SteveL

I have never paid over $3.00 for an app before... $9.99?? Really??? I have been a supporter of Geocaching for almost 10 years now, and you want me to pay again? With a 15 min test period and mixed reviews I have to be honest - asking your existing customers to pay to test your product is nuts. Honestly thinking of canceling my subscription... SteveL

The H series has an improved chipset for gps reception. It has nothing to do with the radio portion. The H series does only show up in the 5x0 models, however, and all the 5x0 models do have higher wattage on the radio than the 1x0 models. FRS/GMRS is the radio service that the rino's use. FRS is unlicensed and limited to 1/2 a watt. Use on GRMS frequencies requires that you get a license (~$75 from the FCC for 10 years I think) Both are also limited by the antenna that is built in and cannot be legally modified (FRS restriction). The new chipset is for the GPS and does not change the FRS/GRMS range in any way. Range quotes of “miles” are WAY optimistic for normal use. Miles might be obtained line of site – from mountain top to mountain top, for example. Fractions of a mile are more likely on the ground, and less in terrain that blocks the signal. Car to car is even worse as the car shields the signal. Car to car in the city is worse still – maybe a block or two. If you are looking to get further, you’ll need a GRMS license and radios with more power and external antennas. Better yet, get a Ham license – cheaper, and you have access to much more frequencies (GRMS is limited to a handful of channels) across the entire RF spectrum! There’s a forum here about GPS and Ham radio as well. I am a ham, and have enjoyed using APRS (Automatic Position Reporting System) which is the ham “equivalent” of position reporting on Rino’s, but much more. There are gateways to the internet that allow anyone to look up my position online, 2 way messaging, etc. Lots of fun! SteveL

quote:Originally posted by BrianSnat:Hmmmm, paging through the posts, several others expressed basicially what I wrote. I could just have written "ditto" under them. Ditto. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

quote:Originally posted by BloenCustoms:Recently while on a hunt I was "propositioned" <-m- by an "alternate lifestyle person". Were you wearing a dress? SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

I have found that most caches are full of junk, but I don't care! I like the hunt, finding the cache, and exploring an area that I would have otherwise missed. If you're out there for the "treasure", you will be disappointed in most cases. If I do leave something, it's generally a paperback book registered at www.bookcrossing.com. While the book might have a higher intrinsic value than most of the stuff out there, if you don't like what I read, it's still junk! SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

Caching Music SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

quote:Originally posted by hoovman:It's too late for Ramblin' (sounds like it worked out OK), but the ACLU publishes a pocket guide called:http://www.aclu.org/PolicePractices/PolicePractices.cfm?ID=10626&c=118 OMG!!! I clicked on the link and actually accesed the ACLU's website!!!!! Say it ain't so! AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGG!!!!!! SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

And then someone criticizes it? SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

And is a radio/GPSR combo unit that seem to be quite popular. Audiovox makes one as well, there are probably on or two others, but the Rino os probably your best bet. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

quote:Originally posted by beejay&esskay:Did you submit it with the GEOCAC code? No, I didn't know about the Geocaching code till I read this thread, I will on the next benchmark I find and log with the NGS! There are a bunch near me that haven't had entries in 25-35 years, I tried to find a couple this weekend, but had difficulty finding access - most would either require access to private property, or are up a hill with no fire road/trail access - too much bushwacking for me. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

With the debris spread out over such a large area, the task of finding the bits and pieces is quite daunting. Are any cachers out there hunting specifically for shuttle fragments? I would think the skills the caching community could bring to the salvage effort could greatly assist. Many of us are avid hikers, familiar with navigating and marking waypoints with a GPS, have developed a skill for finding objects in the wild that might otherwise go unnoticed. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

I looked up where it would pass on Heavens Above last night, and saw that it would be passing overhead a little after 5am here in SoCal. I have used Heavens Above to predict and see ISS pass overhead before, but never the shuttle, and thought about getting up and watching it go by. I didn't, and instead woke up to images on TV of this terrible tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the lost, and the extended NASA family. We need to get back on the horse and ride again as soon as safely possible. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

I would only make a submission if it’s been a while since the last report, and I would never submit “destroyed” unless I had REALLY good evidence – like the broken mark in my hand. I recently made a submission for DX4320 with a slight update in the directions that is now on-line – cool! DX4320 STATION RECOVERY (2003) DX4320 DX4320'RECOVERY NOTE BY INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTORS 2003 (SDL) DX4320'LEFT TURN OFF OF ORTEGA HIGHWAY (STATE ROUTE 74) IS NOW INTO THE DX4320'RONALD W. CASPERS WILDERNESS PARK. These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

I've had a Venture for almost 2 years now, and I've beat it up pretty good - still works great. I keep seeing these new units that have topo's, and other neat features, but I can't part with my Venture - it's been that good. Plus, it's smaller, packs nice high-res. screen and it's paid for. Sorry, I can't honestly complain! How about a Garmin "Praise" thread? SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

I thought the manufactures had gotten together and agreed on a new, 48V standard, largely due to the increasing electronics in cars – 12V just can’t cut it when cars are being outfitted with DVD, games, power EVERYTHING and 1500W of sound. If you own a car or truck like this, you’re probably dragging 300lbs of copper to handle the current! Going to a 48V standard would cut the current draw 75%. Hopefully, when this new standard ships, they will also deliver a new (smaller) connector for the accessories we are all going to plug into it… These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

quote:Originally posted by Desert_Warrior:Power x 2, or an increase os 3dB, is the lowest detectable change to an average user. It will get comments like "I think this is a bit better, but I really can't tell" or things like that. It takes an increase of 6dB, or power x 4, to make a noticable difference. I grew up around two-way communications gear – RCA (TacTec), Motorola, GE, Maxon - my dad was selling the stuff to police, taxis, news crews, construction, etc. He still owns a couple of repeaters in the NY area. I remember keying up a repeater on the Empire State building from 25 miles away with nothing more than ~100mW of RF out of a Cushman test set (the spectrum analyzer was much fun!) with the proper CTCSS frequency AND a yagi pointed in the general direction. There was not much in the way, and the Empire State building was, at the time, the second largest building in Manhattan. I used many portables (walkie-talkie, but nobody called them that) while growing up, and I know that 5w will punch through more foliage, walls, etc. than 1 watt – it is very noticeable. Most of the time, 1 watt was fine, but it was nice to be able to flip a switch and get 4 or 5 watts to get a message through. It would be nice to find a FRS/GRMS radio with a 1w/4w switch. Anyone out there ever build a GRMS repeater using two handhelds? A lead acid battery, two radios, maybe a duplexer could all fit in a 50cal ammo can… SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree. [This message was edited by SteveL on January 24, 2003 at 09:04 AM.]

but what does this have to do with Geocaching? Maybe you should post this on a PDA review site. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

Does anyone know of a good site of reviews, or just a listing of specifications of FRS/GMRS units? I have a few FRS radios, and would like to get a couple GMRS radios (licensed, of course) for the extra range it can provide. For instance, Costco has a Motorola dual pack FRS/GMRS for $99(?), but the output on GMRS is only 1 watt, not much over FRS. The legal limit is 5 watts on GMRS, which (if I remember my math), is a 3dB difference – effectively double the power (not 10 times). I am looking for a pair of units that are at least 2 watts, but am getting sick of hunting down spec sheets – I can’t find anywhere on Garmin’s site what the power output of the RINO’s are – not even the manual lists it. Thanx! SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

maybe I'll get one, as I already have streets... However, this is comming from a ammo box racist, I'll have to think about it... Moral reasons and all.... These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

Energizer Bunny arrested... charged with battery. HA! HA! HA! sorry, SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

Bring me another Pan-Galactic Gargle Blaster, plate captain! Got your towel? SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

If a cache is placed with a GPS with an error (A), and it is then hunted with a GPS with an error (, the two errors will create a new error, which is the sum of the two errors ©. The two errors will never cancel each other, but will always guide the cacher into the least desirable terrain. SteveL These are my opinions and only my opinions, unless you share them as well, which would make them our opinions, but I am not of the opinion that I can express your opinion as my opinion without your prior expression of said opinion, and then my re-utterance of that opinion would, in my opinion, be foolish unless I were expressing agreement to your opinion, and then it wouldn't be my opinion but your opinion to which I only agree.

but not this one. Pointless drivel. Now, how often does one get to use a word like drivel, anyway? SteveL Puns are bad, but poetry is verse. Wherever you go, there you are.

The Sportrak Pro look to be a very accurate GPS. See the part in Italics - this is probably the problem. From Joe Mehaffey and Jack Yeazel's GPS Information website, SportTrack Pro Review quote:Receiver Accuracy and Sensitivity: The Sportrak Pro GPS appears to represent a significant step forward in WAAS enhanced GPS position accuracy. In experiments the Pro was able to achieve 95% confidence accuracy of less than one meter on two out of the three tests we made in the open. It also achieved its specification accuracy of 3 meters 95% of the time under moderate tree cover on all tests. No other consumer handheld GPS we have reviewed has achieved this accuracy. Other tests show that this stationary accuracy is not achieved at the expense of position lag at highway speeds or in overshoot on sharp turns. We consider the Sportrak Pro to be the most accurate consumer GPS receiver that we have reviewed. Magellan Engineers have confirmed that our results are consistent with their data though they do not GUARANTEE accuracy to the level we have experienced in our review unit. Subjective evaluation of the sensitivity would be that it's above average. The most dramatic results of the Pro's performance was under moderate tree cover. Magellan seems to have overcome this general problem with hand-held receivers as can be seen in these plots (HERE). Dynamic accuracy wasn't as good as the GPSmap 76, because the Pro records fewer automatic trackpoints as seen (HERE). WAAS: The last graphic is an example of accuracy immediately after turn on explaining why 10 minutes is needed to acquire all the WAAS corrections before starting the recordings. In the Atlanta area, all Magellans we have reviewed can receive corrections from the AOR-East geosynchronous European EGNOS satellite. The units are permanently in the WAAS mode which can't (easily) be switched off. This will be a problem for users far outside the WAAS and EGNOS correction areas. For example, users in Australia have reported significant position errors introduced by receiving the POR satellite's WAAS corrections. Patience Grasshopper... SteveL Wherever you go, there you are.

quote:Originally posted by borregobill:be there with batteries on... Hey BorrengoBill - Are you into amateur astronomy by any chance? SDAA? TAC_South? SteveL Wherever you go, there you are.