Jericho Sailing Centre, 1300 Discovery St., Vancouver
16 Nov 2024 1300h - 1700h
Members $55 / Non-Members $75
Vancouver Education
Our presenter, Rob Murray has been cruising Avant (a Beneteau First 435) for 11 years down the Pacific coast from BC to the Caribbean side of Panama, and has taught OpenCPN seminars in the USA, Mexico, El Salvador and Panama. Hundreds of graduates are successfully using the software he helped them get started with to navigate.
- We will install OpenCPN and configure it with:
- Charts
- Satellite Charts
- Teach you how and where to get charts
- Teach you how to set the unit up for use aboard ship or at home for navigation and route planning
- Participants will leave with a functioning OpenCPN installation on their PC or MAC ready for use
You will need:
A PC or Mac computer (PC preferred), a power bar and/or extension cord.
If you have a USB-GPS, bring that as well.
If you don’t have one and want to get one, the GlobalSat BU-353N USB GPS Receiver is well reviewed and works for PC or MAC, and is available on Amazon.
Attendees are required to bring excellent snacks to share with the presenter and each other!
Hi Kit
If there is any room for another student for this I would be interested but I have a question. I want to have the program on a standalone PC but do not want to have to buy an expensive model – could you ask Rob what would be the minimum PC model for the program to operate in & any advice as to the best place to buy one
Thanks
Yes, there’s plenty of room and I’ll confirm with Rob but from what I’m reading the minimum is not extensive:
2GB RAM is required, with 4GB being optimal. A solid-state drive of 128GB or above is usually enough. If you have other needs, such as storing photos or videos unrelated to navigation, a larger size may be warranted. OpenCPN charts can take up to around 10GB.
Almost any PC will work , the one I’m using is a ‘student’ grade model that’s >10 years old. You need room for charts, but a large thumb drive can do that if the PC has a small drive. To avoid frustration, I’d advise about 100gb free space on the drive or thumb drive. If you want to procure a new one, a student grade model with a HDD or ssd will work. Avoid PCs with board based storage in favour of one with an upgradeable HDD or ssd.
Rob
As I am a computer illiterate my question is probably basic –
My office computer has a 4 GB (3.72 usable), 64 bit operating system. since I do not want to spend $3 – 400 on a larger than necessary laptop, could I load the nav program onto my office computer, then move it to an another computer when I locate a suitable unit?
Or do you have source for a suitable laptop – I have tried all my computer contacts?
I would appreciate your advise
Sounds like that would work just fine!
My techy guy found me a reconditioned Acer so I will see you on Saturday
Thanks very much for your advice.
Rob’s comment:
That’s about right {from my comment]. Doesn’t need to be SSD, though, any hard drive is ok. If the hard drive is lacking it can be done with a usb memory stick of >100mb on the pc.