ok so i just got my technician license about 3 weeks ago and im still trying to figure out what im actually allowed to do. i read through part 97 or at least tried to but honestly its kind of dense and i got confused pretty fast. my main question is about HF — like i know techs get some HF privileges but i cant figure out exactly which bands and modes are ok and which arent. someone at my local club told me techs can use 10 meters but only certain parts of it? and something about CW only below a certain frequency? i dont want to accidentally transmit somewhere i shouldnt be, already paranoid enough about that. also does it matter what power level im running or is that a separate thing entirely. sorry if this is a dumb question i just want to make sure im doing this right before i key up anywhere

not a dumb question at all, this trips up a lot of new techs. so yeah you're right that it gets complicated. basically as a tech you do get some 10m privileges — you can operate phone (voice) between 28.300 and 28.500 MHz, and CW is allowed from 28.000 up to 28.300. there are also small tech allocations on 40m and 80m and 15m but they're CW only and pretty narrow, a lot of people dont even bother with them. the power limits are a separate thing but they're generally tied to the band and mode, for HF it's usually 200 watts PEP maximum for techs i believe, though honestly double check that in the actual part 97 tables because i dont want to steer you wrong. the arrl website has a really good frequency/privilege chart that lays it all out in plain english, way easier than reading the raw FCC text. i'd grab that and just keep it handy for a while.

yeah what he said. also just wanted to add — dont stress too much about accidentally transmitting somewhere wrong when youre first starting out, as long as youre not doing it on purpose and you're making a genuine effort to learn the rules the FCC isnt going to come after a new licensee for an honest mistake. that said obviously still try to get it right lol. one thing that helped me was just listening a lot before ever transmitting, you kind of learn where activity is and that gives you a feel for the band plans even before you memorize all the specific frequencies. the band plan thing is also worth knowing — thats not the same as FCC rules, those are more like gentlemens agreements about where certain modes tend to hang out, but its good to be aware of both