WIND/DEPTH/SPEED
Sailing information systems, wind speed and direction sensors have long been common on
sailboats and uncommon on powerboats. This situation is changing, with increasing numbers
of powerboats sporting dancing wind vanes and spinning anemometer cups in their
superstructure. This may be a consequence of the migration of some sailors to trawlers or
perhaps the result of the greater awareness of powerboat captains of the need to take wind
induced effects on piloting into account during a passage.
AUTOPILOT
An autopilot will be a welcome crew member on any boat In most conditions an autopilot
will steer more precisely than the best helmsman, never ask for food, drink or time off to
go to the head and won't complain even in a cold, driving rain. The helmsman, relieved of
the task of constantly correcting rudder position to remain on heading can devote full
time to doing what he can do best, observing the total scene and managing the boat.
FISHFINDERS
There is no doubt that you can catch fish with nothing more than a length of line, a hook
and some bait (optional for certain types of fish). However, in the face of this well
known fact, both commercial and recreational fishermen willingly invest hundreds to many
thousand dollars in equipment intended to improve the odds of their catching the fish in
which they are most interested, not just any fish that happens to swim by. Sonar
technology, which has contributed so much to undersea warfare and to peaceful uses such as
underwater surveying and locating sunken ships has also made it possible for today's
fishermen to visualize what is beneath their boats. The depth of the water, the nature of
the sea bed and the presence of fish are easily determined using modern sonar equipment.
Equipped with specialized signal processing circuits and a time line display the sounder
can become a fish finder. Carried to its limit, the fish finder can become an undersea
radar, searching through all or any part of a 360 degree azimuth and sweeping from
straight down to horizontal in its search for underwater objects, including fish.
