Annoyed by Errors in Books

[Boasun]

Yesterday while at 'Barnes & Noble' I picked up a book on sailing and perused it as I drank my coffee.
The book appeared to be well written with lots of nice pictures and diagrams. But I came across three odvious errors in the book.
1. they had three short blasts as the signal for a pilot boat.
2. The formula for Geographic range was totally in error.
3. And placement of mooring lines...

I have been working on boats & ships all of my adult life and teach this stuff for those who want to acquire a USCG license. So those errors were the most glaring to me. But what I worried about; is that I didn't read the book cover to cover and that there are many other errors in that book. So some using this book as their reference will end up in some very bad situations.
Well it is a good looking book with lots of pictures and diagrams in it...

[sailingdog]

Just curious, what book was it... You might want to write the publisher with your concerns.

[AE28]

Originally Posted by Boasun

Well it is a good looking book with lots of pictures and diagrams in it...

...and you could hardly beat the price!!!

[trisstan87]

I just finished reading an older book from the &0's titled "Sea Sense, by Richard henderson." I must say it is a GREAT BOOK FOR SURVIVAL SAILING!!! While some of the recomendations for eletrical and mechanical systems are obviously outdate, the diagrams and write ups about jury steering or rigging and everything else the book details for handling emergencies makes me recomend the book for anyone who is in to sailing. A bit date, but a great resource none the less.

[lydanynom]

I don't understand why you would take the time to make this post but not share the title.

[SOUNDBOUNDER]

I find a lot of the cruising guides to be terribly inaccurate. They all become out-of-date eventually as marinas, restaurants, even bouys change.
But some of them are very misleading even when they are brand new.

I almost get the impression they never visited the harbor, but instead googled the info.

[casioqv]

Originally Posted by SOUNDBOUNDER

I find a lot of the cruising guides to be terribly inaccurate. They all become out-of-date eventually as marinas, restaurants, even bouys change.

They're not all like that though. This one is amazing:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands by Brian Fagan

I get the impression that he's literally anchored in every cove on the US west coast dozens of times in all types of boats and weather conditions, and does it over and over again to keep each edition up to date.

Every cove has detailed photos he's taken himself, anchoring/bottom advice, and advice for each type of weather. Frankly, I don't even see how one person could research and compile all of this correct and detailed information, but he did!

[SOUNDBOUNDER]

Originally Posted by casioqv

They're not all like that though. This one is amazing:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands by Brian Fagan

I get the impression that he's literally anchored in every cove on the US west coast dozens of times in all types of boats and weather conditions, and does it over and over again to keep each edition up to date.

Every cove has detailed photos he's taken himself, anchoring/bottom advice, and advice for each type of weather. Frankly, I don't even see how one person could research and compile all of this correct and detailed information, but he did!

Not all of them I agree. I find the Cruising Guide To The New England Coast to be an excellent resource.
There are others however that are just plain garbage.

[Boasun]

The book that I was referring to is the; "International Marine Book of Sailing" by Robby Robinson.
Except for the errors that I've mentioned in the first post, over all it is an excellent book. Lots of Pics, diagrams and sidebars. Would make a good reference book for winning a six pack of beer or for someone who is learning and need something to read during the cold winter months.

By the way; Does anyone know what three short blasts on the whistle means??

[markdigi]

I am operating Astern