Here is some additional information on the charts CD I mentioned a
couple of weeks ago.
Might make a great stocking stuffer for the holidays.
I looked at the West Coast version, but there is also a CD for the East
Coast.
Considering that it used to be commonplace to spend $15-30 for one
single chart, this really is a deal.

Follows:


We recently fielded a call from a gentleman named Mark Doyle. "Would
you like to know about our product?" he asked. "We have put all the
NOAA charts for the West Coast of the United States, Alaska, and the
Pacific Islands, all onto a single CD, readable in both PC or MAC
format, and compatible with virtually all of the computer navigation
software programs. In addition, the CD contains various government
publications such as Coast Pilots, Light Lists, and Chart #1. Oh, and
we also include trial versions of several PC software systems so that
folks who don't have a nav system on their PC can try out a few of
the industry leaders before making a final decision concerning which
system to purchase."

"Wow!" we replied. "That's a pretty ambitious CD. What does
that sell for? Maybe $150, or $200?"

"No, and that's what's so incredible about this product," said
Mark. "As a lot of people are probably aware, this year the
government began allowing the public to download raster navigation
charts free of charge. That only makes sense because the taxpayers'
money was spent to make these charts to begin with. Unfortunately,
trying to download, catalog, and organize an entire library of charts
can take an incredible amount of time. What's more, to stay up to
date the process really needs to be repeated once per year. Because the
charts are free to begin with, our customers are simply paying for the
downloading and cataloging service. The CD sells for $24.95"

"What? For $24.95 you provide every chart for the W Coast of the US,
Alaska, and the Pacific Islands, along with trial versions of different
software programs, light lists, and Coast Pilots? Heck, send us one!"

When the CD titled "Managing the Waterway" arrived from Mark's
company (semi-local productions LLC) we loaded it up onto the
editor's PC to explore the content. The CD does indeed contain
everything promised, including several versions of PC Nav systems.
The PC nav systems are all trial versions (with the exception of a
public domain program called "Sea Clear") and are either designed
to operate for a limited number of days after activation or have some
of the more interesting features disabled. Users will have a chance to
compare, hands on, several systems before identifying a particular
favorite and arranging to purchase a permanent or fully functional
licensed copy.

If we were to offer any criticism at all of "Managing the
Waterway," it might be that the CD is a bit light on step-by-step
instructions for getting the system set up. We began by downloading all
of the 184* series charts onto our hard drive and then downloading one
of the sample PC Nav systems. One of the menu selections on the nav
system screen was
"get charts" and a browse option was included. We browsed up the
folder containing all of the 184* series charts, and within less than
another minute we had every NOAA chart pertaining to the Pacific NW
available for planning purposes.

Not bad for $24.95!

Semi-local productions also offers (for a slightly greater price) an
even more comprehensive CD with every NOAA chart for the entire US.

Looking for a stocking stuffer or a useful gift appropriate for a
boating buddy this holiday season? Check out Managing the Waterway at
www.managingthewaterway.com

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