AuspiciousWorks

Orientation

An ongoing discussion of electronics elsewhere leads me to a related topic, that of chart orientation.

I am not aware of any clear science on this subject. It is my very firm belief that 'North Up' is substantially better for navigation than 'Course Up' or the dreaded 'Head Up.' In North Up the operator has a geographic context for location and direction. Course Up sacrifices that and delegates piloting responsibility to electronics.

Matters deteriorate further when failures occur. Autopilots commonly switch to Standby for any of a number of reasons including their own inability to maintain the desired course, low voltage, or software glitches that may or may not be related to the phase of the moon. At that point Course Up becomes truly hazardous as the operator has no context for which direction is the correct direction. I have observed helmspeople making circles and S-curves in complete confusion over which direction they should be heading.

In open water, including estuaries like Chesapeake Bay, you could end up heading in any direction at all, perhaps toward additional danger. In waterways you can easily find yourself heading the opposite direction than intended due to failure, stress, and confusion. If you think that cannot happen to you then you should think again.

To appropriate an oft used meme:

Dave uses North Up
Be like Dave

Y2K is really coming, again.

Your GPS Devices May Stop Working On April 6 If You Don't Or Can't Update Firmware - Slashdot Zorro shares a report from The Register: Older satnavs and such devices won't be able to use America's Global Positioning System properly after April 6 unless they've been suitably updated or designed to handle a looming epoch rollover. GPS signals from satellites include a timestamp, needed in par....

Excellent article here https://gcaptain.com/graded-assertiveness-captain-i-have-a-concern/?fbclid=IwAR08mnqHFeTbZPyoG4bEBlRuDYolYq2x-PvkuLoC0GzDHf8ZB1GQw4WJbrY

Crew must always be comfortable passing information that might run counter to skipper desires or preconceptions.

Shay Seaborne: "Dave, the main fell down."
Dr. Pam: "I see something I don't understand." (Bob Amis)
"I don't understand why you want to do that." "I don't."
"Dave, I don't think the marina understands we're going to back in."

Graded Assertiveness: Captain, I Have a Concern... – gCaptain By Rich Madden – Last year, I was inbound to a port-that-will-remain-nameless, with the local pilot at the conn.  As we maneuvered up a winding channel, the channel curved to port, yet the pilot ordered starboard rudder as we approached the next turn.  Our 3rd officer, who had been onboard for o...