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Why Morse?

Morse code revolutionized human communication. The invention of the telegraph was one of the greatest revolutions in history, allowing messages to travel faster than a horse could run, followed quickly by transatlantic cables and wireless telegraphy. Morse was king until voice transmissions and automated telegraphy took over.

Its legacy survived through radio amateurs who keep it alive today. People began building their own radios, and the dits and dashes echoed far into the future.

Even the internet couldn't kill it. People still found it fun, and it found new life in films and games as a simple way to hide information. It made long-distance radio communication simple, using gear that was a pleasure to build.

But recently, the thrill faded. To be a licensed ham, you need to pass an exam, buy expensive radio equipment, and master complex antenna building. And online, there just aren't so many people to talk to. Calling CQ in the void using a mouse gets old pretty fast. Conversation is scarce, and the spark is gone.

Then came Animorse.

It's a good name for the project. Anima means "soul" in Latin, and its Spanish descendent, ¡Animo!, translates to "Cheer up!" Put that spirit together with Morse, and you get Animorse.

In Animorse, there's always someone to talk to, guaranteed. There aren't any radio propagation problems. You don't need a license, an expensive radio, or a complicated antenna that comes with a ton of paperwork. And, assuming you do get all those things and the ionosphere cooperates, on a real radio you still aren't allowed to talk about anything you want for as long as you want. But with Animorse, you are.

The rig needed to connect is small and portable. Set it to vibrate and talk to someone on the other side of the planet with your hand in your pocket. Set it to light-only and read the news from across the room.

You can speak without your mouth and listen without your ears. Therefore, you can communicate even if you can't speak, hear, or see -- or communicate with people who can't. You can play games, crack secret codes, or talk to an AI about drinking coffee in zero gravity.

Animorse makes Morse fun again.

How Does It Work?

Animorse is a network running on Morse code. Its aim is to revive this wonderful method of communication and make it fun again -- for anybody.

Operators use special hardware devices called VRIGs. You can connect your Morse key to a VRIG, or use its existing buttons, to generate Morse signals on a specific channel (called a freq). Anything you send there will be heard by any VRIG that is tuned on the same freq. Check out the layout of the freqs in the Band Plan.

That's all. Except for the bots and the games, of course. To keep things fun, in Animorse you can talk to bots — computerised operators, some powered by AI. They are available 24/7 to chat with you in Morse.

The VRIG connects to the Animorse network via the internet using a WiFi connection. You can use your router at home, or a hotspot that you create on your phone. Any VRIG can store up WiFi access points, just like your phone. To connect, just power on the VRIG and follow the steps on screen. The client code running on VRIGs is written in the Toit programming language running on an ESP32 microcontroller. The server code is written in Ruby.

Products

In order to connect to Animorse, you need a VRIG. This is a small computer that can either beep, shine, or vibrate, and to some of which you can connect a Morse key. Different formats are for sale: with or without internal battery, for example.

Each VRIG is powered by an ESP32 microcontroller.

Subscription

Maintaining Animorse costs money, and this is why any registered user who wants to use Animorse to talk to someone has to pay a small subscription fee.

If you have a VRIG, you can instantly connect to Animorse and listen for free, but you'll need an active subscription in order to be able to send.

FAQ

Community Rules

• Use the callsign that you've been given. Don't "borrow" someone else's, and don't invent your own.
• Don't use Animorse to cheat. If you're smart enough to learn Morse code, you can also learn what the capital of France is.
• In fact, don't use Animorse for anything illegal, ever. We retain the right to lock out your VRIG as an extreme measure. We will cooperate fully with law enforcement in addressing illegal conduct.

Callsign Structure

A callsign is a number followed by a country suffix: for example, 3SE.

All country suffixes are based on the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 standard. Geography is irrelevant in Animorse since, being internet-based, everyone hears each other perfectly. Adding a country suffix is just a matter of convenience.

There is an extra country suffix, AI, which is used only by the bots.

Your callsign is your identity in Animorse, and you get one for free when you subscribe.

Band Plan (Freqs)

The "frequencies" used in Animorse resemble more the concept of "channels" and are called freqs. There are 100 freqs in Animorse.

00 - Private Freq

This is your private freq. On this freq, only AI bots will hear you. You may call 1AI or play a game with XO, but no other human user will be able hear you.

01 - 09 - Hear-Only Frequencies

You cannot transmit on these. Use them to train receiving skills or listen to news.

• 04: Numbers Station. Encrypted messages for the Code Breaking Game.
• 06: Slow News. Current news sent at low speed.
• 09: Fast News. Current news sent at high speed.

10 - 99 - Public Freqs

Use these freqs to talk to bots or to other people, to your heart's content.

Bots & Games

An AI bot is a station that monitors all freqs between 10 and 99, plus your private freq 00, and answers when called.

Ham Bot 1AI

1AI is an AI who thinks he's a radioamateur called Henric living in Habo, Sweden. Call him: CQ 1AI DE 3SE KN

Chat Bot 4AI

4AI is an AI chatbot you can talk with about anything.

XO Game (Tic-Tac-Toe)

Call XO to play. Example: XO DE 3SE G KN (play position G).

Coordinate Systems supported:

Email Gateway

Call OAC to read emails sent to your-callsign@animor.se.

Code Breaking

Listen to Freq 04. Decode the encrypted messages. Submit your solution here to join the Hall of Fame!

Hall of Fame

No winners yet. Be the first!

Submit Solution

Think you cracked the code?

Privacy Policy

All your personal data is handled by a third-party subscription management platform. There is no user database in Animorse. There is, however, a database of vrigs, since they are individually manufactured and configured, but they are not permanently connected to you as a person.

Each vrig comes with a hard-coded identifier, which is also how the QR code on each rig leads directly to that vrig's individual online setup page.

All communication that takes place in Animorse is logged as text (not the actual Morse signals, only their transliterations). This is done for quality assurance purposes. Anyone can listen to any freq in Animorse (except freq 00), so there is no expectation of privacy on the public airwaves.

About Me

Animorse was created by a Morse enthusiast for Morse enthusiasts.

My name is Alex Deva. I learned Morse as a child at my local radioclub, YO5 KHI, and used it while competing in HST (High-Speed Telegraphy). I work as a Software Manager at Saab in Sweden. I'm a programmer, novelist, podcaster, and private helicopter pilot. My website is alxx.se.

Contact

Email Alex at jag@alxx.se

Call Alex on Animorse at callsign 3SE