We've been giving this seminar since 2004. We don't know how many times, but its well over 100. I swear it's always different though. This stuff changes so fast. In 2004 we still had to cover dial up a bit. The main option was Wi-Fi, Cellular data cards didn't exist, and satellite was pretty new.
Now - dial up is akin to chipping on clay tablets, Cellular data cards are mainstream, and satellite is old hat. Besides the changes in technology, new people are just taking to the road all the time. One of their very first questions is, "How am I going to get online when I'm on the road?"
We just love answering that question because we've 'been there, done that.' We've used all three methods, and helped litterally hundreds of people with their systems - so we've seen a lot. We love it that our audiences have newbies - one woman said she retired 10 days ago and has been on the road just long enough to make it to the rally. And we enjoy the challenge of the old-timers who have technical questions on the right kind of antenna, amplifier, or router. Here's our audience at the Escapade.
Here's Jim teaching the seminar in his Captain Wi-Fi shirt. It's actually a battery powered wireless signal detector - this picture shows that he's only getting one bar of signal.
And, here's where we explain exactly how Wi-Fi in an RV park works. We find it really helps people to understand exactly what is going on.
For example, why is it that you can see the message 'connected' and have 5 bars, yet still not be able to browse the Internet? Well - that's because the 'connection' is just between your computer and the hotspot's access point. That's just the first leg of the trip to the Internet. The hotspot's access point must be successfully connected to the Internet . We explain that with graphics and with stories from our experience, as well as a demonstration using our own router as a fake hotspot. Next time this happens to one of our students, they'll know what to do - report it to the hotspot's owner. Even if it doesn't get them online - their frustration level will be much lower because they know what's going on.
We are in Sedalia, Missouri. We're here to attend our first Escapade. That is the annual rally of the Escapees club. Isn't that a great name though? Thousands of others, like us, have 'Escaped' the normal lifestyle of a stationary home and traded it in for a home on wheels. The tagline is 'Home is Where we Park it.'
Missouri has some very nice roads and green rolling hill scenery. And we are having gorgeous weather right now. Here is the road coming into Sedalia:
And, here's a little video about our welcome to the Escapade.
In the video you'll see a clip of a local newspaper story about the hundreds of RVs that are descending upon this small town. It's a nice story, but I wonder whose idea it was to sandwich it between a headline article about poor driving skills, and an ad for relocation services?!
I can't decide if it was a complete oversight, or someone with a highly developed sense of humor! :-)
In any case, we hope to have a very fun .. and profitable .. week here. Our booth is all set up and ready to go.
Green grass, birds singing, warm weather, no wind, people jogging in the park, kids playing baseball ... I know we're in Higginsville, Missouri but it sure feels like Pleasantville.
I went into town and got a haircut - always an experience. I've learned to take a photo with me of past good hairdays since I'm always at someplace new ... it doesn't seem to do much good though. At least it's out of my eyes now! On the way home I went grocery shopping at Piggly Wiggly ... where did they get that name?! Jim washed the rig - it looks a lot better without the blanket of bugs and grime, but now I can see the corrosion spots even worse. I asked Nick and Terry to look at it and see if they had any ideas of how to fix it. "Yes!" They said ... they did have an idea.
"Get a new motorhome."
bummer ... I love this motorhome. My way of fixing it is just to think about something else
ahhh dinner time.
Jim put some chicken on the grill and Terry made potato salad and some delicious banana nut bread. I'm not kidding - this is Pleasantville.
We're on our way to the Escapades in Sedalia, Missouri. Our friends, Nick and Terry Russell of the Gypsy Journal are also going to be there and like to be a couple days early, as do we. They planned to stay at the fairgrounds in Higginsville, Missouri. So that's where we came too. What a great place!
There are just a handful of RV hookups - electric and water. We're parked right beside a park with a delightful 1/2 mile paved path for walking. That's Nick and Terry's bus back and to the right. You can read his blog post about Higginsville too. The cost is just $10/night and there are plenty of amenities - groceries, restaurants, etc. nearby. We've known about fairgrounds having RV hookups since some of the rallies we attend are at fairgrounds. But, we've never stayed at one outside of a rally. Nick and Terry know all about these because they're in the business of providing this kind of information to RVers. We even have their CD which includes a state by state listing of Fairgrounds, but we rarely remember to check it out. Sure enough, Higginsville, Missouri Fairgrounds is listed. Nick and Terry have been exploring every nook and cranny of this country by RV for about 10 years now and they are a wealth of information. To see what they have to offer, check out the Gypsy Journal bookstore.
I love watching movies, and it just makes sense to combine a group dinner with a movie night. I've been thinking about Cioppino for several days. Ever since the group of us were talking about great places to eat in this country of ours and I voted for Mo's in Newport Oregon. If you ever want to get your appetite in high gear, get a group of RVers talking about great places to eat. Because our 'neighborhood' restaurants are anywhere on the entire continent!
Anyway, I made a big pot of seafood Cioppino - not as good as Mo's, it's tough to get fresh seafood in Gravity, Iowa! But - I've found if you put enough Sherry in it, nobody notices!
Jim set up for movie night. Notice that we're using our evaluation projector - the tiny BenQ Joybee - still putting it through it's paces. That little tripod you see it on is ours - it makes a great little stand for the Joybee. Just hook the Joybee up to a laptop computer and play a movie DVD in the computer. If you have a nice white wall, you don't even need a screen. Speakers are built in to the projector.
What movie did this gathering at the church watch? Why, Alices' Restaurant ... the movie by Arlo Guthrie about Ray and Alice, who bought an old church in Housatonic, Massachusetts and invited all their friends to Thanksgiving Dinner at the church. What a kick!
Here's Jim teaching the seminar in his Captain Wi-Fi shirt. It's actually a battery powered wireless signal detector - this picture shows that he's only getting one bar of signal.
And, here's where we explain exactly how Wi-Fi in an RV park works. We find it really helps people to understand exactly what is going on.
For example, why is it that you can see the message 'connected' and have 5 bars, yet still not be able to browse the Internet? Well - that's because the 'connection' is just between your computer and the hotspot's access point. That's just the first leg of the trip to the Internet. The hotspot's access point must be successfully connected to the Internet . We explain that with graphics and with stories from our experience, as well as a demonstration using our own router as a fake hotspot. Next time this happens to one of our students, they'll know what to do - report it to the hotspot's owner. Even if it doesn't get them online - their frustration level will be much lower because they know what's going on.
