Issue 31.09
I have noticed that a lot of things I used to do have changed dramatically since computers have arrived. One of those is the way our family plans travel and vacations. When I need to travel out of my immediate area, I usually will go to www.mapquest.com and input my location and the address I am going to. It shows me a map of all the streets on which I will travel. Even better, it shows me which roads to turn on and how far it is to the next turn. Finally, it gives me an estimate of how long it will take to get there.
I bought a GPS system that does a lot of the same things, and I do like it, but I also like having the map so I can get the big picture before I leave and plan where to stop for bathroom breaks, meals, etc. On a recent trip to Texas with my daughter’s family, we used both systems and it kept the kids pretty content for such a long trip. We even used the computer to plan some activities in the towns where we stayed overnight. We just used www.google.com to look up the town and checked for kid-friendly things to do. I remember having to write to the chamber of commerce and then wait for them (sometimes in vain) to send brochures or flyers about their town and activities. Thank goodness for computer technology!
Another thing that is fun is to use http://earth.google.com/ (google earth). This great add-on to your internet browser makes it possible to see the places you are going to or traveling through from the air and, in most cases, even from street level. My daughter’s children were able to see their new home and neighborhood even though they had never been there.
The computer also helped me find a great barbeque restaurant I had visited many years before on my only previous visit to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. It also helped save money on the flight back. We’ll talk more about how to use the computer to plan and enjoy vacations next time.
Until then, stay safe and happy computing.
Shaun McCausland has been in the computer industry for 27 years (locally with Musicomp & Bits ‘N’ Bytes) and currently does in-home and on-site computer consultation, service, training and repair. If you have questions, you can reach him at 668-7118.