I agree with Buddy (below).  It's the magic of radio that keeps many of
us in the hobby -- even those of us who don't get on the air all that
much.

And the Internet is a wonderful adjunct to radio, as Buddy says.  (I
must confess, though, that when the Internet was a lot more "geeky" --
when it was noncommercial, the amateur radio newsgroups such as
"rec.radio.amateur.misc" made far more pleasant readings -- posts were
on-topic and there weren't continual political arguments and
name-calling -- Buddy remembers those days.)

I think that what we (the ham community *and* the FCC) are going to have
to realize is that there *are* no magic bullets to ensure that ham radio
progresses or even stays alive as a hobby.  it's up to each one of us to
do our bit.

I, too, would have to see the CW requirement go -- but it's a-comin'.
Got an ARRL bulletin on that the other day.  CW works when nothing else
will.  But people have forgotten.  Ah well.

73!

Mike Freeman <[log in to unmask]>
Amateur Radio: K 7 U I J

----- Original Message -----
From: "Buddy Brannan" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, October 14, 2001 8:58 AM
Subject: Re: radio


> Peter A Goodhall said the following on Sun, Oct 14, 2001 at
09:47:09AM -0400:
> > 1. it costs a lot of money
>
> Doesn't have to. It costs a lot of money if you insist on buying new
> gear. It costs a lot of money if you cannot be ingenious about getting
> your equipment. Building antennas, perhaps building a kit, finding
> good bargains at ham fests. But yes, if you insist on commercial
> antennas, rotators, and towers, and brand-new gear, it is
> expensive. However, lots of folks have, and lots more will, get on the
> air without much cash outlay at all.
>
> > 2. young people can speak to people in vk on there mobile phone
>
> You just try calling some random number in VK-land and chat with the
person
> who answers the phone. They'll probably think you're a nut, you
> probably won't get much of a conversation out of them, and you'll
> spend even more money on your mobile phone bill than you would have
> done on your radio gear in the first place.
>
> > 3. The internet
>
> Hardly. The Internet is a completely different beastie from ham
> radio. Sure, if you look at ham radio as simply a hobby wherein people
> can chat with people they happen to find, you're likely to find that a
> lot of those don't want the hassle (albeit a small one, these days) of
> studying for a ham license. But someone pointed out that when the
> no-code license came around here, folks got into it for communications
> ease, then found cheap mobile phones and Internet access and lost
> interest. What we have to realize and come to grips with, is that ham
> radio is *not* *just* a communications hobby. It's much, much broader
> than that. Radio is magic. Radio is an amazing thing. The ones that
> will carry this hobby forward are those who love radio, want to learn
> about radio, are interested in its history (technically and otherwise)
> and are also interested in pushing its boundaries into the
> future. So yeah, a lot of us like to communicate with our radios, but
> we like to do so for the radio, and not so much for the communication
> for its own sake, if you get what I mean. Not to say we don't like
> communication for its own sake, but that isn't enough, really. Hams
> are hams because, plain and simple, they love radio. And I'd hardly
> say the Internet is the death of ham radio. Look at all the neat ways
> hams use the Internet! EQsl's, DX spotting, the Internet Radio linking
> Project (www.irlp.net), mailing lists. Need I say more?
>
> > 4. it is hard passing the exam for a ticket
>
> *ROFL* Since when?
>
> > 5. there is no adversing of amateur radio
>
> Eh? Perhaps you mean advetising. And on this I would agree. We
> absolutely need more widespread and effective PR. What the hell is
> this ham radio thing anyway? I couldn't agree with this point
> more. Part of the problem is that, while we love ham radio, we don't
> know how to most effectively promote it. I know I don't. What do you
> say when someone asks you what ham radio is? I know I can't properly
> answer the question in 25 words or less. It's a broad and
> far-encompassing activity, and it's *not* what you're likely to bill
> it to people as--solely communication--as the Internet and your mobile
> phone, as you say, accomplish that gol fine for a lot of folks. So
> that's the trick: How do we tell people about the magic of radio so
> they understand and are excited by it?
>
> I've noticed a decrease in activity on the HF bands myself, at least,
> a little bit. I'm not sure if it's real decrease, radio conditions, or
> nostalgia for my first years ass a ham in the last solar cycle kicking
> in, but hard numbers would definitely be interesting to look at, I
> think. It's at least interesting to note that QRP is very popular
> these days, and cw doesn't seem to be going away, in spite of some
> people's best efforts. I sure hate to see it go as a testing
> requirement. (Sigh) If there is indeed a decline in activity and it
> isn't just radio conditions or nostalgia, I'm inclined to agree with
> Howard--the license is getting so easy to get, people aren't placing
> as much value on it. It's at least interesting that the restructuring
> hasn't been the hoped-for magic bullet to swell our numbers...but I'm
> sure somebodies had already figured it wouldn't be.
>
> 73,
> --
> Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV    | From the pines down to the projects,
> Email: [log in to unmask] | Life pushes up through the cracks.
> Phone: (972) 276-6360    | And it's only going forward,
> ICQ: 36621210            | And it's never going back.--Small Potatoes
>
>