Translation: Morse code fans sending out an SOS

The Chicago Tribune ^ | March 2, 2006 | John McCormick

[Denver Ditdat]

A century-old hobby filled with dots and dashes is embroiled in a debate about its future and what level of training should be expected of those called on to help during local and national emergencies.

Morse code, a slowly dying language, has become radio's equivalent of Latin: historically important, but increasingly irrelevant in a world of cell phones, computers and instant messaging.

With mariners and the military having moved to other technologies long ago, ham radio operators are virtually the sole practitioners of a technique that made national and international communication possible with the telegraph.

[Denver Ditdat]

One of my favorite ham radio "bumper sticker" quotes is: "CW - The Original Digital Mode".

The FCC is all but certain to drop the Morse requirement for all licenses, IMO. I don't see CW disappearing from the bands any time soon, though - it's just too much fun once an op gains a bit of proficiency. I like to make the analogy that CW is a bit like black powder shooting. Both are examples of old tech that reamins useful and fun in the 21st century.

[Denver Ditdat]

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[Riley]

I've learned it and forgotten it twice now. In high school, I used to have lunch in the Electronics classroom and translate CW off the air for fun. That was in the mid Seventies.

[Graybeard58]

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[WorkingClassFilth]

-../...

[Ruddles]

It's cool, it's quaint, it's more fun than a human being ought to have but a govenment requirement for a ham license? Come on. What about semaphore? It's EMP proof and requires no ionosphere, much less electricity. The blackpowder analogy is apt. Us Geezers will take our bugs, keyers and straight keyers to our graves. Who will carry on ? Who knows, who cares, di-di-di-dah di-dah. Dit-Dit.

[PUGACHEV]

I enjoy CW. It runs in my family: my grandfather was a telegrapher, and he recalled relaying the message "San Francisco destroyed by earthquake" along his line back in the days before "Breaking News!" and CNN. You might be right about the FCC dropping the CW requirement for all license classes, but I like to think they'll keep it for the Extra class. Anyway, I'm glad I got my ticket while the requirement still existed. I'd be sorry to see CW go, but I don't think it'll disappear either. It's too much fun: there's something almost clandestine about making a CW contact, especially on QRP.

[mugs99]

--. . . --.. . .-. ... .-. ..- .-.. .

[manwiththehands]

I used to know MC ... but let's just let it go. We don't need to shoe horses ... and we don't communicate by beating logs with sticks much anymore, either.

[Ruddles]

Mugs, yer spacin' is killin' me.

[shorty_harris]

My first post...

I'm hoping to quickly upgrade to General, just so I can take the code test...

[Army Air Corps]

.-- .... --- / ... .- -.-- ... / - .... .- - / -- --- .-. ... . / -.-. --- -.. . / .. ... / -.. . .- -.. ..--..

[JoeSixPack1]

I've learned it and forgotten it twice now.

Once in the Boy Scouts, once for the fed test.
I guess you really do lose it if you don't use it. :-)

[Enterprise]

D/S ??

[Citizen Tom Paine]

It is my understanding that CW xmission will work in the event of an EMP attack. Does anyone out there know if this is true. I believe that the communication of last resort in the event of a major nuclear attack would be CW.

[Myrddin]

I don't use CW often, but there is a time and place. I had an Icom 22-S in the late 70's that I outfitted with a Western Electric touch tone pad for making autopatch calls. The audio/key path for the touch tone pad was via the connector on the rear of the radio. I was having a conversation with a friend while driving down the road when the mike audio lead broke. I could only key the radio. I reached over to the touch tone pad and explained my predicament in Morse code. We wrapped up the call at that point as it was tricky to drive and tap out CW on the freeway.

[Enterprise]

Spoken like a true geezer.

[kalee]

ping

[FreePaul]

...slowly dying language, has become radio's equivalent of Latin...

I learned Morse Code when I was in the Boy Scouts. It was fun then but I never got to use it. There are a lot of documents written in Latin but I don't know of any written in Morse Code. I don't see the equvalence.

[Myrddin]

It is my understanding that CW xmission will work in the event of an EMP attack.

An EMP attack is a few microseconds at most. The key issue is whether your receivers and transmitters have been cooked by the pulse. Tube based devices will probably survive. Most modern semiconductors will be punctured and useless.