John Smith wrote:
I imagine from discussions like this, and everyone trying to motivate
everyone else into getting enough interested to save the hobby--once I can
motivate a young college mind, they study and go advanced almost
immediately, energy and exuberance counts!--that increase does not even come
close to echoing population growth though... we need TONS more... many hams
are 60+, and while everyone hopes they remain with us forever--that wish
lies in impossible dreams... all of us will go deadkey at sometime, some
sooner--but they will shortly be joined by others and have much company...
frown


It does, but it also helps to have more cutting edge modes. Let's face
it, ax.25 is almost 25 years old and 300 baud data sent from the other
side of the world these days has as much appeal as a tepid bowl of oatmeal.

Couple that with the fact that radio has pretty much lost its romance
and mystique anyway. You'll find plenty of writers who mention sitting
with the radio, tubes glowing listening late into the night to their
favorite shows or distant lands on shortwave, but you won't find much
about cuddling up with the transistor radio listening to AM talk radio.

Amateurs need to tap their existing resources, create real high speed
spread spectrum modes (the HSMM guys have the right idea) within amateur
bands. That'll attract a lot of people, and from there you can generate
interests in other modes. Cement cool bonds between computers and
amateur radio and you'll have a far better chance at attracting people.