It was strictly a navigation tool at the helm, for a decade. But the ipad with Garmin Bluecharts changed my planning thinking. I like to do that at home(all year round) as much as on the boat. It's just the thing for me, I zip around the coast of Maine now at light speed compared to the chart drawer.

My favorite chart is the Bay of Fundy to Cape Cod, and there's no detail in that chart on the ipad. Those are my sailing grounds and we have a 1946, 6th printing of that chart(found at a garage sale for peanuts), hanging at home.

I can hardly walk by that chart anytime without stopping and pausing for a moment to recollect, or plan a next sail on it.