Field Day Exchanges - Keep 'em Short and Simple.

During ham radio Field Day 2010 I noticed 8 stations on PSK31 who were using long exchange macros which are really unnecessary. This makes it a bit more difficult for the receiving stations because they can't do a simple "drag and drop" with the mouse. In most cases, I have to go into the log bar in MixW 2.19 and type in the exchange. Also, there is only so much room in the Exch. Rec'd section of the log bar.
Of course, I realize that some of the operators I encountered may have been new to ham radio and mistakes are commonly made, but I think someone at the Field Day site should have been looking over the shoulders of the operators to make sure the exchanges were sent correctly. The objective is to make as many contacts as possible within the 24-hour period. Adding this other stuff just slows things down, especially, for the receiving station. Yes, I know we are out there to have fun operating, but lets look a little bit more like we know what we are doing.
Here are some examples of the exchanges I saw:

1. "We are 7A 7A 7A 7A in MDC MDC MDC MDC". How about shortening it to 7A MDC 7A MDC? This way the receiving station can highlight the whole group of characters 7A MDC instead of picking out 7A out of one group and MDC out of another group. When I run into situations like this, I usually just type in the characters into the log bar because it is just easier.

2. "You are 59. We are 3E. We are with the (club name). The operator did not give me his section. I had to go to my Buckmaster database and find what state he was in to find his section. Furthermore, adding the club name to the exchange is more unnecessary information. The club's eQSL card has the club's name on it, hopefully. Field Day is not the time to advertise your club!

3. "599 599 2A North Carolina 2A North Carolina" can be shortened to 2A NC 2A NC. 599 is not used during Field Day and is not necessary. The receiving station again has to type 2A NC in the Exch. Rec'd section of the log bar instead of the faster "drag and drop" with the mouse.

4. Things like "my exchange is" are not needed in the Field Day exchange. We all know, or should know, that 2A is an operating class and that NC is a section. When I send my exchange, I do this: 1E IL 1E IL DE AA9UF K. I put my callsign on the end because sometimes the receiving station only gets part of my callsign at the beginning of the contact. That way he doesn't have to ask for it to be repeated.

5. Always be sure you know what your section is. One guy sent me SLA as his section. There is no SLA in the ARRL Section List. I had to once again go into my Buckmaster database and check his QTH, which was Louisiana. He sent SLA because he was in southern Louisiana, not knowing that the state was not divided up in any way like some of the other sections are.

6. One station send his callsign in brackets like this . This may have just been a mistake in configuring the macro. Macros can be confusing to write in some programs. I have experimented with a number of them to know. The brackets are not really needed and I have not seen any digital programs in which the callsign is bracketed like that. I guess the guy thought it looked cool or something.

7. Another station sent "1D No. Texas" when 1D NTX is the correct way. Sending your section the way it is written in the ARRL Section List is a big help. That way there is no confusion as to what the section is. Consistency is the name of the game here. Yes, I know that No. Texas means the same thing as NTX but it takes 5 less key strokes to type NTX.

8. Another station sent "1 Alpha Iowa". How about 1A IA instead? I don't know why these stations think they have to spell it all out when nobody else is!

In closing, keeping the exchange short and sweet can gain you and the receiving stations more QSOs and less headaches. Lets try to make next year's Field Day an even bigger success by watching what we are sending. If nobody else is sending information the way you are, chances are you are doing it wrong, so look with your eyes first.

A Little Secret Revealed.

     I had an article published in the March 2010 issue of World Radio On-line. It is entitled "Two Seasoned Hams Help Friend In Need". My long-time friend, Bret, KB8BJA, who is disabled with severe heart problems and failed kidneys, needed somebody to put up a couple of HF antennas for him. He belongs to 3 radio clubs in Cincinnatti, OH. What World Radio edited out was this: He asked all 3 repeatedly over several months from March to August 2009. All 3 said they were "too busy". Yeah? Too busy doing what? Probably too busy playing with their own radio toys to help someone who really needs it. Besides, Bret just has a "lowly" Technician class license, so in their book, he was not "one of them". All 3 clubs should be very ashamed of themselves! They could not travel across town to help my friend but my brother and I could travel across 1-1/2 STATES to do it. We put up a Gap vertical and an Alpha-Delta DX-CC dipole in 1-1/2 days. I am sure the radio clubs appreciated us taking up their slack for them. Is it any wonder that I don't belong to any radio clubs anymore?
     Bret and I used to have a regular schedule on 80 meters CW on Sunday nights if he is feeling up to it but his health is in such decline that he can no longer do it. Sometimes his health issues make him quite exhausted and he sleeps a lot. He is very frustrated that he can no longer work at the age of 50. He is also on a waiting list for a kidney donation. If he could get that, I am sure his health and attitude would change immensely. Dialysis is his only life line right now and it has its side effects. If you have any kind of faith in God, pray for him!
     Since I wrote the above blog, Bret has lost interest in anything HF or upgrading his license.  His biggest stumbling block is the math and the fact that his memory is not so good anymore.  He has made repeated attempts at getting his General ticket.  He is 55 years old now and his health has gotten considerably worse since he was recently diagnosed with COPD and sometimes has to be on oxygen.  About the only thing he does on ham radio now is talk on the local 2 meter repeater.
     Update 9-2-18: Bret does not have an outside antenna for 2 meters or 440 so I am planning to set one up for him sometime in October this year if I get most of my Fall work done and the weather holds.  Now that I am retired, I have more time for such things.

73,

John, AA9UF