Smartphone + Morse App Review

Posted on 08/06/2013 by Ian G4XFC

Having just got rid of my Vodafone Brick and moved to the new technology of the Smartphone,(to me it is!) my first task was to find an android app that would be suitable for learning Morse and also be useful in Morse tests to save me lugging my laptop about at the National Hamfest.

On my search for a decent app for my Smartphone similar to “Just Learn Morse Code” and Ray G4FON’s “Koch Trainer” I came across “Morse Trainer for Android” by Wolphi W8DA. I have to admit that I gave it the full thumbs up as it was exactly what I was looking for and now I can get rid of the laptop and just carry my key, oscillator and smartphone to tests.

Below is the developers own description of this marvelous Morse App

Published on 2 Nov 2012

Learn or improve Morse code with Morse Trainer.If you are a ham radio (amateur radio) operator or just want to learn Morse code. With a lot of settings it is very comfortable to adjust Morse Trainer to your current level.

The following settings are available:

– Frequency (200 – 2200Hz
– Waveform (sine / triangle)
– Fading (to reduce click at the end of a dot or dash)
– Speed (2Wpm – 52Wpm)
– Spacing (spacing between dots or dashes)
– Dot-Dash Ratio (length ratio of dashes compared to dots)
– Letter Spacing (Space between letters)
– Word Spacing (Space between words)
Five different learning modes are available in Morse Trainer
– Random groups of five mode: Morse Trainer will play groups of five randomly selected letter, numbers or special characters. Those characters can be individually selected. If you want to learn just “s”,”i” and “e” just select the 3 letters and Morse Trainer will create groups of 5 with those 3 letters.
– Real ham radio callsign mode: Morse Trainer will randomly play real amateur radio callsign from a database of 5000 callsigns which appeared in Contests over the last couple of years.
– QSO text mode: Morse Trainer will play randomly play QSO text. The database consists of 300 different qso texts.
– Most common English words mode: Morse Trainer will play randomly the 500 most used English words.
– Own text mode: Enter your own text and Morse Trainer will play it over and over again.
– Ebook mode: Text files can be loaded from SD card

Morse Trainer is priced less than the cost of a fancy coffee and it is a great app to learn and improve you CW speed away from your amateur radio station or your PC.

Limerick Radio Club Morse Practice Report

Posted on 17/01/2012 by Ian G4XFC

Our first session commenced in early November with a class compliment of eight. We started with single character sound recognition at a speed of around 14WPM. This procedure was continued for about three weeks when five letter groups were next introduced still at around 14WPM. Continue reading →

Still Counting?

Posted on 12/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

Are you one of the Morse operators still suffering from the 5wpm Morse Test and finding difficulty progressing forward with your Morse speeds? I have listened to many sad stories about this and you have my sympathy. But there could be hope at the end of the tunnel if you are willing to retrain and begin to learn Morse as a language. I would suggest you read “So You Would Like to Learn the Secret of Morse” and start again from the beginning.

I would like to say at this point I have no experience of this situation and would be very pleased if anyone that has been in this situation and overcome it please comment on this post and give your advice.

So You Would Like to Learn the Secret of Morse

Posted on 12/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

Morse is a Language and not a Code and should not be learned as such and my views are held by other operators World Wide. Learning Morse Code by dits and dahs will haunt you for a long time and if you are counting dits and dahs I would recommend that you stop immediately and read my post on “Redefining Slow Morse in Amateur Radio”.

Learning Morse is not easy and you must be dedicated and willing to put aside at least half an hour a day every day for practice. You will find that sometimes you will struggle and get mental blocks on some characters, but remember that you would not be on your own as most operators have gone through that at some time or other. We have all persevered through the hurdles it can throw at you and now enjoy the music of Morse. Continue reading →

Why Morse?

Posted on 11/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

As a child I was always intrigued with the sound of Morse Code though I could not understand it, and now as a Morse Operator I am mystified why people watch me and I know they don’t understand anything I am sending. When my club opened the Radio Museum at East Kirkby Airfield it was decided to only use SSB on the amateur station GB2CWP that was located within the museum. Visitors to the Radio Room just walked round looking at the exhibits and left showing no interest in our active station till one day we changed mode to CW and Morse filled the air. It seems we don’t need a flute like the Pied Piper of Hamlin, we just have the volume of the radio loud enough for the Morse to be heard outside the Radio Room and the visitors come flooding in and surround the operator. Why?

So what’s good about Morse Code and is it worth the pain of learning? Continue reading →

Morse Grades?

Posted on 11/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

In a recent email from fellow Crusader Matt VK2ACL who is working really hard at being able to read 25wpm comfortably which he considers to be “The Black Belt” of Morse operating. This got me thinking about relating Morse to Martial Arts Grades as my son Rob is a Martial Artist. (Profile Here) He started learning Kung Fu when he was 15 to protect himself as he was too scared to go to our local market town where he was being picked on. Through Determination, Self Sacrifice and Pain he is now well respected in his field and still learning.

How does this relate to Morse? To learn Morse properly you have to be very determined, sacrificing time for daily practice and to go through the pain and frustration of overcoming mental blocks. Having a quick grade of our Crusaders, Matt VK2ACL would be graded as a Brown Belt striving hard for his Black Belt, I would consider myself as Black Belt First Dan and John N5DWI would be graded as Black Belt Fifth Dan (visit John’s site) Continue reading →

Redefining Slow Morse in Amateur Radio

Posted on 09/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

This is my Nemesis and I have upset people in the past airing my views on the subject so lets go WORLD WIDE. My problem is that people do not listen properly to what I am saying, especially learners who do not really understand the principles of my views. I love using Morse and actively encourage others to learn so that they can get the same enjoyment as I do using this mode of communication. The worst part is the people that actively teach slow Morse who refuse to listen to the damage that can be caused by their activities and set a potentially good Morse Operator back years. Continue reading →

Readability

Posted on 09/09/2011 by Ian G4XFC

This brings back memories when I moved from Glasgow, Scotland to Lincoln, England in 1963 the first English word I learnt was “Pardon” and seemed the standard reply to any question I asked. I soon learned that I needed to think and slow down when speaking to get any reasonable answers. I now speak Lincolnshire with a Scottish accent which most people seem to understand. Continue reading →

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