JSWilson64

Sorry, too lazy to explain.

Mine has Property of: my name, address, home phone #. Then 2 lines : - reward if found - - and returned - I added the second line because some smartass like myself would find it and then wonder why his check never came...

Hey, here's another one that I came up with tonight. How about a set of user-configurable saved settings. When I'm just driving with the GPS on the dash, I want my map to display speed and bearing (just an example), but when I'm hiking I might want it to show me my elevation and EPE. When navigating to a cache, maybe distance to cache and EPE. Anyway, the point is, I'm sure there are some "default configurations" you go back to, after you play with your GPS and wear all the "new" off all the features. You decide what works for you and keep it that way. How about a way to save those configurations, so with one button push, you can get it back into "Geocaching" mode from "Driving" mode.

The person responsible for hooking me on geocaching was using the cheap-o Gecko at the time. He still uses it, but is looking to upgrade. Biggest complaint (for geocaching) is that his doesn't have a PC interface, so each waypoint needs to be entered by hand.

Is there another computer you can try it on? I don't think you'd need to install anything but Easy GPS to try it. That would help narrow down whether the computer is the culprit.

Nothing specific for geocaching. You've gotta put the coords in and "go to" or route to them.

OK, this isn't quite the same thing, but you might try some sort of "handle." For example, Garmin makes a bike handlebar mount for most of their GPS receivers. With a bit of craftsmanship, one could make a custom-fitted handle that this could attach to. Sure, it's a kludge, but as someone said above, all those nice features take up space. Just an idea. I've got something of the opposite problem - I have large hands, and find that the buttons on most electronic devices are too small and too close together. I have trouble typing on some notebook computers, and forget a Blackberry - my thumbs are too big! The Gecko 301 from Garmin is pretty small, too, but lacks the newer chipset and other niceties. Best advice - go to REI or some other place that sells different brands, and try 'em out until you find one that works.

Not quite the solution you're looking for, but will one of the Garmin products work with a 60CSx via USB and nRoute? Or is that expecting rs-232 also?

Here's a page at Geocacher University that explains the process pretty well. In fact, I just did it yesterday for the first time myself. If you're using Windows, get the Plucker Desktop package - it has everything you need. Don't forget to load the app to your PDA!

Considering putting this up on eBay, unless there's interest here. It's a Globalsat BT-359W bluetooth GPSr. Sirfstar III chipset. Product Link Almost-brand-new (purchased in October), includes original packaging. Also includes software CD (for Windows Mobile PDAs), wall charger, car charger, and USB charge cable. Retails for about $130-160. I'd throw in DeLorme Street Atlas USA 2006 Handheld (legit software, not a pirated copy) too. This software makes it a neat in-car nav system with a PDA. Probably sell it for $130, including shipping in USA, or make me an offer.

Here's a few places to try, if you haven't already... http://www.normancamera.com/ http://www.competitivecameras.com/ http://www.central-camera.com Here's a how-to make a cable, you've probably seen it. Cannibalizes an MC-21 cable for the connector. woops, forgot the URL: http://www.core5.net/projects/d200GPS/index.html

I noticed the same things with my Legend - it doesn't like being under tree cover. I'd set it to Go To the cache, and get to where it said I was within 3 feet of the cache, move 2 feet, and it says I'm 40 feet away! Civilian GPS receivers will all pretty much say they're accurate to 10 feet - that's the supposed limit of the civilian GPS system. Where different models differ is in their ability to maintain signal lock in different terrain and vegetation conditions. Also, weather and atmospheric conditions can play a role, as can where you are on the earth -- reception of the WAAS satellites seems to vary with location. Models with the SirfStar III chipset seem to have an easier time of it, but it's not guaranteed. I was playing with a new 60 CSx this weekend on a Boy Scout outing with my son. I waited for the unit to stabilize at about ±15 feet in the open, then moved into tree cover. Accuracy went to ±18 feet under some still-leafy trees, after first jumping to about ±25 feet. Etrex Legend + magnetic compass can be just as accurate as the latest and greatest - it just takes some practice. Get to the edge of the tree cover, wait for the reception to settle down, shoot a bearing with your compass, and pace it off. When you get "there" put some sort of mark down - stick a stick in the ground, draw an X with your foot, whatever. Then go back to the edge of the trees, move to a new location, shoot a new bearing, and pace it off again. (it's easier with more people)

Along with everything Renegade Knight said, depending on where you bought it, you've got the option of contacting/harassing/hounding the seller. If it was a eBay purchase, threaten 'em with bad feedback, or if you feel you got screwed, file a dispute.

123 testing

Here's another suggestion: One-button "start tracklog" or "stop tracklog" operation. There's times when I'm driving that I'd like to be able to turn it on or off without going through menu -> tracks -> start/stop -> enter. How 'bout a press-n-hold feature, like turns the compass on or off on the 60CSx.

Probably easy enough to do, except for the topo part. One could set up such a service with some Google Maps hacking and photo tagging for the info. Sorta a tracklog blog interfaced into Google Maps.

Silly question - shouldn't a "planned hold" just be planned into the timeline? If a 10-minute hold is planned at T -4, it's not really T -4, is it?

How about shipping a screen protector with the GPSr? User-programmable keys / buttons? So I can make the zoom in/out buttons do something when I'm in a screen that doesn't use them... Truly standard NMEA communication with the GPSr? Fully accessible "internals" of the GPSr when connected to computer -- let's say someone buys 12 receivers, and wants to configure them all the same way - just hook 'em up and run your config script. Heck, I'd like to be able to edit my "welcome" screen on my PC and download it to the GPRr... Open map formats? (that'll never happen...) And imho, a unit that costs more than about $100 should come with a coupon / code so the buyer can download their home county/city/state (x number of MB of data?) into the unit's memory. Or at least a coupon / code for $X.00 off one of the company's map products. That's probably more like $0.10 rather than 2 cents' worth...

Stupid Mistake: When playing with your new GPS receiver, don't forget to latch the MicroSD card slot closed, or you might spend a while reinstalling your unlock codes because you get a "Your GPS does not support map transfer" message. And then get frustrated because it doesn't work. And then spend a while with Google until you smack yourself in the head when you figure it out. Don't ask me how I know. ->

I've got a Legend with handlebar mount. Does the part that attaches to the handlebar work with the handlebar mount kit for the 60-series? Or will I need two doohickeys attached to my bars if I want to use both/either GPSr on my bike? The pics on Garmin's site are kinda small, and the mount is black-on-black so it's hard to make out detail.

Seconded. I've got it for my Palm Tungsten E2 + Globalsat BT-359 bluetooth GPSr. It takes some getting used to, and I still have a hard time thinking in terms of HDOP rather than "accurate to x feet," but it'll get the job done. You can pick up a copy on eBay for 20 bucks, and I don't recall it needing any kind of activation, so if the previous user installed it, you're still OK.

WOOOOT! Now I gotta wait another hour before I can take it home, and then I gotta go to the store for a screen protector. And some batteries. And I wonder if my 10-year-old would object to a used Legend for Christmas...

I was going through and adding some cache entries for my son. We split usernames, and I'm putting our finds in under his name, too. Anyway, I put in April 31st, and the result was NOT user-friendly! My apologies to all the bits that banged heads on that one. Any way to make it a bit more graceful in handling invalid dates?

Actually, the official word from Garmin is that 1GB cards work. From the FAQ on the Garmin site, search for GPSMAP 60Csx YMMV. My digital camera supports SD cards -- 1GB card works, 2GB card doesn't. Other people report some brands of 2GB cards working. Same for my Palm handheld. Apparently, the SD standard changed a bit between 1GB and larger sizes, sort of like FAT and FAT32 for PC users. Don't buy any old 2GB microSD card and expect it to work. I'd take the GPSr to the store and ask to try the microSD card there. Most places won't let you return memory if it's been opened.

If your GPSr doesn't support waypoint averaging, you can save several waypoints at the location you want to average, and average them later. Download to computer, save to Excel (or other spreadsheet) compatible file, import, and average them.