I think the ultimate point is that these systems really are expensive luxuries rather than anything you need to sail.
I’ve been sailing off and on since 1980, and like many sailors, my cruising grounds generally are within 150 miles of home. Most of the good places, I’ve been to many times. The Keys can be tricky with its shoals and shallow water, but I’m fairly certain I could navigate most places in Biscayne Bay, the Upper Keys and the Middle Keys with nothing but a compass and binoculars. Places I don’t remember, well, channel markers are excellent and I have a good depth sounder. So I’ve had chart plotters in my Defender shopping cart a couple of times, but I have never been able to justify pulling the trigger on a buy. Basically, these are all costly delivery systems that give you the same information contained in your chartbook and that map GPS you bought so many years ago. Do I really need to look at dots on a big screen or a tablet when I can look out over the bow and see the red and green markers? With a little bit of planning, you’ve looked at the chart already and know what the area looks like as you enter it. The handheld GPS tells you where you are in that area. So I think yeah, a cool toy, but I would rather buy a new sail or some opening ports or a better VHF. Plus, all of us spend way too much of my time already staring at screens. (Disclosure: At various times, I made my living building web sites and doing computer programming.) My daughters drive me crazy when they can’t go 10 minutes without checking their smart phones. So my boat is a refuge from computers and TVs and smart phones and tablets. People who sail with me are required to talk and look at nature, not pixels. One sailor’s opinion, I’m sure not popular among folks who enjoy the latest technology. But another point of view ... Jack Brennan Former C&C 25 Shanachie, 1974 Bristol 30 Tierra Verde, Fl. From: bobmor99 . Sent: Wednesday, February 19, 2014 9:50 PM To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com Subject: Re: Stus-List Navigation Software The typical, thrifty day sailor / coastal cruiser wannabe would like an inexpensive, sunlight-viewable, waterproof display - with optional touchscreen. Most everything else is software. Bob M Ox 33-1 Jax, FL The market is changing though... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _______________________________________________ This List is provided by the C&C Photo Album http://www.cncphotoalbum.com CnC-List@cnc-list.com --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. http://www.avast.com
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