I believe there is an alarming trend where many of the fundamental skills needed for sound geologic mapping are no longer being sufficiently taught at some geologic field camps, mainly due to technology. This prognosis is based on the recent experiences of several field campers I have talked to. Students are beginning to rely on laptops and GPS units at field camp and dont learn how to properly use topo maps or stereo-pair photos. Using a GPS to locate yourself on a map may be easy and fast, but what if you lose or break the GPS, run out of batteries, or cant get a good signal? I have more to say about this and have lots of advice and tips for mapping that I will add below as I get it all put together.