Posted by tleemay on January 30, 2001 at 10:55:14:
In Reply to: Re: Mixed gas deco planners posted by Kendall Raine on January 30, 2001 at 08:37:16:
I use DecoPlanner. Prior to now, I have used Abyss,
GAP, and Pro Planner. As Kendall points out, it is
based on the RGBM of the VPM and not the ZH-L16B or C
models.
DecoPlanner is a great value, with fantastic support
(that I have yet to need), runs easily and generates
the reports you want and none that you don't. It's
not as clunky as Pro Planner and much more user
friendly than Abyss and GAP.
Unlike Abyss and GAP, it allows you to change one
variable within you plan and re-caululate on the
fly. My old versions of GAP and Abyss insisted you
delete complete stops or "waypoints" to do the
re-calcs, even with a simple gas mix or stop depth
change. DecoPlanner also allows you to easily
change the upper and lower gradient factor % - also
on the fly - without having to delete and/or
re-add data to the dive plan.
And what's really neat is that DecoPlanner is due
to come out with a version that will run on the
Palm platform, so you won't have to lug around an
expensive hefty lap top if you or the team wants
to do some planning adjustments.
And as Kendall also points out, I'm sure that MHK
will contribute his experiences, as well as John
Walker should. Those two have had the most
experience with the software's evolution and field
testing in SoCa.