Blindly trust computers?

[jlcnuke]

It baffles me time after time that people rather rely on a piece of electronics instead of their common sense and knowledge. I will never understand why.

For "most" rec dives, divers aren't diving straight down to one depth, staying there, and then ascending. They're not hanging out for 99% of their dive at two/three specific depths either (heck, most divers I see on vacation have their depth vary 10 ft when the bottom depth hasn't changed.... For most of the dives I've done recreationally, there are gradual ups and downs and gradients of depth (often significant). As such, "the table says for our max depth we can be down for is 8 minutes so this will be 8 minutes and then ascend dive" is an absolutely ridiculous concept since they know they'll spend most of their dive well above the max depth they hit. As a result, memorizing every NDL for every depth and trying to personally calculate how much time you're spending at each so you can guestimate based on the tables whether your computer is giving you a reasonable number just isn't something the overwhelming majority of rec divers are going to do and so they're going to take their computer with them and they're going to dive to the most conservative computer profile among them and their buddy.

 

[PfcAJ]

For "most" rec dives, divers aren't diving straight down to one depth, staying there, and then ascending. They're not hanging out for 99% of their dive at two/three specific depths either (heck, most divers I see on vacation have their depth vary 10 ft when the bottom depth hasn't changed.... For most of the dives I've done recreationally, there are gradual ups and downs and gradients of depth (often significant). As such, "the table says for our max depth we can be down for is 8 minutes so this will be 8 minutes and then ascend dive" is an absolutely ridiculous concept since they know they'll spend most of their dive well above the max depth they hit. As a result, memorizing every NDL for every depth and trying to personally calculate how much time you're spending at each so you can guestimate based on the tables whether your computer is giving you a reasonable number just isn't something the overwhelming majority of rec divers are going to do and so they're going to take their computer with them and they're going to dive to the most conservative computer profile among them and their buddy.

So they're "taught" a poor way of utilizing tables, aren't given the tools to do anything else, so they're reliant on the computer.

Some classes don't teach the tables at all.

How on earf did divers manage before computers?

 

[kelemvor]

So they're "taught" a poor way of utilizing tables, aren't given the tools to do anything else, so they're reliant on the computer.

Some classes don't teach the tables at all.

How on earf did divers manage before computers?

That's a rabbit hole you probably don't want to go down. The old way isn't inherently better... unless you think every open water diver should do certification dives in a cave..among other bad ideas that have been quashed over the years.

 

[Ryan Mcshane]

Cough *average depth* cough

 

[PfcAJ]

That's a rabbit hole you probably don't want to go down. The old way isn't inherently better... unless you think every open water diver should do certification dives in a cave..among other bad ideas that have been quashed over the years.

I think the real bad idea is Open Water divers that have no clue how to plan a dive and are unaware when their magic box spits out baloney.

 

[BRT]

So they're "taught" a poor way of utilizing tables, aren't given the tools to do anything else, so they're reliant on the computer.

Some classes don't teach the tables at all.

How on earf did divers manage before computers?

Very simple. If we hit 61 feet we used the 70 foot line on the dive tables. And got that bottom time even if the rest of the dive was at 40'.

 

[letterboy]

Very simple. If we hit 61 feet we used the 70 foot line on the dive tables. And got that bottom time even if the rest of the dive was at 40'.

OMG but like, what about like, the shallow part of the dive, like didn't that help make time underwater long and stuff. like toots.

 

[BRT]

OMG but like, what about like, the shallow part of the dive, like didn't that help make time underwater long and stuff. like toots.

Trying to dive for fun without a computer is just a waste of bottom time.

 

[PfcAJ]

Very simple. If we hit 61 feet we used the 70 foot line on the dive tables. And got that bottom time even if the rest of the dive was at 40'.

Does that strategy make... sense...to you?

 

[Fastmarc]

Is this really going to be beaten to death... again?