Build your own off-road navigation system

Spares

Searches on eBay often result in EeePC offerings priced at a few hundred dollars. Investing in two or three of the devices might be worthwhile, so you can pack away a few spares for the expected rough conditions.

At its best, the EeePC's battery can last surprisingly long, but used PC batteries have typically seen better days, which is not acceptable on off-road terrain. Therefore, connecting to the car battery with a cable [3] makes perfect sense (Figure 3).

Figure 3: A car charger cable connects the car battery to the computer. With the EeePC, this doesn't mean converting the voltage, because the computer uses 12 volts. (Photo courtesy Pearl)

No Letting Go!

A netbook catapulting through the passenger compartment can wreak havoc. To secure the netbook in the vehicle so that you can see the display and still drive safely, you need a professional mount (Figure 4). Some fairly reasonably priced commercial solutions are available, such as the one from Pearl [4].

Figure 4: A laptop mount lets you navigate and maintain vehicle safety while driving. Usually, you would screw the mount to the passenger seat. (Photo courtesy Pearl)

When purchasing a mount, make sure it's securely fixed to the vehicle, such as to the mounting screw on the passenger seat, but is also easy enough to remove. Typically, you would travel without a navigation device or with just the built-in one, but rough terrain requires the tougher off-road Linux version.