New RV Consumer e-Magazine

There is a brand new digital magazine available for the RV consumer. RV Education 101 owner, Mark Polk explained, “I have been entertaining the thought of a consumer driven RV e-magazine for some time now. We published a trial issue last December to test the waters, and it was well received. At the time my thoughts were to publish the e-magazine quarterly, but with the level of interest the first issue received we made the decision to distribute the magazine monthly.” The new publication is titled RV Consumer e-Magazine. It is a digital magazine in a flip-book style format that is delivered online by subscription. It is free of charge and your e-mail address will never be sold or used for anything other than delivering our RV e-newsletter and RV Consumer e-Magazine. For up to the minute RV news and information take a minute to subscribe and start receiving these information packed e-publications. Both “RV University this Week” e-newsletter and “RV Consumer e-Magazine” are loaded with useful RV information and knowledge on RV products, RV how-to topics, RV Reviews, RV destinations, RV videos and other general RV information. Our goal is to be your premier provider for RV information and assistance through various educational outlets. If you are having trouble with the CAPCHA code (prevents SPAM) while signing up for the newsletter, send an e-mail to Dawn with Newsletter sign-up as the subject, and we will get you signed up: dawn@rveducation101.com... Read more

A Map of Visited States

Would you like to have your very own map of visited states to put on your blog, facebook profile, or email signature?  It’s easy and free by going to http://epgsoft.com/.  Just choose ‘Create Map’ and ‘Visited States Map.’  You should now see a listing of all the states.  Check off the ones you have visited, then Create Map. Make sure to select the Map Size and the File Format.  Then, when you click Create Map you will see: If you find that you’ve missed some states, or selected some by mistake, you can click the Back button on your browser to fix it, then click on Create Map once again to see the corrected version.  Once the map looks how you want it, you right-click on it and choose Save Picture As (or Save Image As – depending on your browser.)  Navigate to the folder where you want to store it and click ok.  Now the map is a picture on your computer that you can use like any other picture.  How about the World? If you travel the world and want to have a map of visited countries, check out http://douweosinga.com/projects/visited.  It works similarly to the visited states above except at the very end.  Instead of saving an image file, you get html code to put on a blog or website.  It also only uses one color.  I find for a world map that one color is better anyway.   visited 83 states (36.8%) Create your own visited map of The World or Like this? try: Eddie the DJ This... Read more

Let’s Talk IPAD !

Here’s the third entry in our series about e-readers for RV’ers. It’s time to address the Godzilla of the e-reader world. Yes, we’re talking about Apple and its iPad tablet. If Amazon is King Kong, Apple is Godzilla. (In this analogy, Nook is Rodan; never underestimate Rodan.) While iPad isn’t a dedicated e-reader, many people use it as such. NOTE: Images are not to scale (we all know that Godzilla is much larger than King Kong). It wasn’t so long ago that ol’ Mister Black Turtleneck himself was standing on stage like some sort of Silicon Valley prophet, proudly holding his gleaming metal tablet aloft. The initial response was a collective, “Huh?” On that day Apple CEO Steve Jobs suffered a few snickers at the device’s name, which reminded some of a feminine hygiene product. A lot has happened since that fateful day in 2010 when Jobs unfurled the iPad to skepticism and derision. It turned out that Jobs was once again right. The iPad became the most popular consumer product since running water. People around the planet bought RVs just so they could more comfortably camp outside Apple stores while waiting to buy the latest model. Apple became more valuable than the Earth itself. You never know when NOOK might fly into the scene and crash Godzilla's party. As for Steve Jobs, in 2011 he moved on to that great product launch in the sky. I read the authorized Steve Jobs biography (on my Kindle – sorry, Steve), and learned... Read more

Let’s Talk NOOK !

Let’s Talk NOOK ! Recently I wrote an article about the Amazon Kindle (one appropriately if unimaginatively titled Let’s Talk KINDLE !). The crux of my essay was that e-readers are the best thing to hit RV’s since flush toilets. There are many e-readers available for your purchasing pleasure. One of the most popular rhymes with “book.” Why did I choose to focus on Kindle? Conspiracy theories abound. Am I biased? Have I loaded up our investment portfolio on AMZN? Or am I merely an Amazon fanboy who wears Jeff Bezos pajamas? Nah. While I may be a bit of an Amazon fanboy, I wrote about Kindle because Amazon is currently KING KONG of the e-reader world. Yes, if recent sales figures are to be believed, Amazon is now perched on a skyscraper high above E-Reader Metropolis with Fay Wray sitting on its lap. Or is that Jeff Bezos in a dress? Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in a dress? This is wrong on many levels. Anyway, with Kindles selling faster than mouse ears at Disney World, it’s good to be King Kong. But if there’s a pesky swarm of biplanes on the horizon, it’s the Barnes & Noble NOOK. The author's book on his wife's NOOK. The Nook is a series of e-reader devices sold by everyone’s favorite brick-and-mortar bookstore behemoth. These range from inexpensive e-ink readers (Nook Simple Touch) to more robust tablets (Nook Color & Nook Tablet). You can buy Nooks online, in 90,000-square-foot bookstores, in shady back alleys,... Read more

Part Time Mobile Internet Connections

As fulltime RVers, we have no problem signing a 2 year contract for Internet service from Verizon, but we know many people who only travel part time.  What are their options for mobile Internet service?  A couple years ago, your only option was to rely on Wi-Fi which is very UNreliable!  Now there are several options for short term cellular Internet connections.  The technology world moves fast, and nothing moves faster than cellular Internet plans, so take the information below as talking points only.  Check with your provider, and/or your contract for the details that apply to you. Verizon is the focus of much of the information in this article since it is what we use personally, and it is the most popular service among RVers.  There are links at the bottom for information on other providers. 1. Putting your Contract on Vacation: Even if you do sign a 2 year contract with Verizon, for example, you can put your service (and payments) on vacation for up to 6 months.   Be aware that vacation time will be added to the end of your contract.  That means, if your contract period starts on 1/1/11 and goes thru 1/1/13, and you put it on vacation for 6 months, your contract now goes thru 7/1/13.  Be sure to check with your service provider (Verizon, Sprint, AT&T etc.) for details based on your particular contract. 2. Bring your Own Device: People sign up for a two year contract because that is the way to get the device (Mi-Fi, or cellular modem) for a steeply discounted... Read more

Snowbird RVers can get DSL or Cable Internet Service

by Chris Guld, www.geeksontour.tv We write a lot of articles here about how RV travelers can get Internet service.  All the options are some type of wireless service (Wi-Fi, Cellular, Satellite) because there is no wire that stretches with your RV down the road! But wired is almost always better than wireless, it’s more reliable, it’s usually faster, *and* there are generally no usage limits.  So if you have that option – do it! What do I mean by a ‘wired’ connection? I mean DSL or Cable.  A service where you have a physical wire (or cable) to your Internet Service provider.  If you’re staying in one RV park for 3 months or more, you may have one of these options. We are currently staying at Paradise Island RV park in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  We got here mid-October and we’ll be staying thru March.  There are telephone lines at each site in this park so we called AT&T to get DSL Internet service.  They turned on the service at our site within just a few days, and we are paying $42/mo which is supposed to adjust down to $19/mo promotional deal after the first month. No Yearly Contract This is the second winter season we’ve done this.  When we left last April, we just called AT&T and told them to discontinue service.  Not so long ago, you had to sign a yearly contract to get service, but that’s not the case now. The AT&T line gets plugged into a DSL modem and that in turn is plugged into our WiFiRanger... Read more

Rand McNally TripMaker RVND GPS for RVs

In this third, and final, article about the Rand McNally TripMaker RVND 7710 GPS for RVs I’m going to talk about Route-Planning.  The other two articles were: What’s Up Ahead Multi-Stop Trips Some of the comments to the previous articles specifically asked about routing.  We want to know that the GPS is not routing us thru low clearance bridges or on other roads that are inappropriate for RVs.  This video shows how to plan a route thru Baltimore.  Other trip-planning devices would take you thru a tunnel, but the TripMaker knows that there’s a problem there.  Watch the video to see how it works. Alternate Link: GPS-Route-Baltimore.mp4 – 14.82MB Download Low Clearance Bridges I found a low bridge in Jacksonville, Florida for an example route.  Here is how Google Maps plans the route: Using Google’s Street View – you can see the low clearance! Here’s how the Rand McNally TripMaker GPS plans the same trip:   Now that’s exactly what we want right?  The Rand McNally TripMaker simply plans a route that avoids the low clearance. It doesn’t know all Low Clearance Bridges Be aware that *no* database has all of the low bridges – so, you still have to use all the tools at your disposal.  For example, we are members of Thousand Trails and we’ve spent some time at the Ohio park called Kenisee Lakes.  If you read the directions in the Thousand Trails book, you are told: Note: There are low clearance bridges... Read more

Rand McNally TripMaker® RVND™ 7710: Multi-Stop Trips

We have been evaluating the Rand McNally TripMaker® RVND™ 7710. Our favorite feature of the device is all the ways it can inform you about sights and services that are coming up just ahead in your route. We wrote about this in our previous article ‘What’s Up Ahead.’ Today, my topic is Multi-Stop Trips. With most standalone GPS devices, you get directions to a single place. The trip starts from where you are. You are asking, ‘How do I get from here to that single place.’ The RVND is one of the devices that allow you to plan and save trips with multiple stops. When you reach one stop the device notes that you have arrived at your first destination. When you turn it on the next time, it is ready to pick up where you left off and guide you to the next stop. Here is a video that shows exactly how to create a multi-stop trip with the Rand McNally TripMaker® RVND™ 7710. Trouble watching this video? Try the Youtube version.  Read More →

Rand McNally TripMaker® RVND™ 7710: What’s up Ahead?

7” GPS device designed specifically for the RVer and camper Website: Rand McNally Cost: $399.99 by Chris Guld, www.geeksontour.tv We received our evaluation unit of the RVND 7710 in early September and used it to navigate from the New Jersey Shore to Ohio, and then south to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  There is a lot to this device and our review will be in a series of articles.  The first things I want to tell you about are the special features that none of our other devices can give us. Next Exit Information I know several people who swear by their ‘Next Exit’ book which gives all the amenities to be found at every Exit on America’s Interstate Highways.  Although that sounds like a great tool to have, we refuse to have any more books in our RV.  The Rand McNally TripMaker® RVND™ 7710 now offers a similar set of information available at your fingertips as you drive down the road.  Here’s how it works.  During navigation, there is an icon on the screen that represents the Exit amenities – actually it’s a square of 4 icons: Food, Fuel, Lodging, and All.  Touch that with your finger, or the provided stylus, and you’ll see a list of the upcoming exits. Just touch the Exit info button and a list of upcoming Exits appears with the number of Gas, Food, and Lodging amenities Now you touch the Exit you want to see and you’ll get the detail of those amenities. If there are more than will fit on one screen, you will see up and down arrows to the right... Read more

Rogue Wave by Wave WiFi

Review by Jim Guld www.geeksontour.com If you’re an RVer looking to improve your Internet connections, take a look at the Rogue Wave Wireless Bridge and Ethernet Converter.  I have been working with WiFi equipment almost since the beginning of the technology. I have an arsenal of devices, large and small, that I have collected over our years of RVing.  The Rogue Wave is the latest and I like it. The Purpose of the Rogue Wave Of the three ways to connect to high speed Internet on the road, WiFi, Satellite, and Cellular, WiFi can be the best. WiFi is available in many places and is reasonably priced and often free. WiFi was never designed to cover large areas or go long distances. It was made for small and home offices and Starbucks. Advances in technology and innovative designs can enable communication over much greater distances and over or through obstacles. The Rogue Wave is a device to extend the effective range of a WiFi Hotspot . It works exceptionally well and is easy to set up and use.  Here is a typical scenario for an Rver: You are in an RV park that advertises WiFi, but your computer cannot connect reliably to the Access Point. You can take your computer closer to the AP, and it works fine, but you want to work from the comfort of your own rig. The WiFi built into your laptop is not good enough. A better radio and a better antenna will give you a better connection. One solution might be a USB WiFi adapter. USB WiFi adapters require device drivers and... Read more

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