[aprssig] Just fyi

[Spider]

Just FYI....I found this interesting...
 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jerry Reimer [mailto:jerryreimer at charter.net]
> Sent: Thursday, January 06, 2005 12:30
> To: wl2kemcomm at yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [wl2kemcomm] Re: other thoughts
> 
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> RE:  FNPSK
> 
> ANSWER:    Organized, trained, and disciplined personnel
> QUESTION:  What is always in short supply in any incident?
> 
> Message ORIGINATION is rarely the problem.  Message DELIVERY is
> nearly ALWAYS the weakest aspect of any communications system.
> During the ARRL's NTS tests in 2003, the failures were for message
> accuracy and delivery.  Please do not respond with any real or
> perceived flaws in this test; instead, point to another benchmark of
> this scale.
> 
>  http://home.earthlink.net/~k7bfl/NTSSurvey.pdf
> 
> Average accuracy for text was 85 percent, with 17 percent being
> perfect.  None of us will accept 85 percent accuracy on our
> paychecks, nor is such a standard acceptable to those we seek to
> serve.
> 
> 80 percent of the sent messages were delivered, with a median travel
> time of 35 hours, average travel time of 52 hours.  In a time of
> global near-instant communications, few of us will accept a 1-1/2 to
> two-day delivery of even non-important messages.
> 
> Any proposed backup communications system that compromises accuracy
> had better do such in the quest for blinding speed, so the
> corrections can be received before the incorrect action can be
> initiated or completed.
> 
> Manual communications systems require a human presence at each end
> of the circuit.  This is the traditional voice Amateur Radio
> network.  It requires a properly licensed, trained, and equipped
> Amateur Radio opertor to both initiate and recieve the message for
> delivery.
> 
> Two premises were already put forth regarding manual communications
> systems.  One is that trained people are always in short supply, and
> that the problem is always at the delivery end, not the originating
> end.  In an incident, it is relatively easy to initiate the primary
> response and get a ham to the scene.  Once there, they can usually
> initiate a message.  Then the problem begins, because, for them to
> actually move that message, there must be at least one other
> similarly equipped Amateur Radio operator at the desired message
> destination.  This problem exists with any manual communication
> system, regardless of hardware, mode, frequency, or computer program
> being used.
> 
> One way to overcome the fundamental message delivery problem with
> all manual communications systems is to automate the delivery
> process.  This is where systems such as Winlink 2000 excel.  Because
> of the long proven systems and techniques employed, messages can be
> delivered to the intended recipient without extraordinary human
> intervention on the receiving end.  Systems such as this only
> require "special" equipment, training, knowledge and licensing at
> one end of the message path; either originating or delivery.  A
> licensed Amateur Radio operator need not be present within the EOC
> in order for the emergency management employees to recieve incident
> reports originated by Amateur Radio operators.
> 
> In order for this system to perform flawlessly, it requires perfect
> character-level accuracy for every message.  Drop a single letter
> and the e-mail goes to K5CA and not to KK5CA.  Whoops.  Miss a
> letter or two on CW or RTTY or PSK31 and the message context can
> generally be understood.  Such is not true with automated systems.
> 
> Despite nice GUI front end of applications such as FNPSK, the
> fundamental communications network on the back end is still a manual
> communications system.  As such, it has the same inherent problems
> of all other manual systems:  It requires skilled and very
> specialized labor, and is prone to inaccuracy.  There are many
> choices for manual communications systems; there are few proven
> choices for automated communications systems, and Winlink 2000 is
> the best among them.  Learn it, use it, and be happy.
> 
> KK5CA
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