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Old 02-13-2017, 06:46 PM   #1
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Cat fight!

I traded my 2005 Classic 28 for an Interstate coach last month and kept my big-screen, trucker's, Magellan GPS, "Maggie", that has served me well. It is perched on the dash of the Silver Whale as I speak.

In the dash of the Whale is a Kenwood that does everything but blow its nose, but is one of the most poorly documented and confusing bits of technology I have ever encountered. I flew jet fighters and designed computers for much of my life, but this Kenwood is proving a real learning challenge.

Anyhow, last week, I put nearly 400 miles round trip on the Silver Whale with both GPS up and running. The results were amusing to say the least. For much of the trip, I had a chorus with the "girls" saying much the same thing, sometimes in almost perfect cadence. Other times, it was like listening to two tipsy women who couldn't agree on much of anything.

The worst time was at a major intersection where one GPS said turn left and the other said turn right. I went with my old faithful Maggie and turned left. She immediately told me to do a legal U-turn. Of all things, the hated Kenwood was right that time.

On one stretch of old US90, the Kenwood kept trying to send me on strange, unnecessary, little loops on little county roads, while old faithful Maggie calmly followed US90.

I think I will continue to use both GPS, just for the fun of it.
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Old 02-13-2017, 06:53 PM   #2
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Just remember the units are only as good as their up to date and current updates. Even then they will lie and take you to dead end cul-de-sacs. Always nice to have good current paper maps as back up.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:03 PM   #3
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Nice thing about the Interstate over the old Classic, I don't sweat cul-de-sacs anymore. I can back the Whale anywhere.

And yes, I do need an update for the Kenwood. The coach was built in late 2013 or early 2014. As far as I can tell, the former owner never updated what is probably the initial 2013 map load. The Interstate is a 2014 1/2 model. All the 2015 changes to the Airstream content are present, but the Mercedes Sprinter base does not have the later improvements such as emergency braking, side cameras, and lane following.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:06 PM   #4
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When I travelled a lot we used GPS all the time. If we'd get a group together for dinner, several people would bring their GPSi.
They never agreed. Garmin went one way, Magellan another, and I-phones a third. It got even funnier when we printed directions. They never agreed either.
I chalked it up to the algorithms they use. I know Garmin doesn't like left turns into destinations so it will run you out of your way to make a right turn. "But I can see the place and it's telling me to turn right!"
My favorite is when it tells me to exit, then re-enter. Down the ramp and back up the ramp. What?

It also takes you one way, but returns a completely different way. That baffles me unless it anticipates high traffic at certain hours and reroutes you.

My latest Garmin has a "detour" feature, so if you don't like the route, just hit detour and it finds another.
Even with warts, it's amazing.
When I think of all the calculations it's doing with up to 12 satellites all at once, I'm stunned.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:14 PM   #5
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I was once headed to the Nascar Track near Atlanta. Great, it's in the memory. As I reached my destination, it was a golf course.
Now, not only am I in the wrong place, I have no idea where the right place is!!!
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:22 PM   #6
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My favorite is when it tells me to exit, then re-enter. Down the ramp and back up the ramp. What?
If the service road is 50' shorter, it is off and on the freeway. It would seem they could tune that out with a bit of programming.

I really love some of the pronunciation, especially of some non-typical names. We have a lot of Spanish street names. When I was approaching Chicon Street the other day, I was instructed to turn right on "Chicken Street." I laughed so hard I almost had to pull over.
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Old 02-13-2017, 07:37 PM   #7
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If the service road is 50' shorter, it is off and on the freeway. It would seem they could tune that out with a bit of programming.

I really love some of the pronunciation, especially of some non-typical names. We have a lot of Spanish street names. When I was approaching Chicon Street the other day, I was instructed to turn right on "Chicken Street." I laughed so hard I almost had to pull over.
Now THAT is funny!!!
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Old 02-13-2017, 08:56 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pahaska View Post
If the service road is 50' shorter, it is off and on the freeway. It would seem they could tune that out with a bit of programming.

I really love some of the pronunciation, especially of some non-typical names. We have a lot of Spanish street names. When I was approaching Chicon Street the other day, I was instructed to turn right on "Chicken Street." I laughed so hard I almost had to pull over.
Here in coastal Florida, highway A1A, the route along the beach, is pronounced "A-One-Ah".

Al
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Old 02-13-2017, 11:51 PM   #9
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Most gps units have route options. Fastest, shortest, no tolls, etc. That may be a reason for the difference between the units.
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Old 02-14-2017, 04:41 AM   #10
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I'll enter the address of my destination, check the address, then hit "go". Several times, it has changed the destination address enroute. And always, the new destination is a business just like the one I originally entered. I'm sure it's just a coincidence...
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Old 02-14-2017, 05:52 AM   #11
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The more I read about GPS errors, the more I want to stay with an old-fashioned road map. I think there are adolescent (mentally, at least) programmers who fool with the databases for entertainment.
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Old 02-14-2017, 05:56 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by Al and Missy View Post
Here in coastal Florida, highway A1A, the route along the beach, is pronounced "A-One-Ah".

Al
I've lived in South Florida since the early 80's, and I've never heard it pronounced that way. It's A-one-A.
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Old 02-14-2017, 06:00 AM   #13
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Here in coastal Florida, highway A1A, the route along the beach, is pronounced "A-One-Ah".

Al
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I've lived in South Florida since the early 80's, and I've never heard it pronounced that way. It's A-one-A.
I guess if you moved to Florida from Maine, you might pronounce it with an "ah". I lived in Florida for 28 years, and never heard it pronounced that way, unless they were German tourists.
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Old 02-14-2017, 06:29 AM   #14
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Most gps units have route options. Fastest, shortest, no tolls, etc. That may be a reason for the difference between the units.
Both were set to the default of fastest route.

I did confuse them just a tad by going off the route temporarily for lunch in Columbus. They both became very unhappy, but chose widely different ways to return me to the route.
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Old 02-14-2017, 07:01 AM   #15
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Cat fight!

It's odd how some GPS's malfunction differently in different areas. I have a Garmin that is beginning to show it's age, but like your Magellan, I understand how it works, so am reluctant to upgrade, although I do update the software and maps at least once a year. We were visiting friends in Scottsdale, AZ for a few days in December, and it took us on a few roundabout routes, finally getting us to the places we wanted to go. Another odd thing was we have always gotten three separate warnings before a turn, almost to the point of annoyance. In Scottsdale, sometimes we would get just one warning, right before the turn, while we were three lanes over in the wrong direction. Granted, if I had checked my visuals for the next turn, I would have already known if the next turn was going to be to the right or left, but I have become accustomed to "Lucile" telling us well in advance. Wonder what caused her uncharacteristic reticence?
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Old 02-14-2017, 07:53 AM   #16
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Our Garmin had us do a clover leaf tour outside of Bloomington Il. 2 weeks ago. "take the ramp on the right" X4 = 4 minutes wasted and back on the same path as before. We had a good laugh.
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Old 02-14-2017, 07:58 AM   #17
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I love the PocketEarth App, which does navigation, also tracks your location in real time, and allows you to drop a little colored bullet at your destination.

You know immediately if you've made a wrong turn, gone too far, etc.

Maggie
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Old 02-14-2017, 08:12 AM   #18
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You know what GPS really stands for???

GO POUND SAND!
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Old 02-14-2017, 08:57 AM   #19
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Normally, before the days trip, I use Google to map it, and study the roads I will be traveling, so that I know where my turns should be. Then I just use the GPS, or my iPhone and Apple CarPlay, which I am starting to really like, as a reminder of upcoming turns. If it tries to lead me astray, I just ignore it and go with what Google maps showed me.
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Old 02-14-2017, 01:57 PM   #20
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You know what GPS really stands for???

GO POUND SAND!
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