Reverse Running commentary
I
n the computer/electron-
ics world, anything over
five years old is ancient
obsolete technology, and
anything over 3 years old is
on the verge of obsolete.
When I look at the current
DCC systems by Digitrax,
NCE, Lenz, EasyDCC, MRC
(and others like Zimo) what
do I find? I find systems es-
sentially unchanged since
the mid 1990s. That means our current DCC user interface and
system technology is now going on 20 years old!
This makes DCC systems a literal dinosaur. These systems were
designed before cell phones, before tablets, and in fact almost
before laptops! I believe we’re long overdue for the next gen-
eration of DCC systems to emerge.
Modern touch interfaces are taking the world by storm, and
there’s one new model railroad system that’s not even DCC,
but it’s clearly in step with the times: RailPro. Its touch-screen,
direct-to-the-loco approach feels a lot more modern than our
20-year-old DCC system technology.
If model railroading is to appeal to the younger generations
who have grown up with computer games and now mobile
devices, moving to updated technology will become a require-
Reverse Running: Stepping outside the box with a contrary view
by Joe Fugate
Next generation of DCC system?
ment or you risk having your market share eroded by some
upstart who delivers a fresh, new system and interface that’s
up with the times.
I can tell you my 13 year-old grandson took to RailPro like a
duck takes to water. I had to explain to my grandson how to
use an NCE throttle and all its buttons, but when I handed him
the RailPro system that MRH got to demo, my grandson took
off with virtually
zero
explanation.
I am also hearing stories from older guys who are using RailPro
1
– the visual touch interface is so much easier to understand
and navigate than the old-school and somewhat cryptic inter-
faces common to today’s DCC systems. These systems were
modern in the 1990s, but they look hopelessly dated today.
As high-tech consumer devices continue to advance toward
ever simpler and more friendly interfaces, people will naturally
compare model railroading technology (or any hobby’s tech-
nology) to what they’re used to with the other devices they
encounter in their daily lives. If model train technology appears
ancient by comparison, many newcomers to the hobby are go-
ing to write our hobby off as antiquated and irrelevant.
The model railroad tech running our trains
must
get updated to
modern expectations or we risk being written off by the public.
I also see this as a grand opportunity for some upstart com-
pany to capture significant market share from the entrenched
DCC system vendors if they don’t update their UI’s soon.
So what about it? Are there any vendors willing to show us all
what a DCC system designed in the 21st century can be like?
1 RailPro isn’t perfect, but it shows what’s possible with a state-of-the-art system
design. The DCC system vendors should ignore RailPro only at their own peril.
MRH-Jul 2014
