that rucksack link is where I learned to use the beads; Michael Neiger now uses my beads exclusively (my name is Kevin and I get a mention in his writeup). When bushwhacking just for exploring, you don't have to know exactly where you are as long as you have a baseline you can target to get out (like a power line, or a road etc.). I only pace count when I strike off in a certain direction and don't have any "catching feature" like a river to know when I've travelled a certain distance. Even with a catching feature, it helps to have a sense of how far you have travelled so you don't mistake the next brook at 0.6 miles with the "river" you were targeting at 0.9 miles. It does become a background mantra after a while and does not distract from smelling the roses. Its more acccurate than distance by time estimates; and one easily learns to calibrate their count for terrain variations. Just more fun and challenging for me than just GPS, which is bad news to rely on 100% anyway. My fav compass basic book is June Flemming's staying found.