AIS and cruising

[colemj]

Originally Posted by farm sail

the information of my direction my speed maybe my size is all they need

You do understand that any information on your AIS transmission beyond that of SOG and COG is voluntarily added by the owner of the transponder? Don't you?

Mark

[farm sail]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Yes, I agree. Its murder and should be banned.
Anything easy, useful and safe has no place on a boat.

Radar is ok because it was invented in the Second World War so anyone with grey hair has heard of it. Plus its more difficult to use so its better. Radar is better too because you can't see boats in rain squalls and that's better. Hairy Eye-Ball and the Thing That Looks At The Sun are the only tools a real sailor needs.
Chartotters? Waste of money and totally unsafe too. Should be banned. Plus any fin keeled boat NEEDS to be banned right now. As for furling jibs, don't start me on that, how can you call yourself a sailor unless you have a hank on jib on all 4 masts - wooden masts of course.

It is very easy to see if your eyes are open that AIS has the distinct possibility of causing a false sense of security. I have met more than 1 sailor willing to venture into a fog so thick you can't see the bow rail on your boat with only an AIS app and map on the cellphone. Definitely not the right tools for the job

[farm sail]

Originally Posted by colemj

You do understand that any information on your AIS transmission beyond that of SOG and COG is voluntarily added by the owner of the transponder? Don't you?

Mark

Your mmsi is federally registered, is it not? The governments have allready been using satellites to track Iranian oil tankers world wide in an effort to enforce the embargo. Even though the Iranians have figured out how to spoof other boats identification they are still able to be tracked since it can be seen that the name changes then they just follow the new name.

I will keep my privacy thank you

[travellerw]

Hhmmm.. I'm as green as they come, but my philosphopy is a good skipper will use all available tools and information to ensure the safety of his/her boat. AIS is ONE tool (an awesome one) and I would be irresponsible to not have one and use it.

Frankly I don't see any reasonable argument against that train of thought! Saying that a tool makes you lazy and reliant is pure insanity. People are lazy and ignorate because they are people. I'm pretty sure the people saying that, are the people who still drive around without a seatbelt (AND NO ONE CAN MAKE THEM WEAR IT!).

[colemj]

Originally Posted by farm sail

I will keep my privacy thank you

Ah, so you have thrown away your cell phone and computer? And don't drive a licensed vehicle? And don't have a credit card? Or passport? And don't travel to other countries?

See, this whole "privacy stand" thing only works if you really mean it...

Mark

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

AIS is the best bit of safety kit ever invented.
I strongly suggest everyone install it.
If I had my way it would be mandatory for all boats going 2nms off shore.

The nay-sayers either haven't used it or haven't used it. Maybe they just haven't used it, but I think its more likely they haven't used it.


Mark

Are there naysayers? Wow, yes, they must not have used it or maybe they haven't tried it, or used it.

[DotDun]

Originally Posted by colemj

Ah, so you have thrown away your cell phone and computer? And don't drive a licensed vehicle? And don't have a credit card? Or passport? And don't travel to other countries?

See, this whole "privacy stand" thing only works if you really mean it...

Mark

Please provide the website where I can look up your cell phone, computer, credit card, passport, and see your car's current location attached to your identification information?

I can do that with AIS.

[travellerw]

Running and Android phone.. Go here..
https://www.google.ca/android/devicemanager

Apple has a similar application..

Your a fool if you think the government doesn't have access to these applications. Even worse, that information is shared with corporations through the apps you purchase from the store!

[colemj]

Originally Posted by DotDun

Please provide the website where I can look up your cell phone, computer, credit card, passport, and see your car's current location attached to your identification information?

I can do that with AIS.

You can use AIS to look up all those things about me?

I bet you can only use AIS to look up our boat IF the AIS happens to be turned on and IF we are close enough to land and IF that point of land has an AIS receiver/repeater that puts the information in a public area. And even then, the data will be up to a couple of hours old.

For example, you can do that if we are transmitting in Colon Panama, but you will be SOL if we move 25 miles down the coast to Portobello.

Besides, the poster I was responding to was worried about hiding his personal information from governments. That is a lost cause - not to mention businesses and other organizations.

And if I was a private individual with one of many particular jobs, I would have that information available also. Or a hacker.

Are you really that worried about a retired guy in his 50's on a recreational boat possibly knowing where you are IF you have your AIS turned on and IF you are close to land and IF that point of land has a receiver/repeater that puts the data on the internet?

BTW, to answer your question, I think the website today is Espirion.com. It used to be Target.com and before that HomeDepot.com. Definitely LinkedIn.com. There are probably thousands of websites with all that personal information available...

Mark

[DotDun]

Originally Posted by colemj

I think you are being harsh here. Certainly more harsh than many commercial pilots, navigators and captains - let alone many very experienced cruisers.

Dead easy is one of its good features. Being able to clearly and quickly identify a ship, its direction and path relative to one's own, and the time frame necessary to effect a change when in bad conditions, with low sleep levels on a small boat is a good thing - not a bad thing.

The art of navigation and collision avoidance is to use the best data available to achieve navigation and collision avoidance in the fastest time possible.

It is not to slog through difficult to interpret radar conditions, sleep deprived eyes on a bouncy boat in heavy rain, parallel rules and DR sites on a boat healed 40* and yawing around, etc.

Personally, our chart plotter is kind of useless most of the time AIS is most useful. The VHF is only useful as a last-chance measure (have you actually tried contacting a ship by VHF lately?). We put AIS high on our list on passage - and the worse environmental conditions get, or the worse the traffic load gets, the higher AIS rises in that list.

There has been many commercial shipping people on these threads singing the praises of AIS and being able to see all ships around them and keep situational awareness. It seems to be high on their lists.

Of course, they may only be the beginners…

Mark

Did you miss where I said I use it in high traffic and low visibility?

Would make a passage if AIS was the only thing working? Chart plotter dead! Radar dead! VHF dead?

Would you make a passage if AIS wasn't working?

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by travellerw

Hhmmm.. I'm as green as they come, but my philosphopy is a good skipper will use all available tools and information to ensure the safety of his/her boat.

That's pretty we word for word what Colregs say. So, again its a wonder why so many who wave Colregs around when arguing what flag to have up what mast don't agree with the most basic principles of navigation, seamanship and moral integrity.


"...vessels must use all available means to determine the risk of a collision..."

[Seighlor]

Don't leave home without it.

[colemj]

Originally Posted by DotDun

Did you miss where I said I use it in high traffic and low visibility?

Would make a passage if AIS was the only thing working? Chart plotter dead! Radar dead! VHF dead?

Would you make a passage if AIS wasn't working?

I have made many offshore passages with nothing but a compass and chart. An AIS would have been next to magic.

There are whole threads here about that.

VHF is about the least useful navigation and collisional avoidance piece of gear in our experience. Except that ours also has an AIS receiver.

Likewise, most people completely ignore their chart plotter when not navigating close-in unknown areas.

Probably the vast majority of boats we have met cruising south of North Carolina or San Francisco either don't have radar, or haven't turned it on in many years.

Mark

[DotDun]

Apparently I'm the only that ventures out at night where there are vessels, channel markers, thunder cells, and land without AIS/AToNs.

When MarineTraffic, ShipFinder, and VesselFinder go away, I'll leave AIS on.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by DotDun

Apparently I'm the only that ventures out at night where there are vessels, channel markers, thunder cells, and land without AIS/AToNs.

When MarineTraffic, ShipFinder, and VesselFinder go away, I'll leave AIS on.

As I noted in my post you are disregarding Colregs.

That's unconscionable.

Tell me how it isn't.


Mark