manuals

KY6LA_Howard

Definitely a generational thing...

As I said many of my contemporaries (pre-Baby-Boomer era) were never really comfortable with computers.  To this day, many still have people (secretaries) print out all their emails and manuals for them.  When I was in High School, only girls were allowed to learn to type while the guys had shop classes. 

Heck they did not even offer a computer class when I went to Engineering School and in fact I was asked to teach the first ever Fortran 1 class at my university because I had been building computers and seemed to know (self taught) something about them.

Paper Manuals were a major PIA when I was running businesses that needed detailed documentation.   They were expensive to maintain, always out of date and several times when critical updated pages did not get put into the right place,  resulted in dangerous situations and very expensive lawsuits.  In the early 1970's we even build our own home brewed word processing software just to update paper manuals.  So needless to say I really began to rejoice when paper manuals finally disappeared.  [That's how I got the nickname DrPaper)

Surprisingly this is one of the very few forums I have ever seen where anyone still wants paper..  even the excuse of traveling with paper does not fly anymore - I travel all the time and just keep all my manuals on my iPad.. Heck the cost of shipping paper manuals in baggage would be excessive...

By contrast.. my 11 year old grandson spent Spring Break with me this past week.   He wanted to use my Flex 6700 - so I gave him the PDF to read.... That lasted about 10 seconds.. before he clicked onto Youtube and watched several good videos.

About an hour later, he came in turned on my rig.. scanned the waterfall... worked 4X4WN in Jerusalem on his first try... BTW....he really wants to get his license now...

So much for electronic manuals and the next generation....

Steve K9ZW

It is perfectly legal to put an unlicensed person on the air (where third party rules with the DX country allow) and a common technique to boost interest in a potential ham.  Howard is of course the control station, and it wouldn't be right if he wasn't present.

As for your daughter - well done on all accounts, but it doesn't have a pinch to do with your mistake in taking Howard to task for what is also commendable.

You might do better with something other than **** & vinegar on your cornflakes Burt.

73

Steve
K9ZW

KY6LA_Howard

@Burt

You have obviously never worked a Boyscout Jamboree where we have hundreds of UNLICENSED young scouts getting on the air for the first time. or a Field Day (CONTEST?) GOTA Station . How else would you suggest getting kids interested? .. by watching boring old F's talking to each other? 

You gotta get there hands dirty... 

In fact.. I have just set up my grandson to be able to iPad remote into my station in San Diego from his home in Northern California so he can continue to get hands on experience... Obviously i will still be the control point as I don't want him blowing up the amps or wreck a tower motor...

Licensing... If I can build the interest, there is no doubt that he could pass the test.. but the interest needs to be built so it will be sustainable....

Heck.. my grandson could even become the next superstation contester...

KY6LA_Howard

@Burt

it should have been obvious from my comments that I did the scoutmaster thing and ran dozens of VE sessions via ARRL and our Local SANDARC VE for scouts, ARES, CERT and yacht clubs as well..  In this modern world of instant gratification, you really need to not only build interest but also find a way to sustain their interest through exciting things like DXing, Contesting, EMCOMM and just plain using it to send emails from their boats at sea ... Chatting via 2M Repeaters soon gets boring...

BUT I guess my getting their hands dirty approach to building continuing interest must have worked as a significant number of my 'kids' (albeit none of my own which is why I am working on my grandson) did end up owning their own stations and continue to operate and contest even now as well...

KY6LA_Howard

TNX... not looking for Kudos  ... just figure to pass on my experience with getting kids to actually stick to it after they get a license...

BTW.. by far the worst group for sticking to it.. are the CERT Hams.. they buy a HT, barely use it only for EMCOMM Drills twice a year, get bored and never do much ever again..

It's easier with kids if you can get them to stay active and involved with something like Contesting or DXing so that they get excited about winning a certificate or getting an ATNO....  My grandson was absolutely thrilled to identify call signs and place pins onto a world map....

By far the best group of kids for long term stick to it were the Yacht Club kids who bought HF radios for their sailboats for Winlink Email, Weather Reports and Emergency Traffic...  They knew they needed to use it all the time so they stay active...

That said, I was singularly unsuccessful in getting my own 3 kids to become Hams...they grew up surrounded by electronics but had no interest whatsover....(except during the 2003 and 2007 San Diego Fires when my eldest son asked to borrow an HT in case they had to be evacuated) ....which is why I am working so **** my Grandson....

Walt - KZ1F

Steve, I do actually download the docs so I have them locally, each with it's very own TOC hyperlinks.

Walt - KZ1F

The control operator has to be licensed (part 97.7). And Burt, in the case of piloting, the PIC has to be licensed for the weather they are flying in. Until I got my PPL I could not be PIC and when going for IFR, I could not be PIC under IFR conditions until I was endorsed / rated for IFR. I believe one has to be 15 to get a PPL.

Walt - KZ1F

The control operator has to be licensed (part 97.7). And Burt, in the case of piloting, the PIC has to be licensed for the weather they are flying in. Until I got my PPL I could not be PIC and when going for IFR, I could not be PIC under IFR conditions until I was endorsed / rated for IFR. I believe one has to be 15 to get a PPL.

Bill N5TU

That was years ago.  Bad WX ... never should have taken off!  (I lived in Laramie back then.)

DrTeeth

@ Walt

OT: 15 for a PPL, 16 to drive, 18 to sign a contract and 21 to be considered adult enough to drink alcohol. Very illogical.

Walt - KZ1F

@Guy Yes, I completely. I think it should be 25, if not older, for all of them. The human brain does not stop forming until mid twenties. I think 18 yr olds are still way to focused on getting altered state and getting lucky (euphemism for something else) to be seriously able to intelligently develop world views and make political decisions.

Walt - KZ1F

"The minimum age for a private pilot certificate is 16 for balloons and gliders, and 17 for powered flight (airplanes, helicopters, and gyroplanes). Pilots can begin training at any age and can solo balloons and gliders at age 14, powered aircraft at age 16".

Legally, she was required by law, to have an IFR rated licensed pilot being PIC aboard. If that did not happen (I only vaguely remember this) the owner of the plane (her father?) would be legally and criminally responsible.

Walt - KZ1F

And Howard, that was a completely snarky thing to say. I expected you to stay above the fray. Very disappointing ;-)