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So You Think You Want A GPS! - Page 2

© Barry Houseknecht

Just a note here the GPS units get their signal from satellites and it is a very weak signal therefore they must have a clear view of the sky. This means that they don't work well indoors or in a vehicle, so unless you are in a convertible or like holding the unit to the windshield, you might want to consider a remote antenna.

Another miscalculation we made was the amount of time that it would take us to be able to Program our trip into the GPS or even just to be able to use the units controls under fire. We found no problem determining any thing that we wanted while sitting on the couch with the book in hand but when we got on the road it was another story. It is really not all that difficult to use, but we would highly recommend you take short test trips on unfamiliar roads prior to throwing out those paper maps for your big trip.

The time, distance, and speed information we obtained from the GPS was poor due the way we put the pretrip information in. Here again familiarity will resolve this problem. The best use we found on this trip was that we always knew how far it was to the next rest stop. It seems the signs are always at 60 miles and then again at 2 miles but not in between. When you're in a car as opposed to an RV the rest stops become much more important if you know what we mean. We actually had two occasions when the thing kept us from becoming lost.

Do we regret buying the GPS? No we just need more practice, practice, and practice. Will we travel without the GPS? No now it's on the required to take checklist next to the cell phone and CB radio. Will we throw away those paper maps? No not quite yet but we can see the time when that could happen.

By the way there are several good web sites for GPS users and fans check them out there is a load of good information and product reviews.

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