by using a paper map like some sort of mystical land pirate
Oof, I remember going to people’s homes to install phone and Internet links using paper maps because we didn’t have maps on our phones back then and the GPS were mostly shit and out of date.
Some of the smaller villages were barely there on the regional maps, aside from maybe a dot near a main road with none of their actual streets.
For these, we’d call or stop by city hall, sometimes they’d have a shitty map or just directions.
I’m getting old…
That brings back some (mostly annoying) memories!
I recall wanting (and maybe using?) an option on MapQuest on dialup to choose how many of the turn-by-turn targeted maps to download, to save time and ink.
And I recall having to factor in dial-up map image download times and printer print-out times, into my total travel-time calculations.
Yes, I should have downloaded and printed the maps the night before, but my mother had a phone call with her mother.
I did this as well. When it was new, it was freaking revolutionary.
Barely a decade prior to that, you’d have to call AAA, give them your itinerary, and they’d mail you a custom triptik for your journey. And it would cost. You can still get these, but why?
Good backup in case your phone shits the bed or you end up somewhere with no data
Wow, actually wondering about your age and the country. Pretty interesting and I am not even that young.
Not OP. Decent smartphones have been around for less than two decades. I used to have a Windows Mobile PDA with GPS and navigation software (I had one called Navigon), those sucked at the time, lots of outdated maps and terrible navigation… “It’ll get you there, but don’t expect to take the best route!”.
Of course it was all offline navigation, 'cause back then we paid internet by the minute!
