PADI and technology (what’s the deal with e-cards?)

[JackD342]

Plastic cards do have a finite lifespan. I used to keep some in my wallet so I could always get fills and go diving. After a decade, several of them started to crack. I took them out of my wallet and put them in plastic protectors. I wanted to see about getting replacements for some of them, but most want $50 a pop. I lost my Nitrox card several years ago, but instead of getting a replacement, I just show the next higher card. Some of them are getting so old, I wonder if I wait too long they won't be able to find me in their database anymore. I contacted NAUI about getting a replacement for my OW card from 1987 and they have no record of me. That's probably too long to expect anyone to keep records. I did see PADI shows all my cards on their website, maybe one day I'll breakdown and order new ones.

The issue in not finding your 1987 certification is almost certainly NOT because they purged old electronic records, but rather because an old paper based record was not added to an electronic database with the advent of the digital age. Some agencies made a greater effort than others to load old records into a modern system.
And then there is always the possibility of losing an old paper record to fire, flood, vermin, human error, etc.

 

[MargaritaMike]

Plastic cards do have a finite lifespan. I used to keep some in my wallet so I could always get fills and go diving. After a decade, several of them started to crack. I took them out of my wallet and put them in plastic protectors. I wanted to see about getting replacements for some of them, but most want $50 a pop. I lost my Nitrox card several years ago, but instead of getting a replacement, I just show the next higher card. Some of them are getting so old, I wonder if I wait too long they won't be able to find me in their database anymore. I contacted NAUI about getting a replacement for my OW card from 1987 and they have no record of me. That's probably too long to expect anyone to keep records. I did see PADI shows all my cards on their website, maybe one day I'll breakdown and order new ones.

Quick order new plastic ones - $50 over a decade averages out to $5 a year. They are just as valuable in the 10th year as they are in the first. Cheap at twice the price.

Cheers - M²

 

[Erich S]

Many of the cert records from the 70s and 80s were on microfilm and were lost to time.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

Funny...
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Some of the tech agencies were bought and sold a couple times. I'm not sure how well the records were kept, or if they would even honor them. I'll just keep them in these nifty card protectors I bought for now.

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Anyway, the main point of my post was just to give a heads up that these things don't last forever, especially if you keep them in your wallet.

 

[MargaritaMike]

Plastic cards do have a finite lifespan. I used to keep some in my wallet so I could always get fills and go diving. After a decade, several of them started to crack. I took them out of my wallet and put them in plastic protectors. I wanted to see about getting replacements for some of them, but most want $50 a pop. I lost my Nitrox card several years ago, but instead of getting a replacement, I just show the next higher card. Some of them are getting so old, I wonder if I wait too long they won't be able to find me in their database anymore. I contacted NAUI about getting a replacement for my OW card from 1987 and they have no record of me. That's probably too long to expect anyone to keep records. I did see PADI shows all my cards on their website, maybe one day I'll breakdown and order new ones.

Quick order new plastic ones - $50 over a decade averages out to $5 a year. They are just as valuable in the 10th year as they are in the first. Cheap at twice the price. :grin:

Cheers - M²

 

[Allison Finch]

I'm not disagreeing with your points, but they apply to what?...0.05% of certified divers? Less? The average vacation diver will never be that far off the grid, nevermind the fact that "the grid" reaches farther and farther every day, and these remote places are becoming connected at an ever accelerating rate. Your romantic visions of disconnected nirvana are coming to an end in the not too distant future. That's simply a fact.

Applying the logic that an extremely exclusive minority of dedicated divers *could maybe* wind up in a bind *if their phones break or die* while traveling to an equally exclusive destination means that relying on technology isn't a reliable solution for anyone just doesn't make any sense. What happens if I'm traveling to the same location and my card gets lost or stolen? That's no different than a broken phone or dead battery. All of these situations are equally avoidable, some of them boil down to bad luck. Bad luck doesn't apply to technology exclusively. You could just as easily have a bag stolen with your card in it as you could drop your phone and break it.

Personally, I carry my card. And a color photocopy in another bag. I also have pictures of it on my phone and laptop. If anyone is dumb enough to plan a trip around diving, whether it's a weekend down the road, or a month around the globe, and they're not intelligent enough to prepare for the logistical contingencies of a lost card or a broken phone, I don't feel bad for them when they don't get to dive. Putting all of your eggs in one basket isn't a problem with technology. It's a problem with you (general "you," not targeting YOU, Allison)

I make copies of all my important
data and hide them in multiple luggage pieces. I also carry my log and cards.

I find this resistance to carrying a tiny piece of plastic, as well as digital and copies pretty amusing.

People find so many ways to complain about minutiae....

 

[doctormike]

People find so many ways to complain about minutiae....

You do know where you are posting, right?

 

[Allison Finch]

Many of the cert records from the 70s and 80s were on microfilm and were lost to time.

My first card, in the late 60s, likely were not even on microfilm.

 

[Ben_3]

I never paid for the e cards. I just used pictures of my plastic cards in my phone. When I finished my DM I found out e cards where now accessible free as a pro so now I use them. I think they should offer the e card with every cert but I know it’s a way of making profit.

 

[Rickk]

I always had a PDF of my passport, driver licenses, visa's medical cards etc. I have it in electronic form on all my devices as well in the cloud.

After reading this thread, I'll simply add all my certs to that file.

The originals are in my carry on luggage, paper copies are in every other piece of luggage, I will do the same with my certs but also a printed set to my dive bag.

That way I am covered in just about every eventuality.