Oh incidentally for you guys who work for companies that don’t supply the truck routing for your trips and you have a laptop with an aircard, you can go to TruckMiles.com by ProMiles Software - Free Truck Routing, Maps, Trips, Mileages, Diesel Fuel Prices, Road Conditions and more! and plug in your trip to get accurate truck routing for free.:thumbsup:

 

i got mine back in '05 i think...the damn cover fell off a few years ago. but i think i missedd the marked down '08. well maybe the end of this year i will get the '09. it still has most of the states in it and it tells me where the roads and not what go.

 

That was an excellent and objective post Glad Hand. The correctly-mounted (hugely important to not get a ticket!) laptop along with S&T is one of the most effective ways for a driver to navigate, keep a history of their routes and save their important POI's. Being a Ram Mount dealer with our own custom design ($225) mount I have to say that that ours is a killer, less expensive, and far better design than the stuff in the truck stops, but certainly your setup advice sounds to be solid and cost effective. With a 50% turnover annually among new drivers I will say that you may be overestimating a bit that "most drivers" already have laptops" which is why over 10,000 Garmin 465T's have sold in the last 60 days.

Again, great post man.

 

How about on a new moon night in a driving snowstorm, or driving rain storm, or when it is so foggy you can’t even see the signs much less read them, does it still tell you where to go with audible and visual turn-by-turn directions, even though it doesn’t have street level mapping? How about finding and routing to a truck stop in the boondocks under the same above conditions, I can do it in 30 seconds. Can you do it in less than 10 minutes? :lol:

 

Maybe so…but why spend $500 for a product that won’t even do what it advertises it does. I mean if you can’t even trust any of those products to do truck routing reliably, which is the sole justification for the extra price, then why throw away money for the hell of it. Especially when you can get a laptop for about the same amount of money that besides doing GPS navigation, allows you to also watch movies, cruise the Internet, send and receive emails, do instant messaging, send and receive faxes, do your logging, etc., etc., etc. Or otherwise just buy a less expensive standalone GPS device.

By the way, I find your posts are very informative as well. Keep up the good work.

 

an ad in overdrive magazine says rand mcnally is coming out with a truck specific gps in October, it doesnt give a price.

 

well..i was being a smartass because..well i am a smartass. i do the same route everyday of everyweek. i stop at the same stops everyday for the same stuff each time. in my humble opinion drivers have become too dependent on them gps things...just an opinion please do not jump down my throat. i hear the same stuff on the cb everyday. in columbus ohio..."does this here I270 take me back to I70?". we are already on I70...i think if they opened a map from time to time they would know this simple stuff, but all they know is go where the little voice on the gps tells them to go. if i were an actual otr driver i would probably have on but would be sure to buy the truck specific thing.

 

Even though none of them do truck specific routing like they advertise?

 

Im out of trucking finally for better or worse (i planned it or a YEAR then when i quit.. the economy tanked argh)

When i was driving i ALWAYS had a laptop with S&T up. I might not even look at it as the last couple years i was on a dedicate route but it was always up. Save me hours several times when 75 or 40 was shut own.

Laptop vs gps - laptop wins every time. A gps or the most part ONLY does gps. You can hack tomtoms etc but i doubt u wanna spend hours every week oing that.

My "final version" laptop stand was the simplest and best. 1/4" plywood. Whole thing about 12" x 12"x12". Attached to the dash with industrial velcro ( i SWEAR i spent 50 bucks a year on that stuff heh). It had 2 "arms" that fit the furve of the ash then went own the front with arms holding up the laptop platform (same plywood.. 6" x 12") with velcro on it. Velcro's an fm transmitter to it and would go down the road listening to audiobooks or movies or winamp. IMHO the drivers who DONT do something like that end up batsh*t crazy or with whiteline fever.
Laptop also lets you lay over near a hotel and stream tv via hulu in yoru truck when youre stuck out.. or chat.. camfrog.. whatever.

Software - DELORME!
MS will send you down every little 2 lane restricted road on the planet. Ive had it try to send me down "shortcuts" through kentucky and pa. Thats a BAD idea. Delorme is easy to set to use mostly interstate and has Voice recognition that is REALLY good.

In other words get a laptop, delorme, a broadband card and some plywood and you have yoru gps and entertainment center. And heck you might just not become one of these 400 pound lonely crazy drivers or one of the "evil communists are after me" whackos. More than a few of whom hang out on this boar.

 

Funny you should mention how nice Delorme is... I just had one hell of an adventure this morning following my Delorme Street Atlas 2009 GPS--

Kettleman City, Ca -to- 2040 Guadalupe Rd, Guadalupe, Ca

starting off isn't bad- CA41 then you reach Shandon, Ca and you have a choice- stay on CA41 or continue on the "recommanded truck route of CA46 to Paso Robles-- Ok... the sign only says- Trucks with 30' or more from Kingpin-Axle Not recommended.
Isn't the first time- I've ignored a "recommended" sign- I'm empty.
Ok, If you've followed the delorme thus far and haven't chickened out..

Now, when you reach Creston, Ca- I highly recommend staying on CA41... now in hindsight. This is where Mr. Delorme wants you to turn onto CA229.
This is where the ride gets really interesting. Cus, you only go about a mile on CA229 before you lose the strip that usually divides the road! then there's a sign that reads- Road Narrors . It should read- one lane Mule Trail Ahead. Up over the mountain. Seriously, this road looks like a golf cart path at your local country club. If you survive that- and you won't if you meet a single car on it( lucky it was very early morning). Six Miles( so the sign reads). You then turn onto CA58 and several of the curves on it-- are only slightly better than CA229.

Follow Delorme... are you kidding! You better be ready for an adventure.