Active Captain

I have to say, without Active Captain my short two day maiden voyage would have been much less enjoyable. I think I encountered around 40 bridges on the trip, but using AC it was so easy to pull up the info beforehand and check to see if I would fit under them or if I needed to call the bridge tender. If i needed an opening all the specific opening info was listed as well as the opening times so I could time the next bridge.

I found myself using AC more than my chart plotter at times because it was so helpful. I ran it on my Ipad through Garmin Blue Charts. Think I spent $29.95 for the Garmin app but it is well worth that IMO.

I also used Active Captain to help me decide on a marina. I stayed at Old Port Cove because of the good reviews on AC, and man was that a nice place! Great service, free bottle of wine at check in, great bar and restaurant, and very clean and updated bathrooms.

ActiveCaptain is only as good as it is because real boaters like you use it. It's an empty tool otherwise.

There is nothing more valuable to the database than someone with a fresh experience adding it for others to learn from. It makes for good karma too!

I'm the developer of ActiveCaptain (and trawler owner).

It's a great product. Congrats.

I use Active Captain everyday and just earned my hat too bad it's not wool it's chilly on the AICW ;-)

Jeffrey S said:

ActiveCaptain is only as good as it is because real boaters like you use it. It's an empty tool otherwise.

There is nothing more valuable to the database than someone with a fresh experience adding it for others to learn from. It makes for good karma too!

I'm the developer of ActiveCaptain (and trawler owner).

Click to expand...

Jeffery

we should start a slow learner training thread for active captain

I got my hat too CapeCodder, I wear it on special occasions ??


1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

Forkliftt said:

I got my hat too CapeCodder, I wear it on special occasions ??

Click to expand...

+1......

Even though we don't travel long distances I use Active Captain a lot. I have 862 "posts" on there according to my count in the upper left corner of the screens.

I like the UG aspect of it because it's people like me who use it and post on it.

Thanks Jeffery. Prior to this thread I hadn't made the connection between you and AC.

Thumbs Up for AC

Jeffrey S said:

I'm the developer of ActiveCaptain (and trawler owner).

Click to expand...

No, no, no ... I think it sounded more like this ...
"Remember, I'm not only the Hair Club President, but I'm also a client."

BTW, I'm not only an AC user, but I'm also an AC cap owner.

I knew about Active Captain for a long time, first hearing about it on T&T. But I got the impression it was primarily for east coast boaters. Then a few years ago we got our first iPad and downloaded the Navimatics charting app on it. Navimatics interfaces with Active Captain, so we signed up and downloaded the database.

And what we learned is that Active Captain is very valuable for boaters in the PNW and BC. We have since highly recommended it to boaters in this region who use iPads, laptops, and other devices with chart or navigation apps that can interface with Active Captain. The harbor and anchorage information in particular is extremely valuable.

I know I'm sick but I use it just playing around and looking at places even. Things like looking ahead to when we do the loop and checking out marinas along the way. Especially separating from old wives tales. Everyone loves to tell you the size boats you'll have trouble finding dockage for, whether east coast or loop or west coast so we check. As Marin mentioned I think many of us associated it with East Coast but it has been invaluable to us on the west coast, especially in Alaska. Also we used it ahead to scout the trip around and through the Panama Canal and decide where from there. We've used it extensively on the Gulf coast and the east coast and in the Bahamas. Even the information not available (such as marinas that don't have listing of size boats they can accommodate, it provides links that quickly get us to the website.

Now on the east coast we also find Cruisers Net and Waterway Guide's websites very useful in terms of their navigation updates and alerts.

Wow - thanks for all the love!

siestakey said:

we should start a slow learner training thread for active captain

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Sure - I'd be happy to do that. If the moderators will allow a thread here, I'll start a ActiveCaptain-of-the-day tip, answer questions, or just go through it all for anyone who wants to get started. If that isn't allowed, I can set up a new group in eBoatCards and have something similar.

Jeffrey S said:

Wow - thanks for all the love!



Sure - I'd be happy to do that. If the moderators will allow a thread here, I'll start a ActiveCaptain-of-the-day tip, answer questions, or just go through it all for anyone who wants to get started. If that isn't allowed, I can set up a new group in eBoatCards and have something similar.

Click to expand...

I would think they would I would sure like I am not sure what category they would want it in either electronics or commercial

Please do pursue it

Thanks

I have Navamatics thanks to Marin but I'm not clear on "Active Captain". Sounds like it has information about marinas and generally boating facilities. What else does it offer above Navamatics?

I use my Navamatics much like BandB. I surf around on Navamatics while "keeping my eyes on the road" via the chart plotter so to speak. And I cruise all over the place on Navamatics at anchor or in port as well as at home.

Does AC increase the detail of the charting on Navamatics? The only thing about Navamatics I don't like is the lack of names .. towns, bodies of water ect. Is AC an upgrade to NM is this regard?

I use active captain some but I do know that I am not using all of what is offered. I downgraded from I Phone to old style flip phone. When I get going again, I will reactivate my I-phone and learn how to use the apps.
If jeff is going to start an Active Captain 101, I would be very interested.

Eric-- Active Captain is a bit like having the information in a Waggoner or Douglass guide available on the Navimatics charts. Markers are layered onto the chart. There are four colors of markers- red, orange, green, and blue. Each color is a separate category of information: marina and harbor information, local knowledge information, navigation information, and hazards.

The markers are active, so touching one gets the information associated with it. The "active" aspect of Active Captain is that users like you and me can create a new marker and information, or update the information associated with a marker. Jeffrey has created an oversight system that ensures the information being submitted by users is verified before it's added. The AC database can be uploaded to Navionics as often as one likes to ensure the latest entries are included.

I can only upload one photo per post on an iPad, so I'll put a screen shot of a Navimatics chart here, and then in the next post I'll put a screen shot of the same chart section with an Active Captain data box open. There are also reviews that can be submitted with user comments rating a harbor or marine park or anchorage or whatever.

I've submitted updates on a couple of occasions when changes had been made at Sucia Island Marine Park that were not reflected in the current description.

All in all, a great system and an excellent asset to Navimatics.

And here's the same section of chart with the blue marker just off Bowman Island selected.

Really like the active captain for anchoring area's and dog walking information which is not normally in the older style cruising guides. Excellent tool and I actively contribute and have a nice hat to prove it! ;-).

I've been using Active Captain for several years in conjunction with the Garmin Homeport software. Great source of information! The user reviews of anchorages make picking a new place to overnight much easier. Up to date info on shoaling helps make boating safer. The Garmin software is also very useful, (and they support Macs).

Tony B said:

I use active captain some but I do know that I am not using all of what is offered. I downgraded from I Phone to old style flip phone. When I get going again, I will reactivate my I-phone and learn how to use the apps.
If jeff is going to start an Active Captain 101, I would be very interested.

Click to expand...

I agree I like it but I think I am not using it all would love to get schooled

I wrote to the moderators to ask them how/if they'd like an "ActiveCaptain 101" thread. In the meantime, there is a Getting Started page here:
https://activecaptain.com/articles/misc/gettingStarted.php

There's also an official list of shipping navigation products that have ActiveCaptain inside their product here:
https://activecaptain.com/navProducts.php

Me too. I love to use AC on my laptop (PC) at work to preview possible cruising areas, but have never wrapped my head around using it at the boat. I purchased a suggested app- AquaMap for my iPhone, but never got the hang of it. The wife has an iPad, that might be where I need to put my efforts.


1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

Jeffery,

Thanks much for taking the time to school us on AC.

The big question that I cannot seem to find an answer for is this:

OpenCPN is also highly regarded on TF, but in trying to search both CPN and AC, I could not find anything about the two being compatible. Can you answer this question?

I am just starting to use CPN with my laptop using my chartplotter GPS. I would very much like to integrate AC with this set up. Is it possible, or even in the works?
I could not find any reference to the two together in the development notes.

Thanks in advance.

Delta_JimS said:

OpenCPN is also highly regarded on TF, but in trying to search both CPN and AC, I could not find anything about the two being compatible. Can you answer this question?

I am just starting to use CPN with my laptop using my chartplotter GPS. I would very much like to integrate AC with this set up. Is it possible, or even in the works?
I could not find any reference to the two together in the development notes.

Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

This is something I'm interested in as well.

As a software developer by trade, I'd be willing to help in any way necessary. Maybe by creating an OpenCPN plugin for the interface?

Jeffrey S said:

I wrote to the moderators to ask them how/if they'd like an "ActiveCaptain 101" thread. In the meantime, there is a Getting Started page here:
https://activecaptain.com/articles/misc/gettingStarted.php

Click to expand...

What about a sub-forum dedicated to ActiveCaptain?

I look at AC in the comfort of my living room but not on the boat. Correct me if I'm wrong but it looks to me that you have to be on line to use it. I don't see anyway to download the information to a memory stick for use on the boat computer.

Most if not all of the nav applications for the PC, tablet, smartphone, etc that support AC allow to download the entire AC database for the offline use.

You need to use the nav app that supports AC to do this ...

Jeffrey S said:

There's also an official list of shipping navigation products that have ActiveCaptain inside their product here:
https://activecaptain.com/navProducts.php

Click to expand...

windmist said:

I look at AC in the comfort of my living room but not on the boat. Correct me if I'm wrong but it looks to me that you have to be on line to use it. I don't see anyway to download the information to a memory stick for use on the boat computer.

Click to expand...

Yes much of it is downloadable but I am still learning

Delta_JimS said:

OpenCPN is also highly regarded on TF, but in trying to search both CPN and AC, I could not find anything about the two being compatible. Can you answer this question?

Click to expand...

I've been involved with the developers of OpenCPN for a while. The problem is that their licensing (it is licensed) conflicted with the license and requirements we have for ActiveCaptain. It's a complex area and caused years of disagreement between me and the OpenCPN community.

After years of trying to figure out a way, a new capability coming with a server product I'm working on shined a light on a way out of the licensing issues. I'm currently working with one of the main OpenCPN developers on an ActiveCaptain PlugIn. He's writing the OCPN part and I'm developing a new open API to ActiveCaptain that doesn't need the same type of licensing. OpenCPN will be the first user of it. Development is progressing well - I'll attach some screenshots. All of them are real - I just made them based on where we are right now with the latest version of OpenCPN. Note that the PlugIn still has some development to go and has not been released yet.

Hello group--- The mod team has received Jeff's inquiry and will discuss it. However, being that I am the first to see this, I will say that I, currently, don't see a problem with either continuing on with an Active Captain Q&A session or the starting of an AC101 thread in the commercial section.

HOWEVER!!!! Be aware that we have guidelines to commercial content and commercial members so that our community is not totally inundated with people trying to mine your data or get you to buy Rolex watches It also keeps 'em honest. Please, please, please keep it ON TOPIC and don't put Jeff in a position where he has to defend Active Captain against other competing companies or other boating services. STAY ON THE SUBJECT OF ACTIVE CAPTAIN... ONLY! Should petty arguments, posturing, personal attacks, trolling, or even minor thread creep stray into the thread, we will deal with that per the community rules.

We'll discuss it among ourselves, but for the time being, y'all have at it. We'll be in touch.