I have a confession to make - I am not half as knowledgeable on Hymer motoromes as some people think I am. While I do have a good basic knowledge based on 25 years of ownership and many miles of travel, there are wide gaps in my knowledge. My career was in computers IT and internet, so I am OK with electrics and technology, but not so good with engines.
But what I do know how to do is to get answers from the internet, and there have been some really amazing developments recently which have impressed me so much, I want to pass them on so that owners can get answers for themselves. But first some history of how it used to be done.
Google.
Google has been my goto tool for years. The 2 tricks to master google have always been phrasing the search correctly, and interpreting the results. Interpreting the results has been harder since google started to fill the front page with sponsored links, but there is still useful info there, and I used to automatically go to the 2nd and 3rd pages anyway.
Then a few years ago google introduced image search, which has also been incredibly useful to me. Here is an example. An owner posts a picture of a sink tap saying it is faulty. But I have never seen it before. Hymer must have used a dozen taps - maybe more - over the years. So I go to google and type “caravan tap” - and click on images. Then I just scroll through the images until I see one similar, then do a new search based on that info to narrow it down more. Then once I have a make and model I can look for vendors on Amazon Ebay or dealers. This usually takes just a few minutes, but I can come back with an answer - and it makes me look like I know everything! But I don’t … I am just good at search.
Around 75% of all the questions I answer, I had no idea to begin with, I just know how to search for them, and then reply to the questioner. And because most questions have been asked before, i use my IT skills to keep databases and photo libraries on my own computer, so I can locate info easily. It makes me look good, but like most of my career in IT I have only ever been half a step ahead of the customers - with the phone in one hand and the manual in the other! And I use these same skills to answer questions online.
Another recent feature of google image search is that you can now upload a photo and it will search on that - results can be mixed, but it is a useful feature, and I use it a lot.
But in the last few months things have changed radically in online search … introducing the new kids on the block …
Artificial Intelligence - Perplexity and ChatGPT
When these came out a year or so ago, they were just chat bots - they were impressive but couldn’t search the web. But the latest versions can and do - I use Perplexity.ai - it takes a lot to impress me in tech, but I am impressed, believe me. With AI you can ask questions in normal language, and not only that, you can ask questions in badly spelled and badly punctuated normal language! … the AI will usually sort it out. It is hard to explain in writing, so the best thing is to try it out. It’s free.
There are 3 things to remember about AI.
1. It isn’t actually “intelligent” like a person. It only appears to be because it is now giving you answers in what appears to be normal human language - but it has no opinions or real knowledge. Because ….
2. It can only give you what is already out there on the internet. So if the answer isn’t already online, then AI won’t give it to you …so …
3. It can and does make mistakes. These mistakes are usually because it can’t find a good answer, so it tries to guess. So don’t trust it for things that might affect you directly - ie finances. But generally speaking I have found it to be very accurate in technical matters.
What is brilliant about AI assisted search is that it summarises the results beautifully, in easy to read bullet pointed paragraphs. What it actually does is interpret your question, and then it goes out and searches the whole internet - that means Google, Bing, Wikipedia, Reddit, forums, websites - as much as it can find. And so far this is no different to a google search giving you 6 pages of links. But here is the clever bit - it then summarises all those results in natural language. And that is its killer feature - it presents the results in an easy to understand way. And if you want to explore further, it also quotes the links from where it got the information, and usually you get some photos too.
Here are some typical technical questions - but remember, you can ask it anything!
What is the difference between DC and AC? What is the history of Hymer motorhomes? What is a non return valve in a motorhome water system? What are the advantages of lithium batteries over lead acid batteries in a motorhome? How many amps at 12v does it take to run a 1000w airfryer through an inverter? What is 25mpg in litres per 100km? What size solar controller do I need for a 400w solar panel? Why is Victron more expensive than Renogy? What are people saying about the quality of Adrain Flux? What is the Facebook group “Classic Hymers Technical”? Who is Ron Bentham? Will it rain tomorrow in Manchester? What is the meaning of life? Are there more stars in the universe than grains of sand on the Earth? What is the oil capacity of a Mercedes 410D 1993?
I have already said that you can make spelling and grammar mistakes, but the better you phrase the question, the better the results. So for example, if asking questions about motorhomes, I always say so - by adding words like “in a motorhome or RV context”.
One thing it can also do, but you have to treat with a pinch of salt, is answer questions like - “where can I buy a Reich twin barrel water pump in the UK” - it will give you results, but these results are not based on quality, so any suppliers given may not be the best, but. at least you will have a guide. You can ask it “who is the best supplier of motorhome parts in the UK” and it will answer, but the results will be based on all the comments it has found on social media and on sites like Trustpilot - so these will be comments made by other humans, not based on solid evidence. But again, it’s a good guide.
Another great feature of these new bots is that you can ask “follow on questions”. This means that it remembers what you have asked, and any question that you ask subsequently it will remember. Again it’s hard to explain, so just try it.
But you have to remember that AI is a tool to assist you, and is not perfect. It is very very good, but not 100% perfect. If the answer you are looking for is not out there or has been discussed and answered in an online forum by actual humans, then AI won’t have it. It may make suggestions for further research.
For example - I asked it for the part number for the exhaust manifold for a 1993 Mercedes 410D and it didn’t know. But I know myself that the info is out there, which proves that AI is not perfect. Locating part numbers needs a different set of search skills which I will write about separately.
Both Perplexity and ChatGPT are free, and work either in a browser or an app. They are easier on a keyboard - ie laptop or pad, but the phone apps are also brilliant, and you can of course dictate to them. They will also translate to any language, and they will also deal with text you paste in. So you can write an article on any subject, then paste it in, and ask things like - please spell check, grammar check and edit this article. Then you can say - please rewrite it in the style of a technical article good enough for publication in “New Scientist” … and it will! Then you can have fun with it and say - please rewrite in the style of Shakespeare, or Jane Austen … it really is very good and great fun. then ask it to write a humorous limerick summarising the whole article. or you can paste an entire article from anywhere on the web, and say - summarise this in 100 words. No wonder university students are having a ball and lecturers are having kittens!
All my career I have heard people say - I don’t understand or can’t use computers - especially the Boomer generation, which to be honest does represent most classic motorhome owners. And that has always been the case - to get the best out of IT, you have always needed to get stuck in and learn, or be trained. Well that is no longer the case. AI has now put a friendly layer between normal people and the internet, and I highly recommend that you at least have a go.
And for those of you worried about big brother and privacy - AI adds nothing more than what is out there already. The only info it can collect is the history of questions you ask. Of course AI will be used by the authorities and criminals for all sorts of stuff now and into the future, but just using it as I have suggested poses no more problems that there are already.
Go on, ask it anything! The more you ask it, the more you will understand what it can do, and have some fun too.
