Well said. I use the Perkins braille writer and it sure is easier hi hi. glad you can use the slate and stylus well--it comes in handy for sure! Have fun! 73, Barb [log in to unmask] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Richard WEbb" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Saturday, February 01, 2003 7:12 PM Subject: traffic handling, was races/ares format > HI folks, > > SHe's right, don't worry about the form, just braille it down. > > SInce there's a lot of new no-code blood that's never handled written > traffic, let's discuss what it is, and more importantly why it's a > necessary skill for emergency and disaster communicators. > > WHen handling disaster communications you'e going to need to take down > messages verbatim as sent. Traffic handling refines this skill so it > isn't new to you. > > Oldtimer brass pounders believe they have the superior mode for > handling traffic, and in many ways they do. nO ambiguities can creep > in as they can with phone traffic handling, as one copies what's sent. > aS soon as the cw traffic handler sends nr and a number the station > copies what he hears. Oversimplifying I know, but we'll move on for > now. > > LEt's look at these ambiguities that can creep in on phone. was that > a five or a nine in that address? HOw do you spell JOhnson? OR was > that Johnston? > > Learning to send traffic so as ti make copying easier on phone is also > an acquired skill which gets better through practice. > > I don't have a perkins brailler. I use a slate and stylus and back > myself up with a tape recorder connected to the hf rig when handling > traffic. IF my computer is booted up at the time i copy directly into > a text file. IF copying via slate and stylus, I use grade one > braille. I tried grade three, but decided that ambiguities could > creep in, so I went back to actually a form of grade 0, numbers are > nemeth code,no letter signs or number signs. > > I'll switch to grade two for words sometimes, but usually before > traffic is relayed if it must be I'll recopy it on the computer for > archival and zip a braille copy off on the embosser for reading > on-air. > > THere are some blind folks I know that are regular traffic handlers > who are not braille conversatnt, but it's a lot of work, more than I'd > care to go through. ONe fellow I know copies traffic via tape > recorder, listens to the tape on headphones while dictating it to > another tape recorder so he has clean copy to read on the air. THen > he listens through an earphone while he sends the traffic. > > NOtetaker users probably use a similar technique, listening to their > notetaker's pseech output while sending traffic on the air. AS for > this op, I prefer braille. I weouldn't want to do it without braille. > > SOme other tricks i use for copying traffic: > > I never bother to write down the precedence unless it is other than > routine. OTherwise punching out that r just takes time. For the > handling instructions I never braille the hx part, just the actuall > handling instruction. THe rest of the preamble must be taken down > verbatim, but it allows me some space so I can keep up. > > HOpe that's helpful to some of you. > > IN other words, you don't need the form as much to use for copying > traffic as you need to understand it so all of the parts of the > message are taken down properly and relayed properly. > > 73 de nf5b > > > > > > Richard Webb > > Electric Spider Productions > > "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary > safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." > > --- Benjamin Franklin November 1755 > > > >