In radiotechnique I prefer to do morse telegraphy (CW). I hope that I can bring you over to these operating mode on this webpage and direct perhaps even your interest on it.

(My) reasons for the use of CW
 
The hobby amateur radio is so various that everyone can according to the personal inclinations and technical possibilities its favourite operating mode select and to this with attention of some basic rules unimpaired dedicate itself.
My selection fell on the telegrafie. With its assistance I can transmit information without use of additional devices. Only the own ears, the transceiver and a morse key are necessary for it. If the morse key is replaced by a microphone, this is possible also by means of telefonie (SSB). An advantage of the telegrafie more opposite the telefonie is however the fact that a CW signal can be taken up also still under conditions, with those SSB no longer is possible. Why? Place you times a very quiet signal forwards. Only if one tone must be detected, then this is still possible also if the accommodation of words already failed.
By the lately developed new operating modes (e.g. PSK) also still connections can be implements if even the telegrafie already fails. However for it always add-on modules (mostly computers) are necessary. Since I follow to my hobby repeatedly times from locations off any civilization, therefore always additionally still at least a notebook would be necessary. Since I would not like this, I had decided for the telegrafie as favored operation field.
But this not mean, that I regard radio amateurs badly, who do not divide this preference. If I consider, which other one reach on the subject of SSTV, PSK31 and the many other ranges of our hobby, I raise my hat to this one.

Structure of a CW character
 
That is a double-edged topic. On the one hand CW characters should be differentiated not according to the number from dots and dashes, but according to the sound. If we talk together, we do not make sure also that a certain word consists of individual letters. We hear the whole word and do detect this. Exactly the same it is to be also with the CW language. On the other hand however some basic rules for the output of CW characters are to be considered.
 
between elements: 1 dot
between charakters: 3 dots
between words: 7 dots
 
To the most fundamental rules a dot-dash-relation of 1:3 belongs. Furthermore a distance between the dots and dashes of a single character of a point length is to be kept. Between two CW characters of a word a break is appropriate by 3 dot lengths. The distance between two words is to amount to 7 dots lengths.

International CW characters
 
The CW characters can be divided into 4 groups (letter, digits, punctuation mark, road sign). Beside the international CW characters there are some additional characters or also whole alphabets for some languages still. These were not inserted however into the available enumeration.

CW abbreviations
 
The type of operation CW revives only correctly by the abbreviations used therein. Fast and these characters give also again to take up to be able are a thing. A liquid handling during a QSOs another. Also possible, a whole QSO in the plain text is to be handled, however faster using the usual, internationally understandable abbreviations and omitting fillers is. If you begin with CW, there will be only few abbreviations, which you use during a QSOs. However it will become from QSO QSO more. I do not use also all contractions specified here constantly into the QSOs. I look some up simply if necessary during a QSOs fast from a ready-being situated list (hi). The available list does not lay a claim on completeness.

CW rate and PARIS standard
 
The individual characters of the CW alphabet are partially differently long. Thus it is not so easily possible to indicate for any text a certain CW rate. In order to eliminate this problem, one agreed for the calculation of the CW rate on a reference word. This word is called PARIS. A length of 50 dots lengths takes itself together with the following break. Therefore the following connection results: 1 word = 5 letters = 50 dot lengths. For the specification of the CW rate two versions are possible. On the one hand the specification in words per minute (WPM) and on the other hand the use of letters per minute (LPM). They can be converted at any time into one another. An example pleasingly? 12 words per minute = 60 letters per minute = 600 dot lengths per minute. That results in a dot length of 100 ms.