12 Tips of Learning CW

NOT my tips... these came from qrz.com


1) It's important to understand what "learning the code" really means: to become an Amateur Radio Operator who is skilled in Morse Code. That means learning a set of skills, not just the one or two skills needed to pass a one-time test.

That skillset cannot be learned by reading a book, watching a video, using other modes to talk about them on the air, or participating in online forums. While those things can help, they are not the key to learning the skills.

The needed skillset can only be learned by doing, and it takes time, practice, and an active involvement on your part. This is what makes learning skills so different from "book learning" - and why some folks find it so hard to learn skills. You have to be actively involved - it doesn't happen passively.

2) Set up a place to study Morse Code. This doesn't mean it's the only place you study code, just that it's optimized for learning code. A good solid desk or table in a room with no distractions, lots of room to write, good lighting, and a good chair. Source(s) of code (computer, HF receiver, tapes, CDs, etc.), key and oscillator. Comfortable headphones are a good idea. I recommend starting out with a straight key, you may decide to go straight to paddles and a keyer. Regardless of what key you decide to use, it needs a good solid base and needs to be adjusted properly.

3) Avoid gimmicks such as CodeQuick and printed charts with dots and dashes on them. Often such systems were designed to help a person learn just enough code to pass the 5 wpm test, but resulted in habits that had to be unlearned for practical operating. Morse Code as used on radio is sounds, not printing on a chart or little phrases. They may work for some people, but, in general, I advise against them.

Learning to receive Morse Code consists of nothing more than learning to associate a certain sound pattern with a certain letter or number. There are only about 41 of them to learn. If you could learn to recognize 41 words in a foreign language, you can almost certainly learn Morse Code.

4) Set aside at least a half-hour EVERY DAY for code practice. Can be a couple of ten- or fifteen minute sessions, but they should add up to at least a half hour every day. That means every single day, not just weekends, holidays, etc. If you can do more than a half-hour some days, great! Do it! But more time spent on one day does not give you an excuse to miss the next day.

Some folks learn better if they do several short sessions, some learn better if they do it all at once. You have to find out what works best for you.

Yes, you may have to miss a day here and there, because life happens. The trick is to keep such missed days to the absolute minimum.

5) If you can enlist a buddy to learn the code with, or find a class, do it! But do NOT use the class or the buddy as an excuse to miss practice or slow down your learning. The buddy and/or class are a supplement to your study, not the center of it.

6) Download and read "The Art And Skill of Radiotelegraphy". It's free and available from several websites. “Zen and the Art of Radiotelegraphy” is also good. Search out other code-oriented websites, articles, etc. and read what they have to say. But always remember they're not a substitute for practice.

7) Practice both sending and receiving each and every day. Most of your practice time should be spent receiving, but the two help each other. Practice receiving by writing it down and by copying "in your head". I find a pencil and block printing works best for me; you may be better with a ballpoint, felt tip, etc. Or even a keyboard.

8) A combination of the Koch method and Farnsworth spacing is probably optimum for most people. Read up on them, understand and use them – but remember they are tools, not magic. They can make learning the code easier but they will not make it automatic.

9) Discontinue ANYTHING that impairs your ability to concentrate, focus, and learn new stuff. Only doctor-prescribed medications are exempt from this rule; beer is not exempt. Eat right, get enough sleep and enough physical exercise.

10) Put away your microphones, stay off the voice radios - all of them. Besides the automated Morse Code generators, listen to hams actually using code on the air. Copy down what they send. Have Morse Code playing in the background while you do other things (but don’t count that as practice time). Learn how hams actually use code. When you get to the point where you can send and receive code, even slowly, get on the air and start making QSOs. Get involved in CW contesting, rag chewing, DX chasing, etc. Remember that you are learning Morse Code to be a Radio Operator, not just to pass a test.

11) If your HF rig doesn't have a sharp filter (400-500 Hz), get one and install it. Read the manual about how to use the rig on CW; usually the default settings are optimized for SSB. Best operation usually requires turning off the AGC, turning the RF gain down and the AF gain up. The S-meter and AGC won't work under those conditions but that's no big loss; they’re not all that useful on CW anyway.

12) Keep at it. There may be times when it seems as if you are making no progress, and times when you make rapid progress. What matters is that you keep practicing every day. Nobody was born knowing the skills you're trying to learn.

Practice can take all sorts of forms - listening to computer-generated code, listening to recordings, listening to actual on-the-air QSOs, making QSOs (rag chews, contests, DXing). Some of the practice should be things you are comfortable with, some should be a stretch. Mix it up and try different things.

Most of all: Don't practice until you get it right. Practice until you can't get it wrong.

Two Down, Five to Go

update:

ok, of my original list of "things to do":

I sold the TAPR trakbox kit, to allow some other ham attempt to bring it to life

Instead of repurposing my win10 tablet to Linux (which I may still do at some point), I
have instead setup my Raspberry Pi 3 B+ as the "shack computer", and have WSJT-X setup, as well as Gpredict, so far.

1. The TAPR controller project I've posted about before
2. Getting my Az - El system working at home
3. Getting on an AO-92 L/V pass with the Alinco DJ-G7T
4. Getting my packet system (yeah that) setup again for local APRS igating
5. Getting one or more of my wire antennas up
6. Getting on mode (K? 10mtr uplink to PSAT to PSK31 70CM downlink) working
7. Re-purposing my shack's win10 tablet to Linux for #4 and/or #6 above 
8. Get my WX sat receiver up again, RPi and my ground plane.


Really need to finish a few things, but I feel like I'm finally making progress again, after such a long layoff.

WSJT-X Rpi 3

Update: my usual brain-freeze/senior moment. Didn't have the IC-706 CAT USB plugged into the RPI, just the audio.

After some twiddling with the Radio config, WSJT-X is "seeing" and controlling the IC-706 just fine, both CAT and Audio!

So, now onto understanding a bit more about MFJ Intellituner, and then perhaps getting a bit better antenna up.  But I'm back "on the air"