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Old 04-22-2016, 01:30 PM   #21
ranger58sb
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City: Annapolis
Vessel Model: 58' Sedan Bridge
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffrey S View Post
Given that it's 2016, I would strongly suggest against getting any tank level reporting product that doesn't have an NMEA 2000 or Signal K interface. It's sort of like getting a Loran in 1995. Get something that can warn you and interface to other capabilities - you'll be using it in 2020.

It doesn't appear like Profile, SCAD, SOLO, or whoever is making this and/or putting their name on it has any type of normal interface. At a minimum, ask them if it can be added. It should be part of the system and if enough people ask, maybe they'll add it.

Just my $0.02. Most people will likely disagree. Come back in 2020 and see if I was right...

It's a reasonable path forward... but OTOH, if there's no easy way to get the signal from sensor to display... it's difficult to raise this as a priority in existing systems.

I could run a wire. Pain in the neck. (Not sure my plotter supports a way to display that particular kind of data, even though it's a NMEA2000 unit.)

I could get some kind of wireless interface. If my plotter can now physically accept one. and solve the display (It won't, I think.)

I could buy a new display, with a wireless interface. Or I could buy and add a wireless interface to the network for the new display. Pain in the neck.

Of I could simply resign myself to using the existing display (gauge). OK, it's a Loran-equivalent, but it's cheap. Fast. No pain.

Makes a lot of sense to adopt a systems approach -- using the latest and greatest -- if there's lots of change going on, but... for one lousy piece of data... in an existing system of various age... there's a practical limit to how much work/$$$ is helpful.

-Chris
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