This is what I did.  I bought a tape that had random 5 letter groupings at 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, 17, 20 WPM.  I sat down with headphones and listened to the tape every day for ten minutes at the same time each morning.  Some times at night for 10 minutes also.  I wrote the letters in script instead of printing (can write script a lot faster than printing, and you will need the extra speed at 15 and above).  I would hit a "dead spot" where I din't seem to learn.  At these dead spots, I'd go to the next group of letters, or to the next highest code speed.  Within 30 days, I had solid copy at 7WPM.  I never touched a key untill after i could get on the air.  Doing the same thing, practice random code groups every day at the same time, got my code speed up every month.  Once I got to solid at 10WPM, I started listening to the ARRL practice sessions, but only the ones that started faster than I could receive.  I don't think I ever increased my CW speed while on the air. I was to concerned about copying what was sent to me (I didn't want to look like a dummy who could copy what was being sent to me!).  So the code tapes is what help my speed the best.  I still use code a lot, since I like to DX; phone is easier, but CW is more fun for me.  After all, all I need to do decipher the DX station's call, maybe his name and QTH, and him sending my call.  I use a keyboard set at around 20-25WPM to send CW now (I have pity on the op trying to copy me using an iambic keyer -- the key board is more constant and accurate than me).

have FUN
Bob

I send dollars to both DX stations, and non-state side QSL managers -- always to dxpedetion managers.

Although I haven't done a lot of traveling, some of the countries I've been in, Singapore, India, Nepal, Tunisia, St Kitts, England, and Mexico, only sanction exchanging currencies at government sanctioned agencies (no black market currency exchange!).  Some times they limit how much foreign currency their citizens can have, and how much local currency they can take out of the country.

The only places I would worry about now are countries that don't have any local ham radio operators, like N Korea and Yemen or countries we don't have mail service with, like Cuba.

 

"My only guess is I was interfering with a qso I could not hear. Any other suggestions?"

Sure do have a suggestion Pete; don't try and make sense out of non-sense!

I shook a lot when I was first getting going with CW, and later when I got my general ticket, with phone.  But, the shakeing was due to my fear of makeing a mistake, and thus, not being accepted, and being told I was either acting dumb, or was dumb.  But, starting out at something new, is to be new, not dumb.

I became more relaxed about "playing radio" with more experience "playing radio."  Now, if an op gives me a hard time about something trivial, or exhibits strange behavior, I just figure they are having a bad day.  It is very easy to QSY away from someone having a bad day.

The last time someone decide they didn't like how I operated, was when I gave a DX station a 3X7 signal report -- someone felt compelled to tell me 3X7 was an extremely dumb report; I ignored it, and went on looking for more DX.

Hope you get to have the fun I've had with ham radio, and to enjoy 10 Meters at the peak of a sun spot cycle.

Have FUN, Bob AE7G (WB1AUW, NY1I)

If you have one, how did you decide on verticals VRS folded dipoles.

What are your verticles constructed of?

Or, what are your dipoles mades of, and how do you support them?

If you have a metal tower in between the dipoles, what did you do to ensure the tower doesn't disrupt you lobes?

At one time, I would scan the CB band to see if 10 meters was open.  I find I no longer have to do that, since there seems to be tons of CBers on 10.  There is a pair of truckers that have made 28.535 their personal frequency.

South America and Asia seem to have decide ten meters is for CBers.

What are other hams doing about this?

My only solution so far, has been to call CQ DX on top of the CBers, hopeing that striking a QSO on top of them, with my antenna aimed at the CBers, will interupt them enough that they QSY off ten meters.  But, in essence, I am creating willfull and malicous interference.  

It seems to me, that the only way to persuade CBers to get off 10 meters is to swarm all over them.  But, my swarm of one or two Hams doesn't seem to be very effective.

I noticed the same thing many months ago.
I discovered "http://www.cestro.com/pcluster/telnet.html", a listing of internet clusters, and now monitor and post spots to K1TTT, within my Logging program, DXBase2001.
Have FUN
Bob

You didn't mention what your elevation is, what direction the hill behind you is, how wide the hill is ( the width of the arc it migh block signals from).  If you can put the tower(s) near your house and the hill only blocks to 8-10 degrees, so that your line of site to the horizon is at least 10 degress, or if the hill blocks higher than 10 degrees, but there aren't any worth while, or hard to get countries behind the hill, closer might be better than stringing 600-900 feet of AC.  For me, in tucson AZ, I don't worry about any hill blockage due south, the first country due south of me is long path to India, which typically is a little skewed to the west, and not due south.  Some hams I've talked to have remarked that when a band starts to open, low angle beams work best.  But as the signals get stronger, the signals arrive from higher angles.
Have FUN
Bob

When I was house hunting in 1989, I contacted a real estate agent and told her that if she was a good agent, I would buy a house via her if she found what I was looking for.

My specifications were 3br, 2 bath, 2 car garage, around 2000 square feet, in a good school district, no pool, no antenna restrictions, minimum of one acre, air conditioning (not swamp), and the other houses in the area would be similar.  I explained that my hobby was ham radio, and I would be installing a 70 foot tower, higher if possible.  Additionally, I described the area needed for guy wires.

After looking at about 6 houses, I had to include that houses at the base of a mountain weren't desirable for ham radio; locations next to major power lines weren't desirable either.

After looking at 2-3 houses a day, for 10 days, I found a 5 year old house I liked with room in the back for an 80 foot tower.

At the time I bought my house, I checked that the zoning for undeveloped land near me, I'm at the edge of a development, was also one acre or more.  The real estate agent didn't warn me that zoning is only temporary in Arizona!  The undeveloped area around outside this development now has much higher density housing than my development has.

I hadn't planned on staying here for more than a few years, but it is a very nice location.  A higher tower with bigger beams wouls be nice, but I don't need them, and I'm not willing right now to sell my house and buy another one.

Ham in what was a new house.

Follow the directions.  Mark whatever the results are on a 3X5 card so that the next time you are in the same frequency range, you will have the aproximate settings.  Have FUN
Bob

Call the manufacturer and get the information from them.  If the manufacturer went out of business, find out what current manufacturers specify.
Towers make an awfull mess when the fall down.
Bob