Dr. Mac, living up to his moniker, corrected me in my mistaken assumption that it was not possible to play Apple’s AAC-encoded music files through TiVo. I guess there is a software solution using LAME that encodes-on-the-fly AACs into TiVo-friendly mp3s. It hardly matters since I’m rocking the AirPort Express either way, but I wouldn’t want to be accused of spreading lies.

Also on the Apple front, some dude thinks he knows what the ROKR iTunes disappointment phone is all about. He may be on to something.

Follow Me

A minor squabble yesterday has prompted some thinking on my part. The topic is driving in caravan. It happens all the time, “I’ll follow you there” or “You follow me, I know how to get there.” It’s typically a lot easier to, when the circumstances are right and more than one car is involved, have the person who knows where they’re going lead the way than to try and give what may be complicated directions. There is something about this relating to the fact that giving someone directions back home is a lot easier than getting someone somewhere unfamiliar; it has something to do with finding the closest point of recognition, but it leads me to a digression so nevermind for now.

The problem with following or leading is that there is sometimes a disconnect in driving styles which leads to the follower being in possibly a worse situation than they would have had they tried to find something on their own or which makes the leader frustrated. I think a set of simple guidelines for leading and following need to be established which could eliminate the pitfalls in this common situation. So I present the first working draft of my Caravan Driving Guidelines, to which I am accepting feedback and comments.

Leaders

1. Drive a comfortable, typical speed. Don’t race, don’t try to match the speed of the guy following you. Five miles per hour over the posted speed limit is a good compromise: You aren’t likely to get pulled over (or get your follower pulled over) but you won’t make speed freaks want to pull their hair out if they’re behind you.
2. Signal. Always turn on your blinker several yards earlier than is strictly necessary and leave it on a few seconds longer than you normally would. Never do anything without signaling.
3. Make moves early. You don’t need to make sure there is enough room for lane changes and such for both you and your follower, but change lanes as early as possible to give the follower a chance to catch up. Likewise, any merges or exits should be indicated as soon as they possibly can so you don’t force the follower into a dangerous last-minuute situation.
4. If you completely lose the follower, pull over before you make any course deviations. If a follower gets stuck behind a red light, it’s okay to drive on if the road ahead is relatively slow moving and there are no upcoming turns or exits. Once you need to do something, make sure your follower is there. If not, pull over and let them catch up. To avoid losing followers, never run yellow lights.
5. Carry a cell phone. Call it “Plan B.”

Followers

1. Don’t tailgate. Drive a safe distance behind the leader and don’t freak out if someone gets between you. If the leader is following the guidelines, he’ll pull over before making any moves if he can’t see you so you won’t get lost.
2. Take the cues. It’s possible that your leader will be making unnecessary moves like passing cars, changing lanes, etc. Do them anyway unless it’s obviously unsafe. Sometimes you can’t tell the difference between a random lane change and a change of direction.
3. If you miss an exit, pull over immediately. You may be able to back up along the shoulder and take the exit anyway, if it seems safe. If that’s not a possibility, call on your cell phone and arrange a place to meet.

Email comments or suggestions to paul@ironsoap.org.

One Little Thing Real Quick, It’s No Big Deal Just That…

Hockey starts tomorrow! Boo-yah!