I was considering the march of technology and the computing power many
of us have on our boats, then considered the byzantine methods the
various mapping agencies use to create our nautical charts and how
out-of-date they really are.

Has anyone seen a project to collect position and depth data
automatically and periodically upload the data to a central server? I
vaguely recall someone who mapped one or more anchorages automatically
like that, and there's another project where large and commercial ships
sample and analyze the waters they're passing through.

I would love to participate, in exchange for charts that accurately
show what's ahead of our keel.

Yeah, yeah, it's a project that would in some way require the
cooperation of the various national agencies ... Or one of the map
sellers might be interested, as it would give them an incredible edge
over the other suppliers.

--
Jere Lull
Xan-à-Deux -- Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages: http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips: http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/