Slash AE !

[raybiker73]

I had to do some road tripping for work today, and I had noticed that one of the towns I would be in was having a testing session. I'd been wishing that I'd taken my Extra exam back when I took my General, so I went ahead and took it today and passed! It wasn't really as hard as I expected it to be, but some of the math threw me a little bit. Otherwise, clear sailing! So now I just wait for a nice new Extra-class license in the mail from the FCC. Just wanted to share my good news.  :)

[gil]

Congratulations Ray! Welcome to the club  8) LOL.

Gil.

[Jonas Parker]

Good going, Raybiker. I look back on that test as the roughest in my overage memory! Welcome!

[cockpitbob]

Good job Ray.  Now you can quit trying to remember where the General portion ends in all those bands  ;D .

So, now that that's done, what's next?

[raybiker73]

Well, what's next is: keep learning. I want to do more with CW and RTTY and digital, I want to build more of my own antennas and not just dipoles. I want to finish building my RockMite kit and then build something more advanced. I want to know more. Just because there are no more tests to take sure doesn't mean I know all I need to know.  :)

[RadioRay]

Well Done!  If I were to give a recommendation, it would be to learn how to use digital modes, beginning with the most popular: PSK-31.  That is useful in and of itself and will open the door to more special purpose modes.  Naturally, there is every reason to learn the Morse code using the on-line resources.  I can highly the G4FON Koch method software, but Gil has the very recent knowledge of what's on the web for learning morse effectively and it certainly worked for him.

Beck to reading the final book of Hunger Games. It is a highly recommended series, despite my initial misgivings, once begun it's a good read and the movie was actually well done, depicting the first book.


>de RadioRay ..._ ._

[gil]

Hello,

About Morse code, I think the methods remain the same. The Koch method seems to be the most widely used, though it is pretty difficult. I used "Ham Morse" for iPod, and it is a great program. Probably similar to G4FON. lcwo.net helped me quite a bit as well. Now, if there is one word of advise I can give anyone after my experience learning Morse is that you should not go below 15wpm. I now can copy only 7wpm, and there aren't many people answering my calls... I am starting a second round of Koch at 15wpm, but it is a pain to have to do it a second time... For me Morse though is a self imposed requirement and I want to achieve at least 20wpm head-copy. So far it has been much harder than passing all exams at once. If the code requirement had still be in place, I would not be where I am today. I think there should be at least a 5wpm requirement, mind you. Radio just isn't radio without Morse Code. The Ham motto "When all else fails" must have been thought of with CW in mind. Without it, you have only half of the medal...

Gil.

[cockpitbob]

Gil,
I completely agree with what you say about learning Morse.  I would even say to start with character speeds of 20wpm, but letter spacing of for 5wpm.  Our ham club has a guy with a PhD in some kind of brain science and that's how he does his Morse classes.

It really is hard, at least for most of us, because we are litterally learning a new language.  At 5wpm you can use a look-up table in your head.  At 10wpm that falls appart and you need to be hearing letters, not dots & dashes.  This is why the .gov set 13wpm as the next speed requirement.  At 20wpm the sounds need to become syllables, and you need to be hearing whole words, not letters.   If you had an easy time learing a foreign language in school, it won't be that hard.  I had a bastard of a time trying to learn French, which is probably why my progress is slow.  I've been at it for 2years off-n-on.  I can copy 10-15wpm depending on my head's mood. 

[Paul]

Feels good, doesn't it?  Now, if you're ever offered a ride on the shuttle you won't have to apply for a waiver to operate from space.  That's why I got mine you know.  Still waiting for that ride offer...
- Paul

[Sunflower]

Hello,

About Morse code, I think the methods remain the same. The Koch method seems to be the most widely used, though it is pretty difficult. I used "Ham Morse" for iPod, and it is a great program. Probably similar to G4FON. lcwo.net helped me quite a bit as well. Now, if there is one word of advise I can give anyone after my experience learning Morse is that you should not go below 15wpm. I now can copy only 7wpm, and there aren't many people answering my calls... I am starting a second round of Koch at 15wpm, but it is a pain to have to do it a second time... For me Morse though is a self imposed requirement and I want to achieve at least 20wpm head-copy. So far it has been much harder than passing all exams at once. If the code requirement had still be in place, I would not be where I am today. I think there should be at least a 5wpm requirement, mind you. Radio just isn't radio without Morse Code. The Ham motto "When all else fails" must have been thought of with CW in mind. Without it, you have only half of the medal...

Gil.

Glad there is so much enthusiasm for CW. That is the attraction for me.  I have not tried copying yet. 20wpm with pencil was not too much a problem after some reviews. I have only touched on a few letters - so keeping up with 20wpm is probably no big deal.

I hope copying with a key will be easier than getting the brain to catch on. In the past, foreign languages were a blast, but due to not using them often, I forgot. I don't think the learning disability I acquired some years ago will turn out to be a problem. CW is more like hearing piano notes than anything - at least for me. Note, I am a poor paino student, but I did acquire a knack for hearing notes, and the hands would would almost automatically go where needed. I hope CW turns out similar - but then again I use to practice a lot when I studied piano (did not keep up practice, can't hardly swing a few songs anymore).

Any other music oriented radio preppers here? Is it my imagination, or does an interest in sounds/music help to acquiring the skill?

[gil]

Hello Tess. It probably does... Unfortunately I never was very good at music. Morse code just will take a long time for me. It is what it is.. I need to practice more, that's for sure. Keep at it!

Good night  :)

Gil.

[RadioRay]

Hi Tess,

I do believe that while musical ability and language ability are not required, that it can be a plus. The ability to learn tempo & etc. make a strong case. I once taught a young lady friend of mine half the Morse code during about a 1  1/2 hour drive.  Now, that WAS exceptional, and though she could not hold a tune , even with a VERY large bucket, she was a professional ballroom dancer, so rythm and format made sense to her.  I'd give her the DAAH DI DAAH DI    and she'd call out "C". Eventually I was spelling words (nice ones...) and she'd tell me the word. She thought that it was 'fun', having never been told that it would be difficult. Come to think of it, she also had reading difficulties, but learned the code easily and retained it.

So - if she was all that keen on radio and on me and learned Morse so well - why are we not together now?  Well, the last contact with her, she stole over $400 out of my bank account, leaving $5 to keep it open. . .  My lawyer said that it would be more trouble than it was worth to go after her and the police were not interested. However, she was extremely pretty   :-*  , so I guess that make it all OK.   :o  Come to think it it, she also told her boss that I was some kind of a terrorist, because I had radios and used 'secret code' (Q-signals.) Fortunately, this was well before 9/11.

Some lessons in Morse are best forgotten .  ha ha

de Ray

[cockpitbob]

Tess, the guy that teaches Morse at out club tells the story of a guy he taught that went from zero to 20wpm in about 6 weeks.  This same guy is a gifted musician and plays multiple instruments at the concert level.