Just can't get a good basic truck, like the old days!

[paulsharvey]

Anyone know since 2014 every new car in the US has an edr aka a black box that stores accident info occasionally used to reconstruct accidents. Anyways I used "snapshot" plug in obd driving recorder from progressive in the winter when it first came out. I was docked several times for rapid acceleration and rapid decelerations. No kidding, anyone who's ever driven on snow and ice covered roads will occasionally briefly spin the tires when starting off from a stop sign. Occasionally lock the tires even with abs. I dropped progressive after I got my report from them.

The GeoTab we have in our work vehicles is similar, although it includes stuff like frequent stops, meet up points, ect; and can be set to alert of off hour usage, or out of "zone" travel. I kniw they dont have some of that currently turned on, as I sometimes work nights and/or weekends, and haven't gotten a nasty email about it.

Moving the vehicle 15 ft without a seat belt on, yes...

 

[Eagle1]

I don't agree to those devices. While extremely rare these days, sometimes you just have roast the tires... like on your way to get new ones..

 

[Oaktree]

I quit driving to Dallas for work and asked about getting my insurance rate dropped. State Farm wanted to put a GPS tracker in my truck. I said no. It was very difficult to keep from cussing at them when on the phone after that response.

???
You asked for a way to reduce your insurance cost and they offered a solution, why the anger? It's not like they mandated it as a condition of continuing coverage. Could have just politely declined and left it at that.

The GeoTab we have in our work vehicles is similar, although it includes stuff like frequent stops, meet up points, ect; and can be set to alert of off hour usage, or out of "zone" travel. I kniw they dont have some of that currently turned on, as I sometimes work nights and/or weekends, and haven't gotten a nasty email about it.

Moving the vehicle 15 ft without a seat belt on, yes...

Glad I never worked for a company that was so "big brother".

 

[John0829]

When I worked for ATT as an outside tech working digital services, not POTS, my van was the first vehicle to get GPS tracking installed on it. Supposedly to help make for more efficient dispatches, next job closest to your current location type of thing. BOY do I have a stories about that!!! Anyway my supervisor came in the next morning for the group meeting and was showing the report... It showed me going though a school zone 4 mph above the speed limit. He asked me why I was speeding, my reply, that way the little b@$tards will bounce over the hood and not get stuck on the windshield. School was not even in session, he was not amused. From that day forward I made sure to drive 5 mph below the posted limit no matter how urgent the call, even taking back roads to take the shortest distance to the next job even though going another way would have been faster.

Like this day...

As for the more efficient dispatching, one day they ran me 60+ miles to my first job two counties away, the next job was in the complete opposite direction over 120 miles away. Third job of the day was back to within 5 miles of the first job of the day and job four was back to within 10 miles of the second. What did I care, being most of the day was windshield time and overtime. This was just one of several "efficient" dispatch days I had when working outside.

 

[paulsharvey]

We had one guy who was clocked at 90 mph in his yard. Because GeoTab is drawing info through the vehicle, im assuming he spun the tires in some wet grass or something, the the vehicle briefly read 90 mph?

 

[WinterDeere]

We had one guy who was clocked at 90 mph in his yard. Because GeoTab is drawing info through the vehicle, im assuming he spun the tires in some wet grass or something, the the vehicle briefly read 90 mph?

I had a neighbor who went thru a brief period of alcoholic binges during their divorce, get his Cadillac Escalade going nearly that fast through his front yard. Somehow, leaving his garage with the pedal to the floor mat, he got going fast enough to completely wrap the vehicle around a tree in his own front yard.

 

[3930dave]

That happened here in Nevada, not far from where I live. Some friends of mine found the van with the lady in it while hunting for sheds. Remains of her husband were found a year or so later up under a pinyon pine where he had taken shelter, by one of my coworkers who was elk hunting.

"Walking out" is not a good option when the town, the nearest pavement, the nearest anything can be 40 or 100 miles away and you are in mountainous terrain and not sure which way to travel.

I distinctly remember the picture of the van - looked fine, just hung-up. Don't leave the vehicle, is what most people should stick to. My quick search the other day didn't pull that^ up, but sadly, another more recent fatality.

Under those conditions ^, even someone fit, and prepared, has a big challenge. Having enough water, is the first (and often last) problem.

PACE planning...... Comms - people have a cell for P, then for many/most, nothing else.....

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

One reason I don't have "apps" on my personal phone.

Even w/o optional apps installed, if a cell is on, assume it's being tracked.

Tested-out Faraday bag, is one way to carry a backup phone..... and the battery will last longer between charges....

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

Due to the number of major catastrophes in recent years, there is typically a device from which each competitor must send a single text message each day, letting organizers know they're still alive and in the race. But this device cannot be used to request weather or any other information that might aid in their circumnavigation.

As much as I like olde-school tech, and solutions, going-rambling anywhere remote, having an InReach or equivalent with you is prudent.

inReach® Satellite Communicators | Messengers | Garmin

Am I remembering correctly ?...... Something about USN going back to teaching sextant etc. navigation ?

PACE....

Rgds, D.

 

[deserteagle71]

As much as I like olde-school tech, and solutions, going-rambling anywhere remote, having an InReach or equivalent with you is prudent.

inReach® Satellite Communicators | Messengers | Garmin

Been using a Garmin Montana 750i GPS unit for years now. It has the inReach circuitry and antenna built in and I can testify that it works really well no matter where I am in the outback. Only thing to remember with inReach is that it uses the Iridium satellite system and for that the inReach unit has to have a clear view of the sky. In other words, if you are in a vehicle with a metal roof...it ain't gonna work!

 

[3930dave]

Been using a Garmin Montana 750i GPS unit for years now. It has the inReach circuitry and antenna built in and I can testify that it works really well no matter where I am in the outback. Only thing to remember with inReach is that it uses the Iridium satellite system and for that the inReach unit has to have a clear view of the sky. In other words, if you are in a vehicle with a metal roof...it ain't gonna work!

Iridium isn't "sexy" today (can't watch movies on it), but it can and does save lives. Clear Sky Might have to walk/crawl-out of a slot-canyon, but after that Mot has your back.

I still work full-time, so don't have much time for the remote-rambling I'd like to do.... but I've had my eye on the Montana line for a while.

After getting irritated with Google maps in a just slightly rural setting this year, I was getting serious about the Montana...... called a wizard-buddy of mine, who ran an older waterproof Garmin in his sailing days... I ran a laptop copy (legit) of Streets years back and liked it, but checked in ^ with him - as expected, his Garmin hardware stood up well to sailboat and motorcycle use.....

I called for his opinion, but was offered a gratis Nuvi (surplus, from an Estate, that no other family members were interested in), so as we go back to the Dawn of Time, I accepted.... and my buddy being who he is, added a flashcard, and updated the maps before passing it along.

This old Nuvi works well for street and rural driving. If I want/need topo, I'll be dropping $1000 CAD on the Montana, but I'm not in a rush....

Rgds, D.

 

[deserteagle71]

This old Nuvi works well for street and rural driving. If I want/need topo, I'll be dropping $1000 CAD on the Montana, but I'm not in a rush....

Does the Nuvi had a SD card slot? If so, get a copy of Garmin's 100k topo maps (that's the whole USA) on the SD and load it into the Nuvi. That's what I did with the Nuvi I used and the topo maps worked fine. A good (and free) alternative to the expensive Garmin topo maps is gpsfiledepot.com - you can download the states you want, put them on an SD card and use them. Make sure you follow all the instructions as far as naming the maps - if they are not named precisely as Garmin requires the GPS won't recognize them.

Here's a pic of my Nuvi 5000 running topo maps:

 

[WinterDeere]

As much as I like olde-school tech, and solutions, going-rambling anywhere remote, having an InReach or equivalent with you is prudent.

EPIRB's are mandatory on all competing boats. That's not considered a communication device, as they only activate under emergency conditions, and do nothing other than transmit the boat or wearer's location.

Am I remembering correctly ?...... Something about USN going back to teaching sextant etc. navigation ?

Yes. After being briefly discontinued (2006 - 2016), celestial navigation was reinstated starting with the class of 2017, due to concerns over cyberattacks wiping out our relatively fragile GPS system.

 

[Hay Dude]

Dr Rick is here again to remind you to stop asking for the features your parents would want in their vehicles!

 

[Renze]

281K views · 2.4K reactions | Reelclawboss on Reels

www.facebook.com

 

[jjeff]

View attachment 4273290

Dr Rick is here again to remind you to stop asking for the features your parents would want in their vehicles!

Problaby could use Dr. Rick on speed dial when buying newer things or whatever they call rapid dialing features on smarter than me phones these days. Id probably end up getting blocked though, after many accidental pocket dials.

 

[Hay Dude]

True story. My previous I-phone was like 5 years old. Last 4-5 weeks, it kept repeat calling the last person I talked to. It was pretty embarrassing to say the least.
I just got a new I phone 17. Didn’t want to have to do this, but the previous phone battery was shot and the glass on the back of the phone was shattered and little pieces were falling out. It was time. They are running a pretty good deal now.

 

[WinterDeere]

True story. My previous I-phone was like 5 years old. Last 4-5 weeks, it kept repeat calling the last person I talked to.

I have a similar problem in summer, when I'm working outside and real sweaty with the phone in my pocket, all of the iPhone models since they eliminated the Home button back around iPhone 8. The problem is that sweaty jeans somehow cause the touch screen to activate and your thigh starts "typing".

In my case, I always have a passcode on the phone, so it usually stays locked. But my thigh will type enough bad passwords that the phone will sometimes disable itself, and a few times it has managed to dial 911 emergency services without me knowing, as that doesn't require a password to unlock the phone.

I found that disabling "touch to wake" option solves that problem. Of course, it makes the phone harder to use, like when you want to tap the screen to check the time in the middle of the night, so I only disable touch to wake when working outside on hot days.

I really wish they'd go back to using a home button, as the facial recognition for unlocking is sometimes much less reliable than the old thumb print scan technology, such as when you're bundled up with hat and sunglasses for working out in the cold.

 

[jjeff]

True story. My previous I-phone was like 5 years old. Last 4-5 weeks, it kept repeat calling the last person I talked to. It was pretty embarrassing to say the least.
I just got a new I phone 17. Didn’t want to have to do this, but the previous phone battery was shot and the glass on the back of the phone was shattered and little pieces were falling out. It was time. They are running a pretty good deal now.

Once I finally got a KYOCERA supposed tough phone id never go back to any other type of phone again. Without adding anything the screen and frame itself is literally indestructible , wateproof I will say my original KYOCERA tough phone lasted over 5 years Ill try not to snow drift on what that phones been thru but it still worked after a hard reset at the phone store almost kept it in service but kind of wanted a newer 5g capable KYOCERA tough phone, ergonomics on this one suck, it does things I don't want it to do even with my tech savvy wife and kids oncall to remedy problems I've experienced. Flashlight was on for a day no idea til know how to shut it off. Alarm set itself for 2am hope it stays disabled. When I get free time I end up deleting 100s of pocket pictures even though I swear it should be locked. And I've made more than a few pocket dials usually calls the same person I was just talking to. I think in my younger yrs I was definitely more capable of figuring out problems involving activities im building or fixing on my own without some hack on the Internet telling me something when occasionally I'm stuck doing something. I could probably be a star on real life Dr. Rick stories if Geico ever went that way.

 

[3930dave]

Does the Nuvi had a SD card slot? If so, get a copy of Garmin's 100k topo maps (that's the whole USA) on the SD and load it into the Nuvi. That's what I did with the Nuvi I used and the topo maps worked fine. A good (and free) alternative to the expensive Garmin topo maps is gpsfiledepot.com - you can download the states you want, put them on an SD card and use them. Make sure you follow all the instructions as far as naming the maps - if they are not named precisely as Garmin requires the GPS won't recognize them.

Here's a pic of my Nuvi 5000 running topo maps:
View attachment 4273285

Driving on the ET Highway...... I need that on a Tshirt !

Much thanks for the 411 and protips on the Nuvi. I'll have a look @ the Canuck Topos on Garmin first - if they aren't too $$$, I may go that route.

I likely have a memory constraint on this olde Nuvi 1390..... wizard-bud commented he had to add the card he did, just to get Can/USA Streets onto it. Never done it on Garmin, but I'd like to assume that swapping cards to go on/off road should be doable/smooth/fast..... but, will have to try 2 know......

Rgds, D.