Ramblin' Wreck

quote: You'll need the proper cables but that's not a big deal. Quite a few places sell cables. Who is a reputable dealer? Should I get a plain cable or one that has the option to use a power cable?

I'm looking for GPS options to use with a Palm Tungsten C. I would like to use the GPS with Mapopolis and Maptech's Outdoor Navigator.

I love mine, modified it to work with a RAM mount on my hiking stick. I use this setup with a bluetooth GPSr.

I've been using an iPAQ for a few months now and find it much better than a Palm OS PDA. I'm able to use a 1 GB compact flash card to store my USGS 1:24,000 TOPO maps and bluetooth allows me to keep the unit in an otter box, protected from the elements. [This message was edited by Ramblin' Wreck on April 15, 2003 at 08:31 PM.]

"The vector graphics are what make this possible. Raster graphics which is what the USGS uses for its maps and data is simply too large to be practical." Actually, Genius Loci and I have been using a setup that does allow us to use the USGS 1:24000 DRG (Raster) topos. The setups are: *iPAQ PDA w/bluetooth *Bluetooth GPS (Any gps would do but this allows me to place my iPAQ in a waterproof otter box) *Ozi Explorer and OziCE *LARGE storage media. This is pretty easy as we both use expansion packs on the iPAQ to improve battery life. I use a 1 GB microdrive. You can download for FREE the DRG's from most states. Here are the steps: *You download the quad *Import them in Ozi Explorer *Convert them to OziCE format, by the way this compresses them to about 1/2 the size *Copy them to you Pocket PC This allows incredible GPS detail and allows you to track your position right on the topo!

This is exactly what I've been looking for. It took a couple hours spread out over a few days, but I got it to work. 1) Use GeoBuddy to convery .loc file into a .csv file 2) Use Excel to format the .csv file into the corrrect format for Mapconverter using the sample.txt file included with the zip file from Mapopolis 3) Run Mapconverter, change the file name extension to .mlp and copy over to my iPAQ. This allows me to route to a cache using Mapopolis and then using either OziExplorer or my Garmin to find the cache. Thanks again and I look forward to Mapopolis including this in the next release. Their tech support was great, answering several questions over the weekend.

Where in my post did I state my manhood was ruffled? I am a citizen in good standing, I do not have to justify where and how I spend my time if I do not violate any laws. My beef with the officer was not pulling me over, or asking me questions, or telling me my story was questionable. I showed him my GPS with the cache coords on it, I gave him the web address www.geocaching.com, I was VERY polite. When he ran my license and didn't write me a ticket (he said that he pulled me over because I did not stop at an intersection with the front end of my vehicle behind the crossing line)that is when he should stop detaining me (remember, this incident lasted over 20 minutes) and let me on my way.

I'm from SC and GA and speak with a thick southern accent. [This message was edited by Ramblin' Wreck on February 12, 2003 at 09:22 AM.]

This happened this AM while I was on my way to log 'There's a MONSTER at the End of This Cache!!!!!' in North Richland Hills, TX. I was staying in Dallas and got up at 5:30 to hit this one before a 9:00 meeting. I was planning on taking a shower when I returned which I'm sure contributed to the issue. After locating the cache site a police officer pulled me over. He asked what I was doing. I explained I was geocaching and this just seemed to agitate him. He said he did not own a computer and didn't have any idea what I was talking about. He took my drivers license and had me remain in my car for 20 minutes while he did something in his car. He returned and again started to ask questions. What was my adress, phone #, etc.? Why was I in Texas, who do I work for? At this point I was ticked-off. I told the officer that he was harressing me and that I needed the name and contact # of his supervisor. He immediately changed his tune and apologized if he was offending me. He said He was just trying to do his job. I took his card and he wrote the name of his Sargent on it. At this point, there was no way I was going to let this person intimidate me. I parked my car, grabbed my caching bag and headed off to do the cache. The officer sat in his car and watched me as I headed off to the first clue. After finishing the cache and starting to head back to Dallas, I called the Sargent and relayed the story to him. He was very professional. My main point to him was I can accept being pulled over, it was after he checked my license and it came back clean as a whistle that he continued to ask questions. I did get the departments fax number and told the Sargent that I was going to fax over some information regarding geocaching so he can mention it in his next staff meeting to avoid future incidents like mine.

1st, much of the credit for this setup goes to Genius Loci. I'm running an iPAQ with a Socket bluetooth GPSr. Using Ozi I've been able to download (for free) USGS DRG 1:24,000 Topo maps and calibrate and compress them to my iPAQ. This is an EXTREMELY cool setup as I can then track my position through the Socket GPSr on the Topo's! Navigating terrain is now a cinch compared to the Topo maps I was using on my Garmin 76s. My question is this: I would like to replace my Street Pilot III with this iPAQ/Socket setup. What is the best routing software available for the iPAQ? I'm looking for turn-by-turn routing software with full US coverage, especially rural areas that I'm not familiar with when Geocaching. I'm not as interested in POI's but I do find them useful. I've searched the archives but didn't find anything that addressed this. Your feedback and experiences are appreciated.

Ignore [This message was edited by Ramblin' Wreck on November 23, 2002 at 07:46 PM.]

I ordered in preparation to mark my 100th find. Here's a picture of it just after it was taken out of the shipping container. I am VERY pleased with the quality and it certainly makes a good milestone marker. [This message was edited by Ramblin' Wreck on November 24, 2002 at 06:53 PM.]

I have been using the Pocket Query feature for a couple of months now without any issues until today. I had downloaded the .prc and .loc files to my Palm and GPSr respectively. The coords from the .loc file were incorrect and didn't match the coords for the same waypoint in the .prc file. Has this been reported?