On 6/20/2021 7:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
> On Sun, 20 Jun 2021 12:25:53 -0700, Don Y
> <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:
>
>> But, then I thought: "And what am I going to actually *do* with
>> this, given that my waking hours are already spoken for... I'd
>> much rather listen to some good music than hunt for idle chatter!"
>
> Well, ham radio has turned into a direction which I fail to
> appreciate. In the distant past, it was a technical hobby. Hams
> would build their own equipment, exchange (or steal) ideas, and
> discuss their accomplishments when on the air. In high skool, the
Yes. There were economies to be had as well as lessons to learn.
But, nowadays, I doubt you could compete with COTS products in
terms of cost per unit functionality (even if all the "parts"
were free).
A friend of the family tries to get me interested half a century
ago. It was a significant part of his life (I recall his pride when
he got his 4-letter call sign -- W1Asomething or other). He
gave me an old key and a (tube based!) audio tone generator
(built in a wooden box, spray painted silver) in the hope that
I would learn the code. But, it was way too much work for what
it MIGHT give me. (and which 10 year old would want to listen
to beeps and bops instead of be outside playing?)
> electronics instructor encouraged everyone to get into ham radio. I
> think that might have been where I become seriously interested in
> electronics, radio, and later got into commercial radio:
> <http://www.learnbydestroying.com/jeffl/pics/Old%20Repeaters/index.html>
In junior high school, they had a ham shack at one of the
places I studied at. SloScan TV was cool. But, I decided to
pursue computers and another science field, instead (only
so many hours in the program so pick and choose how you're
going to spend them!)
> Today, it's very different. Instead of building or designing
> something, the trend is to buy ready made commercial equipment and
> operate it as part of a sport, contest or service. Much of the
> technical part of ham radio has almost disappeared. There are many
> reasons for this, but the biggest is that the "magic" of talking
> directly to someone half way around the world is gone. All someone
> need do today is pickup a cell phone, which is hardly magic. If you
> want to send a message around the world, nobody is going to get
> excited about doing it on packet radio at about 300 baud maximum on HF
> or 9600 baud on UHF.
Yup. A neighbor had a rig and, years ago, tried to get me interested.
The code requirement had just been dropped. But, again, too many other
interests competing for my time. I can make far more interesting "things"
than he could ever attempt in THAT application domain.
> Idle chatter is a good description of what I hear on radio most modes.
> Long winded monologs might be a better description. In the early days
> of radio, equipment was so bad, that messages had to be repeated
The guy who first tried to get me interested was quite proud of his
QSL card collection. But, he spoke 5 or 6 languages, fluently,
so it was easy for him to get engaged with all sorts of other
hams.
To me, it sort of looked like collecting baseball cards... <frown>
> multiple times. That inspired long winded monologs, which are still
> with us today. Political transmission tend to be even longer. I
> don't bother with these styles, but do try to get involved in
> technical discussions. However, there's a problem. Random visitors
> will rapidly join a technical discussion, contribute nothing useful,
> and usually slow down the exchanges to the point of frustration. So,
> I don't talk much on the air.
>
> I suppose it's a futile effort, but I still do my best to encourage
> those with an interest in building things. Before the pandemic, I
> would give technical talks at meetings of the two local radio clubs
> and local Linux user group. They were generally well received, but I
> could tell that I was going over the heads of most of the attendees.
> It also took me a day or two to prepare for a 1 hr talk, which a bit
> much.
I think "tinkering" has now devolved to "buying subassemblies
(hardware or software) and patching them together".
I can recall building a digital combination lock for my bedroom
when I was a young kid -- using locking relays and time delay relays
harvested from a pinsetter!
Or an interactive football game using analog computers and "logic
boxes".
Nowadays, someone would google the "parts" and paste them together
without understanding how they actually work!
> So, what can you do with ham radio? That depends on what you enjoy
> doing. There are many aspects to choose from. If you find one aspect
> or mode you enjoy, try it. If you find nothing interesting, put the
> license in a picture frame and show it off to those who might find an
> interest in ham radio.
I thought of making an external antenna for a cordless phone system
I have, here. But, by the time I did the math, found the various
components for the aerial, connectors, etc. and assembled the damn
thing, I'd easily have "wasted" more than the $200 I could purchase
a ready-made unit!
One of the hardest things I've found with getting older is disciplining
yourself NOT to do things "just because you can" but, rather, to think
about whether or not that's the way you want your time used.