Comments on: Another GPS-Assisted Grounding https://www.habitablezone.com/2012/05/25/another-gps-assisted-grounding/ Sun, 19 Apr 2026 04:50:17 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: ER https://www.habitablezone.com/2012/05/25/another-gps-assisted-grounding/#comment-15320 ER Fri, 25 May 2012 18:18:18 +0000 http://habitablezone.com/?p=15550#comment-15320 Navigating offshore is like on being on a Hohmann Transfer Orbit. In the military, where you have plenty of unpaid excess crew lounging about, they are kept busy constantly probing their surroundings and checking and rechecking every detail. It builds good work habits. Constant, useless work is considered good for morale, excellent training, and a preventative to mutiny. Offshore, on a merchantman, every extra hand on the bridge is probably making double-overtime-and-a-half so you set the autopilot and send everyone below. And you glance at the radar every hour or so while you catch up on your paperwork.. Navigating offshore is like on being on a Hohmann Transfer Orbit. In the military, where you have plenty of unpaid excess crew lounging about, they are kept busy constantly probing their surroundings and checking and rechecking every detail. It builds good work habits. Constant, useless work is considered good for morale, excellent training, and a preventative to mutiny. Offshore, on a merchantman, every extra hand on the bridge is probably making double-overtime-and-a-half so you set the autopilot and send everyone below. And you glance at the radar every hour or so while you catch up on your paperwork..

]]> By: bowser https://www.habitablezone.com/2012/05/25/another-gps-assisted-grounding/#comment-15316 bowser Fri, 25 May 2012 17:31:58 +0000 http://habitablezone.com/?p=15550#comment-15316 GPSs do a great job of what they do, and I can imagine on the open seas all one needs is the straight line course between two points. I think folks can get used to that and forget that closer to shore there are hazards. On land I've been endlessly irritated by people who will try to use the straight line result from a GPS as a measure of the real, walking, distance. Often it's 3 times what the crow does if it's flying. I imagine things can get complacent on the bridge of a large ship. It has to be a bit boring to sail for days and days with nothing much going on. The engineers may be the only people with much of a concern, and that's preventative. Any navigation will be from one straight line to another straight line. It may not be that way, and that's how it seems to a landlubber who has spent very little time on the bridge of private ships. The only time I was occurred when a ship was in drydock, and I had to see the folks about some of the labor force. I cleared security into the port, then security onto the ship, and was wandering around thinking I'd see what the thing looked like. I climbed the metal stairs, climbed more stairs, and finally heard a huge voice with a powerful southern accent hollar, "Hew is theeair?? Hew is they-at???" A monster opened a door, looked around it, and yelled, "Are yew frum the port?? "No I'm not", I said, "I'm from the Building Trades." "Well, yew get out of heah and tell them at the Port to get my goddamned shore power hooked up and working all the time right the f--k now! They are models of cooperation - NOT!" I asked if I could look around a bit, and assured him I was just impressed with his ship and not looking for anything in particular. He turned gracious, showed me around, and invited me to stay for a cold lunch. I couldn't, and regret not having done it. GPSs do a great job of what they do, and I can imagine on the open seas all one needs is the straight line course between two points. I think folks can get used to that and forget that closer to shore there are hazards.

On land I’ve been endlessly irritated by people who will try to use the straight line result from a GPS as a measure of the real, walking, distance. Often it’s 3 times what the crow does if it’s flying.

I imagine things can get complacent on the bridge of a large ship. It has to be a bit boring to sail for days and days with nothing much going on. The engineers may be the only people with much of a concern, and that’s preventative. Any navigation will be from one straight line to another straight line.

It may not be that way, and that’s how it seems to a landlubber who has spent very little time on the bridge of private ships.

The only time I was occurred when a ship was in drydock, and I had to see the folks about some of the labor force. I cleared security into the port, then security onto the ship, and was wandering around thinking I’d see what the thing looked like. I climbed the metal stairs, climbed more stairs, and finally heard a huge voice with a powerful southern accent hollar, “Hew is theeair?? Hew is they-at???” A monster opened a door, looked around it, and yelled, “Are yew frum the port??

“No I’m not”, I said, “I’m from the Building Trades.”

“Well, yew get out of heah and tell them at the Port to get my goddamned shore power hooked up and working all the time right the f–k now! They are models of cooperation – NOT!”

I asked if I could look around a bit, and assured him I was just impressed with his ship and not looking for anything in particular. He turned gracious, showed me around, and invited me to stay for a cold lunch. I couldn’t, and regret not having done it.

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