STP/New Media Teleconference

[mtruman]

I remember when we were following Karl on his AT trek last year that there were a lot of missing sections while he was in the Whites. Was never sure if it was the coverage or that the unit wasn't on (which was reportedly the issue in some other sections. Perhaps now we know. Too bad - I think that this would be really cool for STP as well.

[fifteendays]

Thanks to those who have replied to our new media conference call invitation-- information on the teleconference will be sent out shortly. So far, we have 6 people, so it's a solid group already.

If you have IT expertise, especially in the social networking world, please join us. We want to take Seek the Peak to yet another level, and we're looking for some technological ideas/advice/insight on how we can utilize technology to get the word out. See the first post in this thread for details.

A little sneak preview on STP-- hikers will be able to upload photos and videos to their STP hiker pages! (I may need to edit that statement... it may just be A photo and A video, singular... but we're working on it!)

We're looking forward to the call!

Scot
MWO Exec. Director

[BlueDog]

SPOT is spotty in the Whites at best. Most I have heard of who have tried to use them in the Whites have given up and closed their accounts.

They do seem to work well on water, but are not engineered to work in mountainous terrain. Advances in the technology may change this, but for now I don't believe they will work the way you would hope them to.

http://www.viewsfromthetop.com/forum...ad.php?t=26710

KDT

Interesting, since it works on satellite signal. Wonder if they are using an older GPS chipset. My GPS works great up there, but with most GPS, you do need to tell it what region of the country you are in in order for it to lock in to the closest satellites. If I don't do that after having used it down here in VA, it takes forever to lock in.

Older chipsets also had trouble with ground cover and such. My Garmin Colorado has been able to get a full solid signal in stormy weather, full summer foliage in the woods, etc.

[mtruman]

Interesting, since it works on satellite signal. Wonder if they are using an older GPS chipset. My GPS works great up there, but with most GPS, you do need to tell it what region of the country you are in in order for it to lock in to the closest satellites. If I don't do that after having used it down here in VA, it takes forever to lock in.

Older chipsets also had trouble with ground cover and such. My Garmin Colorado has been able to get a full solid signal in stormy weather, full summer foliage in the woods, etc.

The thing with SPOT is that it has to send as well as receive. I wouldn't have thought that this would be an issue either. Pretty scary though if a PLB type device doesn't work well in the mountains. If it's bad in the Whites what is it like in other more remote locations? Not much of a safety net...

[h2oeco]

From what I've read, SPOT is not a "real" PLB. I spend a lot of time out on the water, and a fair amount of time offshore. On many boats there is an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon), the modern ones contain a GPS, transmit location info, and a personally identifiable signal, all via satellite, plus a local homing signal on 121.5Mhz. They do all of this in about three minutes or less, and they work worldwide. The terrestrial equivalent is a PLB from ACR or the like. These have all the same functions, but are relatively small and light. The disadvantage is that they are only for use in a real emergency, and only call SAR resources (no "phoning home"), also, they are quite a bit more expensive than SPOT (but no monthly or yearly fee). I suspect, but don't know, that these would work just fine in the mountains.

Ed

[Steve M]

I hope you all have a great teleconference and a lot is accomplished. Y'all are way over my head when it comes to the latest technology, but if it benefits STP, then I can't wait to see the results!

[Charlie]

I hope you all have a great teleconference and a lot is accomplished. Y'all are way over my head when it comes to the latest technology, but if it benefits STP, then I can't wait to see the results!

im with you on this one steve
all i can do is try to get a lot of money for STP

[CHRIS]

Same here sometimes I have to ask my kids what to do. Dah feeling stupid. I also hope this helps get the STP web sit up soon to start raising money.

[mtruman]

im with you on this one steve
all i can do is try to get a lot of money for STP

And hopefully if we can figure out the right approaches we'll help you to raise even more. This is exciting stuff!

[Great Guinness Ghost]

I fear, that time is being lost for fund raising on all this "new technlogy" that a lot of my donors won't care about. In this down economy, and with the holidays passed, we should be up and running even if it's with last years' setup. It seemed to work well. Yes, I can still collect monies, however, those who wish to use their credit cards (most), I have to say" I'll get back to you."
I wish you luck but let's get this thing fired off!