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efflandt

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Everything posted by efflandt

  1. When you originally download CacheMate and unzip it, a utility is included in the File Converter folder to convert a gpx from a PQ into the necessary pdb file. See the Readme.html in the CacheMate folder for paths it will look for this file if you put it on SD memory. As mentioned GSAK can also export its data to the necessary pdb format.
  2. Garmin nuvi models automatically read waypoints from new gpx files in \Garmin\GPX folder of SD/microSD. So for a nuvi you can actually "Send to GPS" waypoints from your web browser to save on SD/microSD on your computer, without your GPS connected, and the nuvi would see them next time that card was inserted and the nuvi was booted. However, my eTrex does not seem to read gpx files in that path automatically (and no manual menu for that). So if you did send to GPS (your microSD, instead of an eTrex), you would need to use MapSource, EasyGPS or some other program to open each gpx file on microSD and transfer that to your GPS. Or there are various GSAK macros to optimize and format pocket queries for Custom POI's (I use a 60CSx macro). When actively looking for a cache, I make the POI a regular geocache waypoint, so I can mark it found if/when I find it. The eTrex calendar keeps track of which waypoint geocaches were marked found on each date.
  3. H = newer higher sensitivity for a better signal in marginal conditions. C = color maps x = extras, in this case microSD memory slot. Without that you could only load a very limited number of topo map segments and likely could not use City Navigator "NT" maps for most states (each state may be more than 30 MB). I recently got 2 GB microSD's for $5.99 each. The basemap is just major highways and bodies of water. You do not necessarily need other maps right away unless you can find a unit bundled with maps. I found my first caches with my old Garmin GPS 45 with no maps (and no magnetic compass) at all. But it is a good idea to take a regular compass with you even if you have a Vista, in case your batteries go down. Batteries last long enough in the x models that you may not always remember to take spares.
  4. The Ibycus USA maps seem to be as accurate as City Navigator maps, but are missing a few spots (like a couple of popular hunting counties in WI), and besides not street routable, would not have the address search of Garmin City Nav NT maps. But then my first GPS 45 from 1995 had no maps at all. They are done by a college student in Canada in his spare time, and I hear he also has complete topo maps of Canada. You need MapSource to install them, but if you buy Garmin Topo maps on disk, you will have that. But for what it might cost you for street maps, you might be able to pick up a year end sale on a low end nuvi. Someone has a GSAK macro that can put considerable pocket query info about caches, including recent logs and hint on a nuvi as a multipage Tour Guide.
  5. I am new have had a few I could not find, yet. The only one I asked the owner about is one that I thought I found, but when I read older logs before logging it, I noticed that some had mentioned also finding a letterbox cache while looking for it. So I just logged a note that I may have signed the wrong log. I just asked the owner if it was under a bridge, and if not I would look again. He said it is not under the bridge, keep looking. My track log indicated that I had walked right over it, so I returned the following day in rubber boots when the rain let up, and found it. Edited my log to found, mentioning that if anyone finds a white container, that is not it.
  6. I personally prefer the GC ID for names which are easier to lookup. I use a 60CSx GSAK macro to generate names for my eTrex, and not sure if it is the default or something I chose, but it creates Custom POI's and mine have names like GC15N1N T/S 2.5/2" which means it is a Traditional Small cache, difficulty 2.5, terrain 2. For comment I checked minimal items which shows last 4 log results (FFFF means last 4 logs were found) and long cache name. When pursuing a cache, I make it a Favorite so I can mark it found. I have more complete details in CacheMate where I can log results, and also on my nuvi using a GSAK macro that creates a multipage Tour Guide to chime within proximity of caches when driving around. For some reason when I tried to create POI's using the PQ gpx files directly, they all ended up named "POI" (except parking waypoints) with nothing in the name to identify which was which. And MapSource loaded those gpx files with caches consecutively numbered for names, totally unrelated to anything (I got around that using a native GSAK export for MapSource).
  7. Yes on all counts. I got an eTrex Legend HCx bundled with City Navigator NT (2008, but I got free 2009 upgrade DVD and unlock). I also picked up Garmin Mobile 10 for Smartphones cheap on Ebay (for my Palm TX) which came with 2008 NT maps and free 2009 unlock. I got the unlock code for my nuvi from My Garmin, My Maps, Manage Maps. Since the nuvi unlock is for North America, I was able to put Canadian maps on SD and they work (USA was preinstalled). So I have unlock codes for all 3 devices in MapSource When you generate a map file with MapSource it works for any GPSr that MapSource had unlock codes for at the time (it does not necessarily know which unit you are generating maps for, especially if on SD/microSD). Of course if I ever want to update those it will cost me. I don't know how frequently that is necessary. I have often used paper maps for years. When I got a company car in 1975 it had New York maps in it from 1949.
  8. Certainly you can "Send to GPS" from geocaching.com, Google Maps, Mapquest, etc. if you installed Garmin Communicator (which I think gets installed automatically when you register, or see http://www.garmin.com/support/blosp.jsp and scroll down to Install Garmin Communicator plugin). But as a Premium member even more useful is a GSAK macro that turns a pocket query into a Tour Guide that can sound a chime in the proximity of a cache while driving around. As a POI, it can provide much more text than a Favorite. When persuing a cache, you can make it a Favorite and then change its icon to an open chest when you find it. See http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=195389
  9. If you buy the DVD then you can have it on your PC with MapSource and store it on a card. But it will only be unlocked for one GPSr unless you buy more unlock codes. It would also allow you to load maps for Canada (all of North America except Mexico). Telling you how to crack copy protection would be against the policies of most forums, so don't expect anyone here to tell you that.
  10. Note that your unit uses microSD up to 2 GB, but you are limited to 2025 map segments. Each NT segment covers an entire state, but you would not be able to load Topo maps (smaller segments) for the entire USA at once. There are free transparent elevation overlays available for City Navigator NT maps. Although, you have to download each segment you want and put them into MapSource with something like MapSetToolKit. They do not show all the small roads, trails, creeks of regular topo maps, but at least help you get the lay of the land. See http://www.gpspassion.com/fr/news.asp?ID=446 You can change which mapsets display from Setup, Maps, (i) Information icon, then Menu button. If you enable tracking that can at least help you find your way back out the way you came (or where you parked your car if you forgot to mark that). Something to note is to properly set "Follow Foad" (lock to roads) or "Off Road" (when out in the field) under Setup, Routing. I have mine set to "Prompted" so when I pick a destination, it asks me. Once you find your way to a parking spot, make sure you use Off Road mode.
  11. I have an eTrex Legend HCx and I knew it had the feature to tag the date when a cache was found, but could not figure out where or how it stored that. Thanks. But I had one that I thought I found, until I read logs from farther back and discovered that I had stumbled on a nearby letterbox cache instead (found the right one the next day). I also have a Palm TX with CacheMate to mark them found and log notes to myself, but do not directly transfer that to online logs.
  12. Are you sure you are not missing a decimal point? I don't even think the 12V power socket on a vehicle is rated for 15 amps (maybe 6 amps) and certainly your GPS would never use anywhere near that. The one in my nuvi 750 is F.3A/250V (which means fast blow 0.3A). The fuse in the Gilsson plug for my old GPS 45 is F0.5A/250V, and the GPS 45 used more power than modern GPSr's (10 hrs on "4" AA batteries). The 12V/miniUSB cable for my eTrex or 10x does not appear to have a fuse, but is rated Input: 10-30VDC/Max 1.5A (output: 5VDC/1.0A). So maybe it is 1.5A at the most. I believe USB from a PC is typically 500 mA (0.5A).
  13. I was looking for a cache in stormy weather in the woods and my gps seemed to lead me around in circles a bit, and just when I was about to find something to poke about in a hollow tree, it seemed to lead me away from there. I searched the only likely spot and accidentally found a cache. I thought it was strange that people had stamped it with various rubber stamps (it had been there since 2004). It wasn't until going to log it online that I noticed that the geocache was from 2006 and several logs from way back mentioning a letterbox cache. My track log indicated that I had been right on top of the real cache. So I logged a note, and returned the following day to find the real geocache (not in the hollow tree) and changed my online log note to a find, and that a white container is not it. I did bring a rubber stamp to stamp my log in the letterbox cache and added a note that it is not the geocache ID#. The letterbox cache was about 100 ft due east of the geocache, so coordinates in one direction were the same.
  14. My eTrex Legend HCx came with USB cable, but some eTrex models use a serial cable. This place has all sorts of cables http://gilsson.stores.yahoo.net/index.html I got a combo serial/vehicle cable and a USB/serial cable that works with my ancient GPS 45 (from 1995). While some PC's still have a serial port, many laptops or newer PC's might not.
  15. NVBackup is only for Palms with NVFS (non-volitile memory for internal file system) and Palm OS v5.0 or later. The M515 has Palm OS v4.1 and a statement in its manual sounds like it has volitile memory, not NVFS: "If the battery gets low, your handheld displays a warning message. If this occurs, perform a HotSync operation and then recharge the battery as soon as possible. If your handheld shuts down, you still have about a week to recharge the battery before you lose the data on your handheld." The Palm TX I have had since at least 2006 does not lose its memory because it has NVFS.
  16. I got a new eTrex Legend HCx on Ebay bundled with City Nav NT maps, 12V cable and suction cup mount for about the best price you could find the eTrex without the extras (I paid $165). There were hundreds of them ,but unfortunately are now down to the last 1 or 2. Maps were 2008, but I got free 2009 NT update DVD and unlock code after registering with Garmin. The eTrex will not talk to you like a nuvi. It beeps once to get your attention when some distance from a turn and twice when close to the actual turn with banners to tell you what streets to turn onto. It does have a highway view which zooms in with turn arrows on the route when approaching a turn, but otherwise does not show much detail other than the route. One of the 2D views would show more detail about cross streets. It may not talk to you or show as much 3D detail as a nuvi. But it is capable of navigating, and out in the field has much longer battery life, can zoom in closer, and you do not have to worry about rain or snow. So you could get by with the eTrex alone if you cannot afford both yet. I even found free transparent elevation overlays that can display elevations on City Nav NT maps so you can get the lay of the land. Not as much small road, trail, small water feature detail as Garmin Topo maps, but the Garmin topo maps are not really street routable (other than major highways on basemap).
  17. For transparent elevation overlays for City Nav NT see http://www.gpspassion.com/fr/news.asp?ID=446 On my eTrex I can chose Garmin topo maps, City Nav NT, or NT and elevation overlays. It may not have as much smaller road, trail, water details as the Garmin topo maps, but can give you the lay of the land when street routing. And on a nuvi or Mobile XT the transparent overlays even work in 3D.
  18. There is a 60CSx macro for GSAK which can set up PQ's as Custom POI's. Although, the most recent macro version is for a GSAK beta version, so I used v1.10 of the macro for my eTrex HCx. Not sure of all the features of the 60CSx, but I usually set cache POI's I am looking for as Favorites, so I can open the chest icon when found (eTrex has a Found button for geocache Favorites). I also have CacheMate on a Palm TX for more details and logging notes.
  19. I have regional topo maps, City Nav NT, and transparent elevation overlays for NT all in one file on one card for my eTrex Legend HCx. At first on my eTrex I thought I could only uncheck individual map segements, but the Menu button brings up a menu to "show" or "hide" each type of mapset, so I can show just topo, just NT, or NT with transparent elevations. Not familiar with the Oregon, but it should have some similiar Map Information (i) menu to select maps. As mentioned you have to transfer all maps from different mapsets you want at the same time to one file. But if you rename gmapsupp.img to something else, you could store other sets of maps on one card that you could switch to if you have some way to rename files (PDA or laptop).
  20. When a geocache is placed, the owner may not be aware of a non-geo cache in the vacinity, but if a letterbox cache has been found and mentioned in logs, shouldn't they add a note to the cache description to avoid confusion or some distinguishing characteristic about the right or wrong cache? Due to stormy weather in the woods on uneven ground my GPS was varying somewhat and I thought I had found the cache. I did think it was strange that the log had a considerable number of rubber stamps in it. When I went on-line to log it and viewed all logs from farther back, I noticed that a letterbox cache had been found by mistake a number of times. But recent logs had not mentioned it and some people don't even have that much info out in the field. I checked my track log and had been right on top of the geocache, but then my GPS seemed to lead me away and I found the wrong cache (placed in 2004) about 100 ft east of the real coordinates. I returned the following day when the rain let up and found the correct cache (placed in 2006). I also added a note to my log in the wrong cache that it is not this geocache ID, in case someone else notices that when they find it.
  21. cmconvert does not copy itself to your Palm, it hotsync transfers the converted file to your Palm. What you are probably missing is that you then need to run CacheMate on your Palm to see the data. That is assuming that you used the Palm Install Tool or Quick Install to load CacheMate.prc and MathLIB.prc. Do you still have your CacheMate registration code? For a tutorial see http://www.ksguy.com/geo/cm.html
  22. If poiloader works properly putting them on your eTrex you should be able to find them under Find, (scroll all the way down to) Custom Points of Interest. If you do not have poiloader download it from http://www.garmin.com/support/mappingsw.jsp
  23. Garmin FAQ says they do not recommend more than 2 GB, and number of maps is limited to 2025 for any "x" model (eTrex or 60CSx, etc.). A card with 2800+ topo map segments (~1.5 GB) that works fine in my nuvi (no memory size limitation), works in my eTrex Legend HCx, but sections farther out show no topo data (just basemap) because it cannot count past 2025.
  24. With the nuvi macro they end up as custom POI's (will not interfere with CN POI's) and icon provided is a small container with green cover. On a nuvi they actually end up as Tour Guide with proximity alerts, but if Oregon/Colorado cannot do that, just say "No" where the macro asks if you will be using the alert feature and use express mode of poiloader. You could alway experiment and see if alerts do work (along with manual mode of poiloader to set distance) or if that steps on the comment data (like it does in my eTrex). I may not have something set quite right in Mobile XT (Palm TX), because I can see the boxes with green covers, but it does not alert (in route simulation mode). Mobile 10 pkg makes a Palm look/work like a nuvi, but many settings are in different places. Even when the screen on my Palm TX is vertical instead of horizontal everything word wraps and is viewable fine like the Colorado example (w/o tire marks). I use a different GSAK 60CSx macro for POI's with more condensed info for my eTrex. That one provides a treasure chest icon. You can use whatever icon you want to for Custom POI's, typically a 16x16 pixel bmp file with the same name (except extension) as the matching data file before using poiloader.
  25. You might check Ebay for eTrex units. I bought a Legend HCx bundled with 12V power cord, suction cup mount and City Navigator NT sealed in a clamshell box (from user shopepal). Maps were 2008, but I ordered free 2009 update DVD and got free unlock code for it. But if you wanted to use the 2009 City Nav NT maps on yours, you would need to purchase another unlock code. Someone at gpspassion.com came up with free transparent topo contours that can overlay City Navigator NT to end up with routable topo maps. Although, you may not see smaller roads, trails, creeks that are shown, but not routable, on Garmin Topo maps. But for some reason I see a road through a park that is NOT on City Navigator NT, even though I have my Legend HCx set to "show" City Nav, "show" transparent contours, "hide" Garmin topo (all in one regional gmapsupp.img file on microSD).
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