A "NET" is an on-air meeting at a regular schedule (could be daily, weekly, or on certain days of the week) at (a) specific time(s) and with a specific frequency (variation subject to QRL/QRM), and with one or more designated net controllers (NCS - Net Control Station). Usually there is one NCS with back ups in case of absence. Nets have a particular purpose and style.
For example a "round robbin" net is where each station has a full over and takes turns going in a circle in the order of checkin, for example. Or a short and efficient net for traffic (messages) handling. Or a net where the NCS controls whose turn it is. A CW NET can bring together operators in a certain region, or of a certain interest, or a club membership.
A short check-in net can suit those who don't want to spend a lot of time on the net, and could give valuable information, such as frequency calibration (F9TM net in France does this), or can allow those who checked in to request a QSO with another net member when NCS calls them to transmit, they say "QSO <CALLSIGN>" as a request to QSO a specific station. The NCS then, after completing the net, sends stations to different frequencies to have those QSO.
Another type of net has the NCS call CQ NET (or net name) and at every two checkins, pairs off those two stations to have a QSO and assigns them a frequency to QSY to. Those stations will check QRL? on that frequency, and if any problem, come back to NCS to ask for another frequency. When QSO are complete, stations can come back to NCS if NET is still in operation, and check in again, to be ready to be paired off again.
The trick of NCS is to keep a record of where everyone is, and to manage the net efficiently and effectively. You can search the web for net operation techniques. A number of Q codes are very helpful to net operations. Here is an example to look at.
30CW would also be very interested in setting up a 30CW NET and training operators how to be NCS. If this would interest you please reply to this post here in the forum and we can get started.
The objective of a 30CW NET would be to activate 30m CW in the TOP 9 - probably around 10127.5 kHz, foster a regular gathering of 30CW members and others, give any on air news from 30CW in a QST bulletin or QTC, and gain experience of CW NET communications.
If you have any ideas or suggestions of your own, please share them by replying to this post.