What device to use with the InReach?

Now that I have an InReach, I'd like to have a device to communicate
with it for text messages. My phone is dumb and won't do it, so I'm
considering an iPod Touch or similar device that would also let me have
a sectional maps and airports app, run a soaring app (like XCSoar) to
back up my panel mounted computer, and check the weather via wifi at the
airport.

My main concern is visibility in the cockpit - what's be best choice
among iPod Touch a similar Android-based devices?

The 7" tablets are also attractive for those uses, but again I don't
know if their sunlight visibility is adequate or if the larger size is
impractical in the cockpit. They'd be better outside the cockpit, I expect.

Can anyone with some experience with these devices in the cockpit give
me some suggestions?

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to
email me)

Eric, this might work.
http://tinyurl.com/pc8h5
Jim

On Friday, March 15, 2013 1:34:53 PM UTC-4, JS wrote:
Eric, this might work.

http://tinyurl.com/pc8h5

Jim

Cool. One card per turnpoint. Manually sorted/indexed for your easy access. "Aww crap, can't find turnpoint #2 - it must've slipped behind my back".

Cool. One card per turnpoint. Manually sorted/indexed for your easy access. "Aww crap, can't find turnpoint #2 - it must've slipped behind my back".

Using punched paper tape would solve that problem, Erik. Same technology, different medium.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"
U.S.A.

On Sat, 16 Mar 2013 21:17:26 -0700, chip.bearden wrote:

Cool. One card per turnpoint. Manually sorted/indexed for your easy
access. "Aww crap, can't find turnpoint #2 - it must've slipped behind
my back".

Using punched paper tape would solve that problem, Erik. Same
technology, different medium.

There's a problem: there's no stairwell in most gliders. I used to work
with paper tape and the stair-well is essential. If you get a large roll
tangled, e.g. drop it and have the centre fall out, the quick fix is to
hold one end, dump the rest down the stair well and wind it up again.
OTOH I can imagine loose tape in a cockpit trussing the pilot like a
turkey ready for Thanksgiving.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

We had some machines that had to be booted from punched tape. We did it so
often that we used mylar tape! We also had a hand-held, battery powered,
winder up thingie to wind it back up and then wrap a rubber band around it.
Ah... The days of core memory...

I wonder how that punched mylar tape would work as a combined control
seal/turbulator...


"Martin Gregorie" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 16 Mar 2013 21:17:26 -0700, chip.bearden wrote:

Cool. One card per turnpoint. Manually sorted/indexed for your easy
access. "Aww crap, can't find turnpoint #2 - it must've slipped behind
my back".

Using punched paper tape would solve that problem, Erik. Same
technology, different medium.

There's a problem: there's no stairwell in most gliders. I used to work
with paper tape and the stair-well is essential. If you get a large roll
tangled, e.g. drop it and have the centre fall out, the quick fix is to
hold one end, dump the rest down the stair well and wind it up again.
OTOH I can imagine loose tape in a cockpit trussing the pilot like a
turkey ready for Thanksgiving.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

On 3/17/2013 6:41 AM, Martin Gregorie wrote:
On Sat, 16 Mar 2013 21:17:26 -0700, chip.bearden wrote:

Cool. One card per turnpoint. Manually sorted/indexed for your easy
access. "Aww crap, can't find turnpoint #2 - it must've slipped behind
my back".

Using punched paper tape would solve that problem, Erik. Same
technology, different medium.

There's a problem: there's no stairwell in most gliders. I used to work
with paper tape and the stair-well is essential. If you get a large roll
tangled, e.g. drop it and have the centre fall out, the quick fix is to
hold one end, dump the rest down the stair well and wind it up again.
OTOH I can imagine loose tape in a cockpit trussing the pilot like a
turkey ready for Thanksgiving.


Thanksgiving?!? Wow. We colonials mostly presume youse guys are as ignorant of
our holiday as we are of Guy Fawkes' Day. :-)

On 3/15/2013 10:34 AM, JS wrote:
Eric, this might work.
http://tinyurl.com/pc8h5

Great sunlight visibility, but are you sure it runs Android 2.4 or higher?

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to
email me)

You might consider a Dell Streak 5. ~$200 on Ebay, excellent sunlight readability and can connect via bluetooth. Also runs XCSoar as a backup flight computer if you wish.

Good multi-tasker device. Can even be a phone, but I find it too big to want to carry it around.

On Wednesday, March 13, 2013 1:17:01 PM UTC-7, Eric Greenwell wrote:
Now that I have an InReach, I'd like to have a device to communicate

with it for text messages. My phone is dumb and won't do it, so I'm

considering an iPod Touch or similar device that would also let me have

a sectional maps and airports app, run a soaring app (like XCSoar) to

back up my panel mounted computer, and check the weather via wifi at the

airport.



My main concern is visibility in the cockpit - what's be best choice

among iPod Touch a similar Android-based devices?



The 7" tablets are also attractive for those uses, but again I don't

know if their sunlight visibility is adequate or if the larger size is

impractical in the cockpit. They'd be better outside the cockpit, I expect.



Can anyone with some experience with these devices in the cockpit give

me some suggestions?



--

Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to

email me)

On 3/15/2013 2:54 PM, Morgan wrote:
You might consider a Dell Streak 5. ~$200 on Ebay, excellent
sunlight readability and can connect via bluetooth. Also runs XCSoar
as a backup flight computer if you wish.

I like the idea of the good display, but I'm concerned it can't be
updated past version 2.2 (which was two years ago, I think), and might
not be able to run some useful apps in the near future.

Since the lack of responses suggests I'm the only that's not planning to
use a smartphone on the inReach, I'll look into those again. I rarely
use a mobile phone, but they seem to cost about the same iPad Touch and
similar Android devices, and I can get one that works with my prepaid
phone plan.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to
email me)