VE2FK
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RTTY Operating tips - 2022/01/12 17:49
RTTY Operating tips for new... and some experienced ops.
Timing is critical, when a station is running (Calling CQ) he / she has their
repeat time set normally between 4 - 8 seconds.. That's the window you have to
print YOUR CALL SIGN. If you send "...WB8XXX de WB8ZZZ you likely will not be
in that window, the running op has to quickly hit esc to try and stop the flow,
normally missing your call anyway. If rates are decent he is going to ignore
you even if you are strong, clicking on calls that are printing inside of that
window instead.
The running op knows his callsign, sending it only wastes time and begs QSB to
garble yours when you finally send it. TU and DE are pleasantries not generally
needed in RTTY contesting. In RTTY and CW TU signifies the end of a qso.
In poor conditions you may invite callers to QRM your exchange by adding it in
the middle of a Q.
For Efficient contest operation make your macro "My Call My Call" If you are
low power, QRP or conditions are tuff add it a 3rd time. If you insist on adding
Fluff to your macro do it AFTER the needed exchange. "599 04 04" should be the
first sent before signals change. If you are low power it is a good idea to make
a macro that repeats the exchange 4 or 5 times "599 04 04 04 04 04 04 "Use it
for repeats.
Change your Macros to follow the herd... if nobody is sending 599 because the
test does not require RST... delete it from yours. Uniformity makes everything
smooth. When you can anticipate what information will be sent and when it's
easier to put Accurate Q's in the log. NEVER send PLEASE COPY or any form of it,
in any mode, in any contest for any reason.
*** New as of July NAQP. Do not put "Tom IN TX" That might work on SSB but there
is actually a state called Indiana with the initials IN... While it looks Cute,
it creates instant confusion. Are you in Indiana or Texas ? (This goes back to
not adding Anything that's not needed)
Please don't send your call and exchange all at once when calling a station.
I suspect the recent surge in this is folks using built in decoders in their
radios. It's great to see them participating but Please install programs like
N1MM and MMTTY on your PC, it will make the experience more pleasurable for you
and the other operators. If you have any setup issues or questions, post'em on
this group. There is a wealth of knowledge here and folks will be glad to help you.
It's great to see new RTTY ops in almost every test, we need every one of them !
I make it a point to work the freshly minted calls first when they print.
Being efficient will make your scores go up and make it more enjoyable for everyone.
Clear, concise, SHORT and accurate exchanges of traffic are the goal. Have Fun !
Ron, WV4P
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