Behind the Scenes: Trip Technology

I have received a few questions and comments asking what it takes from a technology perspective to chronicle a trip like this. So we thought we'd run you through what we've brought along to help make Fred & Hank Take America possible (beyond Fred and Hank, of course). Here's one snapshot that features all the hardware we're using, with the exception of the camera with which Joan took the photo.

The Fred & Hank Mark America technology family. Note: We left Fred in the photo, but despite the presence of some random metal in him from his knee surgeries, he is not technically technology.

So, without further ado, here's the tally of what we have brought along and what role it plays.

COMPUTERS

• Jim's MacBookPro: I have the 15-inch screen, and not the 17, but only because the 15 was all we could get before we left for the trip. I had a Mac back in the late '80s and early '90s, but finally surrendered to the PC gods around 1993. First off, it was exceedingly difficult to find applications that were supported by Macs, and even when I could, they were way too expensive for me at that point in my life. (I mean, I had beer to buy, for god's sake). But, after more than 15 years as a PC, I finally decided to become a Mac again after leaving washingtonpost.com. I'm so happy I did. The Mac boots up in in a flash -- unlike those let-me-make-lunch-during-bootup PCs. The Mac is also wonderfully intuitive and is a complete pleasure to use. You can also now partition your hard drive and run Windows on your Mac if you so choose, and that's been helpful for a few applications.
  
• Joan's Compaq NX9600: Joan uses this workhorse for all of her computing needs. She wishes she had a faster graphics card, but is happy that the Compaq hasn't completely choked on the huge files from her 5D Mark II camera. It's a bit plump at 9.4 pounds, but had held up like a champ over the years, with the only significant issues being the failure of some USB ports and -- oh, right, that complete and utter hard-drive failure that marked the first few days of this trip.

CAMERAS & CAMERA EQUIPMENT

• Joan's Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera: The newest camera in Joan's repertoire, she's fallen for it quickly. With 21.1-megapixel capability, it can get shots from long distances and Joan can still crop them into close-ups. It also shoots video, though we have not explored that much yet.
  
• Joan's Canon 5D: This is the model that Canon replaced with the 5D Mark II, and Joan brought it in case -- and I should not even say this out loud, because Joan will kill me -- something were to happen to her new camera. Let's just say that if a beagle were to chew on or pee on the Mark II, only one beagle would make it back to Virginia.  Oh, she also offered it to me, in case I wanted to lug it around. As if. I like to travel light. It's hard enough to carry my own weight around.
• Joan's Panasonic DMC-TZ5S Lumix 28MM Wide Zoom point-and-shoot camera: Joan brought this in case she didn't feel like lugging around one of the big cameras. That day has not come yet. But it's always in her purse, so if we encounter something and don't have a big boy camera with us, we're still armed.
• Jim's Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-V3 7.2 megapixel camera: I'm using one of Joan's older, lighter cameras, and it's terrific. It's easy to use, and features some cool night shooting features.
• Joan's Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USM Lens with image stabilization: Joan has used this one almost exclusively on the trip, and is her primary lens at home as well.
• Joan's Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM Lens. She uses this lens for wider shots, for photos like the one below. Here, Joan wanted to shoot up to get the beagles, the cannon at Chancellorsville and the sky in the same picture. She would not have been able to get this shot with her 70-200.
  

• Flip Video camcorder: This is how we shot the one video we've published so far, and we'll do more the second half of the trip. But this little recorder allows us to have video capability without the bulk associated with a lot of cameras.  And the software that comes with it is really easy to use, Joan is still working on shooting and editing video with the 5D Mark II -- which has awesome video capabilities.
• Lexar Multi-Card USB 2.0 Card Reader: While we both have card readers on our computers, this external reader is amazingly quick, so we both use it to offload our photos from our cameras to our computers.

COMMUNICATION DEVICES

• Jim's AT&T USBConnect Mercury: This wireless card comes in handy when certain hotels have crappy wireless connections or if we need to do any blogging or trip planning from the car, lunch or dinner. It works on the Windows partition of my Mac as well. While this has been a boon for me, it has led to more than one lunch where I've been trying to finish the blog while Joan eats in silence. Of course, Joan does have the Kindle, but one can only imagine what other diners think if us as we live in our completely separate worlds during the meal.
• Jim's BlackBerry 8310: Ah, the BlackBerry. My friend and constant companion. I am an addict, I admit it. Joan would prefer I didn't check it as much, you know, while driving, and I'm trying to get better. Really, I am... Sort of... OK, not really. Anyway, this allows me to stay connected to my e-mail, and since all the blog comments are automatically sent to my e-mail, it allows us to enjoy the comments while we're off gallivanting. It's also my backup phone, which came in handy this weekend, when my primary phone crapped out. Last, but not least, the Google Maps mobile application allows me to broadcast our location at all times via Google Latitude and also provides a backup should the Acura navigation choke on any addresses,
• Jim's Motorola Rapture VU30 phone: This is the newest addition to our technology family, having been added on Monday. So far, so good. This new phone was required after my old one -- an LG VX8600 -- decided that my attempts to plug in the recharger were some sort of physical violation. Alas, the phone soon died, and the Verizon store confirmed that it was now in cell phone heaven. So I had to get a new, shiny phone for free. Poor me.
• Joan's Samsung SCH-U740 Alias phone: The key feature on this phone is the QWERTY keyboard, which allows Joan to kill some long, boring stretches in the car by reading through and answering e-mail.
• Bluetooth: We have Bluetooth in the car, so that -- if so desired -- we can put any call on speaker and talk to callers together. It also also allows for hands-free talking in states where you're not allowed to have the phone up to your ear while driving.

ENTERTAINMENT

• The IPod: In 2003, we brought about 60-75 CDs with us, and rotated them out through our six-CD player. This meant we had to use significant room in the trunk, and -- because changing out the discs was a tad laborious -- listen to same six CDs for a week at a time. Fast forward to FHMA, and our entire music collection is now on a device smaller than my wallet. Without the iPod, none of you would know about my affinity for film scores. Wait... maybe this iPod thing isn't so great after all.
• Amazon Kindle: Not a direct contributor to the trip, the Kindle has allowed Joan the Voracious Reader to have something to do when I'm doing something that bores her, like fantasy baseball drafts, talking on the phone, blogging while lunching, etc. So. basically, the Kindle helps keep her sane by giving her new worlds to explore instead of wondering why she's married to the kook sitting across from her.
• XM Radio: One of the brutal parts of the last trip was trying to find radio stations in the more desolate parts of the United States. We could always listen to CDs, but there were times we wanted talk radio, and it was impossible to find, unless you consider the many religious programs we encountered "talk radio." On the FHMA tour, if we tire of the iPod and want to hear some ESPN Radio, CNN, stand-up comedy or the hundreds of music stations, we're set. There's also a channel called Cinemagic for those geeks who like movie music.

STORAGE

• 2 Western Digital 80GB Passport backup drives: We each have brought along 80GB backup drives so that we're protected against any technology meltdown -- though Joan is still not protected against my own personal technology-related meltdowns (see Fort Stockton, Tex.) My entire music collection is on my Passport so that I can add new songs to the iPod and re-sync. Joan keeps all her photos on her Passport, not on her laptop.
• 100 Verbatim DVDs for backup purposes: Since Joan doesn't put her photos on her laptop, she has these so she can back up.

NAVIGATION

• Acura RL Navigation System: A good-but-not-great navigation system, this allows us to plug in addresses and, should we make a wrong turn -- which, as a man, of course, I never, ever do -- re-route us. I am pretty good with directions, so I don't necessarily need it for that, but it tells you how far away you are from your destination and allows you to, for example, find the restaurants that are closest to the car, or any laundromats in Savannah, etc. The trip would be so much harder without the nav. And, of course, with me gone for four days, the existence of the nav was a critical reason Joan was ever able to leave the hotel. Some people don't want to stop at a gas station for directions (me), and others can't even find the gas station in the first place (Joan).

LAST, BUT NOT LEAST

• A power strip: Everything mentioned before this is useless if you don't bring a power strip. Searching for outlets in cheap hotel rooms is like searching for meaning in "The Cannonball Run" movies. The strip allows us to plug in both computers, recharge all our phones and still leave room for lamps, TVs, etc. So far, we have not overloaded an outlet.

Comments

[Pam Williams]

Happy Passover from your unplugged for Passover cousins in Atlanta! Love, Pam, Jack, Matt, Ben, Nate, Josh, Ozzy and Kobe

[Joan]

Wow, you guys are loaded for bear. How is it that you can make a dry topic like technology so entertaining? Could it be my life is as dull as that or are you just very gifted? Probably a bit of each ;)!

[Paul Horenkamp]

Funny you should post this today, I was going to ask what kind of camera Joan would recommend for everyday point-and-shoot use. You provide quite a service here. Well timed. Thank you.

[Joan Brady]

Hey Paul -- I wouldn't recommend that one I have... it's not a great camera -- just small. Most people love the canon elph - I had one and didn't love it. The camera Jim is using.. The Sony is a great camera - it's a little bigger than mine and the elph -but not huge - decent zoom, nice sharp pictures with good color. That's the camera (or whatever is the most recent version of it) that I would recommend. dpreview.com is a great resource for cameras/lenses, if you aren't already using it.

[dentuttle]

Hey, I've studied the picture of all your gadgets and maybe it's because I'm old, maybe it's because it's 6 in the morning, likely it's because I don't have a doughnut, but nowhere do I see the "driveware"—your empty wallets. Googley-moogley.

[Emmanuel]

I think you need to set up lessons for Luddites like me! Who knew!?!

[Royelen]

Eeks, who knew that commenting here meant you were driving while crackberrying. From now only, only posting after dark in whatever timezone you are in.

[Dave Heller]

Hey, if you can't get the subtle Reynolds-DeLuise dynamic as it relates to the Cold War, then, hey, that's your problem, but don't go trashing "Cannonball." OK, it was no Gumball Rally, that's for sure, I'll give you that.

And I will confirm that Jim is addicted to his Crackberry.

[Kristy]

I'm drooling over Joan's camera equipment. *sigh*