What software do the captains use to find their pots and their position... I see it occasionally on the show and would like to know more about it. Also, if there is anything else that the captains use, in terms of technology/software, please include in the response.

Thanks for the information.

Global and Nobletec are two that i can think of for chartplotter software.
I have a boat that I'm currently fishing cod with out of Kodiak and i use a little Garmin chartplotter.It isnt the biggest screen but it superimposes the boats position onto exact computer replicas of the NOAA charts. I take shortcuts through reefs and it will put me within a couple feet of my actual position. When i dock my boat, It will actually show me parked in the correct stall. VERY ACCURATE!!!

There is some new software out I'm not sure of the makers but its used on a couple boats I've worked on. If you look up marine software you might find it, but it is a new bottom mapping technolgy. The software uses soundings from the ships own bottom sounder(which 99.9999% of ships have) and relays it to the chartplotter which then "rewrites" the chart soundings. The more you fish a certain area the more acurate your chartplotters chart becomes detailed. You can then begin to get a three dimensional view of the bottom.
I really really really want one, but alas, the software is currently very spendy.

quote:

Originally posted by rob12000:
I take shortcuts through reefs and it will put me within a couple feet of my actual position. When i dock my boat, It will actually show me parked in the correct stall. VERY ACCURATE!!!........
I really really really want one, but alas, the software is currently very spendy.

You are right on that.When we run the towboat owned by my company "light boat"(without barges),the Automatic Identification System is sensitive enough that if you drift off course due to current,wind or inattention,it will plot your course in a big wavy circle until you get straightened up again with your steering marks.
When we were one of the first harbor outfits to use AIS,we learned that you can crank the range down close enough to see each and every light,bridge,pipeline crossing and buoy as it is supposed to be placed.
The view is detailed enough that you could put my Mother in the wheelhouse and she could be able to drive a boat downriver to New Orleans from Memphis.Adding 30 barges would add a whole other degree of difficulty to the experience,though.
And you are right.As of now,it's pretty costly to add the transponder system to a boat but as its usage expands,the costs will go down.
The system on my boat even has an automatic pilot though I would not recommend its use going downriver and around bends.
The only real bad thoughts I have about the electronics concern the depthfinder.As installed in the yard 2 years ago,the thing is FUBAR and won't read a correct depth unless the boat is standing still.

Thanks for the response guys.