The secret to learning morse code?

The most important factor in learning morse code is actually very simple.

PERSEVERE.

You have enrolled in this course because you want to learn something new.  Something challenging.  Something useful and special in the world of amateur radio.

I'm asking each of you to trust the process in which you have enrolled.

Make a promise to yourself. 

"I'm going to see this process through all the way to the end.  Especially when I find myself struggling."

If you can make that commitment to yourself.  YOU WILL SUCCEED.

Everyone struggles learning morse code at some point.  EVERYONE.  Therefore, the only way to learn morse code is to overcome those obstacles.  Those that refuse to allow obstacles to stop them, WILL SUCCEED!

Give yourself permission to struggle.  Embrace the struggle.  Welcome it.  Know that it is part of the process.

There may be times that it will seem as though you will never, "get it."

Don't fall into that trap.  Persevere.  Trust the process and keep working.  Keep practicing.  Keep attending class.  Talk to me.  Talk to your fellow students.  We are all here to help each other.  Nobody is alone.

Welcoming the struggle may seem like a strange concept, but it's extremely important.

When something comes easy or free, it has very little value.

When something takes time and effort, it increases in value. 

This is true with everything in life.  Morse Code is no different.

Welcome the struggle?  ABSOLUTELY!  Welcome it because it is the struggle itself that will set you apart.  Welcome the struggle because you want to prove to yourself that you are strong enough to persevere.  Welcome the struggle because overcoming the obstacles will make you a better person and a better amateur radio operator.

Some people will pick things up faster than others initially.  It always happens that way.  When you observe this happening, keep in mind that how quickly someone initially learns the code is not an indicator of that person's ultimate skill level.  Some of the best CW operators I know struggled enormously when first learning the code.  Sometimes it takes a while for the code to "click in" to someone's brain.  When it does and the new language begins to flow, it's a magical feeling.

Conversely, some people who initially learn the code very easily never progress very far and eventually give up.  This is another trap to avoid.  Just because you started off picking things up easily doesn't guarantee that will continue forever.  EVERYONE STRUGGLES AT SOME POINT.  Don't quit just because you hit a bump in the road.

It's the way each of us reacts when we encounter the obstacles that makes the difference.  Those that trust the process and keep working will eventually succeed.  Those that over-react and tell themselves, "I'll never get this" are creating their own problem.  Those that persevere and trust the process will "get this."

When you see a child first learn to walk, do they fall down a lot?  Of course they do.  Sometimes they fall and hurt themselves.  However, with perseverance and practice, they eventually learn to walk.

Every once in a while one of those children grows up to become an Olympic Sprinter.  How quickly they learned to walk as a child has very little to do with their world class talent.  Their perseverance to fully develop their God given talent to its maximum potential is what got them to the Olympics, not the few wobbly strides as a toddler.

I'm not promising any of you will become a metaphorical Olympic Morse Code champion.  That's not what this course is about.  This course is about taking those first wobbly steps, falling down a few times, getting back up, and trying again until each of you learns to walk the morse code path.

If you do not give up on yourself.  I won't give up on you, and neither should any of your new friends that are also taking this course.

This course is not a race.  You are not competing against other students.  In fact, we are all here to help each other.  When each of us sees a student struggling, reach out to help them.  Encourage them.  Practice with them.  Sooner or later, you may be the one struggling, and will appreciate others helping you work through whatever is giving you difficulty.  That is the power of learning morse code through this course.  It's also the most enjoyable part of the process.  Don't cheat yourself out of the best part! 

The only person you are competing against is yourself from yesterday. 

If you attend the classes, follow the instructions, and practice in between classes, you will get better.  Sometimes it may be difficult for you to see your own improvement, but it will occur.  Just try to get better each day.

TRUST THE PROCESS.

Allow your brain the time it needs to form new neural connections.  (Several weeks in perfect laboratory conditions.)  The only way those new neural connections will happen is if you keep practicing, even when you are struggling.  Especially when you are struggling.

When those new neural connections finally hook together, you'll be amazed at how much easier things will become.  You'll wonder why you ever struggled.  You'll rejoice and maybe do a happy dance.

Then you'll find another obstacle and do it all over again.

Expect struggles.  Embrace them.  Their existence means you are learning.  Don't cheat yourself from each opportunity to learn as it comes along.

You won't be sorry.

Beginning July 8, we all get to enjoy helping each other struggle together.  What could be better?

I'm looking forward to it.  I hope you are too.

Repeat your promise to yourself every day until July 8:

"I'm going to see this process through all the way to the end.  Especially when I find myself struggling."

Mark,

NRØR

Proper Body Position and Hand Technique to operate a straight key.

As a student learning morse code, after you acquire a morse code key you will naturally want to learn to use it properly. 

You'll be happy to hear that most people tend to naturally fall into a good posture and use good technique.  However, subtle mistakes can become bad habits that are difficult to break.   It's best to train correctly from the beginning.

Rather than trying to explain this to you in an email or over the radio, it sometimes makes sense to simply let you see for yourself the correct techniques to use.  As you experiment with your new morse code key, try to develop good habits from the start.  They will serve you well.  It will help you send quality code that is easy for others to understand, and it will help prevent fatigue.

Don't hesitate to watch this video several times.

I realize we haven't started the class yet.  Once the class starts, as you learn to use a straight key.  You may want to ask a family member to take short video clips of yourself as you are sending.  Compare your body position and techniques with what you see in the above video.

If you want me to critique your technique at some point, you have the option of sending me a SHORT video clip.  15 to 30 seconds of low to medium resolution video is sufficient.  HD video is not required.   Be sure the video shows your whole body position, as well as your arm and hand.  I will do my best to help you work through any issues I see.

Have fun.

Stay relaxed.

Stay relaxed.

Stay relaxed.

You should be able to send morse code for many hours before getting tired.  If you get tired quickly, or if some part of your body begins to cramp or hurt, your body position and/or technique need improvement.

Sending code should be pleasurable, not stressful, painful, or tiring.

Mark,

NRØR

Code Practice Oscillators, CPOs

Another tool that is highly recommended for the Learn Morse KC course is a Code Practice Oscillator.

CPOs are very simple audio devices.  They are NOT radio transmitters.   Nobody needs a license to use one by itself.  Code Practice Oscillators produce an audible beep through a speaker or headphones whenever an attached morse code key is pressed.   It's really that simple.  Most CPOs will have a couple of knobs.  One for volume control, another that varies the pitch of the beep.  CPOs are very inexpensive.  Even the fancy commercial ones are modestly priced.

A code practice oscillator will be a great tool to help you practice SENDING morse code.  It will even be possible for you to key up your VHF transceiver, hold your transceiver's microphone close to your CPO, and send morse code over a simplex frequency or over the repeater to another student or to your instructor.

That's right.  With a CPO, you will be able to PRACTICE your lessens during and between classes by sending morse code back and forth over your VHF radio with other students in the class, and any of them with a CPO will be able to answer you the same way.  You might even find some experienced Elmers willing to help you practice.

The amount of fun you can have with your fellow students as you send each other morse code will amaze you.  If you have a CPO, you will never be alone in this class.  You won't get bored.  You will look foward to practicing with your friends.  Say goodbye to boring computer programs droning out morse code with little or no meaning to you.  Say goodbye to the torture of copying long recordings of morse code.  Instead, have fun laughing and talking with your fellow students over your radio as your practice with your CPOs. 

If there is more than one ham radio operator in your household, you can practice with them without using your VHF radio.  You can talk to each other using your CPOs from across the room.  Great fun!  Take your CPO with you to the Beryl Breakfast and practice with each other at a table.  Show up early before a ham club meeting and practice with another student, or with another club member that already knows the code.   There are countless other possibilities. 

Having your own Code Practice Oscillator is a game changer.  You won't be sorry you got one.

How inexpensive can a Code Practice Oscillator be?

Does $3 feel like it is within your budget?

Robin, WØFEN, has acquired a dozen Code Practice Oscillator kits that he is more than happy to resell to you at his cost.  If demand is high enough, he is willing to order more kits to meet demand.  Robin's kits are a small circuit board and the components that you will need to solder in the correct locations.  The kit does not come with a soldering iron, solder, or soldering flux.  The kit does not come with an enclosure, so you will need to come up with something yourself for that.  I suggest asking Robin for suggestions on enclosure options.  The kit does not include a morse code key, paddles, or keyer, but we discussed those in my previous post.  You'll simply connect whatever key you acquire with the circuit board, and you'll have a nice CPO.
 

I think it's awesome that Robin is doing this to support your efforts in this class.   Thank You Robin.

Email Robin to ask questions or to make arrangements to purchase one of his kits. 

w0fenrobin at gmail dot com

As much as I love the idea of everyone building a kit CPO for the course, I realize that may not be everyone's idea of fun.  It's more than acceptable to buy one that has already been built.  Feel free to google "code practice oscillator".  You will discover that there are many different types and styles at a variety of price ranges.   I'm pretty sure that the Candy Store (Associated Radio) will have CPOs as well.  You may also ask some of your ham friends if they have a used CPO that they want to sell or loan to you for the duration of the class.  Of course, you could always bribe another student into building one of Robin's kits for you.  ;)

It's not mandatory that you get a CPO to take this course, but you won't be sorry you did, and when you can get one for $3 why wouldn't you?  Why would you skip all the most fun parts of taking this course?

Get a Code Practice Oscillator.  You won't be sorry.

My next post will discuss proper body position, hand position, and the proper techniques to operate a morse code key.

Mark

NRØR

Keys, Paddles, and Keyers

It's not absolutely required to take this course, but VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that you acquire a morse code key and/or iambic paddles with a keyer now.  Remember that the whole point of this course is to teach the necessary skills required to get on the air on HF and make CW contacts.  Eventually you will need a morse key to plug into your HF radio to do that.  Logic indicates it is best to acquire a key and/or paddles/keyer now so that you can use them to help you learn and practice while taking this course.

 

Morse Keys and Paddles are a topic of constant debate among CW operators.  We each have our favorites, and we love to argue with each other about what is best and explain in glorious endless detail our reasons for each of our choices.  Don't believe me?  Put two or three CW operators in the same room and ask them what key is best.  Then stand clear and watch what happens!
 

As your instructor, I choose to remain neutral in that particular debate.  Not that I don't have opinions on the topic.

I advise you to initially keep your expenditures low until you figure out what key or paddles are YOUR favorite.  If you can borrow various styles of keys from ham friends to try, that's great.  Perhaps ask them to bring them to Field Day so you can check them out?  Once you figure out what is YOUR favorite, invest however much money you are comfortable spending.
 

There is a huge range of prices for these items.  Brand new commercially built straight keys are sold for as little as $15.  They aren't fancy, but they get the job done.  If money is no object, you can spend $5ØØ for a Begali work of mechanical artistic precision with gemstone bearings.  Keys or paddles for every price in between seems to be sold somewhere.  Some hams even homebrew build their own keys.  Some are humble.  Some incredibly beautiful and precise.  While I'm a huge fan of homebrewing ham equipment, keys included, I do NOT recommend that your first key is something home built.
 

The reality is that a skilled CW operator can send excellent morse code over a cheap $15 key or a $5ØØ Begali with very little performance difference.  It really is all about operator skill, not how much money someone spends on the tools.
 

Don't hesitate to acquire a used key or paddles or keyer.  See if members of your ham club have any extras they want to part with.  You may even get a key gifted to you. 

If you choose Iambic Paddles, you will need some kind of electronic keyer.  Many newer HF radios already have a keyer built in, but not all.  Older radios typically only had a key input for a straight key.  If your radio only has an input for a straight key, you will want to acquire an external electronic keyer that will plug into your radio's key input.  Your iambic paddles will plug into your keyer.
 

Other options are semi automatic keyers, single lever keyers, bugs, sideswipers, and various other less popular choices.  I'm not an authority on these, so if you want more information on them, I suggest Google or find a ham friend that is an expert on them.  Remember, what matters most is your ability to send high quality code using whatever tool you choose.  What works best for someone else may not be what works best for you.  Don't spend a lot of money until you are certain you will love what you are purchasing.
 

The next post will discuss Code Practice Oscillators.

 

Mark

NRØR

Necessary Radios

As a student taking the Learn Morse KC course, you will require a radio that can access the 145.17MHz KØGQ repeater in Raytown MO.  We all owe a special thank you to the Raytown Amateur Radio Club for agreeing to host this morse code course on their repeater.  Since everyone that is enrolled so far is already licensed, it's very likely that you already have the necessary transceiver.  If you don't already have a VHF radio, you will need to acquire one.

Please test your ability to reliably hear and hopefully communicate over the Raytown repeater.  If you need assistance setting up your station to communicate with this repeater, first try to contact hams that live in your area for their advice.  If you don't know who lives in your area that could help you drop me an email, and I'll do my best to put you in touch with an appropriate mentor (what we hams call an "Elmer".)  Outdoor antennas as high up as practical are usually the best answer to such problems.  There are numerous creative ways to put VHF antennas up high, even in neighborhoods that restrict antennas.  Obviously, you won't get much from the course if you cannot access the repeater well.

Feel free to drop an email to learnmorsekc at gmail dot com and I will do my best to answer any questions you may have and advise you on possible solutions.  This is the highest priority issue for everyone.  More important than any additional posts on this blog.

The next post will discuss Keys, Paddles, and Keyers

Mark
NRØR