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I refuse to use (and as a result, even acquireg) a GPS system. I far, far prefer to use maps and instinct. You will NEVER get to know an area quickly using GPS. You learn far better by making mistakes and driving around. I know a lot of cities in this country, and I've learned them, not by using GPS, but by refusing to do so (and, of course, by visiting them before GPS existed!) And when I'm lost.....I stop somewhere and ask directions. Amazing how many nice people you meet that way.
GPS is just another step in the dumbing down of society.
It's interesting how people don't even read the thread before commenting. The last couple of posts are repeating things dealt with on page 1.
To answer one: I use GPS, despite knowing the route, to check traffic conditions ahead. I don't need GPS to find things. I know my area too well. However, with so many accidents in the area, construction, and other traffic issues, it's nice to know in advance and try to avoid it. It's not always possible though.
Can you tell me what GPS you've used in the past that you've had problems with? I can say in my own personal experience that my first GPS which was a Garmin 255w and it was a good basic unit that at times didn't give me the most ideal of routes. But with my current Garmin 3580, its been pretty near perfect for the 1 1/2 years or so that I've had it. The routing is mostly spot on and doesn't have any tendency to take you off the highway.
It's a proprietary software on my friend's smartphone. Something provided by his carrier. I think it uses Google's code base, because the screen kind of looks like Google Maps, even though some elements look different. And after I listened to the directions it gave, I wouldn't trust it any more than I can throw it. (Oh, wait... ) But hey, if you found a device that works for you the way you want it to, I'd glad you did. It seems like dedicated GPS devices are better than smartphone apps. Agree or disagree?
Oh, and the device I was talking about has a tendency to take you onto the highway. Even when it has only 2 open lanes and 5 miles of non-moving bumper-to-bumper traffic. I bit my tongue and kept quiet (my friend drove, so it's only fair), but it was frustrating to see him being more willing to listen to the GPS goddess than to divert onto a parallel surface street. Maybe it's a crappy software, I get it. But when something gives you a bad experience enough times, it's perfectly natural to want nothing to do with it ever again.
And let's do a bit of clarification: when I said "using a GPS", I specially referred to turn-by-turn directions and the voice giving them.
I don't use a GPS, I use a PGS: Paper Geographic System.
I am not going to read all 18 pages of this, but I would like to further support the idea that you can't really get an idea of how things are laid out by following turn by turn directions like an ant in a maze.
But, with that said, I think the GPS may offer advantages to geographical dyslexics, who have trouble with things like "north". Don't laugh, I know about this problem though I don't have it myself.
Yes you go ahead and do all that everytime you want to go somewhere while I just get in my car and pick a location from my favorites or type in an address and simply go. If you like doing all that work then go right ahead, but I prefer being more efficient and keeping my eyes on the road than going through all that crap. And I wonder what happens when you decide you want to go somewhere else before you reach your original destination? How do you amend your directions on the fly? Yeah goodluck with doing that easily.
Of course you can do without a GPS, but why stop there? Why not go back to riding horses to wherever you want to go instead of using a car because people have been doing that for CENTURIES!! >_>
You use a car because its faster and more efficient to getting you where you want to go. The same with the GPS. Its faster and more efficient to getting you where you want to go. If you don't like using GPS that's your choice, but don't blame the tool and say its bad just because you don't know how to use it properly.
Put us both in the same spot and give us an address to some place neither have ever been and I can guarantee I'll get there with my method just as quick as you would with yours. Been driving since the mid 80's and have gone plenty of places and never needed one. I've gotten around fine. And yes, I have altered my routs many times as I decided that I'd check something out along the way.
Let me tell you, my GPS saved my behind. I was in an unfamiliar place, and had it not been for my GPS - who knows where I may have ended up. It got me to the freeway and back to home.
I refuse to use (and as a result, even acquireg) a GPS system. I far, far prefer to use maps and instinct. You will NEVER get to know an area quickly using GPS. You learn far better by making mistakes and driving around. I know a lot of cities in this country, and I've learned them, not by using GPS, but by refusing to do so (and, of course, by visiting them before GPS existed!) And when I'm lost.....I stop somewhere and ask directions. Amazing how many nice people you meet that way.
GPS is just another step in the dumbing down of society.
Why do you need to learn your way around a new place two states away that you've never been to and never will again? And do you read your goddamn paper map while driving?
And again, when you look at your paper map and see Columbia as a ****ing dot like this:
How does it tell you how to get to a particular address when the town itself has no grid and looks like this:
Has nothing to do with being dumb. But go ahead and be insulting.
And I ask you, do you use indoor plumbing? You embraced progress there, right? You obviously embrace the technology it takes to type on this forum without worrying that it's going to make you dumber.
It's a proprietary software on my friend's smartphone. Something provided by his carrier. I think it uses Google's code base, because the screen kind of looks like Google Maps, even though some elements look different. And after I listened to the directions it gave, I wouldn't trust it any more than I can throw it. (Oh, wait... ) But hey, if you found a device that works for you the way you want it to, I'd glad you did. It seems like dedicated GPS devices are better than smartphone apps. Agree or disagree?
Oh, and the device I was talking about has a tendency to take you onto the highway. Even when it has only 2 open lanes and 5 miles of non-moving bumper-to-bumper traffic. I bit my tongue and kept quiet (my friend drove, so it's only fair), but it was frustrating to see him being more willing to listen to the GPS goddess than to divert onto a parallel surface street. Maybe it's a crappy software, I get it. But when something gives you a bad experience enough times, it's perfectly natural to want nothing to do with it ever again.
And let's do a bit of clarification: when I said "using a GPS", I specially referred to turn-by-turn directions and the voice giving them.
I use the google map navigation on a reasonably modern android. I use it to avoid freeway congestion which it does admirably and to find certain addresses when they don't pop up in the normal prcess.
Maps are now out of date for my usage and were never any good on congestion.
And maps are swiftly going away. Those dependent on them will likely be restricted to printing their own from electronic sources in the near future.
And it is the capabilities of the turn by turn that enables avoiding congestion.
I use the google map navigation on a reasonably modern android. I use it to avoid freeway congestion which it does admirably and to find certain addresses when they don't pop up in the normal prcess.
Maps are now out of date for my usage and were never any good on congestion.
And maps are swiftly going away. Those dependent on them will likely be restricted to printing their own from electronic sources in the near future.
And it is the capabilities of the turn by turn that enables avoiding congestion.
Very true. I haven't seen a Rand McNally road atlas in Walmart in years.
Why do you need to learn your way around a new place two states away that you've never been to and never will again? And do you read your goddamn paper map while driving?
Maybe because some of us like to broaden our knowledge and learn new places. And, no, I don't "read [a] goddamn paper map while driving". Sheesh! What an idiotic question. I look at the map and then go the way the map has told me. I don't have short term memory loss....and therefore, again, I don't need a GPS.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tiffer E38
And again, when you look at your paper map and see Columbia as a ****ing dot like this:
How does it tell you how to get to a particular address when the town itself has no grid and looks like this:
So you've never heard of city maps. Guess what? They make them. And I can buy one hell of a lot of them for the price of GPS.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tiffer E38
Has nothing to do with being dumb. But go ahead and be insulting.
And I ask you, do you use indoor plumbing? You embraced progress there, right? You obviously embrace the technology it takes to type on this forum without worrying that it's going to make you dumber.
Actually, yes....it has a lot to do with being dumb. I bet after one week in a place....me with a map, and you with a GPS.....I can find my way around on my own and you can't.
And when did anyone ever learn anything by not using indoor plumbing? You're just full of dumb questions.
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) But hey, if you found a device that works for you the way you want it to, I'd glad you did. It seems like dedicated GPS devices are better than smartphone apps. Agree or disagree?
