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By the time I got a HAM license that I only used for digital transmissions, several people taking the test with me were "old-timers" who were lamenting that you didn't need to know CW to get a license.

There is apparently still a thriving CW community, and some of them use auto-keying now, so you don't need the manual dexterity any more.

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I'll add one more piece of ham lore to this thread. The gigantic electronic component distributor DigiKey got its start when the founder designed and marketed a Morse code key to the ham radio audience. DigiKey was originally a mail-order business selling to hams.

The point is that the ham radio hobby is very intertwined with the electrical engineering profession. It's very technical ... not just a bunch of guys talking to each other over the radio (although it's that too).

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