Anybody diving a Uwatec Galileo SOL?

[dnishio]

Happy to report that it is up on the SP/Uwatec U.S. site, must be a good sign that it is coming our way.

 

[ianr33]

The sentiment here is spot on, but be careful about the language you use:

But... you don't believe heart rate is a factor in nitrogen loading? What you believe is of no consequence, since the question is a scientific one. Rather, as you make clear in other places, you have no strong evidence to convince you there is a causal link.

Being careful with my language

And without getting in to a deep philosophical debate about the meaning of truth and knowledge:

Yes it is a scientific question. I have never SEEN any evidence one way or the other.Therefore,in the lack of any peer reviewed scientific journals,the lack of any plausible mechanism and my own experience (Not getting bent after diving high flow caves with a very elevated heart rate),I BELIEVE there to be no connection.

If you have the results of a double blind trial that proves this one way or the other I would like to see that so I could then reasonably claim to KNOW.

Some people KNOW there is a god......................

 

[CompuDude]

Happy to report that it is up on the SP/Uwatec U.S. site, must be a good sign that it is coming our way.

Yup, my LDS has two in stock. I played with one for a minute or two last night (didn't have time to linger, sadly).

GORGEOUS screen. Simply huge. The overall unit is a lot bigger than expected, though, I have to say. Makes my SmartTec, which already seemed on the big side, seem positively tiny by comparison. I predict this will actually be an issue for smaller divers (women, mostly, and the occasional smaller male)... my dive buddy was with me (a petite woman) and she joked she would have to strap the sucker to her thigh! It was definitely far too big for her arm... even up closer to the elbow (although that might work once the added bulk of a drysuit is added... I really don't think she could use it in a wetsuit or less, though).

 

[docmartin]

It is amazing how people nowadays want to force their point of view on others. Just because the features are not attractive to you, it doesn't mean that other people have to think like you think. In other words, you don't need to "get it". Why do people drive ferraris? Why do people fly first class? Why do people buy 60'' plasma TVs? Multi-million dollar houses? The list is endless...

so when others are waxing about how they like this and that about a gadget you don't have a problem with their opinion but when someone else says he does not care for it you qualify that as forcing "their point of view on others"? if people can't voice their opinions pro and con and argue in a civilized manner I wonder what the point of an internet forum like this would be.

 

[dnishio]

Yup, my LDS has two in stock. I played with one for a minute or two last night (didn't have time to linger, sadly).

I hope to see them near me soon so I can linger around and see how they feel.

 

[rigdiver]

Being careful with my language

And without getting in to a deep philosophical debate about the meaning of truth and knowledge:

Yes it is a scientific question. I have never SEEN any evidence one way or the other.Therefore,in the lack of any peer reviewed scientific journals,the lack of any plausible mechanism and my own experience (Not getting bent after diving high flow caves with a very elevated heart rate),I BELIEVE there to be no connection.

If you have the results of a double blind trial that proves this one way or the other I would like to see that so I could then reasonably claim to KNOW.

Some people KNOW there is a god......................

I really think I do remember Bill Hamilton say in a lecture @ DEMA 10 yrs ago that breathing rate had no bearing on N2 looading. It was "time at pressure."

 

[dartref]

I saw a really long power point slide show at my LDS this weekend. Whether breathing rate has any bearing on anything or not, this is a really cool computer. I'm sure it is just a matter of time before the other manufacturers have something similar.

 

[Web Monkey]

I dove with Galileo this weekend, and I have to say that I'm amazingly impressed.

• The compass alone is a huge improvement over any of the mechanical compasses I've used over the years. There's nothing to get "stuck". If it says "north" (or whatever), that's the actual direction you're going. No need to play "Tilt The Compass" to see if it's reading true or just stuck.
• I really like the display. It usually contains much less info than my SmartCom, and displays only what's appropriate, however anything that becomes important will be shown. For example, on an NDL dive, it displays Depth and Dive Time and NDL Remaining, Tank Pressure, RBT, Water Temp and Heart Rate. If you're doing a deco dive, your next stop (depth and time) is also shown.
• Heart Rate: At first, I thought the Heart Rate was useless marketing c***, but found that by keeping an eye on it, I was able to reduce my SAC from .5 to .4 (a new low) during the dive. It's a really nice indication that I'm working harder than I realized. It's a really cool feature, and I like it a lot.
• The rest of the information is available with a button press or two.
• It also has your dive profile available as a graph, in case you want to see how good (or scary) your buoyancy control has been.
  
  While it's nice to be able to see your profile underwater, I can really see where it would be helpful if you end up unconscious on the deck of the boat, since your dive profile is available to emergency personell, along with any other emergency info you programmed it with, including your name, address, DAN #, Blood-type .. whatever you think relevant.
• One of the most impressive features (not exactly rocket science, but done with a very nice User Interface) is the Safety Stop timer. Once you get to your stop range (above 20', I believe), it starts a countdown for a user-configurable time. I picked 5 minutes, since I like hanging out underwater, and being a middle-aged desk-jockey, figure that I need all the safety margin I can get.
• As with the SmartCom, it handles Deco dives very nicely, and makes sure that you have enough gas to handle your deco obligations, including ending the dive with a user-specified tank pressure (mine is 500PSI). It also makes deco an option rather than a violation. You can program it to complain if you go into deco, or just handle as a deco dive.

Also, instead of just beeping and flashing symbols that are difficult to interpret under stress or when narced, it shows messages, in English (or your language). This is much friendlier than the SmartCom, which usually just beeps and flashes the offending data and a symbol without really saying what's wrong.

All things considered, I like it a lot, and being a software engineer, I'm very critical of how embedded systems are implemented. It looks like the guys (women?) at Uwatec did a really nice job with this one.

I expect all the other manufacturers to be killing themselves trying to catch up, and expect prices on pretty much all the other computers on the market to take a really big drop, really soon.

My thoughts on deco dives with a wireless computer:
The Galileo looks to be a very competent computer and I have no doubt that it can easily handle deco. That said, I'm not about to trust my life to something that gets it's data via radio link and a $4 transmitter battery. If I plan on doing a deco dive, I'll be bringing along a slate with worst-case deco stops and times, and a a good buddy, so if the transmitter or computer dies, I won't.

Terry

 

[dnishio]

Thanks Terry!

That just makes my wait for one that much harder. . . .

LDS should be getting them shortly, I hope.

 

[Riger]

With Regards to the Nitrogen build Up as a factor of Heart Rate/Workload;

My understanding of the Galileo NDL Algorithm is that it merely applies an additional "restriction" to your NDL and provides longer PDIS and/or Decomp stops (when exertion beyond the baseline is detected).

If the scientific data regarding Nitrogen Build Up is not yet "complete" then at worst, the Galileo will err on the side of safety. Scuub Nuubs like myself are better off err'ing on the safe side than not.​

Regarding us Nuubs not relying on the Computers;

I agree that the basics should never be forgotten and that before each dive one should have a reasonable "plan" as to depth and time for the dive based on the NDL Tables, however it is our absolute intention (my full time buddy [Wifey] and I) that with any failure of any critical equipment (including Computer) we will ascend to safety stop depth and depending on the scenario, spend a minimum of 3 minutes there (longer will always be an option). The point is that when one chooses to rely on technology, one should also adopt suitable fail-safe procedures when that technology fails.​

Whilst experienced at Life, I am new to the Underwater World, constructive criticism accepted gladly.

Regards
Richard