I have 128 of the 200 channels programmed into my radio: HAM, GMRS, MURS, FRS, Fire & Rescue, Police, School Systems, Hospitals, EMT's, Business bands, Marine Band, and anything else I can think of or learn about. I want to be able to have the best possible chance for communication with someone during an emergency. I also plot the location, height, frequency, and power of every transmission that I listen to on a daily basis (except the pirate radios). What use are empty channels in a radio?