Computer in Truck

Trying out the internet in my new Chev. Surprised I could figure it out. Took picture on my fairly new smart phone. Sent it to my computer, saved it and used the wireless internet in the truck to post it. Nothing special to you computer geeks but kind of neat to me.

Neat, yeah, but keep year eyes on the road! Have fun with it. Ben

Are proud that you are driving in traffic playing with your toys.

(quoted from post at 19:08:55 05/05/16) Are proud that you are driving in traffic playing with your toys.

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Yeah, that would be a trick wouldn't it? Driving while sitting on the passenger side with lap top in his lap? LOL.

Personally, I don't want any of that electronic stuff anywhere near my truck. My ideal truck is a six cylinder engine, with a 3 speed plus overdrive transmission, and an AM radio. Points, coil, and condenser, if you please. All SAE size bolts. Room to access and work on any part that might fail. A fuel pump that bolts onto the engine instead of being hidden in the gas tank. No A/C, no electric locks, no electric windows, and a rubber floor mat.

Unfortunately, a truck like that hasn't been made for the past 40 years.

Tom in N

Brother was feeding a bale of hay and had his 8 year old grandson with him. He told the grandson to turn that crank to roll down the window. Grandson looks over at grandpa and said isn't that neat.

Truck like this one?

I can see the appeal to some people but I must have forgotten the good points. I drove those trucks for years and you couldn't pay me enough to go back. Freeze in winter, bake in summer, horrible mileage, manual steering, one wheel drive and stuck all winter constant fixing vs a computer that adjusts as needed, terrible ride and yelling at each other to be heard. I could go on all day but I will just say that I am very, very thankful for all the new technologies. I may be prejudice because I am a retired engineer.

As you can see, I am in the passenger seat. I couldn't do this while driving if I tried and I am not going to try. It is kind of a shame that we need to do business wherever we are but that is the world many of us live in. I used to like flying for business because you got to relax. Now you have to write reports or read other's reports. It is a high tech world whether we like it or not. If you can stay out of it, good for you, the next generation probably won't have a choice.

In the immortal words of Smokey Robinson, "I'll second that emotion."

Currently I drive an '87 F150. Unfortunately it has power windows and a 4 speed, with no OD.

I've also got a '78 J10 Jeep I've got to get repaired and back on the road, and a '78 F350 that I plan to get running within the next year. Once both of those are running, I'll either get rid of the '87 or hang onto it for my daughter.

Of course my Dad gave my daughter his old '60 long bed, step side, Chevy to be her first vehicle. It needs ALOT of work to be streetable, but I'm going to try to get it going before she turns 16, which gives me just shy of 3 years. Cross your fingers for me.

Working while crammed in the middle seat of a Super 80 or back in row Zulu of the same bird with a turbine whining in your ear for the entire flight.

Galen, I am NOT an engineer, but would like you to show me a single one wheel drive vehicle from back in the day! Maybe you need to become educated on the function of a differential.

Yeah, not too many folks understand that the beauty of a locker or limited slip is that it ALLOWS the vehicle to become one wheel drive (locker) or at least approach it (limited slip) when the other wheel doesn't have enough traction to accomplish anything. With an open differential both wheels are ALWAYS contributing EQUALLY to propelling (or at least attempting to propel) the vehicle, even if the amount is very small. The torque at the two wheels is always identical even though one might be spinning and the other stationary.

That said, I'm with Galen on modern vehicles - personally I'd much rather travel in my smooth-riding, quiet, fuel-efficient, and climate-controlled modern pickup vs. my father's 1964 F-250 any day. Sure it's fun to take the old truck for a spin when I'm there but I'm glad for my modern ride for the 400 mile drive back to Kansas. (And no, it's not dad's daily driver either.) I do believe that manufacturers have gone overboard in the "bling" department (do we really need powered tailgates with remote control?) but the reason why is simple - they make what is profitable and what people want to buy. If enough people were clamoring for bare-bones trucks like what many here wish for the companies would make them. However, in the grand scheme of things there are very few people looking for stripped vehicles and the business case to offer such a thing just wouldn't pencil out.

Galen was referring to the majority of trucks with "open" differential trucks. I know I have owned a few, and no more. Now I make sure to get auto locking differentials. My first locking differential was in a 76 4x4, and it was unbelievable the difference. Then I traded for a 92 "4x4" (really a 4x2 since both differentials were open), and that truck would get stuck on wet grass on a hillside. I knew better, but the salesman talked me into a reg cab with open differentials, and 5 speed manual. I never really did like that truck, as the light duty 5 speed always seemed to be in the wrong gear. Sold it with 65,000 miles on it, and while it was in near mint condition, I have not regretted selling it. I can do without the bluetooth, wifi, and some of the high tech stuff, but I'll sure take the locking differential, automatic transmission, and power steering. It has not been that many years that I have forgotten how badly those trucks drove. With that said, I bought a 1970 F100 and going to get on the road, but it will not be a daily driver. (does have 302, automatic and PS though - and may put power brakes on it if I find a donor)

Ouch! My trucks of that era never had positraction or limited slip. When you got stuck only one wheel spun. Believe me I experienced this many many times. That was my reference to one wheel drive. Sorry that I didn't spell it out well enough for you.

Well, you've got me beat tech-wise.

I have that in my truck, have never used it, how do you pay for the service?

I couldn't even begin to operate that thing. I'm just now getting the hang of this internet thing :lol: . I can see where it might be handy if you needed an on the go office for a business.
There are a lot of guys that like the car and trucks before electronic ignition. I like them too but for an everyday driver I much prefer the newer. I think the 90's models were just about right. They had enough modern stuff to make them nice but not enough to be a big headache if it malfunctioned.

We don't have enough problems with texting and driving, so manufacturers put on 4G wireless so people can be surfing the web too, awesome.

I like my 1955 f100. No electronics and no radio. Points and a 239 v8. My new truck is a 1985 F250 dually.
Elmo

I can see the corner of a lap top and its turned on while you're driving and that's ok but you can do better with existing technology if you'll let it work for you. Computers and people can multitask. You get a camera that mounts on your dashboard directed at the highway in front of you. You get going down the highway with the camera on so you can see where you're going not looking out the windshield, but rather looking at your computer through the camera program that is sending a live stream from the camera that is watching the road for you. At the same time you can surf the internet. Get your truck up to speed, set the cruise control, and then relax. Sit sideways on the seat and surf the internet with one hand while steering with the other hand while looking back and forth between the internet and the PIP (picture inside of picture) that's being transmitted live from the dash cam back to your computer, and these days wireless at that. The only problem that I find with the wireless is about a one second lag with what the camera sees to the time the image/video stream makes it back to your computer. Works pretty well other than that. I do it all of the time.

Mark

(quoted from post at 03:08:50 05/07/16) I can see the corner of a lap top and its turned on while you're driving and that's ok but you can do better with existing technology if you'll let it work for you. Computers and people can multitask. You get a camera that mounts on your dashboard directed at the highway in front of you. You get going down the highway with the camera on so you can see where you're going not looking out the windshield, but rather looking at your computer through the camera program that is sending a live stream from the camera that is watching the road for you. At the same time you can surf the internet. Get your truck up to speed, set the cruise control, and then relax. Sit sideways on the seat and surf the internet with one hand while steering with the other hand while looking back and forth between the internet and the PIP (picture inside of picture) that's being transmitted live from the dash cam back to your computer, and these days wireless at that. The only problem that I find with the wireless is about a one second lag with what the camera sees to the time the image/video stream makes it back to your computer. Works pretty well other than that. I do it all of the time.

Mark

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Twilight zone?