IT on the high seas?

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Wind459

Great feedback so far, for clarification, my current goals are focused on leaving the Midwest great lakes area, moving (preferably sailing, not towing) my boat along the east coast , staying at a few live aboard locations along the way for a few months( Im green so not sure if there is free protected anchorage), and eventually make my way down the the Caribbean. From there I most likely will try to take the journey to the west coast , then out to Hawaii, back up to Washington state, and then decide from there if I want to take the hike to Australia or if Im done with my wanderlust. So probably for the premise of this post, lets say Im going to stick to the US, Caribbean and South American.

I have little to no programming / web dev exp, I would prefer to shy away from that as it would be a whole new skillset I would need to learn asap. I have exp with domain network setups at small businesses, which do utilize VPN tunnels, VMs. Ive been teaching myself sever administration and configuration, as I want to stop outsourcing that work in the near future. For my day to day, its just software support ,think like the kind u get when you contact quickbooks to troubleshoot, I currently work from home half the week, and I might be able to go full remote eventually.

Currently I live in a very 9-5 world, I know to cruise I will need to step out of that, but Im not sure if my level of IT can make the money to live comfortably in such a nomadic configuration ( maintain, repair, sustain myself, and save a few bucks). So I figure I reach out here to see if anyone with similiar skill sets is making ends meet, as I want to know what made it work out for them. Pardon any typos or if im writting in circles, Im on 2 hours of sleep and trying to get some feedback on what works, and how to adapt to this new frontier Im on .

I honestly don't think you're going to make any money over the internet doing that level of networking. After I taught the 8 yr old kid next door how to st up domains and VPNs, he started doing it for candy bars. That is very, very basic IT work.

I'm not trying to rain on your parade, just don't want you to think it's possible when it's not. If you get into the more advanced/rarified skillsets as mentioned by other members here, the money and flexibility in work hours goes up drastically. Even so, you're still working more than cruising.

[mako]

There are lots of threads on this and other forums about making money while cruising. Everyone dreams of that. I used to charter my boat that I was living aboard. Tough life. Since it's easier and generally more profitable by many times over to make money ashore, perhaps a better compromise is live ashore 6 months while saving your money, then go cruising 6 months in some exotic locale.

[zGerman]

Originally Posted by Knobee

A related question (no thread hi-jack intended, and I'll start a new thread if that would be better):

If I'm in a Central American country, working for a US company, for US based clients, with no loss of jobs caused in my host country, is there great resistance or legal issues?

Officially, yes, I would be "working" in Belize (as an example), but beyond use of electricity and Internet infrastructure (for which I'd be paying), and rent or taxes (which I'd also be paying), am I that different from a tourist, just with more time and disposable income?

[Note that I'm discounting visa issues a bit - "leave for 72 hours every 30 days" or something seems quite workable in the short-term]

Thanks!

I do work for US customers from uproad all the time, never had any issues yet. You suggested short leave for 72h however may not be welcomed. The US for example requires what it defines as a "meaningful departure" and may deny you reentry. I am sure other countries have a similar approach.

[barnakiel]

I have never had any issues working for foreign clients while living abroad. I think as long as you are earning your money elsewhere and spending it locally, most normal people understand you are a blessing to their economy.

If you take up a local job, well then it all depends on where you spend what you make. And even if you spend locally, you are still taking away a job. This all changes dramatically though, once you actually resolve to create local jobs (e.g. you start a business and employ local people).

Anger towards strangers working locally seems related to local culture too. I was offered jobs in NZ but clearly prohibited from working in neighbouring Australia. But I failed to notice much difference between their economies, well being, etc.

All such small details and plenty of observation and local research are good food for your thoughts BEFORE you go ahead and rob those poor good indians of their freedom tokens. ;-)

Cheers,
b.

[Thorne]

I live on my boat and work totally remotely doing programming and systems Architecture. I currently lead a team of 10 that also work remotely.

The challenges.
1. Weather is a real factor, I've had to "Get out of dodge" to avoid hurricanes. ( read that, take time off ) Also Heating and Air Conditioning. It does "Really" get hot during the summer and cold in the winter, on the gulf coast

2. Internet. Up the mast I have a WI-FI booster and a cell Booster. I have both ATT and Verizon hot spot devices w external antennas.

I have "Hughes Net in a can" ( sat receiver in a 5 gallon bucket )
It's a pain and expensive and not "Really" reliable but I used it when visiting Islands on the IC and there just is nothing else. They love to throttle your connection back until you call and complain. but it does mostly work, but not for VPN. ( Lag of over 700 ms )

The best is sometimes a marina's Wi-Fi. But sometimes the marina crew eats all the bandwidth watching utube or Netflix while waiting on their next job. As mentioned by others, bars ( not a long term solution ) and libraries ( not really a place you can have conference calls )

Also there are now 2 kinds of cell data services, something to consider if you have a need for VPN usage. The new "Unlimited" plans use bandwidth sharing and will drop a VPN signal once every 5 min for 15 sec. Not good for VPN.

3. Boat availability. Let's face it, you have to have your boat pulled occasionally. Is there a marina that allows you to stay on your boat when it's on the hard? Staying onshore gets expensive, otherwise.

4. Lifestyle. Yes, you'll still want to have a life. Think about this one.

5. A place to work. Do you have a place on your boat where you can sit "Comfortably" for 8 to 10 hours EVERY day. Do you have a space where you can put your computer and a 24 inch dedicated monitor?

6. Power. It's easy when you are at a marina. ( does the marina have 30 amp power available so you can run your chargers, air con, and your computers )
Do you have a reliable Gen? Is it quiet? Does it use gas or Diesel? Do you have an easy way of getting fuel?

7. Stress. Is your job fairly "Stress Free"? If it is a burner you will resent your boat over time. ( trust me on this one )

9. Storage for, and backup hardware. ( got caught by a northerner and had waves breaking 3 feet over the bow ), had a lot of water in the cabin. Fortunately I have dry bags for my laptops and Triple trash bags to throw monitors and other stuff into. Did fry a Wi-Fi booster I missed in my haste.


And of course there are the other aspects of the cruising lifestyle.

But, all the above actually becomes "Just a part of doing your job" after a while.

I have a 41 ft Morgan so it works for me, and I wouldn't trade the freedom for anything.

Thinking of moving over to the Texas coast this fall.

[witzgall]

If you are taking satellite internet access, if you have to work for a living, it is unaffordable.

Chris

Originally Posted by bitsalt

I'd be interested in knowing if the OP has looked into offshore internet access. But perhaps that's best saved for another thread...

[Ruso]

I was considering the same route and it is very interesting discussion.
From my 20+ years of soft. dev. experience I just don't see it realistic. With a very few exceptions (very high end professional or unique projects you can work in isolation - is it even possible?) you have to be available during business hours, have reliable internet. Nobody going to deal with an employee if you say a word about working remotely from some third-world country.
The best approach would be, if your professional skills set allows to put away 2-3 grands every month into your savings, take contract for 4-6 month and sail out for a few month. Move to Florida, buy a boat, live on boat, sail locally, find a job, study hard to extend your skills into programming (it pays really good).

[seadago]

Like in everything else in life, there are ways and means to solve most problems, but you need to give up other things for the privilege.

I work in the IT industry, and know of a few people that do exactly what you want to do, albeit land-based. Few observations:

Any IT support activity (SD/1rst/2nd/3rd line) will require that you are available when your customer wants you, or when there is a problem. It can be done remotely, and very often is, but it's an OH or 24/7 activity. If you live on your boat, you need to be reachable. The notion that you can effectively support a user/application whilst on passage across he Atlantic is a myth.

Project work is an option. You work for a number of months in discreet assignments, and can choose when. But while you are at it, you need to be where the project is being undertaken (geographically, most often) or, if participating remotely (less often) you need to be available. Good projects are high-intensity activities. Unlikely you are going to find a part-time and flexible role in one.

Coding is one thing you can do pretty much on your own time in a manner to suit you. You say you don't have the skills. OK. You can acquire them. Also fairly well paid internationally.

There's much to be said for user-end friendly IT support service which is locally available. This includes Wintel, domain, internet, and networking technologies. Same for a whole range of marine technologies such as marine networking, connectivity, instrumentation, radar, AIS, etc. etc. You need to become proficient with them, but (in my experience, anyway) they are not particularly challenging. If you spend time in an area popular with boaters, and network and advertise your services efficiently, you can make a decent average living from servicing other sailors requirements, and/or work freelance for installers and dealers.

I'd say, flexibility of approach in what you are prepared to do, and a willingness to learn new skills, is just as important as your current skill set. Everything else can be sorted.

Go foir it, and good luck!