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High End Paddles

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Joe-aa4nn

Re: High End Paddles

Varying lengths of dashes?
I surely don't remember that
when I practiced American Morse
circa 1952.
de Joe, aa4nn
---------------------------------------------------------------
> I just wanted to keep the bug
> operation, including the ability to send American Morse (which keyers
> don't
> allow because it requires using varying lengths of dashes) when using
> paddles portable in the field.

> Ron AC7AC
>

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k6dgw

Re: High End Paddles

Well, actually there is one case. Zero is a long dash which I can't
send with my K1EL keyer or my K2.

<www.chss.montclair.edu/~pererat/percode.htm>

As a teen in the mid-50's, my friends and I learned American Morse just
so we could get on 80m at night with each other and confuse others on
the band.

Calling either the landline code or the Continental code "Morse" is one
of the better examples of "Life isn't fair." Sam F. B. Morse's idea was
to have a series of numbered messages and parts of messages in a
dictionary, from which you constructed what you wished to send and then
sent the numbers, and he spent the vast majority of his time compiling
that dictionary. Sam was fairly full of himself, and when he didn't get
enough attention, he would fall ill, often in someone else's bed.

His assistant, Alfred Vail, realized that the clicking and clacking of
the paper tape inker could be used to decode the code and came up with
the alphabet. So, if life were fair, it would have been the Vail code.
Old Sam didn't really "invent" the telegraph either, but that's another
story.

Fred K6DGW
Auburn CA CM98lw

Joe-aa4nn wrote:
> Varying lengths of dashes?
> I surely don't remember that
> when I practiced American Morse
> circa 1952.
> de Joe, aa4nn
> ---------------------------------------------------------------
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k6dgw

Re: High End Paddles

Fred Jensen wrote:
> Well, actually there is one case. Zero is a long dash which I can't
> send with my K1EL keyer or my K2.

Ooops, there are two cases, I forgot about "L". I can't send that with
a keyer either.

Fessing up to that error, I remain,

Fred K6DGW
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Ron D'Eau Claire-2

RE: High End Paddles

Yes, those are the two. Actually the long-dash zero is the only one I use on
the Ham bands. Sounds like that's the case for you too, Hi!

Many Hams have given up and instead use a single dash "T" for a zero on
their keyers, which works OK when heard in context.

My problem is that I can't easily switch between a bug and a keyer. When I
get on a keyer I'll instinctively start leading it so the logic can do all
the timing for me. I'm just telling it what to do; the logic takes care of
doing it right. And it easy to drop back into Iambic keying, which is
wonderfully easy and smooth.

Unfortunately, a Bug can handle neither and make intelligible code <G>.

Ron AC7AC

-----Original Message-----

Fred Jensen wrote:
> Well, actually there is one case. Zero is a long dash which I can't
> send with my K1EL keyer or my K2.

Ooops, there are two cases, I forgot about "L". I can't send that with
a keyer either.

Fessing up to that error, I remain,

Fred K6DGW

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David A. Belsley

Re: High End Paddles

In reply to this post by k6dgw

There are actually a number of cases for longer dashes. With a bug
or SK, for example, one can truly emphasize the "yes" by sending R
with a long dash in the center (di-daahhh-dit). I miss that kind of
personalizing of code. One can also send, rather than the mundane
dah-di-di-di-dah, something like dah - di - di - di -
daahhh, with ease while you're trying to figure what you're going to
say next. That element of code has been greatly removed with the
keyer. But the irrepressible element of the human soul does come
forth through other subtle elements with a keyer. I used a bug for
over 40 years, and now, after long getting used to a keyer, I'd never
go back -- and I'm sure the chap on the other end feels the same
way. The idiosyncratic element to sending with a bug, which almost
all bug users have to some extent, particularly the "bug lilt", can
make for code that is very difficult to copy.

And, by the way, for those who love their Bencher BY's and took
umbrage at my disparaging comments in my earlier posts, I will
express no sorrow at all, but wish them the very best. I envy them
the latitude they have for growth -- if they'll only take it. The
Bencher BY is kind of like the PC of the paddle world. It must be
good because everyone has it, but, in fact, almost everything else is
better.

best wishes,

dave belsley, w1euy

On Jun 16, 2006, at 6:15 PM, Fred Jensen wrote:

> Well, actually there is one case. Zero is a long dash which I
> can't send with my K1EL keyer or my K2.
>
> <www.chss.montclair.edu/~pererat/percode.htm>
>
> As a teen in the mid-50's, my friends and I learned American Morse
> just so we could get on 80m at night with each other and confuse
> others on the band.
>
> Calling either the landline code or the Continental code "Morse" is
> one of the better examples of "Life isn't fair." Sam F. B. Morse's
> idea was to have a series of numbered messages and parts of
> messages in a dictionary, from which you constructed what you
> wished to send and then sent the numbers, and he spent the vast
> majority of his time compiling that dictionary. Sam was fairly
> full of himself, and when he didn't get enough attention, he would
> fall ill, often in someone else's bed.
>
> His assistant, Alfred Vail, realized that the clicking and clacking
> of the paper tape inker could be used to decode the code and came
> up with the alphabet. So, if life were fair, it would have been the
> Vail code. Old Sam didn't really "invent" the telegraph either, but
> that's another story.
>
> Fred K6DGW
> Auburn CA CM98lw
>
> Joe-aa4nn wrote:
>> Varying lengths of dashes?
>> I surely don't remember that
>> when I practiced American Morse
>> circa 1952.
>> de Joe, aa4nn
>> ---------------------------------------------------------------
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
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N2TK

RE: High End Paddles

Dave,
You brought up one point that is important. The person receiving your
sending must be able to copy it. It may sound neat to you to play with dot
and dash length and spacing, but will the other person be able to copy it?
On the other end of the pileup it is sometimes difficult to pull out a call
when the cw doesn't sound like "normal" cw. So you tend to tune out that
signal and pick up another call. Some calls sent with a straight key or bug
are tough to copy.
73,
N2TK, Tony

-----Original Message-----
From: [hidden email]
[mailto:[hidden email]]On Behalf Of David A. Belsley
Sent: Friday, June 16, 2006 8:37 PM
To: [hidden email]
Cc: Elecraft Reflector
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] High End Paddles

There are actually a number of cases for longer dashes. With a bug
or SK, for example, one can truly emphasize the "yes" by sending R
with a long dash in the center (di-daahhh-dit). I miss that kind of
personalizing of code. One can also send, rather than the mundane
dah-di-di-di-dah, something like dah - di - di - di -
daahhh, with ease while you're trying to figure what you're going to
say next. That element of code has been greatly removed with the
keyer. But the irrepressible element of the human soul does come
forth through other subtle elements with a keyer. I used a bug for
over 40 years, and now, after long getting used to a keyer, I'd never
go back -- and I'm sure the chap on the other end feels the same
way. The idiosyncratic element to sending with a bug, which almost
all bug users have to some extent, particularly the "bug lilt", can
make for code that is very difficult to copy.

And, by the way, for those who love their Bencher BY's and took
umbrage at my disparaging comments in my earlier posts, I will
express no sorrow at all, but wish them the very best. I envy them
the latitude they have for growth -- if they'll only take it. The
Bencher BY is kind of like the PC of the paddle world. It must be
good because everyone has it, but, in fact, almost everything else is
better.

best wishes,

dave belsley, w1euy

On Jun 16, 2006, at 6:15 PM, Fred Jensen wrote:

-------------------------------------
david a. belsley
professor of economics

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Ron D'Eau Claire-2

Flexibility (WAS: High End Paddles)

Tony, N2TK, wrote:

You brought up one point that is important. The person receiving your
sending must be able to copy it. It may sound neat to you to play with dot
and dash length and spacing, but will the other person be able to copy it?
On the other end of the pileup it is sometimes difficult to pull out a call
when the cw doesn't sound like "normal" cw. So you tend to tune out that
signal and pick up another call. Some calls sent with a straight key or bug
are tough to copy.

--------------------------

That's a good point Tony. For me it's "Farnsworth" with its crazy spacing
that forces me to listen very carefully to understand it, and even then it
sounds like music being played by someone with the hiccoughs, Hi!

Many of us treat pileups like traffic jams; they're something to be avoided
if at all possible. Not that working DX isn't fun, but swapping call signs
and "599" reports is a bit boring to me. The other evening I tuned across 20
meters and heard nothing going on but a few pileups, so I called CQ on a
clear frequency and Rod, 8P6JD, in Barbados called me. After a nice chat
during which he had me lusting for a swim in the nice warm Caribbean waters
we signed and there was bedlam with stations all around the frequency
blasting away trying to catch Rod. So I moved off to another clear spot and
worked Jonas, LY80R, for another nice QSO about their celebrating 80 years
of Ham radio in Lithuania. After five minutes or we signed and there was
instant bedlam again.

If there's going to be a pileup I find that it's a lot nicer to work 'em
*before* the pileup instead of joining it, but then I'm not chasing any
particular wall paper. I'm equally happy chatting with a guy keeping warm in
Sitka, Alaska or a fellow puzzling over a project across town. In those
situations it doesn't matter if one has to ask for a repeat.

Ron AC7AC

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Brian Mury-3

RE: High End Paddles

In reply to this post by Ron D'Eau Claire-2

On Fri, 2006-06-16 at 11:12 -0700, Ron D'Eau Claire wrote:
> I've often asked for a "bug emulator" mode for the keyer

> I just wanted to keep the bug
> operation, including the ability to send American Morse (which keyers don't
> allow because it requires using varying lengths of dashes) when using
> paddles portable in the field.

At least with the K2, you should be able to connect the dot side to the
dot input, and connect the dash side to both the dot and dash inputs
through a couple diodes, and use the K2's paddle/straight key autodetect
feature to get bug-like keying.

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