First post of the new year – I have decided that less is more in general. The idea of always being plugged in, turned on and consuming info is just weird to me. So in consuming less I am probably going to produce less, quantity that is, but I think less is more. We shall see.

Having tooled around Northern Thailand this past few days I feel even more convinced that GPS devices are awesome but could do so much more. I found myself using the iPhone and the GPS to find stuff and drive. Searching with iPhone – getting there with the GPS. The GPS guys could fix this since I don’t see that getting there with the phone is an option.

Been spending some super quality time with the rents the past few weeks – been awesome as usual. It always reminds me that time is the most valuable thing in life. I think the tech world tends to not value quality time and we just spend more time in front of a machine pretending to socialize but truly not socializing at all. Pathetic it is. So time is important and doing things you love with people you dig is all that matters. Wealth just makes that easier but wealth for the sake of just having money makes no sense to me. Having money and no time is also painful.

Being part of this problem myself I find that so much of what we do is just not real – only bytes of information that many times has nothing tangible to show for it. Hence being with family, reading, riding the bike and making a meal just feels so much more real. Which is why I love when something internet related leads to real things.

Nothing seems to be doing that better right now than Kickstarter and with all the hype over companies worth millions but actually don’t make anything I want to bring the attention back to real companies.

I helped with Diaspora which got me a t-shirt – a very real thing.

My iPod Nano watch kit – TikTok. Very real and BTW I think the people complaining about the iPod as a watch are being premature since this is the first pass at real wearable computing – imagine this thing having a map or making a call someday. Apple will be there first and I would rather have an Apple product strapped to me than something Microsoft or Google would come up with.

I was getting a Kickstarter email update and the founder mentioned this company – I had to have a pair. They look cool, are made in America and seem to be tackling a real problem – there are no good flip-flops anymore. Teva has lost its soul, sad but true and most of the other stuff either falls apart, reef, or is just not comfy – Croc and Havaianas.

This stuff looks awesome and if it means this company gets off the ground then even better. Sign me up. Can’t want to get my pair with my name on them.

So if the internet can help real people make real things for real usage – I am stoked.

Now – let me get back to generating some bytes.

😉

Having had mobile GPS units for some years – coupled with experience using both an iPhone and a Nexus One – I thought I would chime in on a few thoughts I have been banging around. First off – mobile phones won’t replace real GPS units anytime soon for those who seriously get off the beaten track a bit. Not so much explorers per say but people who might be in foreign countries and need to try their best not to get lost. For this type of cruising around, especially on a motorcycle, stand alone or purpose GPS units have no equal.

First off let’s state that smart phones with maps are awesome – no doubt about it. For pre-planning, walking around a city or for searching for things, GPS units suck at this, I find my iPhone a critical mobile asset. My Google phone was cool as well but so far I tend to get more mileage out of my iPhone since my life is not played out in the Google cloud which makes an Android based phone less appealing. The convergence of wireless with maps – plus the ability to make calls is great and I am sure will get better. However strapping a phone to the handle bars of my bike while I explore Southeast Asia will never happen. Simple as that.

Given this though I am surprised the Garmins of the world, my chosen GPS company, don’t realize that convergence, ease of use and adaptability are key. So here is what I wish Garmin would do to make my exploring even better.

This is not listed by importance but just some thoughts:

• Add Wi-Fi. How hard can it be? I don’t need the phone, I don’t need email but browsing might be handy in a pinch since exploring the maps on a GPS device is not easy. What I want the Wi-Fi for though is to be able to download new functionality, update the maps, buy new regions and maybe someday use the power of the Internet to enhance the experience. The idea that I have to hook up to a PC to update my maps totally bites.
• Make browsing maps easier and make searching easier. Typos, hard to spell street names and the way regions work makes it hard to locate something you are trying to find. Simple universal search box would be cool.
• Make saving trips with waypoints, not just destinations, much easier. If the Wi-Fi was there allow me to back up my device to the cloud.
• Make it easy for me to get from point A to point A but highlight cool things along the way, plot a course to them but keep me heading to point B. It is all math right? Point is I need to get to where I am going but the device could do better at helping me to enjoy the ride and see things I did not know where there. The attractions function works but only when you stop and you can’t control the radius. Works but could be much better.
• Allow me to ping the web somehow to finds things that are around me – I think tomtom does some of this but clearly much more could be done to use the Internet to find interesting things created by users. This could dovetail with users sharing routes – I would even pay for this.
• If I had the Wi-Fi, browsing, and some way of sucking things in – let me grab a route and plot it on the GPS since the direction capabilities on purpose built devices are top notch.

These are some ideas that would allow guys like Garmin to prosper even in the face of smartphone competition!

I travel on Jetstar from time to time and usually enjoy reading their inflight magazine – especially the part in the back of the magazine that introduces various Jetstar destinations and places to visit while there. They use celebs or regional luminaries that share their top picks. I always find new places this way. Love it.

However, while reading the March 2010 issue, I was stunned to see a spot about Bangkok that was using Julian Moss, CEO of ASM Liquor, suggestion that travelers to Bangkok, Thailand should visit Santika. Wait a sec. At first I thought I was reading an old issue but I made sure it was the latest.

For the record, Santika had a horrific fire on New Year’s Eve 2008 with many people dying or seriously injured. One of the worst tragedies in Thailand. I am just a tad stunned that this suggestion of a location would be in a March 2010 magazine. I am not sure who to blame. Either the CEO of ASM Liquor is out of touch with reality or this is an old piece that was just recently printed. If so then the editor of the Magazine needs to be blamed.

Either way – someone needs to fall on their sword. This is hugely insensitive and hopefully not many Thai people were forced to read this issue and remember the tragedy.

Here is a photo of the magazine so no one thinks I am making this up: