On trips I usually use a GPS, even if I know how to get to where I am going. If I know the way, why bother with a GPS, you ask? Good question. First of all, at my tender age I can easily miss a sign or landmark, and therefore miss a turn. It reminds me when I’m going to need a different lane to set me up for making a turn.

But the GPS does more than that. It tells me when there’s a traffic problem ahead, so that I can avoid it. It tells me how many miles I have to go and how long it’s likely to take.

The GPS also has limitations. First of all, it cannot show the big picture. That’s why I also like to have maps along. I don’t want to make a bunch of turns without seeing the context of from where to where I am driving. The more knowledge I have the better off I am.

The other limitation is that the GPS is sometimes wrong. It may not have up-to-date information about new highways or intersections. Or it may simply be wrong. That happens.

All-in-all, I look at the GPS the same way Mark Twain looked at newspapers. He said, “People who don’t read newspapers are uninformed. Those who do are misinformed.”

by Ken McGarvey

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