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Ok. All this talk about dropping the Morse code requirement to obtain an amateur radio license has spurred me on to learn back my Morse code skills. I already have a license (KG6EMF), for which I had to learn Morse code and pass a 5 words/min test. But since the exam back in 2000, I've never used Morse code. But I want to. (See previous post about Morse code below.)
So I'm determined to get my speed up to about 10w/m and try to make a CW (continuous wave, which is how operators refer to Morse code communication) contacts soon. And to help with the learning process, I've downloaded and started to use a Morse code training program by a programmer/operator, Ray Goff (G4FON) in the U.K. It's a free download for Windows, and luckily I do have a W/XP laptop available. Here's what it looks like:
It uses a didactic technique called the Koch method, where you keep adding a new letter to the ones you already know, listening to random groupings of those letters until their sound becomes second-nature. Eventually you work up to the full 40-chararacter set.
As you can see from the image above, I'm working on the first 10 letters (which happen to be S T U O M L P A R K). The letters are added in increasing difficulty to recognize. Once you get to 40 characters, the program then enables you to test yourself with various canned conversations. You can adjust the speed, the amount of background noise, and the degree to which the sounds vary, mimicing actual conversations (QSO's in ham talk).
This is a great program, Kudos to Ray! I'm working on my code for an hour or so each night. I'll report my progress. But it is interesting the tricks my brain plays on me. Suddenly dits sound like dahs and v.v. and R (. - . ) starts sounding like K (- . -). But practice helps. Great exercise for the brain.
But actually, as you can see in the image, I've started out the wrong way. According to the true Koch method, I should be starting with two characters, at the real speed I want to attain. Say, 15 wpm. I just realized that what I've been doing the past couple of days, working at basically 5 wpm, is counter productive. If you read the article about using the Koch method, the right way to do it is to start at the higher speed until it all becomes natural. So now I'm going to start over, at 15wpm. I hope my addled brain can handle it!
