I use the Ronald Reagan method of GPS navigation: "Trust, but verify." If in doubt, I will check the paper atlas or a second GPS program to be sure of the route.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:
Never disengage your brain in favor of a robot. GPS tried to send me down a SIDEWALK a coupla months ago. And I mean, a SIDEWALK. There was never a road there, and this would have gotten me arrested had I just brainlessly accepted the 'orders' from the magic box in the dash. . .

I use GPS as a guide, and I ALWAYS have veto authority.

I've seen this more times than I can count. We used to get trucks stuck under the VERY CLEARLY MARKED 13' bridge in town on an almost daily basis. Invariably, the trucker would always say "I was just following my GPS." That problem has mostly been solved with the installation of a roundabout below the bridge that semi's won't easily fit through, but we still get a few idiots now and then. It just takes more effort now.

I had one guy, perfectly sober, drive 12 miles the wrong way down a divided 4-lane highway into oncoming traffic, passing multiple intersections and crossovers before we got to him. "Just following the GPS." Another girl drove down a boat ramp into a lake, because "The GPS told me to." And many more.

I don't really blame the GPS for these, but it does provide an easy path to enhanced levels of idiocy in those who already suffer from the pre-existing condition.

Wife and I both know the GPS is not letter-perfect.

The better ones show an overall route and give choices up front, and that's a good place to start exercising non-artificial intelligence.

Every so often, I have them do their thing on routes I know like the back of my hand. Occasionally, they are cleverer than I am. and I learn something. But...not always.

I take my kids to other schools in the area for various competitions, sometimes in another state. Use my GPS to get there as they are almost always on a Saturday at 8am so traffic is minimal They I use the get home function. Once it gets me back to the interstate then I’m usually good from there. Around town or places I’ve been I don’t use but my wife will use waze to avoid traffic. I’m sitting there thinking don’t you think most others ready know this and your shortcut will be full of traffic as well ? So I just kee the mouth shut and let it happen.

Confucious say: Man who blindly follow dog on lead, step in shit.

quote:

Originally posted by Expert308:
I don't know about 'quickest routing'. My sense is they draw a straight line from point A to point B and then give you a route trying to keep as close to that line as possible. It will have you zig-zagging through residential neighborhoods rather than taking the express route around them.

If you set up Google maps or Waze correctly it will pick the quickest route avoiding traffic delays. You've probably got it set up wrong. They both gather data from every user in the area to determine traffic flow and digest quicker routes. It depends on how many users are in the area sending them infon on your speed, stops etc.

quote:

Originally posted by RichardC:
Confucious say: Man who blindly follow dog on lead, step in shit.

But I’m not saying blindly follow, here’s an example we come up to a split in the highway and the GPS clearly says “go to the left” and then she starts saying “well I should be going to the right I think, I think that’s the better way!”

Then it turns out to not be the better way or worse yet gets us lost.

Women seem to have a better sense of time than direction so roll with it

I'm in the middle of a month long overlanding trip in the SW and am using Google maps in addition to a new Garmin Overlander device to see how they compare. It's amazing that the route chosen can vary by more than an hour in traveling in remote areas. So far Google is winning but we are constantly checking against the DeLorme maps.

My wife is the GPS and the auto drive. She is the worst passenger there is. If I get on the on ramp and merge onto the freeway within seconds she will say your blinker is still on even though I'm still in the process of checking my mirrors for merging traffic. Or we will drive by a sign marking our exit and she will say the exit is right up here.
Or my favorite one is why are you going this way?

I make her drive on occasion just so I can give it back to her. If we are approaching a red light and she still has her foot in the gas I'll say the light is red while are you still accelerating? You are just putting extra wear on the brakes. Or I like to remind her of the speed limit when she is going over. She looks at me like really?? Annoying as hell ain't it I tell her. She doesn't get it though.

I relish the days when we get in the vehicle and she is in the middle of a mass text with her girlfriends or something and most of the drive is her with her face down in her phone.

2nd guess it? No. Argue with it? Every time.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:
Never disengage your brain in favor of a robot. GPS tried to send me down a SIDEWALK a coupla months ago. And I mean, a SIDEWALK. There was never a road there, and this would have gotten me arrested had I just brainlessly accepted the 'orders' from the magic box in the dash. . .

I use GPS as a guide, and I ALWAYS have veto authority.

^^ THIS ^^

I've had it try to save a couple minutes in traffic and have me get off a highway to drive through high crime areas in both Houston and Los Angeles. I knew where I was and didn't have a tailgunner so I vetoed the GPS directions.

When Apple first came out with their Maps for iPhones it tried to direct me on to the tarmac at Fairbanks International Airport. I was in the homestretch for going to the airport so knew where I was and ignored it. Less than 2 weeks later, a state congressman made national news for driving on the tarmac at FAI (full blown homeland security response) and low and behold he was using Apple Maps.

Another time, I was crashing with a friend in Hawaii on a layover coming back from Japan. She was at work when my flight landed so provided the address, described the house as blue, and said the key was under the mat. I pulled up in front of a run down blue house that I couldn't envision my friend living in and turns out it was 1.5 miles from her house. Glad I didn't look for the key under the mat.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
My wife is the GPS and the auto drive. She is the worst passenger there is. . .

Don't forget - you are 10 miles from your exit, and spouse says "You need to get into the right lane." My response is automatically, "It is on my list of things to do today."

google maps doesn't give the 'quickest' route. It does some fuzzy math shit around the shortest and most fuel efficient route (even if you have that turned off) which can lead to significantly longer drive times or traveling through residential neighborhoods or taking gravel roads. One example is a trip we regularly take to norther WI. The fastest route is 35 miles longer, but is a quicker trip by over an hour. Google gives shorter trip - taking 100 different backroads in norther WI EVERY SINGLE TIME.

Other times the more direct route may be a couple min longer, but it's not even an option (even though it suggests alternate routes that are 20/30/50 min longer and lists them). Slowing/stopping/turning onto different roads is not more efficient. Send on the most direct path as possible.

Wifey argues with Waze every time I use it. Last time Waze said to take a 5 mile detour but wifey said to ignore Waze and just stay on the original route.

I did.

We were 45 mins late v. 8 if we'd taken the detour.

I like it when she's just playing games on her phone.