ain't worf a carrot

[byron]

ain\'t worf a carrot

As is normal with a modern boat my new boat's chart table ain't worf a carrot. It's too small for a chart folded in half and horror of horrors it is even too small to take a Yeoman Plotter and I don't want to use a Yeoman Sport as they look tatty after a season's use. Most Plotters have idiotically small screens, so my question is... "which Plotter has the biggest screen?"

©2001

 

[Guest]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

jfm will know all the spex but so far seems that Simrad do a 14" one, and Raytheon do a more visible 10-inch "portrait" one which is especially suited to going north or south, and especially south-south-west etc.

IMHO, though (that means In My Humble Opinion, took me ages to find out that) these plotters don't really *need* a massive screen, more than 10" bit wasted and a 5" well used seems fine. This is because at any one moment you're only concentring on a small area. Paper maps are big cos there's one resolution and that's that. So if you could only choose one map you'd need a massive one. But with two maps you could have smaller ones. With infinite zoom in/out there's no need to have a massive screen area. As witness for example you reading these words here, concentrating on a few at a time, rather than simultaneously assimilating both ends of all lines of text. It was probably the same in the very olden days when, instead of looking at the sun in the sky, more accuracy was claimed by sundials, then clocks, all of which were massive to start off. I reckon that at any one time you only look at a few inches dia of something as close as a desk.

 

[byron]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

I understand what you are saying but with a greater spread one gets a better perspective of where one is, rather like a chart. You can put a finger on where you are but see where you are in relation to further objects. This is why the Yeoman Plotter is so cool.

©2001

 

[hlb]

Cinama scope

I Grees with Matt. Mine comes up on the radar screen which is
a bloody big telly for a little screen, bout six inch square. But you can zoom about all over the place so no problem.
Could do with bigger writting though it keeps getting smaller as I get older. And mi glasses keep falling off, scening at it
whilst going over the bumps.

Haydn

 

[jfm]

Re: big screens, electronic clinic in solent

No I'd go for a big screen. Yes matt you only look at one bit at a time but if the screen is small you end up scrolling around too much, and that's a PITA IMHO (pain in the arse - took me ages too, to suss that) because even the best plotters do not have instant redraw AFAIK.

Other advantage of big screens is splitting into windows, so you can have chart in two scales, or moving highway, or lat long etc in different windows and see em all at once.

The biggest is Simrad 14" though the 10" is fine really. Matt (and anyone else) I will demo the Simrad anytime I find you in the Solent, reading your post it is clear to me you need a furhter dose of brainwashing/indoctrination on big screens and fancy kit, a fact that I find hard to reconcile with a Leopard+456 purchaser. Meantime, when your birthday comes round ask wife for Dixons vouchers it will set you in the right direction.

JFM

 

[suzanne]

Re: Table Probs

Dont know about the size of screens but I may beable to help with your problem about the table being too small. On our boat the tables a funny shape and has lips around the edge, not very practical for charts so my clever daddy got a decorating table which folds in half, put a few extra pieces of wood on the sides so that it gripped the table underneath and doesnt slide around. Its really good and a bonus is that it holds our VERY old yeoman (10 years approx) in the middle when packed away. Remind me to show you Byron, its an interesting devise!

Suzanne xXx

 

[jfm]

Re: gotta get yer priorities right

Hmmmmm...but izzit polished high gloss american cherry suzanne?

JFM

 

[jfm]

Re: Phwoar Suzanne

Cor blimey I take it all back. I just read your profile. So long as you're not a student at Lanchester/Coventry you can have whatever chart table or decorating table you want. If you want cherry, that's fine, if mdf, that's fine too. Your choice. Just off to Gieves and Hawkes to gettem to make me a yellow shirt.....

JFM

 

[duncan]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

byron - have you thought of a laptop with chartsoftware linked into a GPS? You can pick up a secondhand colour laptop quite up to running the software pretty cheap now as the available specs are rocketting and becoming more reasonable in price at the upper end.

 

[byron]

Re: Phwoar Suzanne

Her Dad is 6'+ tall rolls his fags with one hand while bare knuckle fighting with the other. I'm not scared of him though because he hates to see a man cry, so I sob before he hits me.

©2001

 

[byron]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

I gotta lap top on board, how else can I play games like 'Wasteland' and Dungeons & Dragons, are you telling me they have other uses too?

©2001

 

[longjohnsilver]

Re: Table Probs

I used to have no feelings at all re French fishermen but I also feel a real hatred coming on. I am now determined to get fit again so that I can get back into my favourite yellow shirt!!

 

[Guest]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

If you already have a laptop, you can get software free! I have been trying SeaClear (http://www.sping.com/seaclear) by this guy in Sweden. You scan in the charts, bung in a few reference points and bingo. It interfaces to a GPS with NMEA 0183 and will drive an autopilot as well. The charts are raster rather than vector, but it isn't bad for free. I keep it as a standby to get a few hours of chartplotter if for some reason all the navionics pack up. I got a GPS 12 for £80 and the leads for £15, so not bad at all. Worth a look.

Course the legality of scanning the charts is another thing...

 

[byron]

Re: ain\'t worf a carrot

Now that is interesting... but! one would need a pretty big scanner to do it
Anyway I have sent a copy of your message to Andy as he doesn't come here to often 'cos he has a hole in his boat.
He will be the kiddie to sort it out for himself and me too 'cos I'm his mate.

©2001