These days there are dozens of software programs and apps for boating navigation, weather, and everything else nautical, including many free programs and apps of reasonably good quality. Most programs run under Windows, iOS, or Android, but those interested in using Linux have a pretty good, and free, option available to them also: Navigatrix. This is a full suite of navigation (chartplotter) and other software applications you can download and run from a USB memory stick. You set up your laptop (PC or Mac) to boot from the USB stick into Linux and into the couple dozen programs that include almost everything a boater could want. Running off the USB stick, you can park your hard drive to minimize power consumption and drive wear at sea. Check out this full review of Navigatrix to learn about specific features and see if this might be just what you've been waiting for.
