I Just Spent the Week Studying

North Miami Beach, Florida 4-8-2000 Aaron H. Schectman

THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on issues, ideas and reflections on the times. Published now and
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I JUST SPENT THE WEEK STUDYING

Unaccustomed as I am to taking tests (I gave and marked them - never took
them) I just spent the week studying for a test I flunked today.

Since the advent of the cell phone and other wireless equipment available
to ordinary citizens, the arcane subject of Amateur Radio seems redundant.
Not to me. I have spent a good many years yearning to become an adept and
actually earned the rating of "Technician Plus" with the privilege of
broadcasting over many bands of radio frequency by use of the telegraphic
key in Morse Code. However, over the years I have lost the proficiency in
sending dits and dahs and the really neat ability to translate them when
they are sent to me.

The FCC has stirred up the Amateur Radio crowd by doing away with the code
requirement above 5 words per minute. I passed that test. I just couldn't
master the speed of 13 words per minute when I was younger and more
resilient. So, I stayed in the Technician Plus class and pined for the
"General" rating that would let me use my radio station to broadcast voice
over a microphone. I think I told you that I now own two radio stations.
Well, that is not quite accurate. I own a base station in New Jersey and
have a small 2 meter hand held radio here in Florida. I can broadcast over
the hand held but not over the base station. This means I can listen but
not send. Do you understand all this?

The FCC took away the code requirement but put in new, stiffer
classifications in fewer classes. They "grandfathered" those of us who
passed the 5-wpm code test and also those who took the Technician tests
prior to 1987. I did not qualify for this dispensation. So, I studied
because after the 15th a new, harder list of questions would be required.
So, I studied.

I really did. Carol will attest to this. I found sample test questions on
the Internet and studied. At the test site today I found that they knew of
other test questions that I had not covered. So, I failed. Well, back to
studying and I guess I've learned how to do that. Carol's Evaluation: 9.5
out of 10.