Datastorm rally south

We have visitors here at Paradise Island in Fort Lauderdale. Member #1, and member #16 of the DatastormUsers group.

Here is the map that the DatastormUsers group is so famous for. Who is member #1? That's Don Bradner, the creator of the DatastormUsers.com website.

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

This map is the greatest thing. Every time we move (or any Datastorm User) we enter our position on the map. Then, the website automatically sends an email to whoever we specify with a link to the map. This way, our friends and family are automatically alerted to our whereabouts whenever we move. The map includes a link to our website so, if they want to read further and see pictures, it's easy to do so.

You can also see the map in google earth:

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

Thanks Don for creating such a cool tool! Number 16 on the map is Michael and Georgia Day. Michael is the one who organized most of the last rally. We're thrilled that they're both spending some time seeing Florida, and now, visiting us here in Fort Lauderdale. Here's Georgia and their 44 ft Newell!

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

And, here's #1 - with the BIG dish!

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

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Refrigerator Fire

If you get a notice from Dometic that your refrigerator is subject to their recall ... take it seriously ... here is what can happen if you don't:

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

This happened here last week while we were gone. Actually, I hear that this refrigerator was a Norcold (ouch! that's what we have) that was having some kind of problem. But the recall on the Dometic is specifically for a fire hazard issue. The good news is that their insurance (Progressive) is treating them right. They acknowledge the fire as a total loss of the motorhome. Insurance is currently paying to put the owners up in a motel.

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RVing in Asia!

On our way back to Fort Lauderdale from Tampa we decided to make a stop at Sun 'n Shade in Punta Gorda. Sun 'n Shade is owned by the same company that owns Paradise Island, where we stay in Fort Lauderdale. Jim is often telling people about it when he works in the office, and it seemed like a good idea for us to see it.

Ahhhh ... the west side of Florida is so calm and laid back compared to the east. So much space, and peace and quiet! Here's our site:

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

And some very friendly local residents!

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

As we pulled in to our site, we noticed this 5th wheel and they seemed to be fidding with their Datastorm satellite dish. Sure enough, they saw our sign and came to greet us asking if Jim could help get their dish to connect to the satellite.

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

While Jim worked with their computer and dish, I chatted with Helga and learned that they are from Germany. They've spent several winters here in Sun 'n Shade. But what was really fascinating was that they took a 6 month RV trip a few years ago with a tour group from Germany called Perestroika Tours. They started in Austria with 10 RVs in their caravan. They drove through Greece, over to Turkey, then thru Iran and Kazakhstan. She said Kazakhstan was gorgeous! From there they continued east into China, up into Mongolia - she also loved Mongolia - and then Russia. And back - 26,000 miles I think she said. She remembers spending 4 days in Moscow. Can you imagine!? Boy, did this get my adventure juices flowing! I didn't even know there were roads thru the places they went. Let alone that it would be possible to drive your RV. She does remember one of the mountain passes being pretty scary. And the roads were horrible. I believe it was all rental RVs from the tour company. They didn't take their 5th wheel - it was a 24 foot class C. There weren't any RV parks ... they parked in fields and parking lots. They even took their dog with them! The dog was a problem at the China border crossing, but after much perserverence, a little cash, waiting till the guards changed, and even hiding the dog at one point - they kept going. Here's Helga and her dog, Sockie:

From Geeks on Tour Blog photos for November 2008

I sure wish they had a Blog! If we were staying by them for any length of time, you can bet they would :-)

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What a week!

At the Datastorm rally, we saw lots of folks we knew from past rallies and we met new people. We presented several seminars ... Picasa, building Websites, Vista: What's New, Networking, and Google Earth. Jim did some computer service ... one computer that didn't have sound, or connectivity with it's Verizon aircard. It had been this way for a while, and several other computer service experts had tried to fix it ... Jim succeeded!

During the week we took our motorhome over to Lazydays service to fix what we hoped was just a small leak in the brake line. Turned out to need a complete brake job - 3 days and $1,300 later, we were back to normal. One night we slept in the coach in the service bay.

Saturday and Sunday we held our hands-on 'Boot Camp.' People used their own laptops and we taught them things like how to control what happens when you close the lid of your computer, how to backup files to CD, and how to put your digital photos on the web using Picasa. One couple in the class had just won a digital camera during one of the raffles ... good timing!

Here's a slideshow from the week:

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Sky Deck

People are often amazed that Jim and I live full time in a 30 foot Class C motorhome. It is small, but the layout is so perfect - we just love it. We often go looking at other RVs just for fun. Even when we see half-a-million dollar coaches we still look at each other and say, "I like ours better." And, it's a good thing!

This week, for the first time, I saw something I actually liked better. A sky deck!

From Lazy Days DataStorm Rally

From Lazy Days DataStorm Rally

We've actually seen this before and thought it was interesting but couldn't see really using it. This week we got to know Beverly and Alan and their SkyDeck coach. they love it. It's where they socialize, watch the sunset, and often sleep under the stars. Bugs don't seem to congregate up that high, and there's always a good view. It was SO pleasant. Uh Oh. Here's how the stairs look from the inside:

From Lazy Days DataStorm Rally

And the outside:

From Lazy Days DataStorm Rally

They told us that only 20 of these were made. It's an Airstream product.

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