Mad Mariner is proud to announce that two of its authors have released a book that began as a series right here on the website.

As some of you may recall, Mad Mariner ran an in-depth series of articles earlier this year on computer-based navigation an electronic charting. The Hard Facts on Software series ran for more than 20 weeks and captured a lot of attention.

Now, authors Mark and Diana Doyle have released the book Get Onboard With E-Charting, which draws on their work on the series and then takes the whole project a step further. They are now taking orders for the book – you can get $5 off the cover price – which will ship in September.

Mark and Diana Doyle spent months conducting in-depth product tests of the sort rarely seen in marine journalism. Targeting more than a dozen top navigation programs – including names like Nobeltec, MaxSea, Raymarine and MapTech – they have put software through its paces, read manuals and FAQs, wrangled with help desks, and interviewed both software developers and the boaters who use their products. The information they gained has been distilled in their book, which contains reviews of every major software offering, comparison tables and a companion disc.

Indeed, it is hard to overstate the vast leaps made in PC-based navigation technology in the last few years. The average captain, using the laptop he bought last year, instruments already installed on his boat, some free government charts and an electronic charting program widely available for less than $300 can now synthesize that mixture into a navigation station that would have required thousands of dollars to replicate even just a few years ago.

That captain can plan a journey in great detail, track his course as he travels, receive warnings of approaching ships, access real-time weather information and calculate both his time to arrival and the fuel needed to get there - all from that single, modest laptop. Of course, it may take some work to understand these systems and to get them running properly (we are, after all, talking about boating). And that's where the book comes in. 

Get Onboard With E-Charting is the definitive work of its kind, the book you want to buy before you bring the laptop aboard. It is a roadmap to navigate marine navigation software and computer-based options for your nav table or helm station.

Mad Mariner congratulates its authors on a superlative piece of work and a significant addition to a shelf already full of quality navigation manuals.