Yesterday, the FCC moved to correct an error which would have rendered J2D emissions illegal below 30MHz. You can read the text here:
http://www.arrl.org/
IMHO, this is both good and not-so-good news.
It's good because Pactor III and other affected data protocols won't be banned on amateur HF frequencies....at least not for now.
It's not-so-good because J2D emisions take place in the CW portion of the amateur bands, and are band hogs, being much wider than CW emissions. Further, the practices mentioned above by some Pactor III users don't lend themselves well to the spirit or intent of ham radio: band sharing, courtesy, non-interference with other hams, etc.
This will be more important than ever, as the FCC has also moved to extend the
SSB portions of the 40m and 75m amateur bands into what were previously CW portions of these bands, thereby restricting the availability of frequencies for CW and J2D emissions.
Perhaps the protocols implemented by X-net will be adopted by others using J2D emissions. Let's hope!
Meanwhile, Pactor III users can all help by being more aware of the potential
interference they may cause, and by improving their operating practices.
_________________
Bill
S/V Born Free
WA6CCA