Atilla the Pun

quote:Originally posted by georgeandmary: Just because you find a burned music CD in a cache it doesn't mean it's stollen. There are many many many many bands that allow trading of their music just as long as it is not sold. I have a small collection of live concerts that I've traded to build up. I started with two shows and slowly added more. george Thats a good point to remember. And I have no problems with people putting PD stuff in caches. Or even (as a friend of mine does) bargin bin originals. He got some $10 PC games and puts one in a cache every so often, you know,when they fit. AtP

quote:Originally posted by georgeandmary: Just because you find a burned music CD in a cache it doesn't mean it's stollen. There are many many many many bands that allow trading of their music just as long as it is not sold. I have a small collection of live concerts that I've traded to build up. I started with two shows and slowly added more. george Thats a good point to remember. And I have no problems with people putting PD stuff in caches. Or even (as a friend of mine does) bargin bin originals. He got some $10 PC games and puts one in a cache every so often, you know,when they fit. AtP

quote:Originally posted by JMaxamillion: take your own advice man...dont ruin it for others just because u think your right...so dont destroy the material and ruin it for others... You've already ruined it for me, or did you conviently ignore my previous post? quote:thats like saying...maybe i should destroy all log books because there on paper from trees, and killing trees is wrong... Is it illegal to kill the trees? The paper companies own them (those particular trees). quote:and the whole peurile moron....what?¿? who needs this... this is a discussion not a ***** at each other place...dont attack people that have differnet views...listen!!!! and maybe youll learn somethingMAX At least we agree on something! AtP

You can get the Magellan software for the MeriPlat at the bottom of this page. Geobuddy and EasyGPS are two 3rd party packages that will let you transfer your tracks (I think) and waypoints to your PC. AtP

RANT It is because of actions like the ones you promote that the DMCA has been passed. This law directly infringes on my (and yours, if you care) 1st Amendment rights. Or do you believe the myth that your actions do not effect me? To maintain our personal freedoms from an ever more meddlesome government we must make sure that we act with integrity. Besides, as G'Kar put it in Babylon5, "Are you willing to give up all that you are, so you can keep all that you have?" /RANT Respectfully submitted for your consideration, AtP

I got this link from Markusby. Both the USGS and (I believe) the TIGER line maps are there. http://data.geocomm.com/dem/demdownload.html AtP

If I see stolen intellectual property in a cache I will remove it and destroy it (not the cache, the CD's). If I fail to do so I am an accomplice to your illegal act. Your moral bankruptcy is your problem, not mine. Copy the universe and give it away when I'm not around (nevermind for the moment that my cost on those items goes up to cover your theft) if it makes you happy. But don't get me involved. I won't turn you over to ASP or ASCAP (or whoever does music) unless you're trying to sell it to me. AtP PS Not everybody does it. I don't do it. Thank you have have a nice life.

The DNA promises to be a huge pain the neck for both Garmin and Magellan. Which means that you and I benefit in the long run, RAD Dad. Competition is good, 'eh? AtP

And since they are, here is a suggestion for them. Install a USB port in addition to (or even instead of!) the serial port, get away from total dependance on the serial stuff. USB is sooooo much easier for us to use (no crawling on the floor to get to the back of my full tower, just hit my USB hub) and the data transfer rate is much faster. And if you don't already have a USB port you can get one for under $40 US. And since you'll already be in "demand mode" send the same message to Manifold? I know I plan to when I order their software later this year. AtP

And since they are, here is a suggestion for them. Install a USB port in addition to (or even instead of!) the serial port, get away from total dependance on the serial stuff. USB is sooooo much easier for us to use (no crawling on the floor to get to the back of my full tower, just hit my USB hub) and the data transfer rate is much faster. And if you don't already have a USB port you can get one for under $40 US. And since you'll already be in "demand mode" send the same message to Manifold? I know I plan to when I order their software later this year. AtP

quote:Originally posted by jfitzpat: Well, it was a little bit of sales BS. Statements like "because the government publishes the data in unique formats that only a handful of privileged inside contractors can utilize..." makes it sound like the formats are secret. That just isn't so. -jjf Yeah, it's hype, what did you expect? Markusby, Since I am still suffering from some confusion about map formats usable by GPS's maybe you can help me out in regard to the DNA.... Specifically, what format are the maps for this GPS in? Are they proprietary, or can you modify the map you load into the GPS? AtP

quote:Originally posted by jfitzpat: Well, it was a little bit of sales BS. Statements like "because the government publishes the data in unique formats that only a handful of privileged inside contractors can utilize..." makes it sound like the formats are secret. That just isn't so. -jjf Yeah, it's hype, what did you expect? Markusby, Since I am still suffering from some confusion about map formats usable by GPS's maybe you can help me out in regard to the DNA.... Specifically, what format are the maps for this GPS in? Are they proprietary, or can you modify the map you load into the GPS? AtP

quote:Originally posted by jfitzpat: Virtually all street map programs and online mapping services are based on what is called Tiger Line data. It is data generated by the US Census Bureau. My understanding is that the Bureau, in turn, relies on each state to provide certain information. So, data for a particular area can be older than the Tiger date. I was part of the Census Bureau Tiger Team back in the late 1980's (preping for the 1990 census). I can tell you we digitized everything in the US. I don't know how fresh the data we were working from was. It was USGS quads with transparant overlays that had new roads drawn on them. I don't know how the new roads were verified. quote:Originally posted by Pote: I frankly expect them to be out of date. Heck, every road map is out of date as soon as you get it - paper or electronic. What I'd like to see is some sort of subscription service like Norton Anti-Virus has so that i could get periodic updates. I think that is the best solution. That would be good, but I like the idea of being able to add my own maps better. RadDad has every right to be PO'd by paying top dollar for a shoddy product. Sadly that is the shape of US consumerism today. And it's not going to change unless we, the consumer, stand up and squawk. Unfortunatly our "squawking" must have a negative financial impact on the offending corporation, otherwise we will simply be ignored. Respectfully, AtP

Ok, but I've read about people using DeLorme and other topo maps. Are they not using them in their GPS? Do they just use them to set waypoints then d/l the waypoints to the GPS? Sorry to be so dense, AtP

I know the Garmin III comes in a color version, does the V? Thanks, AtP

I know I've read about people d/l'ing IMG files into their SD cards for use on there Meridians. What's with that? Thanks again, AtP

Ok, I understand that Garmin maps don't work in Magellan GPSr's, and vice versa. What I don't understand is that everyone talks about 3rd party maps in some GPSr's. I've seen posts about d/l'ing maps into SD cards, but what do you get when you do that? Is it just a picture? How do you know it's scaled correctly? Will your GPSr correctly locate you on this 3rd party map? Or is it only for reference? I'm planning on buying a MeriPlat FWIW, so any answers specific to that unit will be very helpful. Markusby has also gotten me VERY interested in the Manifold mapping software. I'd much rather make my own maps (for fun), if I can do it accurately, than pay for them. But before I shell out $250 for a mapping program I'd like to know what my final functionality will be. I'm also looking at Garmin V for a GPS and would like to know if I'd be able to load 3rd party/custom maps into it, and what sort of functionality I can expect. Will it still do routing with a non-Garmin map? Thanks in advance, AtP

That quote is straight off the Manifold Web site. Sorry for quoting that much (about 1/4 of one of their info pages), I could have just let it go with one or two lines to make the point. But I'm brain dead today. Just started a new job working from 7pm to 3am and my daughter was coughing up her lungs outside my bedroom door around 8am this morning. AtP

That quote is straight off the Manifold Web site. Sorry for quoting that much (about 1/4 of one of their info pages), I could have just let it go with one or two lines to make the point. But I'm brain dead today. Just started a new job working from 7pm to 3am and my daughter was coughing up her lungs outside my bedroom door around 8am this morning. AtP

Does the DNA have a serial port, or other means of real-time communications with a computer? and... What are the *.fgd and *.tfw files in the DRG maps? TFW is Tiff world files, but what data and in what format is it stored? TIA AtP

quote:Originally posted by harrkev:I know that the USGS sells this data. How can sombody give it out for free. I am not complaining, just a little confused. quote:In the United States, like all other non-classified government technical material, all of this wonderful map data is free for the taking. By law, it is in the public domain and can be taken and resold. In fact, quite a few companies are in the business of taking free government maps, changing them a bit using tools like Manifold System, and then reselling those maps to the masses in the form of proprietary map products. In contrast, virtually all other countries sell their government map data and attempt to enforce a government monopoly on the sale of map data. Except for international map data created by the US, it is very difficult to find free maps of international areas. To this day, the very best digital maps of the entire world are those created by US military organizations and released by the US government. From the above it sounds like we have a wealth of data in the US that other nations do not have. This is true, but there's a catch: most of the data published by US agencies is published in a form that is unusable by ordinary citizens. All of those billions of dollars in digital map creation often end up increasing the personal fortunes of a few, limited GIS companies because the government publishes the data in unique formats that only a handful of privileged inside contractors can utilize. For example, DLG, SDTS, VPF and TIGER formats are used by USGS, the military, and the Census Bureau for highly detailed maps; however, until Manifold appeared on the mapping scene the only practical way to utilize these free maps was to purchase an expensive, old-fashioned GIS system plus one or more expensive format converter packages. USGS publishes hundreds of gigabytes of detailed, high-quality free maps for the US. Almost all of them are in DLG, DEM, or SDTS formats. If you have Manifold you can download and utilize these maps. If you have another GIS package, you will likely have to purchase a converter that in many cases will cost more than all of Manifold System! Manifold does such a good job of converting many formats and it is so inexpensive that many ESRI, MapInfo and other users have purchased Manifold just to make it possible to convert many different formats into their "home" GIS system. Markusby, thanks for the cool sites! AtP [This message was edited by Atilla the Pun on April 09, 2002 at 01:32 PM.]

I don't know why, but the BB keeps eating 3/4ths of my post. AtP [This message was edited by Atilla the Pun on April 09, 2002 at 01:07 PM.]

I don't know why, but the BB keeps eating 3/4ths of my post. AtP [This message was edited by Atilla the Pun on April 09, 2002 at 01:07 PM.]

You can get a new Magellan 300X from eBay for around $150. Magellan has a $50 rebate form for this unit on their Web site, brining your total cost for a mapping GPSr down to around $100. Be sure and get a receipt from your eBay purchase, you'll need it for the rebate. AtP

You can get a new Magellan 300X from eBay for around $150. Magellan has a $50 rebate form for this unit on their Web site, brining your total cost for a mapping GPSr down to around $100. Be sure and get a receipt from your eBay purchase, you'll need it for the rebate. AtP