T&T: Fw: Paper charts or electronic aides

[Ricky L Carroll]

Randy,
 
I'm with  you on this one. I think today's tendency to rely  on
electronics exclusively is a bad paradigm.  Recreational boaters are simply
becoming too gizmo-dependent. This dependency is not without hazard. Gear can
fail, satellites can be affected by solar flares and changes in the earth's
magnetic field, and the government (duh) has control of GPS accuracy in times
of national emergency. 

To be honest, there is sometimes the simple advantage
of being able to look at a large chart and "take it all in". You just can't do
that at any reasonable resolution on a CRT or LED screen.
 
More importantly,
there are the simple skills of coastal navigation you can only acquire by
using a chart and working out LOP's and DR positions. Folks who are good at
it, know where they are all the time and just look out the pilothouse, pick
out landmarks and navigate. It becomes second-nature and makes for a much more
relaxing nautical experience. These are folks who aren't are relegated to
"pointer chasing" on a screen. For the screen-lookers, the view out the window
becomes abstract.
 
I been an active scuba diver for 30 years. I see the same
thing with new divers.  I dive with two decompression computers--one is a
backup, but  if both fail on the first dive, I can still work with my
old-timey tables for the second, third, etc..... I see other divers go
offshore only to learn their dive computer batteries have failed (or they
forgot to turn the stupid thing on--happens all the time). Lord help 'em, most
don't own dive tables, much less how to use them. Most of all, they don't
understand the science of what the computer is calculating, so when things go
wrong, they really go wrong. Understanding the science: It's a lost but
important skill.
 
Electronic maps are great. Computers are an important
addition to our navigation tools. But, I would suggest that paper charts are
the preferable backup and that they still retain certain advantages over
pixelated displays. 
 
BTW, I make maps for a living.
 
Ricky 

----- Original
Message ----
From: Randy Pickelmann rwp_48@yahoo.com
...........
Subject: T&T:
Paper charts or electronic aides


Gary & all,
I, too, am a bit of a "belt &
suspenders" guy when it comes to navigation.  I
guess what really concerns me
about the emerging  crop of recreational boaters
is that many/most have
absolutely no clue as to the use of paper charts and
"old fashioned"
navigation techniques.  LOP?  Running fix?  Time/distance
calculations?  What
is that and why should I even need to know it?  After all,
I've got this
expensive electronic stuff and the salesman promised me that
this was going to
be easy.  I even have a training and instruction manual on
DVD.  Its stashed
away somewhere down below.
Regards,
Randy Pickelmann
hard aground in
Clearwater
MORNING STAR
www.morningstar.talkspot.com.......................