Truck GPS units are making my head spin!!

Another electronic gadget, dumbing down America. Every one of us has heard the horror stories that GPS units "caused". Like anything, everything requires some thought. I have a gps and am ashamed to admit i would hate to be without it. I still carry regional map books to verify routes if i venture into unfamiliar areas. Ninety percent of the time the gps is exactly right. For the couple minutes it takes to check a map, i am not willing to ride around blindly ten percent of the time...

 

The Rand McNally unit was very prone to freezing on me, and at the worst times. I will admit that the mapping with the Rand unit was very good, but the Garmin is way better as far as performance is concerned. Can't stand expensive products that don't perform.

The biggest issue I've seen with the Garmin Dezl 760 is that I get a lot of "Truck accessability unknown" messages. I just look online for truck routes in the city I am going to, or check with my huge carriers atlas from Rand if I'm not sure.

 

Several of the manufacturers use the same data base for the mapping, so that doesn't make any difference. It is all in the layout and how you interface with the device, what button does what, how easy is it for you to learn(intuitive). That is a totally personal decision, only determined by you fooling with the various devices. I have used Lowrance, Garmin, Rand McNally, and Tom Tom. I am using a Garmin Dezl 520 now.
One of the problems seems to be with every update they restrict trucks to fewer and fewer routes, hell I have even had my Garmin tell me that trucks were not allowed in the parking lot or driveways of the Petro in Perrysburg OH. I think it is because folks like Senator Charles Schumer of NY is getting on the case about trucks hitting bridges in NY, threatening to go after the GPS manufacturers and the trucking companies, they are just covering their ###..

 

There are only two map datum suppliers in the US- Navteq and Tele Atlas. Both the top two manufacturers use Navtech as thier base map supplier but not thier restrictions overlay which is as far as I know, a proprietary layover unique to the manufacturer. The problem with layovers is the amount of change from year to year in truck routes and restricted routes. Sometimes it seems as if for some small towns, these change on an almost daily basis. The other main problem is just ratty data and the inability to confirm bad data as bad data. The 760LMT is mentioned on this thread. It still has a long segment of I80 marked as weight restricted in Nebraska which, according to thier GIS department, was due to errors in bridge weight limits and won't be rectified till the fall most likely. RM had issues with over height on I25 in Denver which is true for the road edges on a few of the over passes but not for the entire segment of road. The point is a lot of these do and will continue to exist and really the only way to get them resolved is for us users to communicate with the manufacturers regarding these kind errors when we encounter them so databases get corrected as quickly as possible. To this end, RM probably has done it best with thier "Tell Rand" feature and there is always the RM support thread. Garmin also has a contact direct to thier GIS department via a contact link on the desktop on thier website.

No matter the device you own, if you see errors, please contact your device manufacturer ASAP as it helps the entire device user community and don't get mad about it. It is what it is and can be fixed.

Mark

 

I've had the RM 7-series since late November. It's only frozen up on me twice, and both times I was doing some very quick screen moves via finger-dragging. Overall, I've been pleased with the unit. I like the features and the size and clarity of the screen, and as I intend to become an O/O in the next six months, it has some handy things that I'll use then that I'm not utilizing now as a company driver.

But I will say this: I firmly believe that training new OTR drivers should exclude GPS usage, at least for a period of time. New drivers should be forced to operate from a good atlas. GPS is far, far from foolproof, and if you don't have at least basic map skills, you're setting yourself up for potential disaster. I can't count the number of times over the past several years (the length of time I've had a GPS, either my own or the company's) that I ignored the GPS directions at any given moment for cause. GPS does not operate on common sense....that has to be supplied by the driver. These things are not a panacea for avoiding mistakes and wrong turns, but it seems too many drivers fail to understand that.

 

i have streets and trips and no longer need the RandMcNally Road Atlas

however, your comment about copilot not needing the internet piqued my interest

so you can download the entire map of the USA (like streets and trips)?

i wonder are there any other programs that are like that

i dont need a gps, but i sure could use a detailed map (like streets and trips)

i am switching to linux OS and streets and trips doesnt work there

 

anyone use this?

http://travel-map-software-review.toptenreviews.com/street-atlas-usa-review.html

 

I have a rand McNally 720. Only lead me wrong on few occassions. I Cary an atlas with me that I use frequently along with my GPS. To the one that said GPS part of electronic that is dumbing down America, so true. My thoughts are, GPS makes it easy, so easy that it makes people trust it. Blindly. I admit I let my GPS choose my route but if I am unsure ill check it on the atlas, and call for directions. Sometimes though...dispatch is stupid enough not to give me a number and bad directions. I decided to follow my gps.

GPS took me on one wild ride that resulted in a 40 minute detour. Decided to go an additional 30 minute detour to route my self so I could actually use the directions I had. Thanks Atlas.

 

* Yes, it downloads the entire map database to the device (Android, iOS, Windows)

* No, I do not know of any others that do that on a mobile device that isn't running Windows. Definitely no others with truck restrictions in them. I'm not saying that there isn't, but I haven't found it yet if there is. And I do a lot of lookin'

* I have never tied to make it work on Linux. Maybe someone else here has. But I wouldn't count on it working on Linux without that confirmation.