Am I A Wierdo?

[GDI]

:doctor:
hey you're OK. You will find it better in the long run to learn those tables. In fact learn more than one table. When you start using computers you will have a much better understanding of their function. Remember although it is rare computers are a machine and thus subject to failure. If you keep current on table usage and use your table in conjunction with your computer (when you get one) then you will be much safer and better maximizing your dive planning potential.

 

[torbaydiver]

Stig once bubbled...
You've confirm what I thought although I must admit I hadn't considered the "some people might not want to dive with you " argument. on the saftey side of things I'm not daft & I'm quite used to doing dangerous things safely. The key is useing the large thing between my ears...no not my nose! :tease:

I think I'll leave the Computer till a later date when I've got more dives under my belt & use the Computer as a means of more accuratly tracking my dive profiles. Besides, the money I save from that I can use to do my advanced PADI training & a few wreck dives. (on the south coast of england I've got hundreds choose from any suggestions?)

thanx again
Stig

Noobie :crawl:

hi Stig
just to clarify I wasn't suggesting that you do what I do diving without tables or computer, slap wrist for me , I've just become a bit lazy ! When I do deeper dives I just use my buddies computer, which also isn't recommended but I'm not sure why !
What part of the south coast are you from ?
The James Eagen Lane in Plymouth is a popular wreck, and it's only 20 m down so popular for Padi open water divers although you will need a boat to get their !

 

[CBulla]

Stig once bubbled...
You've confirm what I thought although I must admit I hadn't considered the "some people might not want to dive with you " argument. on the saftey side of things I'm not daft & I'm quite used to doing dangerous things safely. The key is useing the large thing between my ears...no not my nose! :tease:

I think I'll leave the Computer till a later date when I've got more dives under my belt & use the Computer as a means of more accuratly tracking my dive profiles. Besides, the money I save from that I can use to do my advanced PADI training & a few wreck dives. (on the south coast of england I've got hundreds choose from any suggestions?)

thanx again
Stig

Noobie :crawl:

I'm in the same boat as you. I'll get the computer later.. In the mean time I want to dive. I have all my own gear, alibiet some is older and bought from a relative used, but it works and gets me in the water regularly. Thats better than renting it or not diving. I'll get the computer when its convenient for me to toss down the bills for it, infact, a whole new reg set up is what the goal is. Till then my current gear works fine.

 

[pasley]

Argument for waiting to buy a computer.
1. Delay a major expense until you know for certain you will continue diving. Some people get certified, make a few dives after that (2-5) and then decide it wasn't for them and quit for what ever reason.
2. Get comfortable with the dive gagues and tables etc.

3. Benifit of waiting until later when you have saved up more money and the Significant Other has cooled down about how much money you are spending on diving:wacko: Dive computers make great Christmas presents.


Argument for getting computer now.
1. Put the money you would spend on guages into the computer. Why buy a depth guage, when once you get the computer it will be surplus. If you buy an Air Intergrated computer (my choice), then the air guage will also be surplus.

2. The computer and the companion computer log (I recommend getting the interface for your pc so you can download the dive computer into your PC). will have all of your dives on it.

 

[Warren_L]

I still find that buying an SPG was not a waste of money for me, even after I got my AI computer. I keep the SPG as a redundant as I am hesitant to rely 100% on my AI computer and the transmitter.

 

[IndigoBlue]

Sometimes it is better to wait, rather than buy right now.

When you are new to diving, its a good idea to keep your depth shallower than 50 ft. The no-decompression limits for 50 ft and shallower give you way more bottom time than you have air in your tank to stay underwater with. So working off the tables should be a cinch with all that allowable bottom time available to you.

Some kind of electronic depth gauge and timer would be nice. But it does not need to be a computer.

Which computer to get and what kind of computer to get is a hard choice to make, especially early on.

Air integrated or non-air-integrated?

Air only or air and nitrox?

Single gas only or multiple gas?

What brand?

Those are all really hard choices, and rather than listen to a salesperson, you are better off seeing what your dive buddies are using. Dive buddies love to show and tell! At least, I do.

 

[cantlogon]

about not using tables or a computer--

1) if you're diving fairly shallow, it's unlikely that DCS would ever be a concern before you ran low on air (i.e., down to 16m/53', you have 72 minutes on the PADI table...don't have any other tables handy right now) and most divers would/should be doing a lot of that shallower...at least if they have a reef to hang out on. Most people diving shallower than 16m would have a hard time having enough air to get into a deco obligation.

2) I know divers are always told, "always have your own computer & don't rely on another person's." Well, in actuality, I'd say 50~60% of GUIDED divers are doing just that, every dive....when I'm guiding, most of the divers rely on me to determine the appropriate depth, time, etc. Quite often, they don't know how to use the tables or log the dive unassisted. We just try to keep the customers at our level or a little shallower, and don't get the computer close to its NDLs...and especially, try to have extended "shallow time" above the 3 minute safety stop minimum....whether it's an actual stationary safety stop (for example, at a deeper wreck dive) or just cruising along the reef at 5~7m/15~22' for the latter part of the dive.

Chris
www.letsdiveguam.com

 

[friscuba]

I read a post on one of the dive boards a while back about a guy who got himself bent even though he never went deepr than 40 or 50 feet or thereabouts. Turned out he'd done multiple dives using the shallow dives won't get you in trouble theory. Trouble is he didin't look at the tables either and he was way over the limit because of the multiple dives.

Knowing the tables won't make you a better diver if you don't use them. Owning a computer won't make you a better diver if you forget to look at it.

Safest bet is to do both, but most divers get a little lazy once they own a computer and don't run the tables. On the flipside, most divers I've met who don't have computers, don't run the tables either.

Owning a computer does not force you to stop practicing your tables, but it a lot more likely you will have a clue where you are at, in regards to nitrogen absorption, in the middle of a dive or two or three if you have one. A computer will also go a long way toward keeping you out of trouble if you goofed when you did the tables (happens a lot with a lot of people) or if you deviate at all from your dive plan.

By all means I would recommend including a computer in equipment purchases. I would'nt necessarily recommend it as your very first purchase though. I would pick it up at the same time you purchase your regulator. In most cases adding a computer to the price of a reg set purchase will raise the price of the entire set less than purchasing the two items separatley.

If you have no computer, you will need a depth gauge and a decent underwater timing device. If you purchase a computer at the time of purchasing your reg set, these two items will be redundant. In many cases it'll only cost a little bit more to pick up a base level computer built into the console of a reg set. Even if you want to go wrist mount, many dealers will give you a bit better discount if you purchase a computer at the same time as your reg set than if purchased separately.

When I started, I picked up BCD first, then reg set, then realized I wanted a computer and picked one up. I would have saved almost hundred bucks, a trip to the store, and some effort figuring out and adhering to the table profiles on dives, if I'd just picked up the computer at the same time as the reg set. Your order of purchase may vary, but I'd really recommend the computer and reg set go together for both practical and monetary reasons.

later

Steve

 

[divebunnie]

Hey Stig, well done for launching into such a fantastic sport...

I agree with parts of what a lot of you have said:

Absolutely, get as much diving in as possible, always a good start.

It's very good to get comfy with the tables too, you have to go through it all again with a slight variation when you learn to use nitrox, so if it's second nature now, well that can only be good.

On the pro computer side: if you get to go somewhere like the Red Sea, where most of the reef dives are multilevel, the benefits of having a computer really do come into force, as you will find you can stay down for so much longer... I have also heard of some liveaboards recommending that everyone use computers, I guess that is a safety thing if you are doing 3, 4 or more dives every day.

I also think its a valid comment to say, that it could be very tempting to go by your buddie's computer if you found your tables cutting a dive shorter than you'd like.

Finally, I am surprised that anyone would rely entirely on one computer for all their underwater information. I like to have that back up personally, money spent on spgs and pressure guages is money well-spent... just in case...

Anyway, have fun getting in the water, you are a braver diver than me if you are hitting the UK seas at this time of year.. my hat's off to you! :wacko: Guess I am just a bit of a coward there... I like my water warm

 

[IndigoBlue]

I waited to get my computer last. I had no idea what I wanted at the time, and they all seemed so expensive too. And I had no idea how computers worked. Now I understand computers. I perceive them as mini dive table calculators. In my head, I am always running tables. But on my wrist the computer does all the work for me so that I can relax and enjoy my wall dive.

I finally decided NOT to get air-integrated because if my computer died, then I would not have an SPG either. That is why I chose a wrist model. But the store owner heavily promoted the A/I because it cost almost twice as much, and that would have been more money into his pocket, obviously.

SPG + wrist model computer costs a lot less than an A/I computer as well. Several hundred dollars less.