The DigitalRV Blog

Day 2 of the transition into full timing.

Sure, I haven’t gone too far, but it’s still full time rv’ing folks.

I’ve now been using the Kyocera full time for well over 24 hours. And it has performed extremely well. Right now, I’m in a network area that is 1X data only (slower than EVDO). On top of that, I’m right on the fringe of service.

So, how is the KR1 working? Well, you’re reading this blog, right? It must be working. The blog is being updated!

In general, I’m satisfied with the KR1. The one issue I have noticed is when I lose the cell network’s service, the WiFi seems to drop out too. The KR1 seems to reset itself when it reconnects to the cellular provider.

While that isn’t a huge deal, it is a small annoyance. If I were transfering data between 2 computers using the WiFi, I would lose my transfer. I’m unsure why the KR1 seems to fully reset when it loses cell signal, so I’ll be doing some reading on their website soon.

I will say, I’ve been spoiled by my cable modem over the years.  It’s like drinking straight out of a fire hose!  The 1X network is like drinking out of the kindergarten bubbler! 

Guess I’ll have to take a ride tomorrow and see if I can find some EVDO coverage in the area.  Looking to find a fire hose!

The following blog entry is from Saturday, March 11th, 2006.

Without a doubt, I knew today would be the hardest day I’ve faced in many years. And the day did live up to expectations. It was downright tough.

This morning I got up early. I knew there was a great deal ahead of me. Erin got up, and got ready to head out for the morning while I finished packing. It was very quiet this morning, and that’s not unusual.

Normally, getting ready for a trip I’m filled with excitement. But there wasn’t any to be found today. My wife wasn’t packing with me. And unlike our other trips, this time I know I’m not returning home. This time it’s all different.

I won’t get into the pending divorce. I’ll just say, I’m extremely sad about the whole event. It was my hope that we could work through things and look forward to many interesting adventures together down the road. Sometimes things just don’t work out the way you want them to though.

Erin headed out this morning with the dogs. I didn’t want them there as I headed out without them. They may still be coming along. First I’ll need to see what the allergist says in a few weeks. My recent medical issues might be the result of a severe allergy. Let’s hope it isn’t the pups!

After my wife & the girls left I packed a few remaining items. Then my family arrived. My dad would drive the Airstream to his house. I really didn’t want to get super sad while towing a big trailer. So I was happy to have the help.

Apologies, had to remove a few photos here.  I’ll repost in a few months.Before leaving I said my good byes to our neighbors. Nice people. They’ve got 3 great kids, and I wish them the best! I’ll miss them, my neighborhood, and my home. Almost 9 years living there. It was hard to say goodbye, and it will be a while before that loss fades from my mind.

We pulled out late morning. My dad drove, and I was the passenger. For the first time in a long while, I was uncomfortable riding. Too many butterflies in my stomach.

Fortunately it was a short ride. Only 1.5 hours and we reached my dad’s place. I’d say the morning was the longest I’ve experienced in a while.

We quickly unloaded the truck, set up the trailer, and that was that. The next part was settling in. I think the settling in will be the next challenge. It’s not something that will happen immediately. I enjoy travelling, and seeing new places, but I’ve got to re-think a big part. I won’t be sharing the experience with my spouse. That’s a huge adjustment, but one I will have to make.

My sister Jade & my niece Julia.

So, here we go with full timing. The next two weeks will be spent “adjusting” and waiting on one more round of medical stuff. With luck I’ll be pulling out and heading south in just a few weeks.

My first “courtesy parking” spot

Yesterday I posted about moving my DVD’s to my computer.  It’s really a simple task that any average computer user can do.  There’s tons of software out there available.  A good deal is pay for software, and some is freeware.  I always look for the freeware first.

If you’re looking to move a DVD collection to your computer, look no further than a little program called Handbrake.  This software is available for both Windows & Macintosh.  It allows you to format video for the Ipod, but it the latest verison allows more flexibility to save full sized video for viewing on your computer.

My first experience with Handbrake was only a few weeks ago.  And since getting the initial version, a new verison has come out. The latest version, 0.7.1 allows so many format a size options.  It takes a little playing with to get video where you want it.  Fortunately there’s a good deal of documentation on the Internet regarding it’s use.

Check out the Handbrake site to get a download, and also to get detailed usage information.  If you’ve got further questions regarding video setup for your RV, post a comment here, or stop by The Digital RV Forum to post your questions, comments, etc.

The next post will be in regards to other ways to put video content on your computer.  DVDs aren’t the only storage format for your favorite video.

Over the next few weeks I’ll be preparing to change a great deal about my lifestyle. The transition will be from full time home owner, and part time RV’er to a Full Time RV’er. It’s going to be an “interesting” transition.

So, I’m taking my own advice from the Digital RV book. Save as much space as possible in my trailer. I’ll be going from 3 stories of house to a 25 foot trailer with a quad cab truck. Of course, we all tend to accumulate tons of stuff in a permanent home, so I’m sorting through my possesions and making a great deal of choices.

While on the road I certainly don’t spend all of my time watching movies, TV, etc. But I do want to have a selection available. After living for nearly 10 years in the same location we’ve managed to build quite the DVD collection. The collection won’t fly in the trailer. I could fill several cabinets with DVDs. So, what to do?

The answer is very simple. I’m backing up my favorites in my DVD collection to a portable LaCie hard drive. The Lacie is a 100GB drive, and is smaller than 1 DVD package.

LaCie’s 100GB can store more than this small collection! As you can see, the drive is smaller than even a single DVD box!

With some simple software I’m able to compress DVD content to the format used for the Video IPod. It isn’t very time consuming. While I’m packing and sorting through belongings I’m moving my movie collection to my drive. Simple & easy.

Each movie (about 1 hour and 30 minutes in length) can be compressed to a file about 500MB in size. You can make them even smaller, but I want to keep the video crisp for full screen viewing on my computer. So, I can fit 2 DVDs into 1 GB of space. With 100 GB available you’re looking at 200 movies, or several hundred hours of video!

If you’re curious about such space savings, check out the book, “The Digital RV”, and check out our forum as well. There you can ask questions, share insights from the road, and exchange information on using technology to make your travels easier!