Laptop riding shotgun (and other GPS questions)?
 

A couple questions for you computer-savvy truckers out there.

I'm new to the trucking game, about four months in now and I've decided that a good GPS solution would be a great help. Right now I can't afford a standalone system (like Garmin, etc.) but I already have a laptop so I figured I'd go out and buy a GPS program for it, but I have a couple of questions I thought I'd ask you all before I do.

First, my company won't let me install a laptop-mount in the cab (plus the one I've seen at truck stops is like, $300 or so... ouch)-- if I did I'd have to disassemble it every time I get dispatched to a terminal and hide it. When I asked about this they said I can just put the laptop in the passenger seat, but that seems dangerous to me-- dangerous for the laptop, at least. Does anyone here do that, and do you have recommendations for how to best place the laptop in the passenger seat? Is there a product available that makes this easier, or have any of you jury-rigged something to keep it in place? I was thinking there must be a good way to secure it but I can't think of one...

Second, I'm not sure which software to use. Microsoft's Streets and Trips 2007 with GPS is on sale right now for $89, so I was going to go buy it, but I can't find any info on the Microsoft site about whether or not the software can be switched to truck routes (as opposed to four-wheeler only routes). Can it? Or what software would you all recommend?

Any help would be appreciated.

JB

jblaze wrote:

If you do a little research online you can find an entry level GPS for around $200. The price is really starting to drop with all the competition coming into the market. They won't have all the bells and whistles of the high end units, but they get the job done.

I use a FineDrive 400 and am very happy with it considering it only cost $200 after a rebate. I also use Steets & Trips along with a good old fashion atlas. Between the 3 I have no problem getting where I'm going without getting lost.

For those that have internet access on the road, go to http://maps.google.com/. Type in the address of what your looking for and click on the satellite button to get an overhead view. Works great for getting a birds eye view B4 you get there so you know where the docks are, if there possible places to park off site, dead end and turnaround areas, etc.

Example: http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i2...-16_123317.png

As far as the computer mount goes. I talked to a driver that showed me his homemade Laptop mount. He used 1/2" iron plumbing pipes from Home Depot that threaded together and he ran a single bolt to an existing hole in the chair frame and used plexiglass for the desk portion. It wasn't pretty, but it got the job done. Wish I had taken a picture of it, but perhaps someone on this board has come up with something similar to show you. It just takes a little ingenuity and imagination.

Same situation, being new, but I cant use the mount because I change trucks regularly.
The MS Streets and trips is great except for the last 1/2 mile.
I am finding that it misses the final location.
Google maps using my phone internet connection has saved me.
It seems the MS's maps are old. All the main streeets are there, but the newer ones are not so it defaults to a general location. If you catch it then you correct before moving the truck into that residential area.
But when you are cruising along and get a phone call and get distracted, the laptop will start to talk to you letting you know, " Take exit in .5 miles.". It has saved alot of just simple mistakes because your attention is still in the learning phase
of driving.
Also set your laptop to go to sleep in 1-min. during night driving.
It turns that bright light off which the map produces on that large screen.

If you want to have an easily removable laptop stand riding shotgun, just use a good quality music stand - about $50. Works perfectly with very little modification. Just use zip ties to hold it in place, and removal takes like 3 minutes.

GPS & Other Stuff
 

"get a phone call and get distracted" The question I have is why is a c-phone even on when one is driving? I can also tell when a driver, 4-wheeler or not) is on a cell, they have NO lane control, all over the road. BOL, safely.

Re: GPS & Other Stuff
 

Because some of us have a business to run. :roll:

You must be psychic, and I bet there were no cars that lost control of their lane or were all over the road before cell phones were invented. :roll:

Re: Laptop riding shotgun (and other GPS questions)?
 

You drive for SNI? They just implented a policy of "no laptops mounted in trucks"

Re: Laptop riding shotgun (and other GPS questions)?
 

I bought MS streets and trips 2008 (with GPS mouse) at Best Buy for $69 2 weeks ago and run it off my laptop which sits on the passenger seat. 4 trips over the grapevine and it still hasn't attempted to migrate to the floor. It's been very accurate as far as current position, but the maps aren't always completely accurate. From what I figured out so far, there's no option to show non-truck route streets either. You just have to keep an eye out for signs, double check your atlas and sometimes look up an address online before you get too close and start down a dead end street. I like the fact that I can pre-plan my trips down to the hour I'll arrive, 1200 miles away.

the only TRUCK routing software (for laptops) i have found is copilot $199 w/o gps $299 w/gps
http://www.alk.com/copilot/truck_lpt.asp
we use delorme 2008+ $119.95 w/gps $59.95 w/o gps
http://shop.delorme.com/OA_HTML/DELi...&section=10048
we also have ms s & t 2007 w/o gps at walmart for 29.44
best buys had ms s & t 2007 w/gps for $129.99

we like delorme better and the delorme gps antennea will (with a software download) work with all gps routing software (up to three at a time) last time i cheched ms gps antennea would only work on s & t and i don't know if copilot's gps antennea will work with other software. also something to think about some gps antenneas will not work on the dash of a truck (as thay can't see the sky) ours is suction cupped to the inside if the skylite.
so copilot w/o gps $199.00
delorme w/gps $119.95
ms s & t w/o gps $29.44
all three for $348.39 thay all have their up and down side but if you have all three you should be able to find anything anyware.

as to the laptop mount is it that you can't have a laptop mounted or just that you can't drill anything to mount it...??
we use a ram-mount $177 and it is a no-drill just remove two nuts on the passenger seat. http://www.ram-mount.com/nodrillsyst...ruck_mount.htm
before we had this we used a TV tray (walmart $10) nonskid pad (walmart $5) and a bugee cord to hold it next to the passenger seat. yes it worked the laptop stayed put.

now with all that said check ebay and see what you can find

I've been using MS Streets 2007 for about a half year now and have to say that I'm pretty impressed with it. There are times (maybe .05%) that it won't be able to find the exact address or that the streets have changed but it's a very rare occurence. It also has Windows Live which means that if you have an internet connection, with a click of the mouse, you can see an overhead view of your area via satellite.

One of the things that I like about Streets is that it is so customizable. You are able to set up your own points-of-interest. There are databases out there for all the truck stops, weigh stations, wal-marts etc. I also put in my company's terminals. So when you plan on driving 'x' amount of miles for that day, you will know what's near by when you're ready for a break.

I don't think that there is any gps program out there that is meant to truly stand alone as a truckers only navigational device. You will always need to reference the truckers bible (aka mc atlas) to verify restricted roads, etc. But that's another thing you can program into streets. If there is an area you travel thru that does have a restricted route, you can tell streets to avoid that area.

As far as securing the laptop goes, mine is a pretty sophisticated system:

* Place laptop on drivers seat facing you
* Secure in place with seatbelt

:)

secure laptop
 

place laptop on seat
put bungie cord over laptop

(here is bit more expensive option http://www.surveillance-spy-cameras.com/TFT-monitor.htm
then you can set the screen on your dash)

As for the Microsoft Streets & Trips antenna only working on S & T's - that's bumpkis.

I used that antenna on: ALK CoPilot, Delorme Street Atlas, some weird add-on for Google Maps and a few others. It's a standard NMEA antenna.

as i said "the last time i checked" ms S & T antenna was proprietary.. I WAS TOLD THAT BY MS TECK SUPPORT it would only work with sm S&T that was back in 04 i havn't checked after that as i bought the delorme system and sm s&t w/o gps

when we got them sm s&t w/gps was $129 and delorme w/ gps was $119 side by side on the shelf and sm s&t w/o gps was $19 and delorme w/o gps was $39 so it was less money to get delorme w/gps and ms w/o gps and the pair was $138 and we have both but like everything some people will like one over the other

we can plan a trip fester with delorme and it will do everythng ms will. we just like the gui better

I used a combination of PC Miler and Google Earth. PC Miler is TRUCK SPECIFIC (got it from limewire first, liked it and so bought the latest version) and worked well while Google Earth let me SEE the actual route and "fly over it" to SEE on/off ramps, bridges, driveways, and more.
My laptop rode shotgun and rested on a SOFT, plush pillow which shielded all hard drive killing vibrations. A THIN bungee type strap laid over it where the screen meets the keyboard then down through the back crack in the seat and forward to under the seat front.

Where can I find these downloads, are they free? (Do you sit on your laptop while driving, looking at it with the 3rd eye? :lol: )

Duct Tape always works!!!1 :shock: :lol: :lol: :lol: :twisted:

a piece of 1/4 or 1/2 inch plywood cut to fit the passenger seat with loops or a board on it so you can hold it inplace with the seat belt and velcro works great and is easly removed and stored. not to mention you can use the velcro to postion your lap top in several different ways to make better veiwing. velcro works to hold flash lites on your dash, gloves the works, just about any lite weight item you want handy.

My truck killed my Toshiba in about 6 months,so I bought a Durabook and it has been fine,I just sit it on the passenger seat and leave it propped up a little bit to get air circulation and I run MS S&T and like it as well.I have PC miler to give truck specific routes and use the GPS to find addresses after arriving.

Yeah I velcro'd the entire dash. When Fido wanted to see the sights, I just stuck him on the dash...worked like a charm. http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...riendphoto.jpg :roll: :lol:

I have my 7" touchscreen mounted to my sun visor. The laptop is mounted on a shelf at the foot of the bed. I run CoPilot Truck mainly, with backup info coming from MS Streets and Google Maps (plus the MCRA and directions to the shipper/receiver, of course). I also have an addon keyboard/touchpad in the front. I use that mainly for Drivers Daily Log.

Pics:
http://img288.imageshack.us/img288/2904/cimg0978lp7.jpg - touchscreen monitor
http://img287.imageshack.us/img287/126/cimg0970hu5.jpg - laptop on shelf

I need to take new pics - I built a custom stand that has "U" shaped legs that extend under the mattress to hold the stand in place.

The computer repair shop told me that using your laptop while moving it around (even though its portable) can damage the hard drive.
I just found this out when they repaired one of my computers a few weeks ago. Seems the arm that scans th HD was jostled while it was running and it shorted out.
Seems like BS to me,...anyone heard of this??
It was a warranty thing so N/C to me but it got me thinking.

How new is your laptop?

Older laptops were designed to work when stationary. Moving them while on was (and is) a no-no.

Newer ones are better at preventing damage--especially ones that are designed to be on and jostled about. I have a 3-yr old IBM ThinkPad. I can basically drop it while it is running and it will be fine. Of course I have never drop-tested my noteback to see if the marketing hype actually works as advertised! :lol:

Yes something as small as a dust partical can crash a hd.The head doesn't really touch the platter,it reads the magneticaly charged valleys and pits on the platter..If it is moved when it going 7200 rpms that's one hellva stoppage in movement..you will hear that grind and crash....oops

I use Delorme with my Dell that I bought in 2003 with all the RAM it could hold. It is still going strong. Delorme is an awesome program.

The unit is an ACER and runs XP, it was only 6 months old, and the hard drive sounded like a hard clicking on start up and error message "can not find operating system"
I guess I should have purchased a better unit,...more durable anyway.
Imagine my surprise,......."Your portable computer isn't really portable, you have to shut it off to move it, or the hard drive can become damaged"
I'm thinking to myself,.....why not just get a cheap desktop instead of a laptop,.......but I love the small computers.

Wally world has wood tv dinner tables for fifteen dollars, leave the legs collapsed and strap them to the passenger seat. this puts the table just right of the shifter low enough that it does not block the mirrors. when not using it fits behind the seat or you can eat dinner. Wally world has velcro in the fabric department for securing the lt to the table.

In the past, Acer hasn't been known for quality computers. Sounds like you bought yours used...was it refurbished from a store or did you buy it from someone at the local flea market?

FYI for the future...you can get a good deal on a used, refurbished notebook (laptop) computer from various manufacturers. Make sure it is designed to withstand bumps and jarring--especially if you're running it while moving on down the road. As mentioned earlier in my post, the IBM T41 Thinkpad that I have is a durable unit (mine is around 3-yrs old). Panasonic makes a Toughbook model (though I'm not familiar with it).

It was new leftover unit that was at a computer shop,...but it was only $799 and had a 80 gig hard drive, and a 15" screen.
It works fine now, and I have a Nuvi 660 gps that won't break while moving.

Is the co-pilot GPS program as good as they claim.

I've had CoPilot a little over a year now and love it. However, as with ANY routing software/hardware, be sure you verify your route with what the program shows. There has been a couple of occasions that it's told me to go on roads that were truck restricted. Other than that, it's great.

I do want to make a suggestion to any new drivers interested in software based GPS routing. If you're just getting started in this business, don't buy CoPilot as soon as you get your own truck. Why? CoPilot is fairly expensive. It takes awhile before you will know for sure if you're going to stay with truck driving. Not everyone can make the adjustment of being home every day to being home a day every once in awhile. If you're just getting started (and already have a laptop) go with either Microsoft Streets & Trips or Delorme Street Atlas. Be sure to get the box that has the GPS receiver in it. You'll pay less than $100 for the combo. Then, 6 months or so down the road, if you're still doing this job, then buy CoPilot. BTW - the new version will be out in August or September, so at least wait until then to buy it, otherwise you'll have to pay an upgrade fee to have the newest version.

Thanks for the advice Malaki. It makes sense to me.

Re: Laptop riding shotgun (and other GPS questions)?
 

I used to use my laptop as an mp3 player for audio books while driving. I velcroed an external keyboard to the dash to use to start/stop the player. The laptop itself was belted in the passenger seat, facing the driver. The seat belt went around the screen & over the keyboard, lid closed most of the way so the screen wasn't visible.

Build your own
 

My company doesnt "like" laptops. Screwem. They have a problem they can let me know and ill start actually answering recruiters calls.

I made(make) my own mounts. Right now i have some steel L channel shaped sorta like an S with the top bent sideways. Its mounted onto the qcom mount with one small wire up to the cb bracket for right hand support. Solid mount. Very removeable. Also have a passenger desk that becomes part of it (im a trainer). Before that i used a mount made out of 1.25" pvc mounted to the passenger seat. Big pvc square on passenger seat mounted to plywood to distribute the load with a long pbc arm that comes out and then up. Small shelf L brackets hooked to pvc for the 1/8" luan plywood laptop desk thing. Sits about radio height in a 387 and top comes a couple inch over the dash. Total cost $15.

Delorme is better by miles. Better routing. VOICE CONTROL. Did i mention voice control. Easy to switch to night mode. I use it for audio books, music et al as well. Cellular net is the stuff. Have dragon naturally speaking as well as toshiba voice control to run the puter. Never use it but used to when solo. Run movies minimised (recorded tv mostly. history channel) to listen to. Boredom causes fatigue. Fatigue causes preventables.

Before that i had a small fridge in the floor and a cooler once. Sat it on that. Bad idea... you have to turn your head way off what you should be looking at.

Id suggest trying the pvc mount or making one out of l channel that connects to the qcomm mount with a post that goes to the floor as well. Works very well. PVC mount takes about 10 minutes to build. And ya can toss it in "emergencies".

BTW anyone who drives.. truck or 4wheeler and uses the cell without being handsfree should be put in Jail. period. To the driver above. I could give a damn about your business. YOu kill someone out there your business is going byebye. And i hope they put your butt UNDER the jail. Or better yet let the family get hold of your irresponsible butt.