Autopsis » Gear

Fuso Units at Work

Doug — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:12:33 +0000

We visited the world’s largest open pit copper mine at Chuquicamata, Chile today.

While we were there we had the chance to see the trucks referenced in the post “Fuso Units” at work.

The mine uses 94 of these trucks. 60 are Komatsu and 34 are Liebherr.

Click here for the rest of the story: http://www.hackneys.com/travel/chile/docs/fusounitsatwork.pdf

Criteria Model for Overland Expedition Vehicles

Doug — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 15:57:35 +0000

Model is located here: http://www.hackneys.com/travel/docs/oevcriteria.xls

Intended use for the model:

Document the general parameters, priorities and specific requirements for a proposed Overland Expedition Vehicle (OEV).

The model is intended to improve communication between potential OEV owners and their dreams, fabricators, subcontractors and manufacturers.

In practical use it can help potential OEV owners identity disparities between their stated priorities / requirements and the characteristics of available platforms / vehicles.

Used together with the OEV Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) model a potential OEV owner can have a much better idea of the type of vehicle they require and what the total ownership experience will cost.

To use the model:
   1. Download the model spreadsheet to your computer
   2. Open the model in XL
   3. Perform a File:Save As operation and change the name of the model to preserve the original version
   4. Enter your data into any cell that is colored green
   5. Perform periodical File:Save As operations as you load the model. It is a good idea to increment the file name as you progress, i.e. myOEV-criteria 01, myOEV-criteria 02, myOEV-criteria 03, etc.
   6. Save the final version of the model

To Print:
7. Select File:Print

The Boots

Doug — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:30:48 +0000

We both wanted to buy real hiking boots before we departed the U.S. for this journey.

The task slipped down the To Do list until we found ourselves at REI a day or two before we flew out, sitting in the shoe department surrounded by towers of shoe boxes.

I’ve never spent as much time in my life on a shoe purchase as on those boots.

I’m a guy shopper: know what you want, stride in, locate the target, acquire, and exit.

(more…)

Digital Photography Meta Data Overview

Doug — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 18:38:11 +0000

Introduction

Winston Churchill’s immortal description of 1939 Russia as “A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” is equally true of the current state of digital photography meta data.

Most casual digital photographers never come face to face with meta data. They take their photos, they upload them to a web photo sharing or social networking web site, they may even print a photo occasionally, and at no time are they even aware that digital photography meta data exists. In many respects, they are the lucky ones.

Serious amateur and professional photographers wrestle with meta data as part and parcel of their daily workflow. Meta data problems, flaws, corruptions and disasters are a regular part of photography forums and discussion groups. Challenges can be as simple as one tool displaying a photo’s caption/description while another will not. Or, they can be as catastrophic as the loss of thousands of photos’ meta data, often painstakingly entered over weeks, months or years.

Meta data, defined as “data about data,” can be a very technical, daunting subject. In practice and application in digital photography, it has often been an unmitigated disaster.

Even at its young age, digital photography has experienced multiple meta data standards. Each of these standards has been ignored, corrupted or “enhanced” by digital photography software vendors. There has been no backwards compatibility or standardized mapping established to bridge from one standard to the next. The lack of standards regarding the labeling of meta data information has led to a plethora of conflicting terms used to label the very same piece of meta data, spawning mass frustration and confusion among users.

Unfortunately, there is no immediate relief in sight for serious amateur and professional photographers. If anything, the meta data anarchy and chaos created by the software vendors promises to increase.

The only hope for those tasked with unwrapping the meta data riddle lies in better understanding digital photography meta data. Only by understanding meta data can we accurately diagnose the challenges and build workarounds.

*****

Full document is here: http://www.hackneys.com/travel/docs/…taoverview.pdf

Propane Systems for Expedition Vehicles

Doug — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 18:43:30 +0000

Perhaps no other system on an expedition vehicle is as wrapped in mystery or inspires as much outright fear as the propane system.

With its inherently explosive nature and its bewildering variety of connectors, it is easy to understand why the typical overlander avoids the design and implementation of a propane system if at all possible.

Once the propane system is designed and installed the challenges do not evaporate. Instead, the overlander who ventures overseas is faced with the daunting task of refilling their propane tank(s) or bottle(s). To refill, they must decipher a highly regulated supply chain and communicate complex concepts and schedules in the local language.

And, if the refilling quest fails, they must do the task on their own, using materials at hand.

All of this adds up to a lot of motivation to avoid a propane system in your expedition vehicle if at all possible. Unfortunately, the alternatives all present significant challenges and/or downsides of their own, so most of us end up with a propane system in our expedition vehicles.

However, all is not lost. Propane need not be a mystery, propane systems need not be arcane, and refilling overseas need not be daunting.

This document attempts to:

Explain the basics of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG / LP), commonly known in the U.S.A. as propane
Define the elements of a typical expedition vehicle propane system
Document the types of materials and connectors used in a typical expedition vehicle propane system
De-mystify the utilization and refilling of a propane system while overseas

See the entire document here: http://www.hackneys.com/travel/docs/…4xvehicles.pdf

I welcome feedback, improvements and corrections, especially from propane/LPG/LP professionals.

Field Fix: Garmin MapSource Registry Error

Doug — Thu, 22 May 2008 18:36:51 +0000

Background:

Garmin MapSource (GMS) is software provided by Garmin with some of its map products. GMS is used to create, edit and manipulate waypoints, routes and tracks. GMS is also used to upload and download GPS data to and from Garmin GPS receivers.

Problem Description:

Garmin MapSource (GMS) will not load/start if its registry is corrupted.

Click here for the rest of the story: www.hackneys.com/travel/docs/gmsregistryerrorfix.pdf

Scope: Garmin MapSource (GMS), all known versions; Windows OS

Best New Photo Gear

Doug — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 14:06:56 +0000

For this trip I left my trusty Manfrotto carbon fiber tripod at home.

I wanted to get a tripod that was better designed for low shots, but I wanted to stay within the Manfrotto family so I could continue to use the quick release clamp system.

I ended up with Manfrotto 055XProB legs, which are working really well.

They are aluminum, so heavier than the carbon fiber, but the quick change mechanism that swaps from vertical to horizontal column alignment in seconds is worth the penalty.

I’m still using the Manfrotto 322RC2 head. It is marginal for a Pro size body. Even with the friction control set to max I can’t use it for a vertically framed shot with the strobe or long lens. It is at its limits shooting horizontals with the long L series lenses. The upside is its instant framing and adjustment capability, which I very much prefer.

South American Waypoints

Doug — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 19:28:09 +0000

I created a Garmin GPS data file containing South American waypoints from five sources.

If you know of any other web sources of overlander’s SA waypoints, please email me and I will add them to this master file.

The file is located here: http://www.hackneys.com/travel/index-gpssawaypoints.htm

Gadget of the Week

Doug — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 23:11:29 +0000

This week’s gadget of the week is the Celestron Sky Scout Steph gave me for my 50th birthday.

A couple of days ago we were camped up in the Andes on a moonless night and I pulled it out to show her how it worked. We stayed up most of the night and burned through about 3/4 of a set of AA batteries.

It’s an incredible device that locates itself on the planet via GPS and them employes very sensitive magnetic sensing, an optical sighting path and a built in database to locate and describe all the stars in the heavens.

The niftiest feature is built in audio tracks for the most popular and dominant starts.

Very, very highly recommended, even if you are not fascinated by the universe and our place in it.

When Steph gave it to me she wrote on the card, "If I could pull the stars from the heavens, I would."

This little gadget will unlock the mysteries of the heavens for you.

http://www.celestron.com/skyscout/

Emergency Beacon / GPS Tracker

Doug — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 15:12:48 +0000

I just came across this company and their product launched 1 November, 2007.

Small, lightweight and portable, it combines EPIRB type emergency beacon functions with a general purpose GPS locator tracker and simple “I’m OK” message functions.

It looks like it would be great for hikers, skiers, climbers, mountain bikers, off-road motorcyclists, near-shore sailors and overlanders. Another potential market is paranoid “bubble child” parents letting their progeny out of their eyesight for the first time.

Coverage limitations - no coverage in the following areas:
- Far southern South America
- Sub Saharan Africa
- Indian subcontinent
- Ocean passages. (Some coverage in the North Atlantic)

Cost: $170
Basic Annual Plan: $99
Additional Tracking Plan: $49 (send and save location, track via Google Maps)
Additional global extraction / rescue plan: $7.95 initial, $150 thereafter

Available online and at REI and Cabellas.

Company web site: http://www.findmespot.com/default.aspx

We’ve already got a couple of EPIRBs and we’re just pulling out, so I don’t think we’ll have time to implement these.