A Reminder Please

[+Laughalot]

Hi everyone

 

Hoping you fab people can help me out.

 

I cannot remember for the life of me how to get an Ordnance Map grid reference converted to Co-ordinates and also how to get Post Codes converted to Co-ordinates.

 

Another question is - can you put OS Grid references directly into GPS's - my Mum has a Garmin Etrex Camo and was wondering if this was possible.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

Laughalot []

[+The Klever Boys]

Hi Laughalot,

 

Try setting up your GPSr to "British Grid" via Main Menu/Setup/Units and make sure you have the datum set to "Ord Survey GB".

You should then be able to enter your OSGR data.

 

If you then change the units back to "hddd mm.mmm" (WGS84 datum), the OSGR you have entered should be back to the required co-ordinates for Geocaching.

Hopefully the above paths are valid for the Etrex Camo - I took them from my Venture.

 

Not sure that you can convert a postcode to co-ords - surely a postcode covers too much of a geographical area?

 

HTH

Russ

[alistair_uk]

The best way to get an accurate conversion is to use the Grid InQuest software free (or paid through out taxed to be more accurate) form http://www.gps.gov.uk/ .

 

A quick solution to get approximate coordinates and the postcode conversion is to use http://www.multimap.co.uk/ (info at bottom of page) or http://www.streetmap.co.uk/ (link to info at bottom of page).

[alistair_uk]

...or what Russ said while I was typing.

[+wildlifewriter]

There's one gateway site - almost unique in its capabilities - which will provide all the conversions, mapping links and extensions you could ever asked for.

 

And many that you didn't know were possible. It'll even find a general location from a UK telephone dialling code.

 

It's Barry Hunter's excellent Nearby.org.uk

 

One of the most impressive things about nearby.org, is that you can put in almost any co-ordinate format - with or without degree symbols or other placeholders - and the site is "smart" enough to try and make sense of it.

 

Invaluable.

 

-Wlw.

[+Laughalot]

Thanks for all the replies received so far - I am trying to digest it all and will visit the recommended sites to see how I get on.

 

The Nearby one sounds as though it will be great for all sorts of things not just this.

 

Cheers everyone.

 

Laughalot

[+Bill D (wwh)]

wildlifewriter wrote:

It's Barry Hunter's excellent Nearby.org.uk

Thanks, wildlifewriter, for that link - I didn't know about that. And thanks, Barry, that's really impressive!

[barryhunter]

Thanks for the mention and comments, glad the site is of some use! I constantly keep finding new uses for the site myself!

 

As a side note IMO, Grid InQuest software mentioned is not really worth bothering with as the accuacy* is probably over the top, and it doesnt (quite) even do Grid References! All for quite a steep learning curve. Much easier to let your GPS or one of the sites mentioned do the conversion for you.

 

* Perportadly sub meter accuacy but seeing as your GPS is not that accuate its so not useful (yet - possibly, but by that time hopefully the GPS will manage the comparable conversion)

Edited December 5, 2005 by barryhunter

[+The Forester]

I don't think it's off topic to add my own appreciation of nearby.org.uk too.

 

It's a brilliant resource.