Today there are a number of spots that are just there to carry messages. Asking for QSYs or changes of mode are just barely permissable (but bear in mind that the activator may be too busy activating to look at Spots) but entering a spot just to say that you can’t hear an activation is just noise. Totally pointless - we all suffer from skip zones. Worse than that, entering a spot just to complain about LIDs is both noise and directly against the rules. Look, if everybody posted a spot when they can’t hear an activation, and if everybody posted a spot when they are annoyed by LIDdish behaviour, then the system would grind to a halt from sheer overload.
DON’T DO IT!
SPOTS are for spotting activations for the benefit of other chasers and the activator. They are not a message board, or there to register annoyance.
Is that clear enough? Because the MT have the power to cut off the access of offenders. We don’t like to use it, but if we must…
Nothing to add except the also very unpleasant practice of some overzealous chaser enthusiasts who start calling ??? and QRL? immediately on an announced frequency because they can’t hear anything. Very often an s2s QSO takes place during this time, in which the two activators can hear each other quite well.
Chasers should only press the button when they can really READ a signal, everything else is very bad practice and QRM.
Watch out for L1D CQing - think he gone now! (by G4OBK)
Yes, very clear what you say Brian, but I don’t see my 06:47 L1D spot today for OK2PDT/P as just registering annoyance. Were you referring to my spot above in your comments?
I would never use SOTAWatch to selfishly ask for QSYs or mode changes, you are correct to warn on that one, we see too much of it.
I spot to help others make a QSO (usually after me), unlike some who take the spots but rarely or never make them. This was a valid spot - OK2PDT was not spotted before mine appeared - just a 60 minute warning spot, there was nothing live until I put that spot on, with an extra comment to make chasers aware of the L1D who was calling CQ on top of the activator. I don’t see anything wrong with that. If your comment relates to my spot I think you are being very picky indeed!
I’m glad to say Mr L1D left the frequency after drifting over about 400 Hz with his 5 long CQ calls without any takers, yet OK2PDT continued valiantly operating underneath him, and worked a good handful of chasers, after being helped by seeing my spot and the subsequent one 3 minutes later by F5LKW.
Having read your comments I could have got frit and deleted the spot, but I would rather allow users see what I am referring to.
I work on the principle of “no names - no pack drill” Phil. Suffice it to say that I saw two separate comments about LIDs at different times. However, since you bring it up, I see no reason to label someone causing QRM as a LID unless you can show that he could hear the station that he was QRMing. There could have been valid reasons for him operating there. He could have been unable to hear the activator due to skip, or due to nulls in the polar diagram of either his or the activators antenna. AS I’m sure you know better than me, the proper procedure is to send QRL. I assume that you did this and he either failed to hear it or ignored it. Either way, calling someone a LID (or lid on phone) is perjorative and as such is against the AUP, hence my post above. It would have been better to post “watch out for CQ QRM” or some such.
What is possible is that the chaser hears the activator not all the time but only if he comes up in the qsb.
The art for the chaser is to time his calling the activator, the moment when the activator is ready to accept calls and when his signal starts coming up in the qsb, hoping to get the qso complete before the activator disappears in the qsb again. In that situation what the chaser needs is patience, patience and patience + a lot of skill dealing with very wek signals. With regard to qsb observe the band and decide if you have a chance in the given situation. If not start looking for another activator.
If you do not hear the activator stay on frequency and wait, sometimes after 10 minutes the signal starts to come through.
73
Patrick ON4BCA
Hi Brian @G8ADD
Every time when I spot an activator, and before RBN, I’d worked this one and sometime I stay on the frequency, for help maybe !
Every time in few second I can got chasers calling without RXing the summit ( I have a long list of this … ) just by clicking on a super DXcluster !
Sure I’m not clean like a BB but I’m OK with Patrick @ON4BCA post.
73 Éric
Made mention on a couple vk .io email lists Brian about this type of messaging disguised as a Spot after you brought it to my attention in this post I noticed a couple msg type spots here in vk today. Those chasers/hunters did in good faith on Parks and Peaks not the SW3 page so hopefully my topic on their .io pages will make them more aware not to do it.
Regards
vk5cz …
Also, spots that ask “is the activator still there” (no matter the language) cause issues for activators that rely on RBNHole. The presence of a spot on SOTAWatch saying “I can’t hear you” will block RBNHole from posting a spot, which might be the difference between an activator qualifying or not, or the chaser getting a spot to verify that the activator is still there.
… ) just by clicking on a super DXcluster !