Monday, February 23, 2015

Fake promises and broken dreams

<This is a personal weblog which I write for my own entertainment, and hopefully the entertainment of my readers along the way.
The views/opinions/experiences are those of myself, and in no way shape or form is in relation nor reflects those of my current or former employers, or schools and academic institutes.
I link to external sites within my pages, I do not necessarily agree or disagree with their data, content, views, etc. I post these links for my audience>

By: Engr. Nelson P. Ramirez via Tinig ng Marino

"Earn dollars, see the world for free and have a girl in every port.”
This is the phrase that maritime schools often use as come-on, either as a blatant offer or as a subtle hint, particularly on collecting girlfriends, to lure unsuspecting students. Little do they know that this catching phase has wrecked a thousand dreams.

(1) ON THE SUPPLY and DEMAND IMBALANCE: The Philippines is producing 20 thousand maritime graduates a year and the industry can absorb only three to five thousand.

(2) INABILITY OF THE GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY TO TAKE CONCRETE STEPS: There are almost 100 schools offering maritime courses. Most of these schools cannot pass the international standards and had been committing moral ‘estafa’ for years in the pretext of giving education. The sad news, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which is in charge of monitoring these schools, has been sleeping on its job. The CHED itself has NO EFFECTIVE MONITORING SYSTEM and this is the very reason why schools offering maritime courses sprouted all over the country. These schools do not have EFFECTIVE MONITORING SYSTEM and QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION as well as what the EMSA assessors found out when they conducted an assessment here.

(3) SHIPPING COMPANIES SHOWING NO RESPECT FOR FRESH GRADUATES: There is an exception to the rule. If you are a graduate of the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy (PMMA), Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP), NYK-TDG Maritime Academy, DMMA, and the University of Cebu; and if you are scholars of John B. Lacson and of Southwestern University in Cebu and the likes, you are well respected. You are even given free education and even allowances. But if you came from a sub-standard school and could even hardly read and speak English, expect no respect from the employers. The Visayan Maritime Academy, the Mariners Polytechnic and the Malayan College of Laguna have their own manning agency where they will send their cadets for apprenticeship.

(4) UNWILLINGNESS/INABILITY TO ENTER A DIFFERENT MARKET: Not very true One of the reasons why most of our young boys took this course is that they would like to imitate their neighbors or relatives who were once idiots in the barrio but have become successful seamen and now own a very nice house and car. They believed that any idiot in the barrio can become a seaman and earn dollars. They were told by their parents to take this course because there is no chance for them to become lawyers or doctors since they are stupid. They best thing for them to do is to take BSMT nor BSMarE and earn dollars.

(5) IMPROPER/INADEQUATE TRAINING: It is a fact that there has been a huge lapse in the quality of deck and engine cadets and that poor quality cadets come from sub-standard schools. This is expected. Most of the graduates from sub-standard schools rely on their relatives and friends who will bargain for their employment like a “buy one, take one” merchandise. Officers know that the seafaring industry has a shortage of qualified officers. They will bargain for their relative if the manning agency wants to hire their services. On the other hand, sub-standards schools don’t care where their students will go after spending three years in school. They have paid for their tuition, anyway. However, if the student is successful in looking for a shipping company that will take him for his apprenticeship, his school will charge him for a ONE-YEAR tuition and matriculation fees; otherwise he will not get his diploma. This is what we call highway robbery in broad daylight. MARINA is now the SINGLE MARITIME ADMINISTRATION that can make a drastic change in the rotten education and training system.

Copyright Theft / Piracy
I sometimes write posts, or post links to ‘illegal’ sites or ideas; i.e. software ‘piracy’ or copyright ‘theft'; I neither condone or recommend following my example; assume that I have linked, or posted these for academic reasons only and that I am not actively breaking the “Law”; heck who doesn’t like tinkering.
Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc. is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

12 Main Reasons Seafarers Quit Sea Jobs

One morning, I came across this interesting post on Facebook regarding how seafarers are coping with their day to day experience. The topic below will surely make you nod and agree with me.

Please read till the end and post your opinion on the comments tab.

Every year, maritime institutes around the world churn out thousands of fresh deck cadets and marine engineers. Each of these young graduate has high hopes of making it big in the maritime field by becoming a first-rate seafarer some day.

With their newly attained knowledge and training, these officers embark on-board ships with reputed shipping companies, work for few years, and attempt to upgrade their ranks. However, in spite of highly lucrative job offers, adventurous working environment, and a “globetrotting” lifestyle, most of these seafarers suddenly decide to quit their ship jobs by accepting opportunities onshore. This trend is on the rise and is now being seen in several countries around the world.

As the number of seafarer quitting the industry increases every year, we ponder, what is it that propels them to quit such a respectable and lucrative career after sailing for few years? Though some of the reasons we found out are common and obvious, there are a few new and surprising ones as well.

After doing a survey which involved a number of sea-going professionals who have already quit sea jobs or are planning to, we enumerated the following main reasons which bother seafarers today.

Note : Kindly note that by no means We are trying to say that a career in maritime industry is not worth the efforts.

Main Reasons Seafarers Quit Sea Jobs

1. Unsettled Lifestyle

This is the most common and obvious reason as these days more seafarers want “settled” jobs on shore. At the start of the career, a seafarer would not mind having a “nomadic” kind of lifestyle, but after certain years, especially post marriage, he longs for a more stable lifestyle, especially with his family. This is definitely not a new reason behind seafarers quitting sea jobs, but it is still one of the prime reasons for professional dissatisfaction.

2. Hectic Life

One cannot deny the fact that life on board ships has become extremely hectic. With more stringent maritime regulations coming up each year, life as a seafarer has become increasingly hectic, laborious, and monotonous. Increase in paperwork, advanced training guidelines, new codes, and rigorous safety and environmental laws have made the lives of seafarers extremely hectic on board ships. Moreover, many seafarers have also stated poor management of manpower on board ships as a reason for increase in work load. Needless to say, the already hectic life on ships is becoming even more hectic every year.

3. Onboard politics

No matter how hard you try to stay away from professional or personal politics on board ships, it will get to you sooner or later. Politics and conflicts on ships not only make it difficult to work but also to socialize within the already small group of people on board. Moreover, there is a very thin line between professional and personal life on ships. This makes it even more difficult to avoid as well as deal with politics or conflicts arising as a result of differences in opinions. One needs great determination, patience, and skills to deal with difficult people on board ships, especially after having professional/personal arguments.

4. Lack of Social Life

Almost everyone who joins ships is brought up in a social environment since birth. When such people are suddenly exposed to confined spaces of ships with almost negligible social life, negative effects such as frustration, loneliness, and homesickness start taking a toll on them. Initially the life on ship might not seem bad, but as time passes, a sense of emptiness starts creeping in. Lack of interaction with people and limitations on physical movement make life more miserable on board. It takes a lot of courage and mental steadiness to keep a calm and focused mind on ship. Many seafarers eventually quit because of this reason.

5. Away from the Family

Though most of the seafarers can digest the fact of staying away from friends for few months when sailing, parting away from the family for months together is what tear their hearts apart. Some might have just started their married life while others would have recently experienced parenthood, missing those precious moments with their loved ones for whom they care the most, is what hurts seafarers to the core. No seafarer wants to miss spending time with his wife or see his son or daughter grow old without him being around. It is then that seafarers realize the importance of “family life” and “loved ones”. The pain of staying away for months is also one of the main reasons seafarers quit sea jobs.

6. Personal/ Family Problems

One cannot stay focused at work when bothered by family or personal issues. Seafarers often face this problem when they leave their family problems at shore. However, not able to attend to the personal problem and its impeding negative effects on the family, induces a constant state of worry which reduces the ability to focus on one’s duties. It’s extremely difficult to work when you are physically on the ship but mentally back at home. Moreover, what hurts more to seafarers is the inability to attend to any emergency situation or incident in their family back home. Such situations lead to extreme frustration, anxiety, sleeplessness, and stress among seafarers. Many seafarers have quit sailing because of this reason.

7. Rise in Maritime Piracy

Though several steps have been taken lately to fight piracy at sea, incidents involving pirate attacks and high-jacking of ship’s crew occur almost every month. The threat of piracy attacks is ever increasing and seafarers are obviously scared in spite of availability of weapons to fight them. No one wants to risk their lives or put themselves in danger by sailing on ships which ply in piracy affected areas. The fear of pirates is also stated as one of the many reasons by seafarers for leaving ship jobs.

8. Health Issues

Sailing on ships requires meeting stringent medical and health requirements. As strict as the rules to be meet before joining the ship are, it’s an irony that life on board ship is not even close to healthy. Erratic sleeping schedule, excessive working stress, unfriendly environment, unavailability of fresh food, and inadequate medical facilities drastically affect seafarers’ health. Moreover several seafarers also have to quit sailing once they are diagnosed with conditions which might require immediate attention in times of medical emergency. Many also complain about the increasing difference between work and rest hours, in spite of laws demanding proper distribution of them.

9. Reducing shore leaves

One of the main reasons people join merchant profession is the lure to see the world. However, in the past few years there have been a sudden reduction in shore leaves that are being granted to the seafarers. With faster turnaround time of ships at ports and scheduled maintenance procedures, seafarers are not allowed to go out on ports. Also, many VLCCs and large capacity ships don’t even come to the port for discharging or loading, giving no chance to seafarers to refresh themselves away from the ship’s environment. Such consistent sailing with less or negligible opportunities for shore leaves have frustrated several seafarers who have eventually quit sailing.

10. Lack of Shore Jobs

This cause might sound a bit contradictory, but this is also one of the main reasons why seafarers quit the field early in their career. Though most maritime institutes and experts promise adequate on-shore opportunities for seafarers, those wanting to shift to shore find it difficult to get a worthy job. Most of the companies ask for good amount of experience at sea, in order to get a job in their on shore office. Moreover for a good managerial position on shore, either one has to do an MBA or take up some equivalent courses. Seafarers find it difficult to get back to studies after certain point of time, especially when they are bound by family responsibilities. Many seafarers are now able to foresee this and thus change their course very early in their career. However, compromising on the salary is one thing they have to accept sooner or later.

11. Reducing crew members

With the financial crisis looming over the industry, shipping companies are utilizing every technique possible to cut back expenses and overhead costs. In an attempt to do so, the number of crew members on ships is being reduced to compensate the necessary expenses. As a result, mariners are experiencing substantial increase in work load, without any increase in remuneration. This trend has been seen almost across all shipping companies around the world. The higher demand of work load with same or negligible increase in payment is also making several seafarers quit sea jobs.

12. Stringent Maritime Laws

Stringent maritime laws have made lives of maritime professionals difficult, especially for those at the management level. Many seafarers in the past have been imprisoned, heavily fined, and suspended as a result of such laws. Officers at the management level are the ones who often bear the brunt of these laws and are therefore constantly at stress while sailing. This has been one of the main reasons for the acute dearth of maritime professionals at the managerial level.

Apart from the above mentioned reasons, seafarers have stated several other factors which force them to quit sailing. However, the above mentioned ones are the most commonly stated ones by professionals across all ranks.

Posted on Facebook by Oliver Batilong
Source: http://www.marineinsight.com/marine/life-at-sea/12-main-reasons-seafarers-quit-sea-jobs/
Image Credits: itfglobal
Copyright Theft / Piracy
I sometimes write posts, or post links to ‘illegal’ sites or ideas; i.e. software ‘piracy’ or copyright ‘theft'; I neither condone or recommend following my example; assume that I have linked, or posted these for academic reasons only and that I am not actively breaking the “Law”; heck who doesn’t like tinkering.
Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc. is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

Friday, February 13, 2015

AMSA MARINE NOTICE 18/2014 Maximum period of shipboard service for seafarers

Maximum period of shipboard service for seafarers

Purpose

This Marine Notice aims to advise vessel owners, operators, masters and crews of AMSA’s approach to implementing the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) requirements in relation to the maximum continuous period that a seafarer can serve on board a vessel without taking leave. It also outlines how these requirements will be enforced during AMSA port State control (PSC) inspections.

Background

MLC, 2006 entered into force both in Australia and internationally on 20 August 2013. Since that time, AMSA has incorporated MLC, 2006 inspections within its structured PSC inspection regime.

Recently, AMSA inspectors have identified occurrences of seafarer service periods extending well beyond 11 months. While AMSA has received complaints in relation to these occurrences, in some cases the crew members have subsequently agreed to additional service extensions. However, the AMSA inspectors have not always been comfortable that such service extensions have met the “mutual agreement” requirements of MLC, 2006 Regulation 2.1 – Seafarers’ Employment Agreements.

MLC, 2006

The relevant sections of MLC, 2006, Regulation 2.4 – Entitlement to leave and Regulation 2.5 – Repatriation, which make reference to the maximum continuous period that a seafarer can serve on board a vessel without taking leave, are quoted below.

Regulation 2.4

Purpose: To ensure that seafarers have adequate leave

Each Member shall require that seafarers employed on ships that fly its flag are given paid annual leave under appropriate conditions, in accordance with the provisions in the Code.
Seafarers shall be granted shore leave to benefit their health and well-being and with the operational requirements of their positions.

Standard A2.4

Each Member shall adopt laws and regulations determining the minimum standards for annual leave for seafarers serving on ships that fly its flag, taking proper account of the special needs of seafarers with respect to such leave.
Subject to any collective agreement or laws or regulations providing for an appropriate method of calculation that takes account of the special needs of seafarers in this respect, the annual leave with pay entitlement shall be calculated on the basis of a minimum of 2.5 calendar days per month of employment. The manner in which the length of service is calculated shall be determined by the competent authority or through the appropriate machinery in each country. Justified absences from work shall not be considered as annual leave.
Any agreement to forgo the minimum annual leave with pay prescribed in this Standard, except in cases provided for by the competent authority, shall be prohibited.

Standard A2.5.2

Each Member shall ensure that there are appropriate provisions in its laws and regulations or other measures or in collective bargaining agreements, prescribing:

the circumstances in which seafarers are entitled to repatriation in accordance with paragraph 1(b) and (c) of this Standard;
the maximum duration of service periods on board following which a seafarer is entitled to repatriation – such periods to be less than 12 months; and
the precise entitlements to be accorded by shipowners for repatriation, including those relating to the destinations of repatriation, the mode of transport, the items of expense to be covered and other arrangements to be made by shipowners.

Analysis

Standard A2.5.2(b) states that the maximum duration of service on board before a seafarer is entitled to repatriation must be less than 12 months. This does not necessarily mean that seafarers must be repatriated, but rather that they are entitled to repatriation.

However, Regulation 2.4 clearly states that seafarers must be given paid annual leave and Standard A2.4 clearly states that annual leave shall be calculated at a minimum of 2.5 days per month of employment, which equates to 30 days per year. Standard A2.4.3 also states that any agreement to forgo the minimum annual leave with pay prescribed in that standard, except in cases provided for by the competent authority, shall be prohibited.

Therefore, the MLC, 2006 requirements can be read as indicating that the maximum continuous period that a seafarer should serve on board a vessel is 11 months.

This interpretation is further supported by the ILO Standards Department, MLC, 2006 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), Third edition (revised) 2014 - Question C2.4.c. (Page 37), which states:

Does this mean that the maximum period that a seafarer can serve on board a ship is 11 months before taking one month of paid annual leave?

Yes. The concept of paid annual leave implies that it is to be taken annually and therefore the maximum period for service on board a ship without leave would be 11 months. This is also linked to the requirement in Standard A2.5, paragraph 2(b), regarding the entitlement to repatriation in a period of less than 12 months.www.ilo.org/mlc

Compliance and enforcement

Following the MLC, 2006 requirements and the ILO clarification, AMSA inspectors will continue to verify compliance with the maximum 11 month shipboard service period for seafarers, including verification that any service extensions do not exceed 11 months.

In recognition that the above interpretation is not being applied universally, for a period of six months from the release date of this Marine Notice, AMSA will bring such issues of non-compliance to the attention of the vessel owner, with an expectation that non-compliance will be rectified at the earliest possible opportunity.

However, extreme or systemic breaches will be managed in accord with the requirements of MLC, 2006 Standard A5.2.1.6.

Toby Stone

A/G Deputy Chief Executive Officer
December 2014
Australian Maritime Safety Authority
GPO Box 2181
CANBERRA ACT 2601

File No. 2014/4160

Source: https://www.amsa.gov.au/

Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc. is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

AMSA MARINE NOTICE 03/2015 Directions and refusal of access to Australian ports

Directions and refusal of access to Australian ports

Australia is a signatory to various International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions which aim to ensure ships are safe.

Vessels that are not operated and managed to meet applicable standards and relevant Australian laws pose an increased risk to seafarers, vessels and the environment. The Navigation Act 2012 provides additional powers so that in some circumstances, AMSA may direct that:

A vessel must not enter or use any port, or a specified port/s, in Australia or the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Australia.
A vessel must comply with specified requirements while it:
- is approaching, entering, or using any port, or a specified port or specified ports, in Australia or the EEZ of Australia; or
- is in or is leaving any port, or a specified port or specified ports, in Australia or the EEZ of Australia.

AMSA’s power to give these directions is in section 246 of the Navigation Act 2012. This section does not specify a minimum or maximum duration for refusal of access or how long conditions need to be complied with. AMSA will make those decisions based on the facts and circumstances of each case.

In support of that decision making process AMSA intends to take the following general approach to the exercise of this power.

Directions that a vessel not enter or use port/s

AMSA may consider issuing a direction refusing access to Australian ports where a vessel has a poor port State control (PSC) record or there are concerns about the performance of the related vessel operator.

With PSC performance for individual vessels the general principles that will be applied in the making of a decision to issue a direction not to enter or use an Australian port, or ports, are as follows:

Refusal of access for 3 months – where a vessel has been detained then released with conditions to carry out corrective action, but returns to Australia without the corrective action having been taken; or

Where a vessel has incurred three detentions in a two year period and has not been previously issued a direction.

Refusal of access for 12 months – where a vessel has previously been issued a direction and is detained within two years of the expiry of the refusal period under that direction (while under the same operator). The nature of previous detentions that resulted in the initial direction may also be taken into consideration.
Refusal of access for 24 months - where a vessel has previously been issued two directions and is detained within two years of the expiry of the refusal period under the second direction (while under the same operator). The nature of previous detentions that resulted in the initial direction may also be taken into consideration.

Note: When considering vessel performance AMSA will also look at the performance of the company as a whole. Where this is deemed unacceptable the periods detailed in these general principles may be extended.

Additionally, or in combination with the general principles above, a direction to refuse access may be issued where:

A significant breach of Australian legislation has occurred.
The effectiveness of the vessel operator’s management system is considered to pose a significant risk to the welfare of seafarers, their safety or Australia’s marine environment.
The standards of some vessels managed by an operator are so poor as to cast significant doubt on the standards of other vessels managed by the same company. AMSA may consider directions in respect to other vessels of that operator.

A direction resulting from a new detention in Australia will generally have effect as soon as the vessel leaves the Australian port or anchorage following the clearance of the latest detainable deficiency.

AMSA may vary the direction to allow access to a specific port in the event of force majeure or overriding safety considerations. Specific requirements may be imposed on the owner, operator or the Master of the ship to ensure safe entry in those circumstances.

Directions that a vessel comply with requirements while approaching, entering, using or leaving port/s

A vessel’s current circumstances or non-compliance history may result in AMSA issuing a direction requiring compliance with specific requirements while the vessel is approaching, entering, using or leaving any port, or specified port/s in Australia or its EEZ.

These requirements will be applied having given consideration to the nature and level of risk posed to the welfare and safety of seafarers, vessels and the marine environment.
Such directions will be additional to port State control actions and may be applied where it is considered specific action is required by the Master and/or operator in order to address identified risks.

Examples of such situations include:

Non-compliance with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) such as payment of wages, crew welfare or Seafarer Employment Agreements.
Poor management of fatigue and hours of work/rest.
Lack of compliance with mandatory reporting requirements such as ReefREP.
Carriage of inadequate and out-of-date nautical charts and publications.
Exercise of unsound navigation practices including; passage planning, identification of hazards and lack of understanding of Designated Shipping Areas (within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park).
Inappropriate procedures and use of equipment required by MARPOL.

AMSA’s compliance and enforcement policy

AMSA will always take into consideration the specific circumstances that exist in relation to the vessel.

The principles AMSA applies to ensure that decision making is accountable, consistent, transparent, impartial, proportionate and fair are documented in AMSA’s Compliance Enforcement Policy.

A list of vessels subject to an AMSA direction not to enter or use an Australian port can be found on AMSAs website at www.amsa.gov.au/vessels/ship-safety/port-state-control/refusal/index.asp

Gary Prosser
Deputy Chief Executive Officer
11 February 2015

Australian Maritime Safety Authority
GPO Box 2181
Canberra ACT 2601

File Ref: D15/20467

Source: https://www.amsa.gov.au/

Download link: https://apps.amsa.gov.au/MOReview/MarineNoticeExternal.html

HTML page: https://apps.amsa.gov.au/MOReview/Attachment/ShowAttachmentInline/1927

Monday, February 9, 2015

Seabook

Seabook latest edition 1.1 released

Navigation, IALA
Stability, HazMat
Marine Engineering
List of World Flags and Currencies
included in latest release.

Speacial thanks for Contributors for their efforts
Capt. Tore Jacobsson
Capt. Vasely Arkady
Capt. Suleyman Sandikci
Capt. Salih Karaer
Mar. Eng. Sertac Ugras
Mar. Eng. Abdelkader Muammar
Mar. Lec. Tumay Misirlioglu

Seabook is an application/software/project for Ship Mates, Cadets, Maritime Students, Seafarers
and even for Master Mariners to reduce time and effective access few "important" subjects.
Seabook contains ;
COLREG (International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea)
GMDSS (Global Maritime Distress and Safety System)
Ship Stability
Ship Navigation
International Code of Signals
Knots
Seabook supports below devices ;
Able to run on 99.9% mobile devices, televisions and computers.
iOS - Apple iPhone/iPad
Android - HTC, Samsung, Lenovo, Nexus, Acer, Dell, Foxconn, Fujitsu, HP, Huawei, LG,
Panasonic, Philips Electronics, Sharp, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba, ZTE and more.
Symbian OS - Nokia Mobile Phones - even old models.
Blackberry.
WebOS - Smart Televisions.
Windows Mobile Phones.
Windows Desktop/Laptop Operation Systems - Win 2000/NT/XP/Vista/7/2003/8.

Please email for links and installation procedures.
marinersleeway@gmail.com
marinersleeway@yahoo.com
marinersleeway@hotmail.com
marinersleeway@outlook.ph

Feel Free to Donate!

Saturday, February 7, 2015

Daily Journal - MARINA

Link to PDF Format: http://marina.gov.ph/stcw/html/pdf/STCWcirculars/STCWcirculars%202014/stcw%20cir.%20no.%2002-s2014.pdf

Copyright Theft / Piracy
I sometimes write posts, or post links to ‘illegal’ sites or ideas; i.e. software ‘piracy’ or copyright ‘theft'; I neither condone or recommend following my example; assume that I have linked, or posted these for academic reasons only and that I am not actively breaking the “Law”; heck who doesn’t like tinkering.
Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc. is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

Online Marine Test

Link: http://shipseducation.com/tests/training/

Copyright Theft / Piracy
I sometimes write posts, or post links to ‘illegal’ sites or ideas; i.e. software ‘piracy’ or copyright ‘theft'; I neither condone or recommend following my example; assume that I have linked, or posted these for academic reasons only and that I am not actively breaking the “Law”; heck who doesn’t like tinkering.
Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc. is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

AIS Pilot Plug USB 3 Meters

Introduction:

This AIS Pilot Plug USB Data Cable provides a simple and easy way to connect Ais Pilot Plug to your computer, laptop, or pocket PC, work with Nautical Charts Marine Navigation Software to show your own ship and surrounding ship's information(including Position, SOG, COG, Heading, ROT, Navi status, Ship name, Call sign, Ship type, Ship demension...), much better then using GPS.

Features:

IMO Standard AIS Pilot Plug interfaces for mariners;
Standard USB 2.0(1.0 compliant);
High-quality shield high speed 2.0 cable;
Made of environment friendly materials;
Cable lenth 3 Meters.

Operation:

Plug USB Data Cable to the AIS Pilot Plug and computer's USB port;
Install driver for the first time connection;
Set the baud rate to 38400, n, 8, 1

Package Content:

AIS Pilot Plug USB Data Cable......1pcs(3 meters High quality cable)
USB driver CD

Maritime Ships Database

Very easy and friendly to use

1. File: Open Database, Web-Site, Exit

2. Statistics of Ship Type, Ships Flag, Build year and Engine makers

3. Print ship details

4. Update of Maritime Ship Database

5. Help file

6. About Maritime Ship Database

7. Exit Maritime Ship Database

8. Maritime Ship Database Web-Site

9. Open Ships Database

10. Search by Keyword

11. Search by Ship Type

12. Sort rows by clicking to column name

13. Search by Ship Name

14. Search by Flag

15. Search by IMO Number

16. Search by Build Year

17. Search by Ship Operator

Go to the website and download the program. Works on Windows 8.

Link: http://www.shipseducation.com/soft/maritime-ships-database/

Copyright Theft / Piracy
I sometimes write posts, or post links to ‘illegal’ sites or ideas; i.e. software ‘piracy’ or copyright ‘theft'; I neither condone or recommend following my example; assume that I have linked, or posted these for academic reasons only and that i am not actively breaking the “Law”; heck who doesn’t like tinkering.
Please don’t assume anything I have done / linked to / said etc is a good idea; I am in no way condoning copyright theft despite making a complete digital copy of something in no way removes the original from any one… so is hard to call theft. and Piracy is a sucky name for it too! I still recommend you to download the paid software and app after the test.

Mariners Leeway