In praise of the internet
In most marinas wi-fi access is part of your mooring fee and
many cafes also offer this service so being able to log on and connect can be
quite simple. Even a few years ago this
for most of us was unimaginable as we tapped away at our word processors and
cursed when someone pulled the plug out by mistake losing half an essay and
several days work. For those like Sir Robin Knox-Johnston who sailed single
handed around the world with no method of communication we have a great
admiration. For some, one of the pleasures of cruising is the ability to get
away from the constant demands of mobiles/blackberries and email and admittedly
we have no need to be constantly connected we often just text our families to
let them know we are safe and wait until internet is next available.
Most important for us is weather forecasts. These help us to
plan not only when a trip would be safe to make but also predicting weather in
harbour makes a difference to how we are tied to the land and even what
preparations we need to make for the boat overnight or whether we can leave her
during the day unattended. Although other forms of weather information can be
found the internet provides the most detailed reports.
It’s even possible to keep up to date professionally with
access to online journals and to upload CPD direct to the institute for
learning (which is the professional
body for those who teach in further education). With the sailing forums,
being able to order things on line, even looking up the local bus time table so much is
available now so easily. When we saw the inventor of the internet being
celebrated at the opening ceremony of the Olympics we gave him a big cheer,
without him, this would be a very different experience.
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