Got me a new COW

[big Neil]

I have been in a bit of a rut over the past year or so. The ever-continuing saga of minor health issues, coupled with very poor LOCAL fishing conditions, has seen my fishing relegated to the back burner for most of that time. The closed season for Murray Cod hasn't helped either. Having my lawn bowls and pottery-making hobbies has provided sufficient incentive to keep plodding on regardless.

Motivation to travel has been low, even though the desire has been high. I have neglected my real-time fishing opportunities but have kept in touch with the Fishraider community, through what has been a seemingly poor patch for everybody. Is my perception of a tough Winter fishing season for fellow Raiders realistic???

My Toyota Camry has been a great car but (like me) showing signs of wear and tear. After quite some time and lots of critiquing, I decided to trade her in on a new vehicle. So, over the course of a few weeks, I set about seeing what was available. My first surprise was to find that there was very little available, at least immediately available. Everybody seemed to be in the same predicament...no vehicles to actually see, sit in, smell the newness of, nor test drive. Brochures came out, and flipping pages and studying printed data became the norm. Then came the nitty gritty. If I were to have one of these, when could I take delivery?

"Pay the deposit and we should be able to get one in by,,," became the familiar catchcry. Nobody could give me a guaranteed delivery date. Some were more than 6 months away. Don't know about you, but there's no way I'm putting a deposit on something that MAY be delivered in 6 months or so.

Those of you who know me would be aware that I am a geriatric whose pet aversion is technology. It has been and continues to be, the bane of my existence. For many, many years I have struggled to be able to do even the simplest of things with technological items. The PC, laptop, phone, camera, kiln and car to mention but a few. These items, essential to my ever-changing needs, have been major challenges to my day-to-day survival.

So now I have a new car. Suffice to say that it is lovely to drive. Plenty of power, comfort, room, and with the aid of a second mortgage, I can even put some petrol in it. BUT... driving to Narrandera last week I became aware of a strange sensation as I motored along at 100 km/hr. The steering seemed funny. I thought it may be the camber of the road or maybe a wheel alignment issue so I took my hands off the wheel. Lo and behold, the damn thing steered itself along the straight, round a left-hand bend, then a right-hand bend. I nearly pooped my pants. Bells and whistles, toot toots, and beep beeps have replaced the sound of Dire Straits playing in the background. I have become a captive to this man-made monster. For the time being, I will struggle to figure out my new relationship with this machine which I have nicknamed the COW (computer on wheels).

bn

[Green Hornet]

Enjoy the new ride bn. I’ve just gone through the same process trading in my 21 year old  work ute, which I owned since new, on a new Subaru Crosstrek just 1 month ago.

 I felt exactly the same after selecting cruise control and the car started cornering by itself. The safety features are mind boggling compared to the old girl.

[Blackfish]

Good on you Neil by making the jump. I also took delivery of a COW and my wife hates it when on cruise control it self corners. She reminds me of Dotty out of Miss Fisher not trusting technology.  ( Miss Fisher. A great Australia Murder Mystery)

Many years ago a good mate bought a new Hilux, the mechanic said it would last X amount of Kilometres, he said great, I can live to 109 before I need a new car. 😀

All the best with you new purchase mate.

[bessell1955]

Yes, technology is making leaps and bounds in the motor vehicle industry.  I would like one that fills itself up and pays for the fuel! 

[noelm]

I can associate with this, I am very technology “capable” but sometimes I just like things simple, I have a Toyota Prado, and while it’s a great car, at times it drives me nuts, if I’m cleaning the car, and have a door open, it beeps, put something on the passenger seat and the seatbelt light flashes and an alarm goes off, walk away from the car with key in my pocket, but don’t lock the car, it goes mental, a press of a button tells me how much fuel I am using, how many Ks per litre, average speed, how far to empty. A mobile phone can take pictures equal to any camera ever made, can tell you the time, tide, where you are on a map, locate other phones, be a substitute for a credit card, do everything, but, sometimes, I just want to call someone…..that’s life these days

[big Neil]

32 minutes ago, noelm said:

I can associate with this, I am very technology “capable” but sometimes I just like things simple, I have a Toyota Prado, and while it’s a great car, at times it drives me nuts, if I’m cleaning the car, and have a door open, it beeps, put something on the passenger seat and the seatbelt light flashes and an alarm goes off, walk away from the car with key in my pocket, but don’t lock the car, it goes mental, a press of a button tells me how much fuel I am using, how many Ks per litre, average speed, how far to empty. A mobile phone can take pictures equal to any camera ever made, can tell you the time, tide, where you are on a map, locate other phones, be a substitute for a credit card, do everything, but, sometimes, I just want to call someone…..that’s life these days

I am interested in your comment noelm because you are actually technology savvy, yet it's over the top for you. On the other hand, I can't read a manual and translate the words and diagrams into actions so I can't access the settings to customise the car to what best suits me. Either way, I'm not sure if all the technology is required. 

I started my Australian car ownership with an EH Holden. Good car except for the shoe brakes. Since then I have had 4 new cars and have to say that they are all very reliable. I feel severely disadvantaged because I have missed the technology train and will probably never know the capabilities of modern vehicles. Such is modern life, I suppose.

bn

[noelm]

Yep, lots of things are (in my opinion) over the top, last weekend my son and I installed a couple of security cameras at his house, it was all pretty simple, then….download the “App” , pair the cameras to his wifi, setup Bluetooth, connect to his home network, setup passwords and how his phone will operate with the cameras, all written in Chinese, but with a link to read the instructions on the interweb. After a bit of fiddling around, these cheap, motion detection cameras will notify him if there is movement, switch on and record video in real time and send it to his phone, where ever he is, to enable him to see who is there and talk to them. Now they are not “over the top” in a lot of ways, but, setting them up would be way beyond lots of people.

[DerekD]

Hi @big Neil

Congratulations on the new vehicle and I hope it takes you on many adventures.

I love technology when it makes my life better but think we are getting too clever sometimes. When my car was in the panel beaters earlier this year I got a courtesy vehicle. It was a popular car from the rental company but I disliked it intensely. Firstly, to be fair it was a well built and spacious vehicle which would be good if you had a family.

I'd gone from a 2.5 litre manual to a 2 litre automatic. The lag time relatively when I put the foot down was horrible. Then the lane assist annoyed the heck out of me. Turns out the car didn't like the lines I was taking and I often fought the steering. My day to day driving style is to take lines in the middle of the lane with plenty of space on either side rather than cutting in on curves. Still not sure what I could have done differently. I couldn't be bothered to go through the manual to work out how to turn it off. Fuel costs went up. I was extra glad when I got my car back.

Not sure what my next car would be but I hope that is a long, long time off.

Talk soon.

Derek

[Restyle]

congratulations on you're new COW. Its quite interesting to see how quickly technology like lane assists, (semi) auto pilots and even automatic reversing has come in so few years. Personally i like to keep it simple with as little unnecessary features as possible, What you deem as unnecessary is anyone game but stuff like lane assists, automatic wipers, automatic headlights, reverse cameras & sensors, fancy touch screen head units, heated seats to name a few i deem as pointless and just more stuff that could potentially break in the future. Also not a huge fan of smaller & smaller engine hauling heavier & heavier cars ether. 

I've personally found fishing to be on the quiet side especially with squid. although i haven't gone out much at all as I've been working on getting the car ready for a long multi week trip down to some remote beaches in South Australia in a little over 2 weeks from now.

Fishing on Beaches haven't been bad with XL salmon and school jew but that's just about it. Estuaries have been very quiet. Over the last week or two there's been decent kings moving into port hacking but botany bay still seems quite with the odd king, trev & bread n butter species. Hawksbury river prawns have been back for a little over a month so hopefully better fishing there too. So, you're not alone on that front with very below average fishing.

 

 

[BaitDropper]

Big Neil,

 Congrats on your new Car purchase..

AND, Don't be worrying about your lack of Nowse on " All things technical "..  I've only had one of these U-Bute new computer phones for less than 2 years,, a fishing mate threw my vintage one overboard in disgust, much to my complete disgust !!

I am officially, what they call a complete Technological Neanderthal,  and somewhat proud of it too I might add. So, how do I get by in life you may ask ??,  Well, that's a simple answer,,,,    I married good  😁.  That's the big secret to surviving this perpetual roundabout of continuous technology  upgrades !!! 😄

Edited October 26, 2023 by BaitDropper

[big Neil]

2 hours ago, BaitDropper said:

Big Neil,

 Congrats on your new Car purchase..

AND, Don't be worrying about your lack of Nowse on " All things technical "..  I've only had one of these U-Bute new computer phones for less than 2 years,, a fishing mate threw my vintage one overboard in disgust, much to my complete disgust !!

I am officially, what they call a complete Technological Neanderthal,  and somewhat proud of it too I might add. So, how do I get by in life you may ask ??,  Well, that's a simple answer,,,,    I married good  😁.  That's the big secret to surviving this perpetual roundabout of continuous technology  upgrades !!! 😄

Good to see that there are other Neanderthals out there. I suspect there is an entire generation of us who struggle with the simplest of things technological. The car is a monster but so is the "smart TV " that my daughter said I needed. I admit that while these wonders of the 21st century work trouble free, they are amazing. BUT I have had to phone her numerous times when something basic goes wrong.

I have been to a short course entitled Tech Savvy Seniors and I was the most proficient senior there. Alas, that says very little for the others.

I shall do what I normally do. Try to wing it bit by bit and not stuff anything up too much. In the meantime, I am looking forward to getting out and about and doing a bit more fishing.

Bring it on, bn

[noelm]

I ran a couple of computer courses for oldies when I worked at the Uni, starting at the most very basic (both Mac and PC) working up to using Microsoft Word in its very beginner mode. It was satisfying in lots of ways, and at times a bit frustrating. Most things are easy with some repetition.

[Fab1]

I’ve had the same one for 30 yrs..She won’t leave.😂Congrats mate.

[big Neil]

12 hours ago, noelm said:

I ran a couple of computer courses for oldies when I worked at the Uni, starting at the most very basic (both Mac and PC) working up to using Microsoft Word in its very beginner mode. It was satisfying in lots of ways, and at times a bit frustrating. Most things are easy with some repetition.

You would know the different learning styles Noel. Mine is to be shown, do it, do it again and again ...then it sinks in. As you say repetition! I cannot read manuals and learn that way, but I have had some small successes from following YouTube demos. That's how I've learned most of the fishing knots that I use.

bn

[noelm]

Yes correct, people learn in different ways, some can just “see and do” some can follow instructions from a book, some just do it over and over.

[JustJames]

Interesting topics raised.

 

My parents are both heading towards 80.  My dad is across all the tech, always wants the latest phone and enjoys the gadgetry.  My mum regards it all with distrust and trepidation.  I keep telling her that it's just a machine, like a toaster.  Keep prodding it and pushing it to make it do what you want it to do...you can't break it!

 

Modern cars pack an incredible amount of tech, but I really wonder what will become of them when so much that they have is un-repairable when it goes t!ts up.  Good luck getting a replacement touch screen for a car that is more than 10 years old.  On the other hand, in my garage I have a car that I have a good chance of living to see reach its hundredth birthday (not my daily driver).  Very little on it that can't be fixed with a pair of pliers and some baling wire!

[noelm]

I find it interesting and yet spooky what can/will happen to your car if it suddenly has a “hiccup” while driving, will the steering go to full lock, the ABS brakes fail, it shifts into revers and tries to park itself, the seat squashes you against the steering wheel……all before you can pull over and “restart” the “black box”…….I wonder?

edit……on my Prado key/fob gizmo, there is a little hidden key, that I assume is supposed to let you enter the car if the battery is flat or something, but I have no idea where the lock is to use the key! I suppose I could read the instructions, but, there’s no fun in that is there? I have had the car for years now.

Edited October 27, 2023 by noelm

[noelm]

Just an add on……has anyone ever had to reprogram a Hilux key when you had to replace the old one? Best of luck with that, even an IT engineer and Bill Gates himself would have trouble doing it!

[Rob81]

 

5 minutes ago, noelm said:

I find it interesting and yet spooky what can/will happen to your car if it suddenly has a “hiccup” while driving, will the steering go to full lock, the ABS brakes fail, it shifts into revers and tries to park itself, the seat squashes you against the steering wheel……all before you can pull over and “restart” the “black box”…….I wonder?

edit……on my Prado key/fob gizmo, there is a little hidden key, that I assume is supposed to let you enter the car if the battery is flat or something, but I have no idea where the lock is to use the key! I suppose I could read the instructions, but, there’s no fun in that is there? I have had the car for years now.

I beleive you put the fob on the push button and use that to press onto the button. Something I had recently had to learn as there was no key slot to start the car

[mrsswordfisherman]

The secret fellas is to keep up with it as much as possible. Do upgrades of your software and buy newer devices (phones, laptops, TV) 

The devices these days pretty much just do it all for you. If you cant work it out go to you tube and/or google things. Get a digital native to help you like a young person. They are very used to using the devices. My 3 yr old grandaughter wanted to show me a kids you tube app and promptly took my iphone and navigated to it. We were cooking and needed a recipe and she yelled out to Alexa (digital assistant) for a suitable recipe. A 3 year old only knows this way now. Young folk do not know how to use a Gregory's street directory for example to look up a desination/location. 

Gone are the days we can keep a printer that is 15 years old - it will not work well now in today's standards. 

Swordie had an iphone 7 and refused to change for years. Last year I insisted and upgraded him to an iphone 14. A few short lessons and he loves it now with face ID he does not have to muck around with passwords. 

Our Landrover Discovery 4 had a shocking navigation system that was unable to be upgraded. It had no idea of any changes, new motorways etc.  I used Waze or Google maps on my iphone to navigate to places. On our last visit to UK we hired 4 different very new cars. They had all the new driver assist features which he did not really like but persisted. The one thing we both liked was the Apple Carplay. Swordie has a poor sense of direction and it solved the problem! So I saved some dollars and we recently had it added by a local Jaguar guy. Now we hit NAV and the apple carplay comes on screen. He feels more confident to go out now with Carplay guiding him. 

I have many apps on my phone and several that I use every day - business, tv guides (ability to schedule a recording remotely), flashlight, What's App group messaging, fuel map, weather, Deckee/fishraider of course, Words with Friends, health data connected to my Apple Watch, Wallet for storing electronic movie or show tickets, Stocard for all the subscribed stores, My Gov, Service NSW, Hot Doc to make a doctors appt, email. There are tons of apps that make life easier. I would simply be useless without my devices. 

Technology has always fascinated me and the fact that I was heavily involved for the last 20 years of my professional life ensures that I still continue my interest. 

@big Neil good on you for changing your vehicle. That is a very big step. Going to a course was a good move too. You are making a really good effort to stay connected to this new word of technology. We are all moving but at different stages. You only really need to know what you need to use after all. No-one knows everything and we all help to bring others along the path. 

Thanks for the thread  

 

[noelm]

13 minutes ago, Rob81 said:

 

I beleive you put the fob on the push button and use that to press onto the button. Something I had recently had to learn as there was no key slot to start the car

But, mine has a key hidden in the fob, you press a little button and the key slides out, it’s a “normal” looking Toyota key, but there is no key lock to use it on…..that I know if, I might get the booklet out and read it later.

[Rob81]

Yeah that manual key is just for the door only. Its odd but the process to start the car was to still use the fob but use it to press the start. Didnt work in the case I was trying to get the car started but issue might just be different. I think its the situation where the fob battery is low rather than have an issue with the car receiver where it would work

 

[big Neil]

3 hours ago, Rob81 said:

Yeah that manual key is just for the door only. Its odd but the process to start the car was to still use the fob but use it to press the start. Didnt work in the case I was trying to get the car started but issue might just be different. I think its the situation where the fob battery is low rather than have an issue with the car receiver where it would work

 

Hi Rob81. The owner of the dealership where I got the new COW took great delight in showing me the "secret key" and also how to expose the "hidden door lock". I was impressed so I asked him about the Android App to connect the phone for navigation. "No idea" he proudly announced and got the office girl to come out and show me how to connect the phone to the COW. All good, except when I got home, I tried it and naturally it didn't connect. Not the COWs fault, I'm as thick as a plank.   bn

[big Neil]

Here's a question for the brains trust. The phone operates everything via Bluetooth...navigation, music, phone calls and text messages. There's even a facility where I can talk to the COW and if it likes what I'm asking, it does what I ask. Here's the question: I am somewhere unfamiliar and I lose my phone or it becomes inactive following a swim. They don't like swimming as I have found out several times before. HOW DO I GET HOME? Serious question!

There will be a prize for the best answer.

bn

[big Neil]

8 hours ago, mrsswordfisherman said:

The secret fellas is to keep up with it as much as possible. Do upgrades of your software and buy newer devices (phones, laptops, TV) 

The devices these days pretty much just do it all for you. If you cant work it out go to you tube and/or google things. Get a digital native to help you like a young person. They are very used to using the devices. My 3 yr old grandaughter wanted to show me a kids you tube app and promptly took my iphone and navigated to it. We were cooking and needed a recipe and she yelled out to Alexa (digital assistant) for a suitable recipe. A 3 year old only knows this way now. Young folk do not know how to use a Gregory's street directory for example to look up a desination/location. 

Gone are the days we can keep a printer that is 15 years old - it will not work well now in today's standards. 

Swordie had an iphone 7 and refused to change for years. Last year I insisted and upgraded him to an iphone 14. A few short lessons and he loves it now with face ID he does not have to muck around with passwords. 

Our Landrover Discovery 4 had a shocking navigation system that was unable to be upgraded. It had no idea of any changes, new motorways etc.  I used Waze or Google maps on my iphone to navigate to places. On our last visit to UK we hired 4 different very new cars. They had all the new driver assist features which he did not really like but persisted. The one thing we both liked was the Apple Carplay. Swordie has a poor sense of direction and it solved the problem! So I saved some dollars and we recently had it added by a local Jaguar guy. Now we hit NAV and the apple carplay comes on screen. He feels more confident to go out now with Carplay guiding him. 

I have many apps on my phone and several that I use every day - business, tv guides (ability to schedule a recording remotely), flashlight, What's App group messaging, fuel map, weather, Deckee/fishraider of course, Words with Friends, health data connected to my Apple Watch, Wallet for storing electronic movie or show tickets, Stocard for all the subscribed stores, My Gov, Service NSW, Hot Doc to make a doctors appt, email. There are tons of apps that make life easier. I would simply be useless without my devices. 

Technology has always fascinated me and the fact that I was heavily involved for the last 20 years of my professional life ensures that I still continue my interest. 

@big Neil good on you for changing your vehicle. That is a very big step. Going to a course was a good move too. You are making a really good effort to stay connected to this new word of technology. We are all moving but at different stages. You only really need to know what you need to use after all. No-one knows everything and we all help to bring others along the path. 

Thanks for the thread  

 

How I envy your knowledge of Technology Donna. No doubt there are many benefits to gain from it. It changes so rapidly that one has to question whether one needs to keep up with it. I do what is absolutely necessary and no more. Hi to Stewy, bn