Originally Posted by tbone1004
Come on, you two need to at least join the twentieth century.
Welcome to the Cave Diver's Forum.
Low tech
High tech
Come on, you two need to at least join the twentieth century.
Whoever said money can't buy love never bought a puppy.
The Xstreams didn't even come on the market until the 21st Century
Scubapro used to have digital SPGs like 10 or 15 years back. They weren't around for long though, probably due to the hefty price. I never had one but I remember seeing them in my LDS.
and the jetstreams have been around about as long if not longer in the 21st century than the 20th....
A quick caveat: I've been up for almost 36 hours, so the lucidity of the following is subject for review and possibly ridicule...
First off, I'm a lurker. I don't post often but read everything. This conversation is too good to stay out of though (at least for me).
I think the question boils down to two distinct dichotomies: high tech versus low tech and proven reliability versus suspect reliability. As cave divers, we are high tech. Any review of the equipment used by the pioneers of the sport will show that we have advanced (and continue to use advanced versions of) every conceivable piece of scuba equipment, from regulators, wetsuits (and drysuits), lights, reels, propulsion devices (fins and scooters), computers, spgs, buoyancy devices, hell, compared to our predecessors, we look like friggin' astronauts from the deep future. Even our line arrows are a technological advancement over tape triangles and clothes pins. If you throw CCR options into the discussion, anyone would be hard pressed to say that as a community, we are anything but high tech. To illustrate the point another way, I have an old double hose regulator set and tank backpack; if I were to attempt to dive that set up with an old runway light in a homemade housing and Clorox jug bottle strung to my j valve at Peacock or Ginnie, would anyone NOT question me? Of course I'd be questioned (Where's Peter? Here he comes, quick act like a surface stroke... "There's a cave here? I was just gonna stay in the river. Please don't yell at me...") We have accepted the high tech options as standard which for some may blur the line on what constitutes "high tech".
I think the question that comes with that (and blurs that line further) is the question of proven reliability. The only high tech options that survive in the cave diving community are those that we believe will provide the reliability that we demand. Any piece of equipment that we suspect of being unreliable is either discarded or, if sufficiently beneficial to risk use, is backed up with a more reliable piece of redundant kit. This reliability testing is part of the evolutionary process for dive equipment that helps to separate the chaff for the rest of the diving community (even if they decide that the chaff is too cool to live without...).
Cave diving provides the literal cutting edge for diving equipment. The kit that proves itself useful and reliable, high tech as it all is in comparison to our forebear's options, is adopted as standard and the rest is cut out to clearance bins at dive shops all over central Florida. Our personal measurements of the relative "techiness" may vary, but compared to the common equipment of just one generation ago, we are all superspeleoaquanauts of the future. Therefore, I believe we are all high tech divers (with the aforementioned demand for high reliability of course.)
On a side note, I have to disagree (respectively of course) with the eminent Dr Pitkin on the reliability of the human kit in our dive gear. While human error may account for most (if not arguably all fatalities) humans are the essential part of the kit. My gear (to my knowledge) has no more dives than I do and if I assemble it and give it a dive briefing and then throw it in the water, it will only accumulate a rather boring and square dive profile that while very efficient on gas consumption, will not impress anyone as to it's accomplishments. The only good things, amazing things, that happen in the water, happen as a result of the people driving the kit. As such, I'd argue that while there are definitely Darwinian moments that cause us all to question the sanity of our community, or perhaps the reliability of the human element of some divers' kits, the human element is also the most spectacular, high tech, and reliably awesome part of our community's equipment, without which we wouldn't even be able to enjoy a youtube virtual dive. As such, you're all awesome and undervalued. I believe central Florida dive shops should start charging a much higher premium for all of you. No sales.
Dive safe,
I'm tired.
....says the man that won't let go of his archaic doubles.....
The whole trick to a successful cave diving career is in striking the proper balance between high tech and low tech, and that constantly changes with your experience level.
When I used to dive backgas only I used a hoseless, gas-integrated computer and never had a problem. I have used this type computer in my open water diving since 1996 and have never had a problem.
Whoever said money can't buy love never bought a puppy.
It's a full computer, but you can put it on gauge mode, is that what you're looking for?
http://www.subgear.com/en-US/USA/com...nts/xp-3h.aspx
If it was about 10% of the retail price, I would be very interested.
Thanks for getting the 95s hydroed!
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