Active Captain - A good thing?

Billfletcher

Billfletcher

New Member
Feb 20, 2011
913
San Diego, CA
Boat Info
2014, 44, EC.
Engines
2 X 370HP Volvo D6, DPH Duo Prop's
I downloaded this recently to my Ipad. Seems like a potentially powerful resource, but at this point in its development it needs more - IMO.

The App loads slow on my Ipad, and the "in close" detail is marginal at best.

Perhaps as other boaters contribute data, reviews, and pictures it will be more robust.

Are others finding this useful?
 
I think you're mixing Active Captain to Active Captain Companion App. The AC Companion is totally different module for AC.

What you want to do is (if you have Garmin Blue Charts Mobile app on your iDevice) login to the GBCM, goto "Settings" and there's Active Captain login option. When you login AC account in GBCM, you'll see the same data you see on a PC web version of AC.
 
I would recommend it is worth the effort to get connected to it.

You can always use from your desktop or laptop via browser.

As Alex mentioned - I use it extensively with BlueChart. There are several pad charting apps that now support it. I have been playing with Polar, but so far much prefer BlueChart.

mark
 
I totally agree with you - the Companion is a little too much "less" than it should be.

I was faced with a difficult objective - we didn't want the Companion to compete against the other licensed developer products (Garmin, C-Map, Coastal Explorer, etc). I think we went a little too far in hitting that objective.

The Companion is supposed to be about the Up Ahead list where it'll speak to you and use the ActiveCaptain data in ways that no one else is doing (hazard approaches, speed to meet bridge restrictions, intersection/ETA with friends, and other things). I envisioned it running on a phone, not a beautiful display like an iPad. But everyone who uses it wants better charts/maps. And they're right.

There's a total re-write happening now. The resolution was greatly increased and the mapping has been re-written. Offline, it'll use basic maps, not charts, because it's not a navigation product - it's still only going to be a Companion to your navigation product.

The new ActiveCaptain Locations app will come out first. It'll only do the friend location display over the new map engine. Once the kinks are worked out, the previous Companion functions will be added to Locations and it'll come out at ActiveCaptain Companion v2. Locations will then be removed.

So we're listening. We're not going to always get it right the first time. Some things will take a couple of at-bats. Thanks for continuing to pitch!
 
I've been on Active Captain for 2 or 3 years and have really enjoyed watching their progress. I've also emailed with their reps (not sure if the same person who just posted here), and was excited to hear that they are working on the locations aspect of things. Within the group of people I boat with, we all used to run google latitudes on our phones or devices so that we could see where each other were--either in route to a raftup/marina gathering, or just out for the afternoon and seeing who is nearby to meet up with. I'm looking forward to a good replacement for that. We were about to try life360 but it didn't seem to be the best fit. I'm also interested in the long range vision that location allows, like a marina seeing you approaching and hailing you with your slip number, etc. While I'm not a big social media fan in my every day life (facebook etc), I do value the reviews posted on active captain, and also the local knowledge it provides. I try to post reviews whenever I can, to help build the database.

Keep up the good work guys!
 
ACtive Captain, thanks for the update. I am vey new to your product, so I don't understand all the features yet, but I will keep playing with it. It sounds like a great tool to have especially to read about upcoming hazards in unknown areas.

I entered a description of the entry to our marina last week, which can be tricky at night for visitors because the bouys shift. I will also add some photos.

I am looking forward to this community edit process in general.

i don't recall if the companion app I downloaded was free, but either way, I can tell you i am happy to pay for it as you develop new versions and add more details.

I also got your newsletter last night, after my original post, which was helpful.

Regards, Bill.
 
ActiveCaptain

Thanks for dropping in. Lot of supporters of your offering on this forum. Stop by whenever you can, we will always welcome your input.

Mark
 
FootballFan said:
ActiveCaptain

Thanks for dropping in. Lot of supporters of your offering on this forum. Stop by whenever you can, we will always welcome your input.

Mark
Click to expand...

+1 :thumbsup:

To answer the question if it's worth it, let me just say this. After performing few tests on how AC works with GBCM integration, I've purchased a new iPad dedicated just for the boat. This is only b/c of AC. I always used laptops as a helping tool. A good example would be, I used to have huge spreadsheets listing all the bridges and their schedules. Now all I do is use my ipad to see where's the upcoming bridge. Two clicks and I know all the info I need (name, schedule, communication, etc.). You can say, not a big deal. But, let me tell you that just in a short stretch between Stuart and Ft. Lauderdale I needed to open about 20 bridges. Another example (this applies to any vessel) is the nav. hazards. I used to mark every one of the hazard on my MFD. That's hundreds waypoints. With ipad I can see all upcoming hazards. One click and I know the details.

I can go on and on, but I think Jeff (AC owner) can do much better job describing all the benefits of the product. One thing I can tell you is that once you learn how to use it, you'll never go back.
 
Yep, Active Captain data was extremely helpful on my journey. When I traveled, I would run until I was ready to find a marina. I would slow down, pull up Garmin and look at the Active Captain info and contact the marina. It gave me a certain peace of mind knowing I had the resource at my fingertips.
 
AC is definitely worth it, though think of it like Wikipedia. Anyone can edit it and that is both a blessing and a curse. So far, I have only found it a blessing because those using it are serious boaters. Like this forum, there is always the possibility of some idiot screwing with things for a while. Caveat emptor.

Bryan
 
I read about the new furuno being unveiled at miami and it comes with ac on it .Updates itself by wi-fi when near a signal and a lot of other handy things.
 
ActiveCaptain is a forward thinking platform that solves a lot of problems for inexperienced boaters and well seasoned captains. I am sure this has been one massive undertaking for Jeff and Karen. To apply the concept of crowd sourcing, implementing the software, and the promotion of this product had to have been very daunting. The ActiveCaptain team is a great partnership. There generosity to the boating community can not be overstated. I believe they answer most, if not all of the email, every day themselves in addition to maintaining the site.

They were at our marina in Charleston this past fall. I saw them on a number of occasions walking their TWO well behaved dogs. Every time I saw them walking people would engage them and they graciously would chat with them. They always appeared to have all the time in the world to talk even though on several occasions it appeared they had other things they needed to do. They have made the world a better place in their business endeavors and by their selfless desire to help the boating community.
 
Paul, and others, thank you for more information regarding the owners of the site and AC in general. My original post was based on my lack of knowledge of their product. I am looking forward to using their App more, and hopefully contributing to their site with local data and pictures. The boating community, and in particular people who log on to user forums like this one, will benefit.



PS – Lots of Back Coves in my neck of the woods. Awesome boat.

 
Hey I used it in planning my cruise from Oakley CA to the mouth of the Columbia River. I plotted my course on it and then transferred that to my two chart plotters. AC even helped me with converting the file to something that was acceptable for Lowrance. Thanks AC!
 
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