Re: [HCDX]: How QSL? (was: Why QSL?)

[Mauno Ritola <ritola@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Further comments on Bjarne's and Henrik's views about QSLing:

	One solution could be an "authorized verifier". He (or she) would be a
person for a country or area to collect a certain amount of reports (for
one year or 10-100 reports) and contact/send them to the station together
with a good explanation what the reports are for. In a way it would be a
kind of QSL office that the hams have. 
	If the station still doesn't react, the verifier checks the written report
or listens to the tape and verifies the report himself (being preferably a
DXer, too), if he is certain that the station in question was heard.
Needless to say, he would refuse all too unclear recordings and written
reports with inadequate programme details.
	I think stations would accept this better than single reports, follow-ups
and follow-follow-ups. This would save their time and effort and they could
use one single form letter, which would satisfy at least me.
	But there is one "small" problem: how to organize this? What should the
return postage be ($1-5) etc? Any suggestions?

73, Mauno

At 10.47 22.4.2000 +0200, Bjarne Melde wrote:
>I would like to further on Henrik Klemetz' general comments on QSL'ing.
>
>Why do we QSL a station?  Because we "need" written proof that the station
was heard.  And of course because it's nice to have an original letter from
the station, in addition to pennants, stickers and other memorabilia
submitted.  If the station replies at all.
>
>And that seems to be the problem.  Reply rates have declined over the
years; as a result of this we DX-ers have responded to that challenge by
sending more reports, more follow-ups, sweetening the pill by enclosing
more return postage, brochures, pictures, you name it. The most persistent
ones "win".  Does this affect the reply rate in a positive way?  I don't
think so.
>
>I think the main problem why a station refuses to reply is less personell,
less time - and not least; they do no longer identify themselves with us.
Gone are the days when a station's CE was most certainly a HAM, and knew
what we wanted.  I think station personell of today tend to ask themselves
"ok so he heard us, why does he want us to verify it when he has a
recording already?"
>
>I have more or less stopped sending reception reports, since I don't find
it very rewarding anymore.  Instead I keep audio files of the stations I
hear and - if the station is a really rare one - I might send a report.
After all, we're in this "game" to hear the stations, not to receive
letters from them.  So why don't we count loggings instead of QSL's?
>
>Or why not turn things around, as the US DX-er Henrik referred to; make a
colourful diploma and send to the station confirming that they were heard
at your location?  Perhaps that could have some meaning for the station
instead of the endless stream of (semi) form letters requesting a reply
from them.
>
>I have a feeling that if we stopped - or at least drastically reduced -
sending reception reports to these stations (I'm talking about local
stations, not international broadcasters), they might in fact be more
motivated to reply to the few reports that actually came.  I have a nasty
feeling that they think we're wasting their time.  Should we?

Before that, Henrik Klemetz wrote:
 
>> This brings to mind that things are now back where
>> they once started when radio was young.
>> In addition to a standard reception report, one US DXer 
>> now sends out a big diploma and a paper pennant (printed 
>> as a business card)  to new stations in recognition of  
>> their signal reaching his QTH.
>> 
>> So, instead of asking them to QSL, he does part of
>> the job himself...  And this was how all started,
>> wasn´t it?  One ham (or an SWL) swapping QSL cards 
>> with other hams, SWL´s and broadcasters. 
>> 
>> The idea was of course to have a printed record of a contact
>> which, in some cases, could have been faked. Just think of a 
>> CW contact, for example.  
>> 
>> Nowadays we may keep sound clips as tokens of our
>> catches. Unfortunately, much of the printed memorabilia stuff
>> will not reach us. But let´s instead enjoy the streaming RealAudio
>> of those stations. And why not print out some colourful logos
>> from the web?
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