hacked0ff

1. Turn on MiFi 2. Configure iPad to connect to the Mifi wireless. 3. Start driving. Thats really all I did. I've only used the built-in maps app and MotionX HD with this setup and its worked fine.

I've noticed that PQ's that are GPX v1.0.1 and any other GPX file that has some of the newer attributes causes random lockup's when using the geocaching features of the unit. Since I set the GPX version back to v1.0 in my profile on geocaching.com my problems have went away. I haven't had any lockups since. I'm running the latest firmware as far as I know.

I've found that Basecamp doesn't like PQ files that are GPX v1.0.1. ( you can set the GPX version in your profile) They always load as waypoints instead of geocaches. If I just copy the unzipped PQ files directly to the GPS, everything works fine. If I copy the geocaches from the GPS back into Basecamp, they show up as waypoints again. Even the latest Basecamp beta doesn't seem to like the v1.0.1 GPX files. I loved GSAK when I was still on a PC, but having to fire up VMware just to use GSAK is just too much of a pain for me.

I recently took advantage of the REI sale on the Garmin 62s. I upgraded from a GPS 60.

I've successfully used my first gen iPad with a Verizon Mifi several times. It works with the built-in Maps app and Motion-X GPS HD. The Mifi has a built-in GPS but I've read that Verizon has it disabled on some units. A lot of it depends on how the app was written. I absolutely love being able to use my iPad to get me to a cache location and then I break out the handheld GPS for the actual hunt. There are a few bluetooth gps solutions for the Wifi ipads avaliable now as well.

Make sure the coords are correct for your location. Last Saturday, I put some fresh batteries in the GPS, and turned it in before leaving the house and it claimed 30ft accuracy. I though ok, its got a good view, seeing about 8 or 9 sats, time to go. I was going to a part of town that I don't get to very often so I figured I'd do some caching along the way. When I hit the find button, it didn't show any caches nearby. When I looked at the sat screen, everything looked good except the coords. My usual place in the world is around N 33 xx.xxxx W 84 xx.xxxx but today, I was N 35 xx.xxx W 74 xx.xxx. I was somehow driving out in the Atlantic Ocean. The track log says I drove 14.5 miles @ 193mph out in the water. The duration of that track log was 4 1/2 minutes. The GPS usually starts off wherever it was when I turned it off last. I turned the unit off and back on again and all was well. Very strange.

I always cache alone, but not by choice. With a one year old at home,a house to rebuild and work, my time for hunting caches is limited to my daily commute, lunch time and trips to the grocery store etc.. I've met a few cachers while out hunting and there have been times I wish I had some help . I enjoy caching alone mostly because I can get away from the daily grind even if for a little while. I'm hoping my daughter will like it when she gets old enough to tag along.

Why is TNLNSL. TFTC considered a snub?

One these would be alot easier for the less technically inclined: http://www.semsons.com/blbapafgaeta.html

You can go with either one. Of the the big advantages to the Palm is you can pick up one of the older models that uses 2AAA batteries pretty cheap. They can run for days and if you damage it while out caching, you're not out a lot of money. I have both a PocketPC and a Palm( actually several of each) . The PocketPC cost me over $300, needs charging almost every day(I use it a lot) and the color screen is difficult to see outdoors at times. But it has built-in WiFi, Bluetooth lots of memory etc... The Palm, which has no WiFi, Bluetooth, 8mb memory, runs for days and its screen is very easy to read outdoors. If you only want a PDA for geocaching, go for a Palm.

Its happened to me about 4 times - always right as I spot the cache....sigh - trials and tribulations of being "on-call" Amen to that, I really dislike being on call. My boss called me this morning about 6am. About 7am, he asked why I didn't answer the phone. When I told him I was out in the woods looking an ammo can, he looked at me with a funny look and said 'You were dreaming about being out in the woods looking for ammo cans ?' When I told him I really was out in the woods looking for an ammo can, he just nodded his head and walked off.

I have both a PocketPC and a Palm. I prefer using the older non-color Palms because they're cheap, can run for a week or two on 2 AAA batteries and the non-color screens are easier to read in the sunlight. Plus cachemate only runs on the Palm. Most computer stores sell refurbished Palm devices and there are plenty to be found on E-Bay. I run GSAK on my laptop for managing my Pocket Queries, cachemate on an 8mb Zire I picked up off a clearence table, and I have and old PocketPC that stays in my car that runs mapopolis and OziExplorerCE for navigation, etc. I have one macro that I created in GSAK that ties everything together. I can click one macro button in GSAK and have it : 1. grab my latest Pocket Queries via email and load them into GSAK 2. Export waypoint files based on filters for use in OziExplorer on the laptop and PocketPC for planning cache runs. This could also be done for MS Streets & Trips, Street Atlas, etc... 3. Export the cachemate db for the palm and add it to the HotSync list 4. create a file for mapopolis and copy it to a SD card for navigating to the caches 5. Send the cache waypoints to my GPS 6. Done. All I have to do now is grab the Palm, SD card and the GPS and I'm ready to go. All this take less than 5 minutes and its all automated. I can kick this off in the morning, jump in the shower, and its ready to go when I get back. Going from cachemate back to GSAK is even easier: 1. Hotsync the Palm 2. use the cm2gpx utility to pull the finds out of the cachemate db into a gpx file 3. load the gpx back into GSAK. 4. Log my finds. Since you have an auto-routing capable GPS, your life would be even easier.

I agree. Do you really want to run into a family looking for the same cache while openly carrying? They might think you're a bad two legged critter.

From the manual: The Proximity Waypoints Page allow you to designate waypoints that have alarm circles around them at specified distances. For example, if you were to add a proximity alarm to the waypoint for a cache to say 1320 feet (which roughly a quarter mile), the GPS would notify you whenever you get within 1320 feet of the waypoint. I use proximity waypoints in OziExplorer on my laptop to notify me when I get within a half mile of a cache if I'm going somewhere and there are some caches along the way I want to hunt.

I have a Dell PocketPC which I use daily for everything from navigation (Mapopolis) to keeping track of which bills are due this week. I probably have $200 worth of software on it. I added GPXSonar and took it out on a few finds. Having the cache notes available was great. Then I slipped down a steep hill going after a cache last week. Nothing broke, damaged or otherwise harmed, but it did make me dig out my old Palm IIIe. As much as I like my PocketPC, I'm thinking that the Palm will be better suited for field use. Plus the Palm takes AAA batteries and runs a lot longer that the PocketPC. Now I just need to find the dadgum sync cable.

I've had my GPS60 for about two weeks now and found 10 caches with it so far. I bought it as a backup GPS while my Vista goes back to the Garmin mothership for a makeover. Since I use my PDA or a laptop for navigation, I haven't really missed the mapping capabilities that my Vista has. Having said that, I'm starting to like the GPS60 so much that I'm starting to think about taking the $150 I would spend getting the vista fixed and just putting it towards a GPSMAP 60cs.

I've been using Franson GPSGate for a few weeks (its not free) and its working very well. They also have a PocketPC version as well. In the car, I usually have OziExplorer, Netstumbler,GSAK and a GPS monitoring app running at the same time with a Globalsat compact flash GPS connected to the laptop. I sometimes fire up MS Streets and Trips as well. I've has as many as 6 apps running at the same time that were connected to the virtual com ports with no issues.I keep my Garmin laying on the dash ready to use when I arrive at a cache location. I think they have a two port version for about $15. I bought the Standard version which allows you to output to more that two virtual ports.

I bought my Vista back in 2001 and have used it 3 or 4 times a week since I got it. Now that I've added Geocaching to my list of hobbies, I've been using it almost daily. The battery life does suck compared to some of the other units and its selling for about $100 less than what I paid for mine, but I haven't regretted buying it. I bought a Legend at first and returned it to get the Vista. One thing I've noticed about the new Etrex C series is that most of them don't output NMEA which for me is a deal breaker. The best thing to do is really look at all of them (Garmin, Magellan, Lowrance, etc..) and compare features. Take the Etrex Yellow out caching for a while and decide what features it doesn't have that you would like. I just ordered a Garmin GPS 60 (non mapping) as a backup gps while the Vista goes back to the mothership for an overhaul (five plus years of heavy use is starting to take its toll). Just remember you don't have to have to the latest greatest GPS to play this game or have fun with it.

dadgum, I thought my 754mph trip to work was somethin

I have a Mapopolis subscription and I like it a lot better than MS Pocket Streets. It does indeed do street level routing and the maps (at least the ones I have) seem to be fairly up to date. The maps are very nice and the scrolling is outstanding. The two biggest problems with Mapopolis are: 1. You have to download each county separately. 2. It doesn’t do any map stitching. I understand that fixes for the second problem are supposedly in progress. For long trips, I will usually use the Map Source maps in my GPS along the way and fire up Mapopolis for the final destination or specific stops along the way. I recently went to Savannah for the first time so I downloaded all the county maps from Atlanta to Savannah. Mapopolis gives you the option to load a specific map or all contiguous maps. It loads each map into memory, so if you have a lot of maps, your device will run out of memory causing the application to close. I wish it had the ability to add waypoints by lon/lat. That would make it great for navigation to the general location of a cache. For me, I give it a big thumbs up, you mileage may vary. Since I already owned a GPS and a Pocket PC, for me it was better solution that buying a GPS for my handheld. -tommy