Goodguys
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Posts
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Posts posted by Goodguys
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So did anyone find the cache?
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I'm running both MS Pocket Streets and OziExplorer CE on my iPAQ. For me the most compelling reason to connect GPS and PDA is to be able to see my position on better maps than are available on my GPS screen. I use both Gov't topo maps and scanned maps with OziExplorer.
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Nope, not us.
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Manually calibrating Toporama maps? I've used the utility at this site - it calibrates the map images for use in OziExplorer. It's as slick as a whistle!
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I ran my Garmin 12 off the PS/2 port on a multi-day road trip, so it was on for >12 hours at a time, no problem. My G-12 was happy with 5 volts, so it was a simple set-up. I just used an old mouse cord to make the cable.
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I had a close call today. I've not experienced the post loosening, but today I had the D-ring unlatch. My Rino 120 was hung from its lanyard - the lanyard connected to the D-ring (battery latch) as recommended by Garmin. It was hanging from my pack, attached with a carabiner, swaying as I walked along. Suddenly all that remained connected was the battery case back - the rest clattered to the ground. Fortunately no loss and no breakage, but I'm now connecting the lanyard to the rubber between the antennas, rather than to the D-ring.
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What da heck do YOU think a "bungie 'coord'" would be like?Bungee coords? Makes me think of jumper cables.
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We contacted Garmin - their response was that the battery-latch loop was the intended place to connect the lanyard.
We've been using that method with both our Rino's and they've worked fine.
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Same as OuttaHand, we don't use demo mode. We've had no problem uploading tracks, downloading waypoints and applying Garmin software upgrades.
We have both a 110 and a 120, and its as simple as just connect and communicate.
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I don't know of an existing one but I believe Dave Patton's DRGMapCal will eventually have this capability.Thanks for the link. That's another impressive web-site.
Cheers!
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That's pretty cool. I've often wondered why we need separate keyboard/numberpad devices to dial a phone, make a calculation, change TV channels, etc. Seems so inefficient.
I'd much rather carry spare batteries than multiple devices.
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Awesome website, PDOP's. Well done.
You even make Toporama look pretty good.
With the Toporama maps, do you know if there's a way to "unshrink" them (relative to the Cosine of their latitude)in bulk? I have individually expanded some but that's a pretty tedious process.
There is a slick routine to do a bulk calibration, but it still leaves them "vertically challenged".
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Sounds like you need a couple Rino's. (We know you don't - we just wanted to say that).
But their ability to send and receive waypoints is one of their slickest features.
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I'm able to get WAAS 35 on my Rino 120 from inside my East-facing home in PoCo.
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Are you using an optical mouse? I had one with a mind of its own - it would seem to double-click when I know I single-clicked.
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We use both a PPC (iPAQ) and laptop, depending on the nature of the trip. The PPC version of MS Streets is pretty limited. It shows the same map as the full version, and with a GPS shows your location, but lacks most of the other features of the full MS Streets. I'm not aware of any way to manage waypoint lists in a PPC.
Of course, one nice feature of a PPC is that it fits in your pocket, so you can take it with you. I'd worry about a laptop being stolen from the vehicle while on a cache search.
You can easily switch between programs with a PPC without having to exit from a running program, but you can't "window" the screen to see two programs simultaneously.
There are various ways to input characters.
external keyboard,
- on-screen "poke at tiny characters" keyboard,
- character recognition, so you can write cursively, and
- character recognition, one character at a time, my preference.
If I could only have one "portable" to use for caching (in addition to a desktop) I'd make it a PPC. But for roadtrips, the laptop is best.
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We paid about $5 at London Drugs for a Lock & Lock a little larger than a sandwich.
Seems like a bargain for a cache-worthy container.
But yes, time will tell.
We have no idea how long these containers have been available, but the Wet Coast will be a good test.
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We recently discovered Lock & Lock containers, and they may just be the ideal caching container. Thiswebsite describes them well. They are like a cross between an ammo box and tupperware, with a gasketted lid and hinged locking tabs. We placed our first cache with one of these last week, and we're placing another today.
Has anyone had experience with these? Are they as good as they appear to be?
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We use an iPAQ with MS Pocket Streets for on-road navigation and OziexplorerCE for off road.
But we also use GPS's for caching, because they are:
more rugged,
have longer battery life,
use AA's for spare batteries,
have display features more suited to the directional searches in caching, and
because we like techy stuff
.Good luck whichever product you choose.
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A radio with GPS tacked on? Definitely not.
We have a "his and hers" 120 and 110. And they are very competent GPS units. Comparing them to our Garmin 12 is like a comparing a word processor to a typewriter.
As for the radio, marginal. But we bought them mainly because its easy to get separated when caching and hiking; with peer-to-peer positioning they are perfect for our needs.
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Thanks, Robin,
I'm already a veryt satisfied Ozi user, looking for the best deal on maps. Do you know if any elevation data is included with the Quo Vadis packages?
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I'm using Toporama maps on my iPAQ, and older Spectrum maps on the PC. Trouble with Toporama is they look like they were drawn with a crayon, but the price is right! The 50k:1 orthophotos are pretty cool too.
On the flip side, my Spectrum maps are huge: each map is a .tif file, about 15 megs. I see on Spectrum's website that their new maps must be smaller and are also calibrated for Ozi3D. I presume that means they include elevation data. That would be worth something.
Has anyone tried Quo Vadis maps? They appear to be the least expensive. I'm curious as to how the quality compares to Spectrum.
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Benchmarks
in Canada
Oops!
I didn't dig deep enough. The benchmarks are there; the NRCan site returns a short report pretty quickly. But a search of benchmarks with 40k of my house returned over 600 records, which seemed to cause the system to choke.
It wouldn't spit out a report.I had presumed all the brass markers were benchmarks, registered through a common agency. Looks like there's more to it than that. But the Geodedic Survey of Canada will do me for now.
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Junk Items???
in General geocaching topics
Posted
Hey, CC, we hear you and can feel your pain. How about a broken sea shell, complete with wet sand, a 6" piece of yellow plastic rope, a single band-aid. Seems to be worst with easily accessible urban caches, but its just part of the game. We just imagine that its young kids who put these "treasures" in, and leave it at that.