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Digital Modes I've Tried, and Why I Use Them

I consider CW, or continuous wave , to be a digital mode. Like the digital 1s and 0s that make computer technology possible, CW using Morse Code characters makes communication possible over the airwaves using tones that are either on or off . An added twist, leaving the tone on for a short period of time or a 3-times longer period of time—the dits and dahs of radio-based Morse code—is how Morse was able to create an alpha-numeric code that's been in use for a hundred years. It's how we are able to communicate with other amateur radio operators using this special language, or code. I find it relaxing. My first ham radio language and mode was CW. Fifty years after I began, I'm now coming back to CW for my regular relaxation sessions during the week as I meet with my code buddies on prearranged schedules, or skeds . I also regularly call CQ and try to increase my group of code buddies with whom I chat for a minute or an hour about all kinds of subjects several days a week. ...
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Thanks for Reading!

Sometimes you get an itch and just need to scratch it. That's how I began this blog. Time will tell if I keep up with it. The blog title Daily Digital Download implies I may make a deposit, or download, each day. We'll see. The articles will be closely clustered around the subject of "digital modes" in amateur radio. Digital modes are sometimes used for synchronous , or real-time "live" communications. Often, if the mode supports it, they are asynchronous . Conversations can stretch over hours, days, or longer. That's how email is supposed to work. My daily downloads will chronicle my thoughts and activities using digital communications modes as part of my amateur radio hobby. If you're reading this I hope you'll download your own thoughts by contributing to the comments section in each of the articles. I don't mind depositing my brain dumps here with no response except the echoes in my own brain. Your feedback, however, will fine-tune my o...
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