In The Driver’s Seat

On By John GrubbIn Smart phones, The Computer Age
Picture of our old car with me in the driver's seat, my sister and a neighbor standing outside the car.

As you might know, last week Joyce and I (and Gus) made a quick trip to New Orleans so Joyce could play for the choirs from Lincoln Park Academy. As we traveled 1632 miles and drove 23 hours out of 43, I had plenty of time to think how automobile travel has changed in my lifetime.

In the picture above, my sister, a neighbor kid and I were getting ready for a trip. When Joyce saw this picture, she said “Of course, you were in the driver’s seat!” LOL She made that comment because I almost never let her drive on our long trips even though she is more than capable and quite willing. I just prefer to do the driving!

Anyway, let’s consider the computer-related things we did on this trip just using our cell phones:

Google Maps * We used Google Maps to look ahead on our route for backups which might delay our trip. At one point, we were able to navigate around an accident, saving a ton of time.
Five Guys * Eating on the go, we used our Five Guys app to locate the nearest Five Guys. Yummy!
Gas Buddy * We used Gas Buddy to find the best price on gas as we traveled back and forth.
ADT Pulse * We used ADT Pulse to check on the security of our home while we were away.
Home Life * The Home Life app allowed us to program lights to come on and off at various times so it would look like we were home.
Amcrest * We used Amcrest to look inside our home using the cameras we have placed around the house.
iPhones * Finally, we used our phones to stay in touch with each other when one of us left the car and went to a store, etc. (Remember, we had Gus with us so we couldn’t both go and leave him alone in the car.)

Think about it. This list is just from our smartphones. We’re not even considering the computer in the car we rented, the Sirius radio we used and the Sunpass that recorded our travel on the Florida Turnpike.

Look at the picture at the top again. I was about 6 years old. Just consider how different car travel is now compared to then. It’s mind-boggling!

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