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#11
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Trying to give up computer
"Dan Cosley" wrote in message ... How many of you have ridden with a computer and then decided to get rid of it? Do you miss it? On the road I don't bother anymore with a counter of magnetic revolutions or its companion counter of heart beats. - and I don't miss either of them. Have found them much more useful to leave on the ergo (stationary road bike in a steel frame for training) - select a gear and a cadence and you have an approximation for power and the heart rate is something you can choose, rather than just being a reflection of road and traffic conditions and whatever the bunch is feeling like doing that morning. If its a new ride or I'm not quite certain of the route will sometimes put the gps in a back jersey pocket (as well as mapping your route it keeps a rough and ready record of the elevation profile of the route which can be interesting) - you can get mounts to put a gps on the bars but that rather spoils the uncluttered look of nothing up front. Get a fair bit of use of the gps when driving (good for getting the correct turns/freeway exits on unfamiliar freeways) and kayaking - not used much for navigating on the bike - as someone in this ng once remarked you never really get lost on a bike, you just spend a bit longer riding then you had planned. But as always, ymmv best, Andrew (remove the .x1 to reply) |
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#12
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Trying to give up computer
In article ,
"matabala" writes: "Tom Keats" wrote in message ... diss'ing diss'ing? Tom, please don't encourage the language mongrels. And with such a fine literary name... Language is so wonderfully plastic. We can do with it what we will. And we (thank goodness) do. The eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea is an interesting place. It's the nexxus of several different continents, and many different cultures. Dance plays a big role there. I opine that that's because so many different cultures converged there, and a need to communicate arose, so people mimed their expressions, and that mimery evolved into the sophisticated dance of the Greeks, Baltics, Africans and Slavs. I figure instead of talking at each other, they all just danced at each other. In many ways, it makes much more sense to gesticulate and demonstrate, than to gutteralize abstract sounds that might be meaningless to the hearer. Language, schmanguage. Talk is cheap. Nevertheless, Alice Cooper is a wonderful master of American English. I wish I had a copy of "Lost In America" to blow the roof off this house, right now. But I don't. Maybe that's a good thing. Hey -- M'iss'ippi Fred McDowell -- "Ah do not play no rock'n roll, y'all; Ah just play de straight, natch'l blues." He said he let the guitar do the talking for him. I used to channel his spirit, and I got to become a fairly good guitar player in the process, but his Victorian values got disgusted with my hedonistic ways. But we did cough-up a killer cover of Jimmy Reed's "Big Boss Man" (Ya just tawlk, that's awll). So, because of my immoral improprieties, I'm not allowed to even pick up a guitar any more. But for awhile, I was a flat-assed, white-guy Robert Johnson. Now /there's/ a guy who could wield language. His "Milk Cow Blues" is still such a heart-rending, plaintive plea. And /nobody/ has ever been able to credibly cover that song, since. Maybe Rory Gallagher could've, but as far as I know, he never attempted it. Robert Johnson's ghost is probably possessing some other poor kid, now. Language, schmanguage. Anybody can say a bunch of razmatazz about Greek vases and St Agnes, or St Swithin, or Chapman's translation of some somniferently tedious Readers' Digest story. Language & communication is so much more than uttering verbiage. That's why we can so completely ignore TV commercials. That's why I (or you, or anyone else) can say "diss'ing" and get away with it. The most eloquent talk I've ever heard has come from cats & dogs. They know what matters. Words are highly overrated. cheers, Tom -- -- Powered by FreeBSD Above address is just a spam midden. I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca |
#13
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Trying to give up computer
Dan Cosley wrote:
There's something seductive about quantifying progress/effort. Not always a useful thing, though -- the primary example from my daily life is the notorious use of "lines of code" as a measure of programmer productivity. Bad idea. -- Dan Yup. However, "*tested* lines of code" is a good measure. It's one I used in a former life. |
#14
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Trying to give up computer
In article ,
Dan Cosley wrote: I just switched bikes, and the new one has no computer. I'm considering not getting one -- I have a tendency to look down at the little speed number, to the detriment of paying attention to cycling. Some people do find the precision and wonkishness of a computer either distracting or disturbing. Then again, a lot of people are driven to despair and bad behaviour by a bathroom scale. Not me, I can quit weighing myself any time. How many of you have ridden with a computer and then decided to get rid of it? Do you miss it? I love my computer. My dad loves his computer a little too much; I think he logs all his commutes. I'm "training" somewhat half-heartedly for Cat 5 training crits (goal: upgrade to Cat 4 training crits); the real fun of the computer is setting personal bests on my commute route, but the most useful aspect is making sure I'm not slacking off, especially when I use the HRM as well. What's a bad use of the computer? Figuring out that my route from work to home is .5 km longer than the outbound route, and that therefore I should figure out a faster detour so I can shave another minute off my time. Even though I use the route I do because it's safe and quiet. 160 lbs., 5'6", riding more to get to 155, that scale crack wasn't a cry for help, -- Ryan Cousineau, http://www.sfu.ca/~rcousine President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club |
#15
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Trying to give up computer
On Tue, 2 Sep 2003 15:47:17 +0000 (UTC), Dan Cosley
wrote: I just switched bikes, and the new one has no computer. I'm considering not getting one -- I have a tendency to look down at the little speed number, to the detriment of paying attention to cycling. Perhaps you should spray paint over the instrument panel on your car. You might have developed a tendancy to look down at all those gauges, to the detriment of paying attention to driving. jeverett3ATearthlinkDOTnet http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3 |
#16
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Trying to give up computer
Dan Cosley wrote:
I just switched bikes, and the new one has no computer. I'm considering not getting one -- I have a tendency to look down at the little speed number, to the detriment of paying attention to cycling. How many of you have ridden with a computer and then decided to get rid of it? Do you miss it? Do people use computers in nontraditional ways? For example, taping over the display or mounting upside down so it's way inconvenient to read while riding but you can get cumulative stats, etc? -- Dan My computer is a little el cheapo. Instantaneous speed is displayed always, in large digits, and is easy to read at a glance; a secondary display, beneath Speed, shows one of 10 or more other quantities, is small and harder to read. I set the secondary display set to Time Of Day and leave it there because if it's set to, say, Odometer, I glance at it periodically, just like you say. And because that part of the display is small and hard for this old guy to read without reading glasses, paying attention to it is dangerous. Knowing that TOD is displayed keeps me from even looking! Bottom line: I always attach computer before I ride, but while riding I look at speed only. After the ride is soon enough to look at Distance, Total DIstance, Avg Speed, etc. |
#17
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Trying to give up computer
Replace the computer with a cheap eTrex GPS. It's much more entertaining,
and the speed page isn't the most interesting thing. It's the old trail of breadcrumbs you're crossing, or some waypoint from a previous day. -- Ron Hardin On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk. |
#18
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Trying to give up computer
On Tue, 2 Sep 2003 15:47:17 +0000 (UTC), Dan Cosley
wrote: I just switched bikes, and the new one has no computer. I'm considering not getting one -- I have a tendency to look down at the little speed number, to the detriment of paying attention to cycling. How many of you have ridden with a computer and then decided to get rid of it? Do you miss it? I had computers on both bikes years ago. Then one winter I stripped one down and repainted it, and didn't remount the computer for a couple of weeks. This was the one with cadence. Soon afterwards, I crashed the mountain bike on a trail and was miles away before I noticed that its computer had fallen off in the crash. Oh well.... don't miss either one. Never remounted the one and never replaced the other. All in all, I go slow or fast. I learned the feel of various cadences with that computer. I keep rough mile totals for each bike in my head. Try it both ways. It's nice to not be a slave to the readout. But it's also nice to have the information. It's like CNN- sometimes I watch it 'wisely' and sometimes I stare at it telling me the same simple lines for hours on end, hoping that some 'truth' will emerge no matter how often that never happens. Do people use computers in nontraditional ways? Was someone here asking about using one to monitor the speed of a lathe? I like that idea. Maybe I'll haul mine out and take it into the shop. Then again, based on feed tables and the feel and sound and quality of the cut, I already know if I am going too fast or too slow or just right..... |
#19
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Trying to give up computer
In article , Ron Hardin wrote:
Replace the computer with a cheap eTrex GPS. It's much more entertaining, and the speed page isn't the most interesting thing. It's the old trail of breadcrumbs you're crossing, or some waypoint from a previous day. Interesting that you say that. Our research group is talking about ways to leverage GPS trails, perhaps along with a digital camera (helmet mount?), to help people enjoy travelling more. We're looking at biking as one app, doing touristy things as another. For example, it's frustrating to look at the route books put out by the Twin Cities Bicycling Club and see only one or two rides that pass within 8-10 miles of my house in the northwest part of the city proper. It would be fantastic to have a set of people's travels that I could use to find route legs that lots of cyclists use -- where are the better streets to ride here? -- Dan -- Dan Cosley * http://www.cs.umn.edu/~cosley/) GroupLens Research Lab, Univ of MN (http://movielens.umn.edu/ * 612.624.8372) *** Just a foot soldier in the Army of Truth *** |
#20
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Trying to give up computer
"Dan Cosley" wrote in message ... I just switched bikes, and the new one has no computer. I'm considering not getting one -- I have a tendency to look down at the little speed number, to the detriment of paying attention to cycling. How many of you have ridden with a computer and then decided to get rid of it? Do you miss it? I didn't 'decide' to get rid of it. I did decide replacement costs [I'm rather rough on them when I go offroad] were higher than I wished to pay. Yah, I did miss it. But I know my average speed and with a map I can guestiimate my distances. If I could purchase one that would stand up to off road abuse I'd gladly purchase it at premium but the lack doesn't really detract from riding. And I found analogously that when the clock at the pool was broken I tended to swim longer when I didn't know exactly how much time had elapsed. |
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