We downsized to a camper van and were no longer fulltime RVers as of April 2017.
At first this was a 'personal' blog only. I used it like a journal, I wasn't even sure I would tell anyone it was there. Well, maybe just family and close friends. Then, I wrote a little about the work we were doing. Hmmm, is this a personal blog or a business blog? I finally decided that it's both. That s a great thing about our lives, we blend personal and business. We love what we do and we do what we love, and we write about all of it! In 2006 we developed our Geeks on Tour business website and now publish most of our computer related info there. And, in 2011 we started our business Facebook page.
We lived and worked and played (scuba diving mostly) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for many years. Jim and I met when I owned a computer training business, Computer Savvy, and he worked for the company that built the computers we bought for our classrooms. Computer Savvy operated from 1983 - 1996 when I sold the business.
Both Jim and I are computer consultants and, after selling Computer Savvy, we got married and started our own business, Guld Systems, Inc. Jim helped small companies with all their network and hardware needs, I did custom programming using Microsoft Access. Jim's son, Devon, lived with us. We always had a 'someday' dream of becoming vagabonds in a motorhome.
In the spring of 2003, Devon, at 19, moved in with a friend - clearing the way for us to pursue
our dream if only we could figure out how to make a living while we roam the highways of America.
We figured that I could still do database programming and website development from anywere. All
I need is an Internet connection. Jim's work involved physically 'touching' the computers.
He hooked computers together, set up printers, made networks work etc. He had
been doing a lot of wireless networking in client offices and homes. One
day he had the idea, "I could set up wireless networks in RV Parks!"
That was it!
There was no turning back, within a couple months we bought an RV (from EBay!)
and had the house up for sale.
We contacted a local RV Park and asked if they
were interested in wireless Internet (WiFi). They were, and we made arrangements
to park our RV there for 6 months. Things didn't work out how we planned,
but they actually worked out better. Jim was able to set up the wireless network
for their office and the sites immediately surrounding the office, but he couldn't
get the signal across the park to the other RV sites. The park managers found
a company called Coach Connect (no longer in business) who said they could set it all up for free -
then they would collect fees from the RVers who used the system. We were skeptical.
The Coach Connect installers arrived and, in one afternoon, installed 2 big
antennas which sent the signals all around the park. It worked great! We were
impressed.
Jim started helping everyone who had any problems connecting and
soon caught the attention of the folks at Coach Connect. So, instead
of developing our own business for installing WiFi in RV parks, we represented
Coach Connect.
In 2004, Jim handled all the tech support phone calls from Wi-Fi subscribers. We also gave presentations at RV Park trade shows. In 2005 we made a point to visit all Coach Connect parks around the country, offering staff and customer training, support, and troubleshooting. That kept us so busy that we couldn't do much of the travel we wanted. In 2006, we left the full-time work but still represented Coach Connect by giving seminars at big RV rallies like the FMCA.
Seminars are what we really love doing the most. I am doing more and more website work.
We've developed our own business identity as 'Geeks on Tour: Computer Training for Travelers'. Our 3 areas of focus are 1)Seminars at Rallies, RV parks, and Computer Clubs 2)Video tutorials and books online and on CDs, and 3)Writing articles on computers and travelers. We're still primarily dependent on our savings for paying the bills, but we're on the path to a self-sustaining lifestyle. We sure hope it works because we love living on the road!
OK, now you're armed to read the blog from any point you wish :-) You can
send us an email if you
have any questions.
Back to the Blog
How to read the Blog
If you click on the title of a post, it will take you to the individual page for just that one post, then, at the bottom you'll see a link to 'Next' or 'Newer' post. Click on that and it's like turning the page, you'll get another individual post page. This way, you can read the blog like a book. You can start at the beginning (April 5, 2003), or any point in time, and just keep turning the pages. Don't attempt to read the whole thing in one sitting! As of November 2013 there are 1,613 posts.At first this was a 'personal' blog only. I used it like a journal, I wasn't even sure I would tell anyone it was there. Well, maybe just family and close friends. Then, I wrote a little about the work we were doing. Hmmm, is this a personal blog or a business blog? I finally decided that it's both. That s a great thing about our lives, we blend personal and business. We love what we do and we do what we love, and we write about all of it! In 2006 we developed our Geeks on Tour business website and now publish most of our computer related info there. And, in 2011 we started our business Facebook page.
Background
If you're going to start reading the current blog entries, you could use the 'Cliff Notes' of what the story is about! I'm Chris. I'm the one who likes to write about my life. (I have journals and diaries going back to about 8 years old!) My husband is Jim. You'll see an ocassional entry in the weblog from him as well. Odie is the dog. You won't see any entries from him (he has his own blog :-), but rest assured he is always there behind the scenes. One of the reasons we like RVing is that your dog can come with you! And, he is so happy to be with us all the time. We used to call ourselves'Odie's Roadies', we see it as our job to drive this little dog around the country. Unfortunately, due to old age and poor health we let Odie pass on March 12, 2013.| Jim | Chris | Odie |
 |  |  |
Both Jim and I are computer consultants and, after selling Computer Savvy, we got married and started our own business, Guld Systems, Inc. Jim helped small companies with all their network and hardware needs, I did custom programming using Microsoft Access. Jim's son, Devon, lived with us. We always had a 'someday' dream of becoming vagabonds in a motorhome.
In the spring of 2003, Devon, at 19, moved in with a friend - clearing the way for us to pursue
our dream if only we could figure out how to make a living while we roam the highways of America.
We figured that I could still do database programming and website development from anywere. All
I need is an Internet connection. Jim's work involved physically 'touching' the computers.
He hooked computers together, set up printers, made networks work etc. He had
been doing a lot of wireless networking in client offices and homes. One
day he had the idea, "I could set up wireless networks in RV Parks!"
That was it!
There was no turning back, within a couple months we bought an RV (from EBay!)
and had the house up for sale.
We contacted a local RV Park and asked if they
were interested in wireless Internet (WiFi). They were, and we made arrangements
to park our RV there for 6 months. Things didn't work out how we planned,
but they actually worked out better. Jim was able to set up the wireless network
for their office and the sites immediately surrounding the office, but he couldn't
get the signal across the park to the other RV sites. The park managers found
a company called Coach Connect (no longer in business) who said they could set it all up for free -
then they would collect fees from the RVers who used the system. We were skeptical.
The Coach Connect installers arrived and, in one afternoon, installed 2 big
antennas which sent the signals all around the park. It worked great! We were
impressed.
Jim started helping everyone who had any problems connecting and
soon caught the attention of the folks at Coach Connect. So, instead
of developing our own business for installing WiFi in RV parks, we represented
Coach Connect.
In 2004, Jim handled all the tech support phone calls from Wi-Fi subscribers. We also gave presentations at RV Park trade shows. In 2005 we made a point to visit all Coach Connect parks around the country, offering staff and customer training, support, and troubleshooting. That kept us so busy that we couldn't do much of the travel we wanted. In 2006, we left the full-time work but still represented Coach Connect by giving seminars at big RV rallies like the FMCA.
Seminars are what we really love doing the most. I am doing more and more website work.
We've developed our own business identity as 'Geeks on Tour: Computer Training for Travelers'. Our 3 areas of focus are 1)Seminars at Rallies, RV parks, and Computer Clubs 2)Video tutorials and books online and on CDs, and 3)Writing articles on computers and travelers. We're still primarily dependent on our savings for paying the bills, but we're on the path to a self-sustaining lifestyle. We sure hope it works because we love living on the road!
OK, now you're armed to read the blog from any point you wish :-) You can
send us an email if you
have any questions.
Back to the Blog
