gelfling6
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Everything posted by gelfling6
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Sneak Peak at the coming new Mag. GC firmware
gelfling6 replied to Socal ZukiCachers's topic in GPS technology and devices
As I made a reply to the website, I like the layout, but the key factor is are the menus also layed out so we don't have to go searching all over the place for functions? Likewise, have then cured the Lag problem where the device would freeze for a few (2-4 seconds) before it would respond, yet it still accepted the key-presses (and if you hit it too many times, it just went past where you wanted to go to.), or is this still the curse of Windows-CE (which this is based on.) I also noticed, the main menu screen layed out like Windows-Phone. No, they wouldn't do that to us, would they? -
To the party who said they HAVE to use GSAK because the manufacturer for the Magellan Explorist GC doesn't make a program, Contrary.. there is VantagePoint, which is free. [Download Page] which DOES allow migration from pocket queries, and image grabbing. It has its advantages, and its detractors.. I use both, VantagePoint & GSAK, but mainly GSAK because it has the capacity and record keeping, while VP has its visual map.. I still export my databases from GSAK, and display them on another mapping program, though.. (DeLorme Street Atlas USA).. Mainly because it has the direct reading of the GPS, and placing your location on the map. I use the GPS-Babel program from GSAK, to handle translation from the GPX to Delorme's 'Draw' format.. GSAK has the raw size ability, (looking at a 32K+ record database from around 200-miles from me.).. the API has been helpful in getting new caches included, as well as bulk updating up to 6000 caches, so I know wether or not they've been active, gone Missing, or archived... I also use a Garmin eTrex Vista HCx as my main tracking GPS, though the GC has its accuracy, I'm still not liking the screen jumping.. Also, comparing between the two, I have a better chance of finding the cache because the cache owner may've used a similar model (Magellan Or Garmin.), and the actual location may be off by as much as 20-30 feet. Honest truth, the cost is one-shot (except for major upgrades, and those are fairly low priced.).. VP's map is crude, rudimentary.. Also with VP, it's all that are in the database, or not, while GSAK allows you to select. (and the GC DOES have that 5000 record limit!)
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I've changed that icon to pointing down, for the MicroSD cards, so I know which is which when I put the Nuvi onto the computer.. (somewhat simple.. load the .ico file under Paint, rotate 180, save-as...(a new name) then adding the icon= to the autoload.ini) the icon on the screen of the hand-helds, is locked within the firmware.. not accessible from the memory of the devices.. (even the custom icons through XImage won't touch it.) It would be nice, if Garmin would allow custom changes to the arrow, though.. On my old Yellow eTrex, it was the walking figure.. Would love to have a similar on the newer Vista-HCx..
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I haven't used the eTrex-20, but from a Magellan GC owner's perspective, it's a toss-up.. The GC does a good job (not great, but good) for paperless.. It has its quirks.. (a jumpy display, since it doesn't have a compass, the screen tends to suddenly change direction without warning, (I have it set to travel direction up, never liked locking it north-up.) LARGE capacity for cache profiles, but.. s-l-o-w!!! (Welcome to the world of Windows-CE) the joy-button keyboard for entering notes, is a bit cumbersome.. (I tend to bring an old HP iPaq 3970 Pocket-PC for note taking, I simply assign a identifying code (C1, C2, etc..) to the note on the GC, then type (or voice-record) the note I'll put online (by cut/paste, or typing as I replay it.). I've been able to mimmick the GC's note format, so even if I find a cache with another GPS, I usually upload a notes file to the site, and cover multiple finds. I've looked at the 20 at Best-Buy (here in the states), about the same size as the GC, all intent, it looks almost identical except for the button placements. I still prefer my eTrek Vista-HCx to the GC, though there are times where even the GC will actually out-perform the Vista.. (Again, it's still a toss-up.) I know, not much help.. But, each GPSr has it's pluses and minuses.. the GC is just a little too jumpy & slow, but by no means a bad choice. Though, it could've been designed a little better (already tore the USB cover off the bottom. this is just the nature of the rubber.) It's by no means 100% water-proof. (especially without that cover! But even then, it's not sealed.) Stephen (gelfling6)
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Garmin etrex - download issue
gelfling6 replied to Burton's are go!'s topic in GPS technology and devices
A quick & dirty alternative, EasyGPS is capable of handling the data, and converting it to load into the eTrex. Before I got GSAK registered, that how I was accomplishing the task.. load a bunch of .LOC files (Like I said, BEFORE I registered GSAK) into EasyGPS, then selected the group I wanted to load to the GPS.. Remember, the base "H" (about the same as the classic Yellow) has a limited capacity for waypoints.. this includes both caches and child waypoints... I also would exchange the data saved out of EasyGPS, with a mapping program (DeLorme Street Atlas-USA) to see where the caches were, before selecting from EasyGPS to send to the eTrex. (even my old clear-blue Legend, was limited. and also my 1st WAAS capable, Pre-"H" chipset, and had a base map.).. I found my 1st 100 caches that method, and it wasn't until I had a laptop crash, that I eventually got GSAK, and a few new GPSr's.. I still export the data from GSAK, into a displayable data file for SA-USA, which has always been the main mapping. (even though I got Mapsource with almost all of my eTrex devices, it still had a few quirks I was unhappy with.) Stephen (gelfling6) -
magellan explorist 500 will not charge
gelfling6 replied to floresm's topic in GPS technology and devices
I seem to have a similar problem (sorry for resurrecting an old thread)... I accidentally plugged a 9V power pack into the charger port of the explorist cable, and fried things.. Someone mentioned the possibility of a fuse on the PC-Board inside the device, Is this possible? When I opened it (it's well past the warrantee, not to worry)nothing looked like a fuse.. The curse of having the Magellan power pack & the power-pack for a cheapy net-book look the exact same. (and same size barrel connector!) Anyone know where I can find a schematic for the 500? (500-LE actually) -
I use a Pharos GPS-500 (Identical look to one Micro$oft marketed under their label, but the Pharos version has internal memory.) the 'Dock' provides a battery to run the GPS, but you need the USB dongle.... (center of this photo) and Pharos' 'Trips & Pics' software to download the data, and to tag photos from a digital camera that has the time/date set and tagged to each photo. I've also used .GPX data from out of both the Trips & pics software, or from off one of my Garmin eTrex devices, and geo-tagged the photos through EasyGPS (cNet link) by Topographix.. (same company that set the .GPX standard) I picked-up the copy of Trips & Pics with the GPS, USB dongle, and battery dock off eBay.. It's a little rare lately... (and expensive! Yipes! $50.00!!!!)
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After 4 weeks, the problem has been fixed. And, I did a mass download of .LOC's for the past month.. 3 missing 'Unavailables' and 2 event caches missed, and archived. These are immediately filtered out by PQ's.. Suffice to say, PQ's are not superior in missing these (yes, I know, who wants to know about unavailable caches, or caches that have been archived?) (some of us do a little recon, checking if they really were unavailable, or coordinates off.)
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Nice idea, but I don't think the owners of Groundspeak would appreciate multiple accounts. Kinda overloads the system I imagine. Okay. Thank you Moun10bike, I do appreciate the answer.. Yes, I know full well on releases.. At least 2 weeks is reasonable. For now, I'll just have to deal with the overhead. (by overhead, I mean the copy that's also getting sent to my Email, which after i download it from here, I simply delete the email. )
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Magellan eXplorist GC drains battery?
gelfling6 replied to Carson2704's topic in GPS technology and devices
I have to agree, battery life is not as long as Magellan says.. Even using the 'Lithium' alkalines.. (which, pardon my chuckling, aren't even close. I thought Lithium batteries had 2x the power, not 2x the life? a single lithium cell should be 3.0V, not 1.5) I've had to add a multi-pack of AA's to my carry pack.. Yes, the back-light is draining, but you also need that backlight to be able to read the GPS screen. (which has always been a gripe of mine between Magellans & Garmins.) At least the ancient Magellan Map 410 has a readable screen without needing to constantly turn on the backlight.. It's how the LCD is made, and unfortunately, the real drain of the battery life.. -
Okay, Moun10bike, you keep touting to the premium users to use the "far superior" pocket queries.. Okay, yes it works.. But with massive overhead on the user's end (multiple records I did not need.). But, as other have pointed out multiple times, and you keep answering that "the pocket queries is the work-around", it still stands... the system is not working as it was supposed to do, or is it? Are we being forced to use the pocket queries? I'm not wanting a flame war in this discussion just as much as anyone else is, but the fact still remains.. The recent upgrades have caused a malfunction, and need to be fixed.. This has been the status for a whole week now. The question is "what is Groundspeak doing to fix the problem?"
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I'm still getting the exact same result a DanPan (post above this one).. and yes, I am clicking on the Check All box, they are getting checked, but the above result, is exactly as if you hadn't checked any box. ergo, It is still broken. It may be using more resources, but (a) it worked (at least it did, before this recent update to the site) ( b ) has always worked. I may do things differently, and that is my right as an individual. (sorry for the sarcasm, but I don't like being talked down to. I deal enough with it in my regular life.) Stephen (gelfling6)
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All, except one thing, A-Team.. Note, I was looking for Newest.. I already have a good selection of what's around me, but what is new? That's one function Pocket queries, and the GSAK API do not have... Hence why I am trying to obtain the newest in a .LOC form, and use GSAK to obtain them, then import into the area database.. Pocket Queries, would obtain JUST what's in a pre-determined area, Old or Not.a wee bit of overkill, when I want to only obtain 20, 30, 60 or so new caches for my entire state, not 1000 in a 35-mile radius (which Connecticut is a little wider than 89 east to west.) Doing a custom pocket query for JUST the caches placed within the past 2-3 days, is a bit overkill. What we're reporting, is a feature that was working before, that has suddenly stopped, with the recent update. And, as you pointed out, yes, we are premium members, and not saying it has great power over non-subscribed members, we're simply asking to have the problem fixed. As of yet, the method I described above, is still malfunctioning, and giving the same empty page result (just the <Prev <<, 1,2,3,4... >> Next> Headers & footers, but thing between, and no .loc file is being generated, or downloaded.
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I'm hitting the same issue.. I go to the "List newest in (whatever state, in my case, Connecticut)" from my profile page (http://www.geocaching.com/my/default.aspx) scroll down to the bottom of the page (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/nearest.aspx?state_id=7 , for Connecticut), click the [Check All] button, then clicking [Download].. it responds the same as if I never checked any, showing the blank record, and the <Prev <<,1,2,3,4.....>> Next>... header & footers. But, no .loc file is downloaded. (yes, I know this only creates a .LOC file, I load this into GSAK, and use the api to update the info.) Stephen (gelfling6)
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Sorry, I had to snicker, when you said about proximity alerts.. I had a Nuvi 205 stolen from my car 2 years ago, and it had the old Pilotsnipes macro created POI file in it.. the ironic, It had caches for close to a good 200-mile radius of home.. and I mean all of them at the time.. close to 32,000!) which would sound off an annoying 'radar' noise when it came within 1/2 a mile. I so feel sorry for the poor bum who stole it.. they'll never get it out of there, unless they get the POI loader to remove it.
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Since the Extrex H is serial interface only, he may be needing to update the software on a serial to USB converter. That would likely be found at the manufacturers web site. The two basic USB <--> RS-232 chipsets are the Prolific & the FTDI.. the FTDI chipset is supposed to be more crash resistant, but not 100% perfect either.. The prolific chipset was where it all started, and most USB <--> RS-232C dongles sold by most electronic stores. I posted an old link, to the Parallax website, which was for their USB <--> RS-232C dongle, and the on-board Prolific I/O for their USB version Basic Stamp II B.O.E. (Board Of Education) (packaged with the B.O.E. Bot learning package).. Let's see..... Okay, Apparently Parallax has BOTH in a single driver... the web page is at http://www.parallax.com/tabid/530/Default.aspx this will load BOTh FTDI & Prolific driver sets, 32 & 64 bit. I have this on my Win-7 laptops which I still connect the old VEX dongle (prolific chipset) a dongle from Best Buy (sold under the Dynex label, again, Prolific), a few bought from Office Max, (before they went bankrupt), WalMart, and one from a trade show, again, all Prolific chipset. Likewise, will also connect to the FTDI chip used on some of the mid-model year Arduino (Pre-UNO) developer boards. Hope this helps! Stephen (gelfling6)
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Magellan GC - worst purchase ever
gelfling6 replied to CutterCachers's topic in GPS technology and devices
I noted this shortly after I got my GC, about a year back.. Yep, I'm 48, coming up on 49 myself.. It's a bear, when you have to keep donning/dofting reading glasses once you get close to a cache. the GC's Micro-Type was always a pain! Hence why I kept going back to Garmins.. at least the screens were easier to read, and not requiring the back-lighting the Magellans always seem to need. -
Same rating was given to the Magellan Explorist-GC (and I imagine the x10 series too.) Except... once the cover over the USB socket breaks, You're wide-open for a soaking.. There's a BIG difference between Water Resistant (will shed water like a duck), and Water-Proof to xxxft. (sealed so water will not leak into the case, and damage the contents.)
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Worse case, do this... download EasyGPS, and under Files, click on Merge GPX files, point it to the Geocaches Directory of the GC, and select ALL of the .GPX files, except NewCaches & the NewLogs.txt file.. once it combines them, save it to the computer 1st, as a single .GPX file, go to the GC's directory, and delete those .GPX files, and copy the new combined file to the GC. Unplug the GC, and it should see the new file. I ran into this when I had two .GPX files which had more than a few duplicates, and it nearly crashed the GC.
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Thoughts on Magellan Explorist GC?
gelfling6 replied to ohmelli's topic in GPS technology and devices
A few years ago (more like 3-4) I wrote a thread on here, about what would be the ideal Geocaching GPS. My idea, used the 'Joy-Toggle' button like the GC has, instead of a touch-screen keyboard.. My main reason was incase it was accidentally hit, it didn't suddenly wipe all caches from memory.. Instead I kinda hate the button on the GC, because it's too touchy and cumbersome to type in a note.. It's worse than using the touch-tone pad on a cell phone to type a message! (a T9 typing interface would've been nice.) It's dependant on how much you want to spend. Some days, the GC is great, some other days, it goes completely off kilter, and way off from where GZ is. (to say nothing of the wildly swinging compass pointer! I know it's working off the GPS signals, but wish it was not as sensitive, or at least averaged better of you were actually moving.) I think I finally mastered the majority of the menus.. Yes, it was a MAJOR learning curve, after using Garmin eTrex's before. Just wish some of the functions were a little easier accessible, instead of needing to constantly follow a road map to get there. -
I tend to agree on the differences between GSAK & Basecamp.. I use both, actually, with a Magellan Explorist-GC, where I'll export 3000 caches from a location out of GSAK, (in GPX format) then import them into Basecamp, to get a general idea where they'll land in the map, then use Basecamp to load them into the GC. (Yes, I know there's a loading feature for GSAK.. In the field, this gets to be a pain, having to constantly configure GSAK for the GC, when I've already been using it for the eTrex, (yes, I use both.) and back again.) Basecamp has it's pros as well as Cons, as does GSAK. BaseCamp, for example, chokes on L-A-R-G-E gpx files. (long story..) takes forever to load anything around 5000 caches + child waypoints, on a 3Ghz AMD-Vision/4GB mem Laptop. (kinda like the GC would, if I gave it all 5000.) GSAK, you can filter the really big GPX files, down to manageable size. I also use DeLorme Street Atlas USA as a main mapping program. (again, a pain to need to convert from eTrex, to Magellan interfaces.. I generally use the eTrex as a 'live' tracker (feeding SA, for location.).. the GC, now has become more of a PDA (well, it IS Windows-CE based, which explains some lag problems.) and the eTrex, the main finder. But, once I'm done, BaseCamp does have the upload immediately on new logs, though I'm still not happy with their forcing Internet Explorer, when I find FireFox a lot less buggy less intrusive, and less vulnerable... It's just a matter of which you find better. Mind you, GSAK does have the ability to obtain info in a flash (GeocachingOnline API).. $30.00 1-time, is dirt cheap. While BaseCamp is free. It's all how you want to use it. Worse case, get GSAK, and use the trial period.. If you like, register for $30.. If not, before it expires, export the databases as .GPX, and delete it.. I'm still not impressed by the in-program method it exports for DeLorme Street Atlas.. I still prefer export as GPX, then convert with the native format of GPS-Babel (which is part of GSAK, but for some reason, the GSAK exported show up as full-sized treasurechests on the map,( exported as .TXT, then imported through Draw) which the Exported as GPX, then translated to DeLorme Draw (.AN1) show-up as Treasurechests up to a certain zoom point, but de-clutters down to small squares beyond that zoom.. (which helps in spotting clusters in an area. (great for spotting numbers-run areas.) Excuse mind fart.. I'm thinking VantagePoint with the Magellan.. rethinking, (rebooting mind), I still have problems feeding BaseCamp & MapSource both, HUGE .GPX files.. I've actually crashed MapSource with a 10,000 cache .gpx file! (I think I may've left all of the log entries, which probably didn't help.) I also keep a copy of several other maps under MapSource (3 trail maps from one site, IBYCUS-USA 2.01 (patched 2.0) , and a few other Topo maps besides the stock one that came with MapSource. (Topo-100K).. My only complaint, Even though I can export them and display the different maps together on my eTrex and Nuvi devices, I can only view them one layer at a time under MapSource or BaseCamp.
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Very correct! the older eTrex series (Vista-HCx and older) are prime examples, and require some medium to translate them.. (I.E. EasyGPS, which I've used many times before.) The older eTrex models also have a limit of how many you can transfer too.. The Vista-HCx, maxes out at 1000 waypoints.. (read this as absolute maximum! If your any of the 1000 caches have child waypoints, they're going to take-up one waypoint themselves, and all 1000 won't fit with them!) Pretty sure the Classic-Yellow, and the "H" model there-of, also had a maximum of 500..
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There's always GPSBabel, which will translate across formats.
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I've got the GC myself, and it's nice for capacity, but sluggish (Ala Windows-CE) and rampant (the compass swings wildly, because it's strictly relying on the GPS, without a true electronic compass.) As many have probably already told you, the GC is the bottom line starter for paperless caching. Don't get me wrong, It does have its days of accuracy, but sometimes, It'll be off by 30-60 feet, and then the Windows-CE OS begins bogging it down. (especially if you have more than 3000 caches in the hopper. I highly advise against going for the full 5000 capacity, or you'll be growing grey hairs before it finishes checking the integrity of the .GPX files. Oh, and Waypoint (child) .gpx is separate from Cache .GPX.) I've actually gone a tandem.. the GC for the profile storage, but a Garmin eTrex Vista-HCX as the main finder, that won't get muddled by the Win-CE lag. Drawback, is you're still operating two GPSr's.. One with all the data, the other with the accuracy & speed.
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I have to agree with Shop99er, as I find this a little hard to believe myself.. Though, It may be because Magellan has sold all of these new devices, they know they should be supporting them, unlike they have their previous line which got them started. Right now, finding a cord for an old Map410, is my present quest.. (it's an old 5-pin female plug, out to RS-232C.) I have some old data I want to download (Yes, I still have software to accomplish this. And a USB<--->RS-232c serial adapter that runs under Win-7X64) If I were to contact Magellan for this, they'd say the device never existed.. (despite seeing 2 for sale on EBay, and it doesn't make sense spending $30 for a 2nd device with the cord..) Stephen (gelfling6)