Don't use a dive computer?!

I cannot believe the email that my Aunt, who has been diving in the coast guard back in the days that having a dive computer was not a standard, has sent. I have been certified by SSI and my instructor told me that as long as I understand the dive tables, and use a dive computer I am fine. He said I will get maximum bottom time and it is much safer. AND IT MAKES SENSE! My Aunt also comes from a long line of incredibly cheap moneygrubbers and I am sure that she has a problem spending fifty dollars to rent me one for a week, and WE ARE GOING TO THE CAYMAN ISLANDS! (Is she a safe person to be with?) I will rent one with my own money if she wont! Here is an excerpt of the email she sent.

"Tell Grant NO ONE here has a dive computer. I am talking about people who dive all over the world. Dive masters. Dive instructors. People who have dedicated their lives to scuba diving. The consensus here is that they are a silly waste of money, for people who are to lazy or too stupid to use a dive chart. My yoga instructor is also a rescue diver, has dove on every continent (except Antarctica) and thinks they are rediculous." - Ignoramous Aunt

She said that you guys who use dive computers are too LAZY and STUPID to not learn how to use a dive computer! The audacity to come from her! Can I consult someone who really knows what they are talking about? BTW, this place where the general consensus is to not get a dive computer is Costa Rica, if that helps any.

Sufyries

Use your own money to buy a computer if you which. Use your own money to pay for a dive vacation. Send your aunt a bon voyage bouquet. Problem solved.

I guarantee you that plenty of people in Costa Rica use dive computers.

A dive computer is just a cartoon of a decompression model, a set of tables is a series of snapshots of a decompression model, both work, due to the fact that the error using tables is on the less nitrogen uptake side, tables, when used as designed, are likely lower risk. But in the final analysis, they are both just tools and either will serve just fine, if you know how to use the tool ... there are even ways to use standard tables to do multi-level dives.

her next rant should be that anyone who doesn't use a horse-collar BC is just lazy about learning to use it - BP/W - sheesh, bet no one would dare dive one there.......

Personally I think your aunt should go without you so that she can spend a little more money on herself.

Or better yet, she should take me instead and we can dive tables together.


FB-Florida Scuba Diver

Well, don't embarrass yourself in front of the Costa Rican crowd--make sure you know how to use your tables. And don't inconvenience yourself or your cheap aunt--buy your own computer. $50 a week to rent something you could BUY FOR $150 might seem profligate to the least penurious among us.

One can dive very safely without a dive computer. In lieu of a dive computer, one can use a depth gauge and timing device. If you are constrained by budgetary concerns, then using a dive table instead of a computer can be a very good option.

That being said, a dive computer can make diving more convenient:

• It will log a calculated nitrogen exposure.
• It will automatically track surface interval time.
• Many computers have ascent rate indicators which can be helpful.
• A dive computer can help increase bottom time for a multi-level dive profile, since it doesn't calculate NDLs based on maximum depth alone.
• Some computers have a download feature which enables the diver to review his dive profile on a home computer.

I don't think I would ever argue that using a dive computer instead of a dive table makes diving any safer.
More bottom time = more nitrogen exposure = increased DCS risk
If the reason you're using the computer is to "maximize bottom time," then you are actually increasing DCS risk.

Although I believe that one can dive safely without a dive computer, I don't think that people who use dive computers are "too lazy and stupid" to learn how to not use a dive computer. Your aunt sounds like she's a crabby, "old school" diver. (I mean this in the most endearing way.) I'd be willing to bet that if you can ignore some of her harsh words, you might learn a thing or two about diving from her.

There are some people that still use slide rules because people that use calculators and computers are too lazy and too stupid.

Just because she doesn't use a computer doesn't mean she is unsafe, on the contrary her profiles, based on dive tables will most likely be shorter dive times than with a computer. That is as long as she doesn't make any calculation mistakes.

So many responses, thank you! I might have been harsh on the first post on my aunt, and I can understand those of you who dive without them due to preference or budget concerns, but I just hated how she acted like she knew everything and that dive computers are for stupid people. I am also mad that she is going to Cayman with me, which is going to be VERY expensive, and wants to save a little money on something that can make a HUGE difference, and even tries to justify it with vague remarks sent by email. I wholeheartedly understand the dive table, but memorizing it was not a part of my certification, whether you condemn it or not. I believe that I need a dive computer for this trip. I will get a dive computer one way or another. And I made a mistake when I said "maximize bottom time." I'm not going to wait seconds until my DC time is coming to the end, I just believe that electronics nowadays are more accurate than crude tables. I may be biased in that my instructor said many a time to use a dive computer, but I just think that it makes sense. I think this thread boils down to, was she right in what she said in that email excerpt?