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We must note in fairness that bundles of neurons are as capable of poor judgment
as are bundles of circuitry.
auto
auctions Our paper-map team had for much of the day flaunted its ability
to arrive at each destination before everyone else. But on the last leg, realizing
that most of the computers would try to route teams as quickly as possible to
I-69, the map team tried a shortcut. No amount of speeding later in the leg
could make up for the time it spent in a long, snaking traffic jam, following
one of those lesser roads that only looks good on a map.
We should note that each and every team made it to each and every destination.
Eventually. At this point in their development, satellite navigation systems
are as often frustrating as they are accurate, but the basic technology works
and they look to be here to stay.
auto
auctions They are, as a group, curiosities that look nifty to the uninitiated
but are akin to the home computer in the days of the Commodore 64. The sorts
of people who can make them work are just as geeky as those who ran Commodores,
and they invest a similar inordinate amount of time using a machine that is
not a tool, but a hobby.
Just as it has on the desktop, this will change in the car. As the driver/computer
interface becomes more intuitive, so too will the willingness to use it increase.
More computer memory will allow for more detailed mapping, which, in turn, allows
for more routing options. Eventually, these systems will be able to receive
and assimilate information that drivers can't and shouldn't attempt while operating
a car, such as real-time traffic updates and the ability to bypass problem areas.
auto
auctions More computing power and more sophisticated software might eventually
allow navigation systems to follow the illogical human minds that would assign
four different names to the same road in as many miles. Satellite navigation
is an inexact science, but a science nonetheless.
This science doesn't come cheap, though. The average nav system price in our
test was $1,927. That average doesn't include the Jag system that comes bundled
with a cell phone and voice-activated controls for $4,300. The Mercedes system
is standard. It is standard on a car that costs nearly $70,000.
If it is worth the novelty of having a navigation system, then you might not
mind financing the development of the technology with your $2,000 to $4,000.
Reading a map is also a science of sorts.
auto
auctions A map costs $3.95, so you could have 500 maps on board before you
caught up to the price of one electronic navigation system. There was no point
on our journey when any team was less lost than it would have been had the people
just shut off the navigation system and picked up the emergency map.
What we proved is that the Acura system was the easiest to use-it was only twice
as hard to use as a map, whereas some of the others were simply torture devices
for the techno-timid. The best system is still only as reliable as the map data
contained therein. All the systems failed, for instance, to locate the St. Clair
Inn precisely. They got us close, but all were confused by the proximity and
frequent intersection of two roads named, respectively, River and Riverside.
So, maps upon maps, or a navigation system? The questions are: Whom do you trust,
how quickly do you need to get there, how much money can you spend? Once you've
answered those, ask yourself this one: Do you have a sense of humor? If so,
perhaps you can share your car with a navigation system.
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