Digital Modes Meanderings
I’M SHOUTING? Seriously??
When Randy, AB5V, asked me to submit a contribution to his website I did not envision ever doing so with a “soapbox” speech. However, this “soapbox” offering does relate to digital mode operations so I thought it might be a worthwhile contribution. Hopefully it will be at the very least, thought provoking.
In my ten (10) years of digital mode operating, I would rate 99% of my digital mode interactions as having been pleasant experiences with stimulating exchanges of interesting thoughts, ideas and general goodwill with fellow amateur digital mode operators. That is a very good track record for human interaction. I am grateful the level has been that high. That’s the good part. The not so good part is the 1% of my digital mode interactions that have been less than pleasant. This 1% encompasses a variety of bad interaction experiences including signal jamming (deliberate interference), name calling, and general chastising. This last category is the one I wish to address, specifically the chastising of my use of all uppercase text in my digital mode QSO exchanges.
Normally I would ignore unwarranted chastising and erroneous critiques. But this particular chastising has happened enough times to make me want to address it in case others have encountered it as well. I am probably in the minority with my usage of all uppercase text in my keyboard QSOs. However, I have good reasons for doing so which I will enumerate later. Other digital mode operators may also wish to use all uppercase text as well but feel intimidated by peer pressure to forego the option. There should not be an issue with whether one uses all uppercase text or upper and lowercase text for keyboard radio communications. The choice should be entirely at the digital operator’s discretion. However, believe it or not, I have been called out (on the air) for using all uppercase text in my QSOs by a few (probably well-meaning but misguided) individuals.
Why did they chastise me? According to some chastisers, by my use of all uppercase text, I was SHOUTING!!! Seriously? Never mind the word content or context, just the mere act of using only uppercase text I was committing a keyboard communications sin. Did they really believe that when I sent them my name, QTH, and grid locator I meant it to be in the form of SHOUTING? By one chastiser’s account, I was exhibiting a “total absence of understanding of keyboard communications protocol”! Whoaaa! That’s a heavy accusation there. Just where are these “keyboard communications protocols” posted? Is this covered in Part 97 (the FCC rules for amateur radio)? A quick Google search did not produce a list of rules on how to use the upper and lowercase letters in amateur radio keyboard communications. Let’s remember, we are talking about amateur radio communications here, not an Internet chat room!
Murray Greenman (ZL1BPU), author of the book “Digital Modes for All Occasions”, mentions possible frowning upon of the use of all uppercase text. He cites the precedent of the use of all uppercase text being considered as “SHOUTING” in packet and Internet e-mail. But we are not talking about packet or e-mail here; we are talking about HF digital modes like PSK31. Murray states that if a mode has no option then it is acceptable to use all uppercase characters. Let me get this straight. You are still using all uppercase text but now it is not SHOUTING. Huh??? Murray goes on to say that if a mode has lowercase characters available one should use them. Just because something is available means you have to use it? Where is the logic in that? A point to consider is that packet is self-correcting as the message is repeated until the copy is received correctly. PSK31 has no error correction. So anything that can be done to improve copy should be welcomed. I will address this copy improvement topic in more detail in a bit. As for e-mail, well you can take your sweet time writing your message before hitting the send button. If you feel so inclined to use upper and lowercase, then have at it. You have all day. At 50 WPM for PSK31 and 100 WPM for PSK63, PSK modes wait for no man.
If we are to do things according to my chastisers then we have a serious problem in the digital mode ranks. If the use of all uppercase text is forbidden and taboo, where does that leave the RTTY users? RTTY only sends uppercase text. What about Contestia? It too only sends uppercase text. Ditto for the Throb mode. Are all the digital operators using these modes SHOUTING at each other? Holy cow, Batman! We have a regular crime wave here. All the users of these modes are going against “keyboard communications protocols”. Does the ARRL know about this? We gotta nip this thing in the bud before it spreads any further. We have to protect the sanctity of the “keyboard communications protocols”. Silly isn’t it? But my chastisers were entirely serious when they confronted me on the air. I dare say they were exhibiting a total absence of practicality and reasoning. Trust me; I tried to reason with them with little success.
I was not using RTTY, Throb or Contestia when my chastisers confronted me. I was using PSK31, a mode that could have been used with lowercase text, but so what? If the use of all uppercase text is okay with some modes what is the harm of using it with any mode? Forbidding its use and treating it as taboo is just asinine. There are some very good reasons for the use of all uppercase text. My reasons for using all uppercase text in my digital mode communications are three fold.
Reason #1 - I use all uppercase text because I do not touch type on the keyboard. I use the old two finger hunt-and-peck typing method. It is slow and it is hard enough to keep up with some of these faster modes. If I had to worry about shifting between upper and lower case all the time I would make a mess of the text. The poor guy on the other end of the QSO would soon tire of my slow typing and constant typing corrections and quickly find an excuse to exit the QSO. Keeping all the text in the uppercase keeps things simple. Yes, the use of macros and the type-ahead text buffer do help with the typing task but still are not complete solutions either. What is that you say? How about using all lowercase instead? Wouldn’t that keep things simple too? Perhaps, but now we come to reason number two.
Reason #2 – My use of all uppercase text has a lot to do with PSK31 and its generally poor ability to decode properly in adverse band conditions. For all its popularity, PSK31 is really not that great at handling poor band conditions and delivering error free copy. PSK by design has been coded to use shorter sequences for more commonly used characters so it can send quicker. The use of lowercase letters is considered helpful in this speed aspect. The “anti-all-uppercase police” have seized upon this fact and use it as a weapon against persons running all uppercase text. Not only do they complain of alleged “SHOUTING” they also complain of the “S-L-O-W-N-E-S-S” in the use of all uppercase text. Neither are valid complaints and I will tell you why.
After several hundred PSK QSOs I noticed that PSK31 will readily decode random band noise and static as lowercase characters. Don’t believe me? Try this simple test. Tune your receiver to a place on any band with moderate to high noise levels and find a frequency that has no signals, just band noise. Select PSK31 as your digital mode. Be sure the squelch level is at minimum or turned off. Leave the cursor at one frequency for 10 to 15 minutes. After the time has passed look at your receive screen. What do you see? Did the software decode a lot of lowercase letters? What was it decoding? There were no signals, just noise. Therefore, if you are copying a weak noisy signal, the software is likely to decode (erroneously) lowercase characters from the band noise. So if the other station is sending mostly lowercase letters in his text, it is going to get mixed in with the decoded random band noise lowercase letters and any corrupted transmitted text. Under poor band conditions the final decoded text you print on your screen is going to be garbled most of the time. Sound familiar? However if the other station is sending all uppercase text and you copied an uppercase letter, it most likely will be what the other station sent and not erroneously decoded noise. That is why I use all uppercase text while running PSK modes.
In addition, PSK31 sends at 50 WPM, the speed lost by using only uppercase text is inconsequential, you will never miss it. Better copy ability is well worth any speed loss in my opinion. If my “SHOUTING” helps the other station copy my text, then “SHOUTING” is what I will do. I have never had someone complain about copying too well. Would you complain? I don’t think so.
Reason #3 - It is a sad fact but I am getting older (like so many of my fellow amateur brethren). The old eyes are not what they used to be. Looking at small text on the monitor screen after a while strains my eyes. Decreasing monitor resolution is only partially helpful as there are other reasons that limit the use of that option. Uppercase text is easier to see than lowercase text, plain and simple.
So there you have it. The reasons I use all uppercase text. You see now that I am not really SHOUTING. I am just being pragmatic so as to be a happier and more successful digital mode operator. I hope you will give me a SHOUT if you see me on the bands. Dit Dit.
In my ten (10) years of digital mode operating, I would rate 99% of my digital mode interactions as having been pleasant experiences with stimulating exchanges of interesting thoughts, ideas and general goodwill with fellow amateur digital mode operators. That is a very good track record for human interaction. I am grateful the level has been that high. That’s the good part. The not so good part is the 1% of my digital mode interactions that have been less than pleasant. This 1% encompasses a variety of bad interaction experiences including signal jamming (deliberate interference), name calling, and general chastising. This last category is the one I wish to address, specifically the chastising of my use of all uppercase text in my digital mode QSO exchanges.
Normally I would ignore unwarranted chastising and erroneous critiques. But this particular chastising has happened enough times to make me want to address it in case others have encountered it as well. I am probably in the minority with my usage of all uppercase text in my keyboard QSOs. However, I have good reasons for doing so which I will enumerate later. Other digital mode operators may also wish to use all uppercase text as well but feel intimidated by peer pressure to forego the option. There should not be an issue with whether one uses all uppercase text or upper and lowercase text for keyboard radio communications. The choice should be entirely at the digital operator’s discretion. However, believe it or not, I have been called out (on the air) for using all uppercase text in my QSOs by a few (probably well-meaning but misguided) individuals.
Why did they chastise me? According to some chastisers, by my use of all uppercase text, I was SHOUTING!!! Seriously? Never mind the word content or context, just the mere act of using only uppercase text I was committing a keyboard communications sin. Did they really believe that when I sent them my name, QTH, and grid locator I meant it to be in the form of SHOUTING? By one chastiser’s account, I was exhibiting a “total absence of understanding of keyboard communications protocol”! Whoaaa! That’s a heavy accusation there. Just where are these “keyboard communications protocols” posted? Is this covered in Part 97 (the FCC rules for amateur radio)? A quick Google search did not produce a list of rules on how to use the upper and lowercase letters in amateur radio keyboard communications. Let’s remember, we are talking about amateur radio communications here, not an Internet chat room!
Murray Greenman (ZL1BPU), author of the book “Digital Modes for All Occasions”, mentions possible frowning upon of the use of all uppercase text. He cites the precedent of the use of all uppercase text being considered as “SHOUTING” in packet and Internet e-mail. But we are not talking about packet or e-mail here; we are talking about HF digital modes like PSK31. Murray states that if a mode has no option then it is acceptable to use all uppercase characters. Let me get this straight. You are still using all uppercase text but now it is not SHOUTING. Huh??? Murray goes on to say that if a mode has lowercase characters available one should use them. Just because something is available means you have to use it? Where is the logic in that? A point to consider is that packet is self-correcting as the message is repeated until the copy is received correctly. PSK31 has no error correction. So anything that can be done to improve copy should be welcomed. I will address this copy improvement topic in more detail in a bit. As for e-mail, well you can take your sweet time writing your message before hitting the send button. If you feel so inclined to use upper and lowercase, then have at it. You have all day. At 50 WPM for PSK31 and 100 WPM for PSK63, PSK modes wait for no man.
If we are to do things according to my chastisers then we have a serious problem in the digital mode ranks. If the use of all uppercase text is forbidden and taboo, where does that leave the RTTY users? RTTY only sends uppercase text. What about Contestia? It too only sends uppercase text. Ditto for the Throb mode. Are all the digital operators using these modes SHOUTING at each other? Holy cow, Batman! We have a regular crime wave here. All the users of these modes are going against “keyboard communications protocols”. Does the ARRL know about this? We gotta nip this thing in the bud before it spreads any further. We have to protect the sanctity of the “keyboard communications protocols”. Silly isn’t it? But my chastisers were entirely serious when they confronted me on the air. I dare say they were exhibiting a total absence of practicality and reasoning. Trust me; I tried to reason with them with little success.
I was not using RTTY, Throb or Contestia when my chastisers confronted me. I was using PSK31, a mode that could have been used with lowercase text, but so what? If the use of all uppercase text is okay with some modes what is the harm of using it with any mode? Forbidding its use and treating it as taboo is just asinine. There are some very good reasons for the use of all uppercase text. My reasons for using all uppercase text in my digital mode communications are three fold.
Reason #1 - I use all uppercase text because I do not touch type on the keyboard. I use the old two finger hunt-and-peck typing method. It is slow and it is hard enough to keep up with some of these faster modes. If I had to worry about shifting between upper and lower case all the time I would make a mess of the text. The poor guy on the other end of the QSO would soon tire of my slow typing and constant typing corrections and quickly find an excuse to exit the QSO. Keeping all the text in the uppercase keeps things simple. Yes, the use of macros and the type-ahead text buffer do help with the typing task but still are not complete solutions either. What is that you say? How about using all lowercase instead? Wouldn’t that keep things simple too? Perhaps, but now we come to reason number two.
Reason #2 – My use of all uppercase text has a lot to do with PSK31 and its generally poor ability to decode properly in adverse band conditions. For all its popularity, PSK31 is really not that great at handling poor band conditions and delivering error free copy. PSK by design has been coded to use shorter sequences for more commonly used characters so it can send quicker. The use of lowercase letters is considered helpful in this speed aspect. The “anti-all-uppercase police” have seized upon this fact and use it as a weapon against persons running all uppercase text. Not only do they complain of alleged “SHOUTING” they also complain of the “S-L-O-W-N-E-S-S” in the use of all uppercase text. Neither are valid complaints and I will tell you why.
After several hundred PSK QSOs I noticed that PSK31 will readily decode random band noise and static as lowercase characters. Don’t believe me? Try this simple test. Tune your receiver to a place on any band with moderate to high noise levels and find a frequency that has no signals, just band noise. Select PSK31 as your digital mode. Be sure the squelch level is at minimum or turned off. Leave the cursor at one frequency for 10 to 15 minutes. After the time has passed look at your receive screen. What do you see? Did the software decode a lot of lowercase letters? What was it decoding? There were no signals, just noise. Therefore, if you are copying a weak noisy signal, the software is likely to decode (erroneously) lowercase characters from the band noise. So if the other station is sending mostly lowercase letters in his text, it is going to get mixed in with the decoded random band noise lowercase letters and any corrupted transmitted text. Under poor band conditions the final decoded text you print on your screen is going to be garbled most of the time. Sound familiar? However if the other station is sending all uppercase text and you copied an uppercase letter, it most likely will be what the other station sent and not erroneously decoded noise. That is why I use all uppercase text while running PSK modes.
In addition, PSK31 sends at 50 WPM, the speed lost by using only uppercase text is inconsequential, you will never miss it. Better copy ability is well worth any speed loss in my opinion. If my “SHOUTING” helps the other station copy my text, then “SHOUTING” is what I will do. I have never had someone complain about copying too well. Would you complain? I don’t think so.
Reason #3 - It is a sad fact but I am getting older (like so many of my fellow amateur brethren). The old eyes are not what they used to be. Looking at small text on the monitor screen after a while strains my eyes. Decreasing monitor resolution is only partially helpful as there are other reasons that limit the use of that option. Uppercase text is easier to see than lowercase text, plain and simple.
So there you have it. The reasons I use all uppercase text. You see now that I am not really SHOUTING. I am just being pragmatic so as to be a happier and more successful digital mode operator. I hope you will give me a SHOUT if you see me on the bands. Dit Dit.