Capt. JG wrote:

I don't have a chartplotter (and an AIS), sadly. It's not in my budget until
2011 at least.


You've got a laptop; there's no reason not to have a chartplotter.

You can get Bluetooth GPS puck, or even a USB puck for about 40 bucks,
SeaClear II is free, raster charts (BSB) are free from NOAA.

I have an articulated monitor arm bolted to the inside of the aft saloon
bulkhead beside the companionway that lets me extend a slave LCD display
into the companionway visible from the cockpit. I also I a Bluetooth
trackball that I can use from the cockpit, so the lap stays inside high
and dry. If things start to get wet it's simple to push the slave screen
back into the cockpit out of the weather.

Cheers
Martin