Stopping your car to look at a map on a road trip is frustrating. It’s even more frustrating being lost in an area with which you are not familiar. This can be prevented with a somewhat new technological device called a navigation system. These have become more popular within the last few years because they compute a route for you and give you directions while you’re driving. Some of these systems are even more advanced in that they will compute a new route for you if you make a mistake and take a wrong turn.
These types of devices are called Global Positioning Systems (GPS). They were developed from technology used by the U.S. military and use earth-orbiting satellites, calculating the distance between these satellites to interpret it’s position.
These devices can be relatively expensive and might cost several hundred dollars. If you shop carefully though and think about whether you will use one enough to justify the expense, you can find one at a reasonable price. They are however still rapidly being developed and may offer new features in the near future.
