Old School Navigation
Discussion
I'm all in favour of Sat Navs especially when finding addresses in an unfamiliar areas, but does anyone else notice the loss of old school type navigation skills?
To put this in context I was chatting to a collegue who said he was off to the west country meeting friends for the weekend (a journey of ~100miles), I asked where and he said he wasn't sure - he just puts the postcode he's been given in the satnav and off he goes???
I suppose I'm old fashioned but for longer unfamiliar journeys I like to take just 10mins to check the route (google maps/road atlas), make a mental note of major road numbers/towns along the way etc. This way I've got a good mental picture of the journey. Am I in the minority here?
To put this in context I was chatting to a collegue who said he was off to the west country meeting friends for the weekend (a journey of ~100miles), I asked where and he said he wasn't sure - he just puts the postcode he's been given in the satnav and off he goes???
I suppose I'm old fashioned but for longer unfamiliar journeys I like to take just 10mins to check the route (google maps/road atlas), make a mental note of major road numbers/towns along the way etc. This way I've got a good mental picture of the journey. Am I in the minority here?
InfoRetrieval said:
I'm all in favour of Sat Navs especially when finding addresses in an unfamiliar areas, but does anyone else notice the loss of old school type navigation skills?
To put this in context I was chatting to a collegue who said he was off to the west country meeting friends for the weekend (a journey of ~100miles), I asked where and he said he wasn't sure - he just puts the postcode he's been given in the satnav and off he goes???
I suppose I'm old fashioned but for longer unfamiliar journeys I like to take just 10mins to check the route (google maps/road atlas), make a mental note of major road numbers/towns along the way etc. This way I've got a good mental picture of the journey. Am I in the minority here?
You might be in the minority but it doesn't make you wrong. I do the same. I'll occasionally use the SatNav on my phone but prefer to plan the entire route beforehand.To put this in context I was chatting to a collegue who said he was off to the west country meeting friends for the weekend (a journey of ~100miles), I asked where and he said he wasn't sure - he just puts the postcode he's been given in the satnav and off he goes???
I suppose I'm old fashioned but for longer unfamiliar journeys I like to take just 10mins to check the route (google maps/road atlas), make a mental note of major road numbers/towns along the way etc. This way I've got a good mental picture of the journey. Am I in the minority here?
If you use sat nav you will most likely get to your destination 100% of the time.
but, you will not remember the route, and you will not enjoy the route as much.
If you plan the route out on a map then you will probably remember most of the route for next time/ the way back.
I always find maps work much better if you are going somewhere nice and interesting, or somewhere you are likely to visit again.
but, you will not remember the route, and you will not enjoy the route as much.
If you plan the route out on a map then you will probably remember most of the route for next time/ the way back.
I always find maps work much better if you are going somewhere nice and interesting, or somewhere you are likely to visit again.
I've never used a sat nav yet but I imagine it's akin to being driven somewhere by someone, in respect of becoming familiar with the route.
In other words, the act of having to find your way impresses the route on you, whereas being directed mean you don't absorb it as much.
Is this the case?
In other words, the act of having to find your way impresses the route on you, whereas being directed mean you don't absorb it as much.
Is this the case?
I check the route to see how far and long it will take online first, and then just use the Google navigation to take me there. I don't bother to remember what roads and stuff I'll be on.
Once thing that I did wonder was if the sat nav could be helpful enough to avoid congestion charging zones when planning a route?
Once thing that I did wonder was if the sat nav could be helpful enough to avoid congestion charging zones when planning a route?
I only use satnav to get me to somewhere completely unfamiliar in city centres. The rest of the time I use a map first and apply my own common sense about what I think is the best route to get me to the point where the satnav can guide me round one way systems and to the right street.
My mother used to be an awesome navigator and advanced driver. She partaked in a lot of car treasure hunts / regularity runs etc for over 20 years. Now she's scary! She won't drive anywhere without the satnav, even when it's places she knows well ("it tells me when I'll get there") and she follows it blindly. She concentrates so hard on the damn thing that she's stopped looking ahead and has lost all awareness of what's coming up on the road. Her last excuse was "it tells me where the speed cameras are". My response was "you know where the cameras are. They've not moved them in 15 years. And you're never going fast enough to set them off anyway".
It's become a sore point. She used to be able to drive somewhere once and just remember the route the next time. She's been to the house where I've lived for the last 2 years a fair whack of times, but she can't do it without the satnav (which also takes her the longer way) and she still gets confused at one of the junctions on the motorway.
My mother used to be an awesome navigator and advanced driver. She partaked in a lot of car treasure hunts / regularity runs etc for over 20 years. Now she's scary! She won't drive anywhere without the satnav, even when it's places she knows well ("it tells me when I'll get there") and she follows it blindly. She concentrates so hard on the damn thing that she's stopped looking ahead and has lost all awareness of what's coming up on the road. Her last excuse was "it tells me where the speed cameras are". My response was "you know where the cameras are. They've not moved them in 15 years. And you're never going fast enough to set them off anyway".
It's become a sore point. She used to be able to drive somewhere once and just remember the route the next time. She's been to the house where I've lived for the last 2 years a fair whack of times, but she can't do it without the satnav (which also takes her the longer way) and she still gets confused at one of the junctions on the motorway.
alfa pint said:
My sister tells me she uses the sat nav to scan ahead so she can tell when there's a straight coming up.
That's when she puts her makeup on.
lol, women.That's when she puts her makeup on.
I use a sat nav but as most of you i'll have a look at the route before hand. Sometimes my sat nav takes a spastic route and I ignore it if i feel like i know better.
Never used sat nav to get me to places, I've used the google maps thing on my phone when wandering around unfamiliar places to show me where I am in relation to other places but I prefer to plan routes myself.
I can see why you would use them if navigating new cities or trying to get to multiple sites in a short time, but for the majority of most journeys they are just an expensive novelty item.
I can see why you would use them if navigating new cities or trying to get to multiple sites in a short time, but for the majority of most journeys they are just an expensive novelty item.
I have a Garmin which is brilliant but I still use an old A-Z if I have to take a diversion from a regularly-used route and the satnav is in the boot/at home. I also use Google's streetview to get an idea of the location and any dodgy junctions.
Stupidly, I've taken two journeys recently that I could have made a lot easier had I actually used the satnav... but I forgot I had a satnav.
Stupidly, I've taken two journeys recently that I could have made a lot easier had I actually used the satnav... but I forgot I had a satnav.
alfa pint said:
My sister tells me she uses the sat nav to scan ahead so she can tell when there's a straight coming up.
That's when she puts her makeup on.
Actually, the satnav can be useful on an unfamiliar country road to give you an idea of sharp corners and side roads in advance even if you're not using it to navigate per se.That's when she puts her makeup on.
They're only as good as the map data though which can be out of date or just plain incorrect so you can't consider them as a rally co-driver ...
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