and contact members.

The recommended areas are the following calling frequencies plus or minus 10 kHz. If you are not using QRP (5 Watts output or less), please use the 10 kHz that avoids the QRP areas per the table.

BandFrequencyTo avoid
QRP, extend
160m 1.818 MHz
80m 3.558 MHz Down
40m 7.028 MHz Down
30m 10.118 MHz Up
20m 14.058 MHz Down
17m 18.085 MHz Down
15m 21.058 MHz Down
12m 24.918 MHz
10m 28.058 MHz Down
6m Any CW frequency
4m Any CW frequency
2m 144.058 MHz



If you're a member or not, call on these frequencies at whatever speed you're happy at, be it 5 wpm or 35 wpm, and you will most likely get a reply from one of our members. We pride ourselves on having a friendly, helpful membership that is always ready to assist the newcomer as well as veteran operators.
Notes
When calling CQ, please alternate "CQ FISTS DE ..." with plain "CQ DE ..." calls; FISTS encourages contacts between members and non-members.
When replying to a CQ, please send no faster than the caller. Don't assume if it's a G3/G2 station coming back to your call they will be comfortable at 25 wpm.
If you are asked to QRS ("send more slowly"), please do so.
It's helpful to call CQ at different speeds. Experience has shown that we have many members that are key-shy due to only high speeds being used, so you may get more replies to your CQ call if you drop your speed to below 12 wpm. Give it a try!
If taking part in a FISTS Challenge such as the Ladder, please vacate or pass on the FISTS calling frequency after 5 continuous QSO's.
Due to IARU band plan changes, the 12m frequency is now outside the recommended CW-only area.
Due to the IARU Region 3 band plan, FISTS Down Under (Australia and New Zealand) use 3.528 MHz. They also use 1.808 MHz, but in Europe this frequency is outside the CW band plan area and illegal in some countries, including the UK.

Chart


We have available a handy A4 chart of FISTS frequencies, IARU Region 1 CW band plan areas and QRP frequencies, making it easy to visualise the layout of the CW areas. You can download or print the PDF version or the Microsoft Word version.

Resources

This page provides access to various items including Key Note newsletters and resources you can use to help you learn or improve your Morse code.

Please choose one of the following:

Learning or Improving Morse
Forms and Documents Provides links to various FISTS forms and documents
Activities Results Contains Brasspounder and results documents for FISTS Activities
Key Note Archive (public) Contains Key Notes from 12 months ago to October 1987
Key Note Archive (Members' Area) Contains Key Notes back to October 1987
Measure Callsign Weight Measure the "weight" (time taken to send) of callsigns in Morse

Learning or Improving Morse

There are many options. Computer-based Morse training gives you perfectly-formed Morse code and can provide incentive by giving you scores or other feedback. However, one-on-one Morse training with a human being or live contacts on the radio can be much more fun! A good idea is to mix computer-based training with other activities involving real people. Additionally, human operators rarely send perfect Morse, so getting some practice at listening to morse sent by other people is important.

Some computer-based training allows you to type in what you hear and then provides you with scores and guides your training based on your results. This can give an incentive and sense of achievement. The downside though is that you also need to learn to type quickly and accurately. In fact, the typing in itself can become an obstacle to learning Morse and doesn't reflect real operating practice; most people handwrite brief notes and/or copy in their head only.

Try not to let "stage fright" get the better of you. It's not an exam and there are no marks out of 10! If you miss something your QSO partner sends to you, you can ask for a repeat or just bluff your way out and say there is QRM or QRN - the other person will be none the wiser!


Websites

Learn CW Online (lcwo.net)Fabian Kurz DJ1YFK provides online Morse training via his website http://lcwo.net.

You listen to Morse and then type in what you hear and are scored. A big advantage is that the only software you need is the Adobe Flash Player, which is already installed on most computers. Various features are included such as the Koch Method for new starters, Word and Callsign training for improvers.

W1AW Practice FilesThe ARRL (USA national radio society) provides copies of the W1AW Code Practice MP3 Files for various speeds between 5wpm and 40wpm in MP3 files, which you can either listen to online or download for your MP3 player. These provide a mixture of plain language (taken from the ARRL QST magazine) and callsign training. As well as the most recent files, there are hundreds of additional files available.

Hand Sending Training film (US Army)There's a very entertaining, helpful and humerous US Army training film from 1966 on hand-sending Morse and adjusting keys, entitled "INTERNATIONAL MORSE CODE, HAND SENDING". Part of the film covers American-style hand/arm positioning, but the majority of the film is very relevant to all styles of sending.

South Manchester Radio and Computing Club Practice FilesThe S.M.R.C.C. Morse Practice web page provides MP3 Morse files with text, QSOs and letter groups at 12, 18 and 25 w.p.m.

FISTS CW Course

The FISTS CW Course is a Morse code training package suitable for beginners and improvers. It comprises:
The well known K7QO course on CD to to learn the code (including files containing the texts sent).
Two practice CD's made by our own Mary G0NZA, which are great for people that want to improve from the 12 wpm level.
An A5 booklet with forty-odd pages that includes all the texts for Mary's disks.This package is a real help to anyone that is learning Morse code and we are very happy to be able to offer it.
The price just covers the costs of having the disks mastered and printed and the booklet produced. If you would like a copy, please visit the Club Sales page.

We would like to thank Chuck K7QO and Mary G0NZA for allowing FISTS to produce these disks.

Software

G4FON's Koch Morse TrainerProbably the most popular computer program is Ray Goff G4FON's Koch Morse Trainer. This uses the proven Koch Method and provides additional features for improvers such as Word training. You can also use it to convert text files into Morse code. The program can be used to generate Windows sound (.wav) files. By installing some free MP3 software, you can also use it to generate MP3 files for your MP3 player.

RufzXP Callsign TrainerFor those who have mastered the basics, the RufzXP program by Mathias Kolpe DL4MM and Alessandro Vitiello IV3XYM provides callsign training. As you copy callsigns correctly, the speed gradually increases. You can also see how you compare to other users worldwide by looking at your place in the international RufzXPToplist (submitting your own results to the list is optional). This is quite good fun!

Morse Runner Contest TrainerThe Morse Runner program by Alex Shovkoplyas VE3NEA simulates contest pile ups with interference from other stations etc. Even if you're not interested in taking part in contests, this program can be fun and help you learn to cope when conditions get busy on the air.

Live Practice

Contacts on the AirListen out and / or call CQ at a speed that you prefer on the FISTS Frequencies. You don't need to be a member - FISTS encourages contacts between members and non-members. (However, why not join us?) For Europe, at the time of writing (September 2009), the best frequencies to meet up with FISTS members at distances of between 50 - 200 miles are on 80m around 3.558 MHz.

Pre-arranged ContactsYou can arrange contacts with other people on the air ("skeds"). Please include your location (town/city/country), what frequency bands you can use and your email address or some other means that members can use to contact you. Places you can ask are:
If you're a FISTS member, you can contact volunteers listed on the Arrange Slow Speed Morse (QRS) Contacts web page by email or telephone.
The fistscw Yahoo Group (reflector).
Ask Rob M0BPT activities@fists.co.uk to put a note in the monthly FISTS Brasspounder electronic news letter.
Ask Graham G3ZOD webmaster@fists.co.uk to put an item in the FISTS website news page.
Ask the Key Note editor keynote@fists.co.uk to put a note in the next quarterly FISTS Key Note magazine.
GB2CW Slow Morse TransmissionsThe RSGB (UK National Radio Society) organises slow morse transmissions on 160m, 80m, 6m and 2m from various volunteers around the UK under the callsign GB2CW. See the schedule for days, times and frequencies.

W1AW Slow Morse TransmissionsThe ARRL provides slow Morse transmissions on 160m, 80m, 40m, 20m , 17m, 15m, 10m and 2m from their headquarters station W1AW. Although some distance from Europe, W1AW is frequently audible due to good antennas. See the schedule for days, times and frequencies. Although there are copies of the transmissions available as MP3 files on the ARRL website, it's good practice reading live transmissions over the air along with the inevitable noise and interference.

RSGB Morse Tests and CertificatesThe RSGB (UK National Radio Society) now offers free Morse competency tests and certificates. Many people enjoy the challenge and satisfaction of passing a test that recognises their achievements. These are available for various speeds and are conducted by an examiner. They are not related to licence privileges in the UK or elsewhere.

G4LHI On-air Training Sessions (Huntingdon, UK)Peter G4LHI runs Morse training sessions available in the Huntingdon area at 19:30 on Mondays, 20:00 on Tuesdays & on 2M, 144.7625 MHz, which usually go on until just after 21/22:00. Have a listen & see if you can hear them & just call in on the breaks if you wish. Talk back is on FM on the same frequency. For more information, please contact Peter; his email address is available from his QRZ.COM entry.

South Manchester Radio and Computing Club 2m Practise NetS.M.R.C.C. runs a 2m Morse practise net on Monday evenings.

Books

There is a free, downloadable book entitled The Art & Skill of Radio Telegraphy. This contains much information on learning Morse to a very high standard and is essential reading for anyone with an interest in Morse code.

Another free, downloadable book is Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy. This is a Morse tutor book with an emphasis on the psychology.

http://www.fists.co.uk/

KOSOVO, REALLY A NEW DXCC ENTITY?

http://www.dxcoffee.com/eng/2012/09/26/kosovo-dxcc-entity/

KOSOVO, REALLY A NEW DXCC ENTITY?

For us Italians, the events of Kosovo cause us to reflect on recent stories of our country, still alive in the minds of the most young. Italy was one of the first countries in conjunction with NATO, to come to the rescue of the people of Kosovo, repressed by vile ethnic cleansing perpetrated by the Serbian regime of Slobodan Milosevic. The KFOR mission saw, and still sees to this day, many Italian soldiers dedicated to restoring peace in this Balkan territory on the other side of the Adriatic.

Anybody like me living on the Adriatic coast of Italy remembers well the noise of military aircraft departing from our bases, as well as those in the Balkans, as part of military action from our soil, missile installations on our shores with defense objectives of a sensitive nature; night lights of helicopters and planes that flewt off towards the east. For me, when still just a kid, this provided a particular sense of uncertainty.

Years, indeed decades have passed. International intervention have brought peace and stability to the Balkans. The perpetrators of these heinous crimes have been delivered to international tribunals. The Balkans are open to Europe and the wind of democracy blows even today on those lands so close to our own. Let’s review briefly the recent history of Kosovo in order to understand how it also can be problematic to that of amateur radio in that part of the world.

We had already spoken long ago, in 2010, in an articleon the various states of the Balkans formed after the dissolution of Yugoslavia. In fact, Kosovo has never been recognized as independent from Serbia, which identifies Kosovo in its legislation, as a Special Administrative Region, thus granted a particular form of autonomy. However, 17 February 2008, the Government of Kosovo unilaterally assigned itself its independence, thus demonstrating its own sovereignty. The first recognition of this authority came from the State of Costa Rica and then 91 other UN member states recognizizing Kosovo as a new independent state, including the United States, Britain, France, and 22 European countries including that of Italy; with the exception of Russia and China, nations with veto power in the Security Council of the United Nations, and for these Kosovo can not currently be accepted among the countries of the UN.

In 2008, the UN decided to place the territory under the jurisdiction of a controlling body and rather than from a military base, but that of a civilian authority, moving the population towards a defined international solution. The EULEX mission, as it’s called, ended September 10 of last year, the ISG (International Steering Group) has ceased its activities stating that Kosovo has acquired full sovereignty. However, we are somehow in the presence of a unilateral decision on the part of those countries that originally recognized, as early as 2008, the sovereignty of the Kosovars. Remaining still, however, are vetoes of other countries and the opposition of Serbia which would rather include Kosovo as a territorial region of it’s own with special status.

Having explained the historical events, we can now discuss those aspects of amateur radio that interest us most. Before September 10, to operate from the region of Kosovo was in all respects comparable to operating from Serbia and prefixes used under existing regulations were precisely those as in Serbia. Following the declaration of independence, a team of amateur radio operators under the supervision of the IARU, traveled to Pristina, capital of Kosovo, to encourage and promote the establishment of a regulatory amateur body to facilitate the development of new hams. These individuals are: Hans, PB2T; Nikola, 9A5W and Emil, 9A9A, accompanied by G3TXF, N2BB, MD0CCE, OH2TA and OH2BH as instructors. At this point things continue to move at a slow pace. So, a new regulation has been approved by the government in Pristina, Kosovo. The Amateur Radio Association is founded, SHRAK, with President Ali Sabit, Z61DD and other personal licenses issued. As you’ve already surmised, calls were issued with the Z6 prefix. These days you can now hear on the air the first team ever assigned a call, Z60K.

Well, so far the facts, now a little something to munch on! Kosovo is not one of countries under the UN umbrella, since, as has been said, it has not yet been recognized by all countries with veto authority. To make a comparison with the recent history of South Sudan, the latter declared itself entirely independent the day after final approval by the Assembly of the United Nations. The procedure for assigning a prefix for amateur radio goes hand in hand with the Civil Aviation Authority, with this duty of the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) in tandem agreement with the ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization). The assignment of a prefix goes hand in hand with the recognition of the sovereignty of a new state by the United Nations. Also in comparing with South Sudan, the ST0 prefix was used as a temporary one, but always with the quiet blessing of the ITU needing more time to assign a new prefix, something which then occurred a few months later.

Sure you could then invoke exceptional circumstances to justify the auto assignment of the prefix Z6, examples such as Palestine (E4) or the SMOM (1A), but we need to be clear about that. Palestine, although not part of the UN, received the prefix E4 primarily to identify the Arafat’s aircrafts, not to confuse with the Israelis. So aeronautical motivation that was essential for us amateurs, for the DXCC program. For 1A instead the story is different. The block 1A-1Z is part of a series of prefix to use in case of uncertainty about the status of a territory, 1A was established for the special status of the SMOM, 1B is used for the Turks territories in Cyprus, 1S for Spratly island, always disputes between various Asian powers, 1X for some transmissions by Chechen’s separatist. Then these activities are accepted by DXCC or not does not matter, and depends on the rules of the diploma, but at least they all fall into an unofficial block of prefixes repeatedly used for similar situations.

At this point one may ask what’s going on in Kosovo now… a new country that indeed declared itself independent and, although not recognized by many countries, and still not part of the UN, can not be recognized by the ITU for the assignment of a regular prefix. So, what to do!? One now transmits a prefix not yet assigned, specifically Z6, maybe a prefix of series 1A-1Z would be more correct to use, on a provisional basis.

One wonders at this point if the DXCC desk can accept this possible new country and therefore accredit QSOs with these calls for the oh so famous diploma. Provided that with DXCC there are no shortcuts deferring to the previous discussion. However, having dealt with this in a roundabout way, perhaps it would be prudent to comply with the rules in place, whatever the case may be!

The above is a simple argument which I would gladly push aside for the sake of others using sensible reasoning. And if I’ve got it wrong, I hope you’ll help me to get it right!

http://www.dxcoffee.com/eng/2012/09/26/kosovo-dxcc-entity/

Airlink Express

http://www.airlinkexpress.org/

Airlink Express

INTRODUCTION

Airlink Express is a user friendly digital mode software package for the Amateur Radio Operator. The software is compatible with Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista, and Microsoft Windows 7. It offers PSK, MFSK and RTTY digital modes with logging and macro capabilities. If you have ever used the Digipan software you will be immediately familiar with Airlink Express.

With the release of Windows Vista and Windows 7, Microsoft introduced a new sound architecture. Airlink Express is developed to support this new sound architecture, yet it maintains complete backward compatibility with Windows XP. Airlink Express brings back the familiar volume slider interface you've become used to from older Windows versions.

The DSP engine used in Airlink Express is MMVari by Makoto Mori, JE3HHT. This engine is very flexible and decodes as well, if not better, than any other soundcard mode engine currently available. It is used by many other software products like Logger32 and the N1MM contest logger.

FEATURES

These are just some of the features available in Airlink Express:

Automatic Multi Channel Display with PSKReporter capability

Country, Continent, Distance and Bearing Information

PSK, QPSK, MFSK and RTTY

Radio Control (CAT)

Center Bandpass Tuning

True FSK Keying

Macros

Bandpass Filters

Logging with ADIF Import and Export

Replay Last 60, 30, or 15 Seconds

Error free sending and receiving text and binary files (using ARQ)

SCREENSHOTS

As you can see from the screenshots below, Airlink Express has a very familiar look and feel to people who are used to the Digipan software.

When you turn on the advanced features, like multi channel decoding and the extra log bar, the screen changes somewhat, but is still intuitive.

The logbook appears when you click on the logbook icon.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

The minimum system requirements are based on my own tests. Airlink Express may be able to run on an even slower processor or even less memory, but I have no means to test that.

Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 3, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows 7, or Microsoft Windows 8

(Several people have indicated that they are able to run Airlink Express on Windows 2000 Service Pack 4, and even older versions of Windows.)

Processor: 1GHz or better

Memory: 512Mb or more

Storage Space: 10 Mb

Other: Microsoft .Net Framework 2.0

(Airlink Express will install this for you, if needed.)

Internet connection (only if Airlink Express needs to install .Net Framework 2.0.)

SUPPORTED RADIOS FOR COMPUTER CONTROL

Airlink Express will work with any radio. However, Airlink Express can only read the frequency and mode from the following radios for logging purposes. Please contact me if you would to have a radio added that is not on the list below.

Icom: IC-271, IC-275, IC-375, IC-471, IC-475, IC-575, IC-7000, IC-703, IC-706, IC-706MkII, IC-706MkIIG, IC-707, IC-718, IC-7200, IC-725, IC-726, IC-728, IC-729, IC-735, IC-736, IC-737, IC-738, IC-7400 , IC-746Pro, IC-746, IC-751A, IC-756, IC-756Pro, IC-756ProII, IC-756ProIII, IC-7600, IC-761, IC-765, IC-775, IC-7700, IC-78, IC-7800, IC-781, IC-820, IC-821, IC-910, IC-970, IC-1271, IC-1275, IC-R10, IC-R20, IC-R71, IC-R72, IC-R75, IC-R7000, IC-R7100, IC-R8500, IC-R9000, IC-R9500

Yaesu: FT-100, FT-450, FT-747, FT-817, FT-840, FT-847, FT-857, FT-890, FT-897, FT-920, FT-950, FT-1000MP, FT-2000, FTdx9000

Kenwood: All radios that support CAT control

Elecraft: K2, K3

TenTec: Orion I, Orion II

Flex Radio: Flex-1500, Flex-3000, Flex-5000A, Flex-5000C

DOWNLOAD

It is very easy to install Airlink Express. Just download the setup program to a directory on your computer, run it and follow the instructions. The installer allows you to update from prior versions and will convert the log, macros and settings for you. 

Always make a backup copy of your log (use log export function) before upgrading to a new version!

To uninstall Airlink Express, either do this from the Add/Remove Programs applet in the Control Panel or run the uninstall program from the start menu.

TIPJAR

If you would like to make a monetary contribution in support of Airlink Express to help defray some of the cost of licensing fees, web site hosting, etc, or just to say "Thank You", you can toss me a few shekels via PayPal by clicking on the "PTT" button below:

Your support is greatly appreciated!

73,

--Alex KR1ST

http://www.airlinkexpress.org/

Pileup Runner 1.1 beta

http://www.dxatlas.com/PileupRunner/

Pileup Runner 1.1 beta

Pileup simulator for Windows 95/98/ME/NT4/2000/XP/Vista/7-32bit/7-64bit.
This program is for DX-pedition operators, not for DX'ers.
Download Pileup Runner FREEWARE

QUICK START //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1. Start the program. 2. If you have more than one audio device in your system, click on Settings / System in the menu and select the device to use in the Output Audio Device drop-down list. Click on OK. It is recommended that you use your headphones instead of the speakers, this makes copying CW much easier. My own machine has two soundcards, one feeds the speakers for Windows sounds, music, etc., the other one feeds the headphones and is used by all of my Ham applications. 3. Press F9 to start the audio. While the audio is running, click on Settings / Radio in the menu, and adjust Audio Gain and CW Pitch. Now press F1 to start transmission, and adjust the Sidetone Gain and Keyer Speed settings. Click on Run / Stop Pileup in the menu to stop the audio. You can keep the Radio Settings dialog open if you want, and change the settings on the fly while working the pileup. 4. You are ready to work the pileup. Click on Run / Start Pileup, click on OK to accept the default parameters of the pileup, and the DX'ers will start calling you right away. Copy and type in a callsign and press the ";" key on the keyboard to send the call and 599. Once the DX'er answers, press "." to send TU UP and write the QSO to the log. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // PILEUP SETTINGS //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Pileup Settings dialog that opens when you start a pileup allows you to set the parameters of the pileup. DX-pedition Callsign: Enter any callsign you want there. Operator's Callsign: Be sure to enter your own home callsign in this field. Number of Callers: Enter a value between 1 and 1000. One of the advantages of a simulated pileup is that all of its characteristics, such as the number of calling stations and signal strength of each station, are always known. Using this software, you will quickly learn how to determine the actual number of callers in the pileup just by looking at the waterfall display. Average SNR, dB: This is a parameter that you can change to simulate different propagation conditions. The values between 3 dB and 30 dB are accepted. 30 dB sounds like 10m in 1978, while 3 dB sounds more like 160m in 2012. The SNR is computed the same way as in CW Skimmer. Difficult Continent: Select either AS, EU, or NA as difficult continent (SA, AF and OC always count as difficult). The signals from the difficult continents are weaker than from the easy ones, but a QSO with such continent adds 3 points to your score, while a normal QSO gives you only 1 point. Session Length: Enter the length of your session, in minutes. The pileup will stop automatically after the time entered in this field. Of course, you can click on Pileup / Stop to terminate the session at any time and get your score. Record I/Q WAV file: If this checkbox is ticked, the program records your session in the I/Q format that can be played back in CW Skimmer and many other SDR programs. 48 kHz of spectrum are recorded. Practice/Competition: Only the Practice mode is currently implemented. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // NAVIGATION //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Pileup Runner has the same waterfall display as CW Skimmer, and its navigation commands are a subset of the Skimmer commands. Use the PageUp and PageDown keys to scroll the display one page up or down. Click on the waterfall display or on the frequency scale to tune the receiver to the frequency under the mouse cursor. The button with arrows near the frequency display, when clicked with the left and right mouse buttons, performs the PageUp and PageDown commands respectively. The green rectangle on the frequency scale represents the passband of your receiver with the light green triangle marking the center frequency. Drag the passband rectangle with the mouse vertically to change the bandwidth of your filter. The red triangle marks your transmit frequency, the pileup starts 1 kHz above it. Unlike CW Skimmer, the Runner has a second, slow waterfall display. The mouse clicks on that display work the same way as on the main display. You can change the width of the slow display, or hide it completely, by dragging the splitter between the display and frequency scale. Drag the frequency scale vertically with your mouse to see the signals above and below the current screen. Drag the waterfall display to the right with your mouse to see the signals that have already scrolled away. This puts the pileup in the pause state, as if you clicked on Run / Pause Pileup in the menu. Click on Pause Pileup to resume the session. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // SENDING MESSAGES //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The messages can be sent either by clicking on the buttons under the callsign input box, or by pressing the F keys. The following messages are supported: F1 = QRZ DE <my_call> UP F2 = 599 F3 = TU UP F4 = <my_call> F5 = <his_call> F6 = NIL F7 = AGN The mapping between the F keys and the messages can be changed in the Settings dialog. The following shortcuts are easier to use than the F keys, epecially for those with keyboarding skills: '\' = QRZ DE <my_call> UP ';' = <his_call> + 599 '.', '+', '[', ',', <Ins.> = TU UP + <Write to log> To abort transmission, press the Escape button. To clear the callsign input box, press Ctrl-W or Alt-W. To write the QSO to the log, press Enter, or click on the Save button. If the callsign in the Callsign box has changed after it was sent last time, the '.', '+', '[', ',' and <Ins.> keys automatically re-send the callsign before finishing the QSO. HINT: To answer a call quickly, you can type in the callsign prefix and press the ";" key. While the program is sending the prefix, type in the rest of the callsign. The ESM (Enter Sends Message) mode allows the operator to perform different tasks at different stages of the QSO by pressing the same key (<Enter>). This mode can be turned on and off in the Settings dialog using the ESM checkbox. At the initial stage, when the Callsign box is empty, the <Enter> key sends the QRZ message. Once the callsign is entered, the same key sends his callsign + 599. After you copy the "exchange" and press the space key, <Enter> sends TU UP and writes the QSO to the log. The message buttons corresponding to the current function of <Enter> have red labels. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // LOGGING //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The log panel shows the last 5 QSO, including the time, callsign, frequency, continent, SNR and a QSO status symbol. The following status symbols are used: + Valid QSO, 1 point * Valid QSO, 3 points - Incorrect callsign (0 points). The correct one is shown in the braces. (space) The QSO is not in the correspondent's log: either he is still copying your message, or he is waiting for your final TU, or the call you have entered is completely wrong and there is no such station in the pileup. The full session log is saved in the ADIF format at the end of the session, in case you want to use your favourite log analysis tools to generate statistics, or perhaps do some research. The results of every session are added to the History file, a plain text file that can be opened using the File / History command. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // DATA FOLDERS //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Since Windows no longer allows the programs to write in their own folder, Pileup Runner stores its data in a special data folder designated by Windows. The location of this folder is different on every machine. Use the menu commands under Files to open the folders containing the I/Q WAV recordings and ADIF logs, and to access the History file. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // DXERS' CALLSIGNS //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The list of DXers' callsigns has been produced by Michael G7VJR from his ClubLog data (MNI TNX!). These are real calligns of the real DX'ers who worked a certain minimum number of DX-peditions in the last few years. Be prepared to hear many familiar calls in the pileup! You can even work yourself if you are lucky enough. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // DSP CHAIN //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ When the program generates the audio for you and plots the waterfall display, it does not cheat. The I/Q stream containing all signals is generated first, then this stream is processed by the code similar to that in CW Skimmer, as if it were received from a radio. The processing includes filtering, AGC, FFT, key click canceling, etc. This ensures that the quality of the audio and waterfall graphics is the same in a simulation and on the air. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // PILEUP BEHAVIOUR //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The simulated pileup tries to model many features of the real pileups. The DX'ers copy your signals most of the time, but sometimes they cannot copy their own call, or accept an incorrectly sent call, or miss your transmission completely. You will notice that they use all kinds of variations on the "599 TU" theme, from plain "599" to something like "BK DE XX0XXX TU 599 599 GL 73 DE XX0XXX TU E E". Be patient and do not send your final TU until your correspondent finishes sending his message, or you may end up being not in his log. The DX'ers do their best to work you, but their skill levels are different. Some of them just keep calling blindly on the same frequency in a hope that you will eventually tune at their signals, some at least monitor their own TX frequency and QSY when necessary to ensure that their signal is more or less in the clear, but there are also experienced DX'ers who try to figure out your listening frequency, and they often succeed in this. As soon as your correspondent sends 599 to you, some of the experienced DX'ers know where you are listening, and tune to, or near, that frequency. Do not listen on the same frequency for too long, unless you want to have half of the pileup squeezed in the passband of your receiver. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // TIPS AND TRICKS //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Since Pileup Runner has the same waterfall display as CW Skimmer, you can use all tricks that you would use if you were running a pileup with the Skimmer. Here are a few for you to try. The QSO with the difficult continents are more valuable than with the easy ones, which is also true for a real DX operation. Since you get 3 points for a difficult continent, you can spend up to 3 times more time on such QSO and still have a better score. Find a 3-point station on the waterfall visually while your correspondent is sending 599 to you, then click-to-tune to that station while you are sending TU UP. Look for the weak signals on the waterfall as these are often 3-point stations. Learn to read Morse Code visually on the waterfall. With some practice, you will be able to visually copy all signals that you can copy aurally, including the high-speed and very weak ones. This skill has multiple uses, from finding the 3-point stations to verifying the calls you copy by the ear, to making a QSO with a station that is not even in your passband. Indeed, you can copy the callsign visually and answer the station, then copy his 599, again visually, and save the QSO to the log, all without hearing the station. If you use this technique to work a station a few kHz away from where you are listening, those who are chasing your QSX frequency will move there (well, at least some of them), allowing you to work a few more stations in the clear. Do not neglect the Page Up command. The pileups are often much thinner near the top than at the bottom, be sure to page through the whole pileup and always work in the areas with a low concentration of the callers. As has already been said, staying on the same listening fequency for more than a feq QSO is a sure way to cause problems to both your callers and yourself. Even if you did not have time to find a good new frequency in advance, just tune 2-3 kHz up or down, this requires only a single mouse click on the waterfall. The slow waterfall available in Pileup Runner may give you a rough idea of where in the pileup the density of the stations is low. Never send AGN: many impatient callers consider it a synonym of QRZ. //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ // BETA FEEDBACK //------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Remember that this is a beta, many design decisions are not final yet, and your feedback can make a difference. Please send your comments to alshovk@dxatlas.com 73 Alex VE3NEA

http://www.dxatlas.com/PileupRunner/

XX9TTT, Coloane Island, MACAU, AS-075

http://www.mdxc.org/xx9ttt/

COLOANE ISLAND

Coloane is one of the two main islands of the Macau Special Administrative Region, located directly south of Macau’s other main island, Taipa, and east of Hengqin Island of Zhuhai in Guangdong province.

Coloane was known in Cantonese as Gau Ou Saan; the Portuguese name is derived from the Cantonese pronunciation of Gwo Lou Waan (過路環, lit. “Passing-road Ring”).

Coloane has an area of 8.07 km² (4-km long) and is 5.6 km from the Macau Peninsula. It is connected to Taipa by a 2.2 km land-fill bridge, the Estrada do Istmo, however land reclamation has physically connected the two islands and a new town called Cotai has been built between Taipa and Coloane, which is home to the Cotai Strip and many other casinos under development.

The narrowest part of Coloane is 300 metres. The highest points in Macau are eastern and central Coloane, with the highest point being the 171-metre Alto de Coloane. The northern shore of the island is 4.5 m deep, and is the site of the Macau Deepwater Port. The eastern Hac Sa Beach and the southern Cheoc Van Bay are popular swimming beaches. At Baía de Hác Sá there is a Portuguese restaurant called “Fernandos”, famous amongst locals in Macau and tourists from Hong Kong.

From the Song Dynasty onwards and until the Portuguese arrival in 1864, Coloane was a sea salt farm for China. After their arrival, the Portuguese made Macau an important trading port, but Coloane remained deserted, which was used as a base by pirates until 1910. The island has become more populated after the Estrada do Istmo was finished in 1969.

EQUIPMENT

TenTec OMNI VII + Heil Sound headphone

Acom 1000

Spiderbeam for 15m + vertical dipole for 20 m

QSL INFO

You can send your QSL-card via BUREAU or DIRECT.

QSL manager: Antonio Cannataro IZ8CCW

Antonio Cannataro

Via Don Minzoni 24

87040, Marano Marchesato – CS -Italy

To receive XX9TTT QSL-card is required an appropriate SASE or SASE+IRC or SAE+$ (USD) for direct mail return.

Consider that in Italy postage rate for letters are:

€ 0.75 for 20 gr. letter to Europe;

€ 1.60 for 20 gr. letter to USA;

€ 2,00 for 20 gr. letter to Oceania & South America.

QSLs without an appropriate contribution will be answered via bureau.

If you send your QSL via direct, please don’t send also via bureau and vice versa.

Thank you so much!

http://www.mdxc.org/xx9ttt/

The State of DXing, DX Stories by Paul, VE1DX

http://www.ve1dx.net/Stories/story120.html

The State of DXing

From the 23 May 1979 issue of The West Coast DX Bulletin by Hugh Cassidy, WA6AUD

Often when one collects a reasonable number of DXCC counters, possibly a bare minimum of three hundred or so, the time is right for some contemplation of the State of DXing and the parlous future of it. Last week one of the local QRPers came steaming up the hill to demonstrate, placards and commotion and everything else, all this being one of our fine old California traditions.

“I’m here to protest the ranks of DXers infiltrated by the Undeserving,” the QRPer proclaimed, “it is high time to stop the slide to anarchy and return to the good days we had when Gus Browning and Don Miller were really producing some real rare DX.” We had to know more.

“I’m talking,” the QRPer roared on, “about the fellow who comes in on top of a DX station to advise some of the other stations that he is out of the band. And there is the fellow who comes in right on top of the DX station’s frequency to ask where he is listening, and asking this usually when there is a wild uproar going on twenty kaycees up the band. And the idiot who keeps asking for QSL information even though it is given and repeated about every 5 QSOs. Can’t these jerks listen?”

We were beginning to understand things a little and suspected this QRPer was really working the DX these days and also doing a lot of listening. “Anything else,” we inquired, hoping to soothe the throb of indignation, but he was not finished . . . yet. “And don’t forget the one who comes on the DX frequency to endlessly ask the DX’s location. Even the obvious ones they ask about. What’s wrong with these fellows, anyways?” Son of a Gun, what could we say to all this when everyone knows that these things do happen. But we had a true-blue Deserving type who asked questions needing answers and obviously worried about how the State of DXing was going.

“Sometimes we hear similar things on the two-meter repeaters,” we said, “maybe not exactly the same, but the same tactics. Why do you suppose they are there?” The QRPer put down his sign to lean on it and think. “The only thing I can figure,” he said, is that they are doing it to disrupt things,” and we knew that he soon would be quieting down. “Don’t you think that maybe they are doing the same thing on twenty that they are doing on two?” we asked, “and that every reaction they hear is an encouragement to try harder.”

It was startling but still a pleasure to see the changes come. The QRPer smashed his sign against the ground, retaining only the handle. “You are right”, he said, “and from now on I will be quiet but saving this club should I meet up with one personally.” And with that he started down the hill, but stopped before going too far. “Tell me”, he said, “How did you ever figure that out?”

Actually we didn’t. “The Old Timer had to advise us on this,” we admitted, “he did this years back. About the time Gus Browning and Don Miller were out on their trips.” For actually though the characters change, the theme is often repeated and encouraged. It’s one of the Mysteries of the Ages and the Eternal Enigmas of DXing! 

http://www.ve1dx.net/Stories/stories.html

DX Stories by Paul, VE1DX

Written in the style of my friend, Hugh Cassidy, WA6AUD (SK)

      The stories below are based on the characters and writing style developed by Hugh Cassidy, WA6AUD (SK) , the editor of the West Coast DX Bulletin from 1968 until 1979.   I never met Hugh Cassidy in person, but we spoke many times on the telephone and exchanged numerous letters.  In November 1996, Hugh Cassidy sent me his entire collection of WCDXB files, all original copies totalling about 550 issues.  For that, I am eternally grateful and I thank WA6AUD for allowing me to be the custodian of over a decade of his contributions to DXing and amateur radio.

    While I’m no Hugh Cassidy, I found it easy to copy the writing style and use the characters he’d invented in the WCDXB to get my message across.  Now and then, an interesting, controversial, or just plain funny topic surfaces in the DX world.  If I have the time and inclination, I write about it

      Hugh Cassidy, or “Cass” as he was commonly referred to, began the West Coast DX Bulletin 1968.  It has been reported that he did this, in part, as an effort to explain Don Miller, W9WNV, to the DX community.  While this may be partially true, Hugh told me “Our arrival on the scene was more coincident than an attempt to jump into the Don Miller dispute.”  Nonetheless, Hugh was a straight shooter on that topic.  In the late sixties, the WCDXB reported the Miller saga in a neutral manner.  Unlike other publications of the day, Hugh made no attempt to editorialize the issue or give it any spin.  In later years, he did make his feelings known on W9WNV in true Cass style.

     WA6AUD published the WCDXB for 11 years, every week, without missing one . . . and he and his XYL Virginia did it alone!  That’s right, a two person publishing team who used the cover “The Marin County DX Group.”  At its peak, the WCDXB had a circulation of 3200 . . . 2600 in the US, Canada and Mexico and 600 overseas.  This was all done by hand by these two people!  Their equipment in the shack consisted of a MULTILITH 1250 offset printing press, a big camera and a processor for making the paper printing plates.

     The WCDXB had the usual DXpedition information and propagation forecasts, etc.  However, what made it unique was Cass’s editorial every week where he put a humorous spin on the DX events of the day.  He did this by inventing a unique writing style, along with a number of fictitious characters that argued about DXing, DXpeditions and almost anything else that was controversial at the time.  In the limelight were the Local QRPers.  They were not QRP operators in the true sense . . . in fact many of them had respectable linears and a few even had monobanders to go with the extra power.  They were deemed to be DXers with country totals somewhere between 100 and 150.  They had enough experience to ask the right questions, but never really understanding the answers.  The Locals had the interest, energy and motivation.  They wanted to know everything about DXing, and they were the ones who were always seeking the true meaning of DX IS, trying to understand the Mysteries of the Ages, the Inevitable Truths and the Eternal Enigmas of DXing.

     The Old Timer knew everything about DX and DXing.  He had everything worked, and had grown up with amateur radio.  It was rumored he was there when the first DXCC QSO was made in 1945.  He never tired of DXing and was always ready for the next new one.  The old Timer had all the answers, but it was difficult to get him to share them with the QRPers.  The Old Timer was both patient and impatient at the same time, realizing that in many cases if you had to ask the question, you wouldn’t understand the answer!  Sunspot Louie watched the solar flux and the Ap index.  His cousin, Red-Eyed Louie, was forever spending long days and nights tuning the bands . . . he always knew where the DX was, when it was on, etc.  His legendary red eyes came from scanning the dials looking for DX to report, and, more recently, from watching DX Cluster screens.  There was the Legion of Handwringers, the malcontents who were forever finding something to worry and complain about.  The Hero of Mafeking, a relative of Baden Powell, was always around prior to DXpeditions warning the Deserving DXers to “Be prepared!”

     The Palos Verdes Sundancers were the ones who brought on the solar cycles . . . they first appeared near the bottom of Cycle 20 when QST was reporting the possibility of another Maunder Minimum.   There was historical evidence that there was a time some hundreds of years ago when there were no sunspots for a period of about seventy years.  This fact was discovered by someone named Maunder, hence the name.   In order to prevent such a dire reoccurrence, the Palos Verdes Sundancers got out their grass skirts and the big bass bongo, Big DX, and danced up the sunspots every 11 years or so.  The problem with the Sundancers was that after they got the flux up, they lost interest and stopped dancing  This plunged us into another cycle minimum and they had to be coaxed into doing it all over again.

     Terms such as The Great Days of DXing, Only The Deserving, Be a Believer, and of course DX IS! all came from the wit and wisdom of Hugh Cassidy and the WCDXB.  We still hear these phrases today being used by seasoned DXers and newcomers alike, some perhaps not even aware of their origin.  Nevertheless, they have become part of the DX experience, jargon exchanged by true-blue DXers in their quest for just one more new one!

     In 1979, Hugh Cassidy decided to cease publication of the WCDXB.  In his own words, “In simple truth, the bulletin was taking all our time every day of the week.  There were times when I would work until two or three in the morning on the bulletin and then go right back to work when we arose in the morning.”  When Hugh ceased publication, there were other editors who claimed they were the successor to Cass.  This is not entirely true.  Again, in Hugh Cassidy’s own words: “On the WCDXB, I was the only editor.  I ran its course and knocked it on the head when I got to the point where I had to end it.  If some say they are the successor, it is not quite true.  One group wanted to buy the mailing list, I sold that.  I never did sell the bulletin.”

     Finally, I will mention that, to my knowledge, WA6AUD is the only person ever elected to the CQ Magazine DX Hall of Fame who was not a DXpeditioner.  He was so honored because of his literary contributions to DXing.  And this honor was well deserved.  Absolutely.

     We miss the WCDXB.  WA6AUD’s legacy lives on in the minds of the Deserving True-Blue DXers, who, for the most part, have come to understand the true meaning of DX IS!  Cass made us laugh at ourselves.  He made us think about DXers and DXing!  He showed us our strengths and weaknesses, and most of all, he made us better DXers.

73/DX Paul, VE1DX

DX Stories

Dash-L	QRPer and The Net	Sounds Like Fun!	QSL Questions	6-Metre Radials
Old and the New	Who's on CW?	Generally Speaking	Past The Equinox	CW a Digital Mode?
DX Maybe	CQ Hamster	Vote Carefully!	Full Calls Only	DXCC Uncertainty
5NN TU	The Pot-Stirrer	QSL Rules	QRZ Europe	DXers are Different
Knowledge/Danger	Four is Enough!	A Long Time	DXing's Golden Days	Slip of the Tongue
Have and Have Not	The DX Cat	Busted Calls	About Nothing?	CQ Contest
QRZ de M0ON?	Delete Them All!	My Way!	Five and Nine	DX Advice
Third-Party Traffic	The Gambler	Wannabes	Understanding QSLs	Beacon DXing
Sticker Collector	A Moveable Feast	Plate Voltage	Perspective	Progress!
Where is Cycle 23?	Closer to the DX	Be Prepared	Cognitive DXing!	Burma Everywhere!
Maltese Manager	Top Band Spots	To Delete or Not	The Fall Classic	The Old Refrain
What a Difference	The Computer	Excuse Number 9!	A Rare Country	68 Feet!
The Early Days	Point of Reference	Einstein Knew	The Flux is 65!	WPX IS!
SPAM	The QRPer's Cousin	Cluster Secrets	Winners and Losers	Whistling Dixie
Where is That Call?	Where's the P5?	We Lost It!	UP UP UP	Spare Time!
Unified Field Theory	Birthday	Old Timer Loses It!	Top Band DXing	DX IS! (Maybe)
The DXNDD!	The Cost of QSLing!	Slim's QSL Manager	Propagation	The BS7H QSL
The Rocky Road	RTTY DX IS!	Romeo in P5	The Sundancers	QRZ on 6-Metres?
Packet Clusters	New Propagation	Missed It!	Only the Deserving	LBA DXers' Guild
Lists and QSLs	Working 5A1A	Scarborough	High Voltage	F-18 Hornets
Computer Logging!	Exclusive Club	East Coast Bob	If You Worked It	DX Was!
DXCC Rules!	That Last One!	Burma Road	Minimum Blues	BS7H Scarborough
Be Prepared!	Another DXCC?	Ask the Old Timer!	5A1A Counts!	The Eternal Enigmas
It Doesn't Sink In	I Remember Don**	How Don Did It **	VU4 is hard	Information Overload
Not in the Log	The State of DXing**	The Good Old Days	The Young and the Restless	On Strike!
Twiddling	QRX - Never!	A New Award	Hard To The Right!	Sell Low and Buy High
Feedback Loops

  ** Written by Hugh Cassidy, WA6AUD