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GSAK OR EASY GPS


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Easy GPS is really good and putting waypoints on your GPS.

 

GSAK slices and dices your data a hundred ways. It's got a fairly steep learning curve. Or at least it's not obvious to me so I've never done more than track my finds with it. ONce you learn it though you can use it to sort caches about any which way you want.

 

If all you want is a simple way to put waypoints on your GPS. EasyGPS is best. If you want to sort out the kinds of caches you want to put on your GPS by about any way you can think track your finds and some other things. GSAK is the best.

 

As for cachemate on the Palm. That's about the only thing going so it's an easy choice.

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Easy GPS is really good and putting waypoints on your GPS.

 

GSAK slices and dices your data a hundred ways. It's got a fairly steep learning curve. Or at least it's not obvious to me so I've never done more than track my finds with it. ONce you learn it though you can use it to sort caches about any which way you want.

 

If all you want is a simple way to put waypoints on your GPS. EasyGPS is best. If you want to sort out the kinds of caches you want to put on your GPS by about any way you can think track your finds and some other things. GSAK is the best.

 

As for cachemate on the Palm. That's about the only thing going so it's an easy choice.

thanks , i just wonder about it ,

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Get GSAK

 

It is very easy to learn how to do the basics.

(It is like a excel spreadsheet)

 

Easy GPS has a steep learning curve to do the basics compaired to GSAK

I have tried both and I would go with GSAK. You can try it for free for 20 days or so. Give it a shot and see. After that you can continue to use it you just get a nag screen. I tried it for free and by the time the period was over I thought it was well worth the 20 dollars.

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I have used both EasyGPS and GSAK. Both make it easy to transfer waypoints to your GPS. One click and it's done. I prefer GSAK because I do paperless geocaching. It is easy to transfer the information to the PDA and then turn around and transfer the same waypoints to the GPSr. I also like the GSAK feature of being able to export a file for Street Atlas USA and then having the caches located on a map. You can then click on the cache recorded on the map and it gives you the info for the cache. Print out the map and it shows you where the caches are. It really helps when you are in a strange area and don't know which road to take to get to the cache.

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To be honest I am not familar with EasyGPS. I do however love GSAK. I use it to do everything. I use it of course to create databases with my pocketquerries. I also use it to send then to my Palm via CacheMate. If I start to use POI's instead of waypoints GSAK can do that also. Of course I can make GSAK as simple or detailed as I would like. You can sort by any number of details, distance, direction, name, difficulty, ect... My money is on GSAK.

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To be honest I am not familar with EasyGPS. I do however love GSAK. I use it to do everything. I use it of course to create databases with my pocketquerries. I also use it to send then to my Palm via CacheMate. If I start to use POI's instead of waypoints GSAK can do that also. Of course I can make GSAK as simple or detailed as I would like. You can sort by any number of details, distance, direction, name, difficulty, ect... My money is on GSAK.

[/quote

can you use both gps ,i have a garmin ,withmapsource, and got a new palm tx coming .my husband wants to use the old one if he can .what map do you use for palm tx ,or does if come with it .i not got it yet .i sure hope is easy to use the cachemate .and try to do pocket query too .i been reading about it all . but still not sure .

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can you use both gps ,i have a garmin ,withmapsource, and got a new palm tx coming .my husband wants to use the old one if he can .what map do you use for palm tx ,or does if come with it .i not got it yet .i sure hope is easy to use the cachemate .and try to do pocket query too .i been reading about it all . but still not sure .

Go buy GSAK. It's very cheap when compared to the price of what you have spent purchasing the gps, Palm and GC's membership. You won't be disappointed. The program works with most anything - Garmins, Magellans, Palms, PPCs etc - and the 'Clyde', the author, and the GSAK forum provide the best support service around.

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To be honest I am not familar with EasyGPS. I do however love GSAK. I use it to do everything. I use it of course to create databases with my pocketquerries. I also use it to send then to my Palm via CacheMate. If I start to use POI's instead of waypoints GSAK can do that also. Of course I can make GSAK as simple or detailed as I would like. You can sort by any number of details, distance, direction, name, difficulty, ect... My money is on GSAK.

[/quote

can you use both gps ,i have a garmin ,withmapsource, and got a new palm tx coming .my husband wants to use the old one if he can .what map do you use for palm tx ,or does if come with it .i not got it yet .i sure hope is easy to use the cachemate .and try to do pocket query too .i been reading about it all . but still not sure .

I have MapSource too...but for Caching I use GSAK to handle geocache data.

It sends directly to Garmin GPSrs, you don't even have to have MapSource (although the drivers are necessary, at least for USB). And I -export- to Cachemate. Then sync the Palm. There's no maps on the Palm the way I use it (and Cachemate doesn't do maps anyway, I don't think).

 

There's a free demo of Cachemate available. I think it eventually expires.

There's a free demo of GSAK available too. In fact it's possible to never pay for GSAK, but after a while a nag screen pops up when you start it. If you can live with the nagging, you don't have to pay.

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Get GSAK

 

It is very easy to learn how to do the basics.

(It is like a excel spreadsheet)

 

Easy GPS has a steep learning curve to do the basics compaired to GSAK

Are you kidding me? I loaded easyGPS and was on my way.

 

I have had GSAK for close to three months and basically can only load stuff in it. I have tried multiple times to figure it out but havent yet. So far all i was able to do was fmble through a macro and i have no idea how i got it to work.

 

Sort and load using GSAK?- i hope to someday but i see no light at the end if the tunnel...

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There's a free demo of GSAK available too. In fact it's possible to never pay for GSAK, but after a while a nag screen pops up when you start it. If you can live with the nagging, you don't have to pay.

The nag screen stays up longer and longer as time goes by. After 3 months or so you have to take a break while waiting for the nag screen, which come up several times during use. I paid the money and it is worth it. Just don't assume you can use it forever without paying, it really isn't practical.

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Easy GPS is really good and putting waypoints on your GPS.

 

GSAK slices and dices your data a hundred ways. It's got a fairly steep learning curve. Or at least it's not obvious to me so I've never done more than track my finds with it. ONce you learn it though you can use it to sort caches about any which way you want.

 

If all you want is a simple way to put waypoints on your GPS. EasyGPS is best. If you want to sort out the kinds of caches you want to put on your GPS by about any way you can think track your finds and some other things. GSAK is the best.

 

As for cachemate on the Palm. That's about the only thing going so it's an easy choice.

thanks , i just wonder about it ,

 

Plucker and spinner are what I use instead of cachemate. They are a bit harder to set up but once they are set up they give you more options then cachemate.

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Check out this rudimentary GSAK tutorial. It might help you get started with simple filters and then after you figure those out, you can advance to all the other amazing features GSAK offers. :ph34r:

Thank you. I tried that once (the tutorial above) and i still coudnt get it to work. I will try it again though. Thanks!

There's also some basic tutorials on the GSAK forum Getting Started - and you can ask any question and get pretty fast responses in the other forums.

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I've just started tinkering with GSAK, and one output from it, kinda soured me.. When I did an export of the

database in .LOC format, it took the already existing .LOC files, and shuffled them. (going from closest to

furthest, to totally shuffled!) is there a way for force GSAK to output in a specific order, when exporting?

It'd be nice, because I'm finding it works great in combining, trimming down, and organizing multiple .LOC

files. (I.E. newest in area, multiple .LOC files from downloading the search via zipcode, etc.) I still keep a

pair of .LOC files, (A Master of all the area .LOC's combined into a single file, and another of those found.)..

but the shuffling, is aggravating.

 

Stephen (gelfling6)

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I've just started tinkering with GSAK, and one output from it, kinda soured me.. When I did an export of the

database in .LOC format, it took the already existing .LOC files, and shuffled them. (going from closest to

furthest, to totally shuffled!) is there a way for force GSAK to output in a specific order, when exporting?

It'd be nice, because I'm finding it works great in combining, trimming down, and organizing multiple .LOC

files. (I.E. newest in area, multiple .LOC files from downloading the search via zipcode, etc.) I still keep a

pair of .LOC files, (A Master of all the area .LOC's combined into a single file, and another of those found.)..

but the shuffling, is aggravating.

 

Stephen (gelfling6)

GSAK creates all exports in your current sort order. Just click on the any column heading to sort your data in that order before generating your LOC/GPX file.

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GSAK creates all exports in your current sort order. Just click on the any column heading to sort your data in that order before generating your LOC/GPX file.

 

Tried that, but the exported .loc file, comed out in order of the GCxxxxxx number. :D

 

Although, I have gotten a little more used to GSAK.. creating new databases.

A master database of ALL, one for "To Find", one for "Found", and whenever updates are posted, "Newbie".

 

I'll give it another try.. Thanks. Stephen (gelfling6)

Edited by gelfling6
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Gelfling6,

 

What are you exporting to?

 

When I export to cachemate they come out in alphabetical order which makes them easy to look up when the gpsr tells me the nearest caches and I decide which one I'm going to hunt.

 

I do my sorting in gsak for any other criteria. The sorting is easy (I don't have the time to learn macros etc) since you just fill in or click items in dialogue boxes.

 

Jim

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I don't know if this helps anyone, and I am no expert in software, but I have been running a garmin 60 (old 12 satellite, non mapping) and then added a garmin ique 3600 to my stable as an economical non paper based form of holding waypoints with the bonus of mapping and waypoint information. I got the ique 3600 with cachemate loaded as the standard information cruncher, and had been using trip and waypoint manager on the 60CSX. Whether it is PC or losing the install disc, I cannot see the ique with trip and waypoint manger. I had tried easy GPS with the 60, but due to lack of time to learn found I could not get it to talk to the garmin 60, and in my inexperienced eye I abandoned it for the normal waypoint manager. I am sure if I had stuck with it I would have had a better opinion.

When I went to the ique 3600, I used palm desktop to hot sync, but then found cmconvert from the net (I think cachemate) and when I open (GPX) files with this to convert to pdb files, these are now automatically loaded into the install queue in palm, and on the next hot synch they are loaded into the data base. Works well, but dont ask me how I did it.

I also use GSAK (like a magpie - shiny tools) to load info onto my profile, and record finds etc. but have not explored loading through GSAK - I find the compataility of computers and hardware is quite limiting if you cant write or understand script. I also dont need it as the above works well. I like the usability of GSAK, but find I sometimes need to refresh with a download of my profiles records ex geocaching.com to catch up on milestones etc.

Sorry for long monlogue.

Cheers

Richard :laughing:

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Hands down go with GSAK. To get it up and running with the basics takes no time and as you decide there are things you want it to do, the help files are excellent. It also has a very intuitive interface.

 

After getting to know the basics, there are a wide variety of macros, some of which I use on a almost daily basis. There are macros to help you set-up your Pocket Queries by placed date, color code so you can see found, , owned, archived and disabled caches at a glance, interfaces with Google Earth and Gmail, statistic generators that break things down every which way, including producing maps, etc. There are literally dozens of macros that are updated frequently and new ones being added all the time.

 

Clyde (the author) appears to never sleep. I can't remember ever seeing a post where he did not at least acknowledge the question, if not offer the solution, in more than 4 hours. If not Clyde, one of the many users on the forum. You can export to most mapping software as well as most, if not all GPS's. My set-up is a laptop running nRoute (for live routing/tracking), Mapsource and Topo, a Treo 700P running CacheMate . GSAK is the brains of the whole setup.

 

GSAK is Geocaching "crack". Very addictive, without the health drawbacks. :)

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Get GSAK

 

It is very easy to learn how to do the basics.

(It is like a excel spreadsheet)

 

Easy GPS has a steep learning curve to do the basics compaired to GSAK

 

EasyGPS acts like orthodox windoze software. GSAK acts like someone's quirky pet coding project that ended up being released to the public.

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GSAK for sure.

I think the reason it has a steep learning curve, and why people seem overwhelmed with it when first using it, is that it does SOOO much.

 

Just start with the default program, and READ the tutorials.

 

Then, as you think of different was you would like your data sorted or exported, goto to the GSAK forums and read the FAQs, or do a search. Someone has probably already posted the same question you have.

 

Like already stated, GSAK support is AWESOME!

 

Also, the help files in the program are THE BEST I have ever seen!

The interactive graphics in the help file are awesome!

If you have a question on a setting or field, just click on it, and the help window pops up.

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Gelfling6,

 

What are you exporting to?

 

When I export to cachemate they come out in alphabetical order which makes them easy to look up when the gpsr tells me the nearest caches and I decide which one I'm going to hunt.

 

I do my sorting in gsak for any other criteria. The sorting is easy (I don't have the time to learn macros etc) since you just fill in or click items in dialogue boxes.

 

Jim

 

I've been exporting as .LOC format. But, the output is by GCxxxx #, alphabetical, when I'd like to be exporting it in original Distance sort format. ( from closest, to furthest.)

 

As I said, I am slowly getting the hang of GSAK, but it still has a few quirks I need to figure out.

 

At present, maintaining 4 database files..

 

Default= Everything!!

Tofind = Obvious (Default, Minus found)

Found= obvious, Default, Minus unfound

newby = Most recently added

 

Once sifted through under GSAK, I export them back out to .LOC format, for Multiple conversion.. Using GPS Babel, I export them to DeLorme Draw files (for displaying under Street Atlas USA, for finding local roads close to them.)

 

Easy GPS, for selective loading to the GPSs.

 

Under Street Atlas, I can also uncheck each draw file, so I can see where the newer caches are, and diplay what I have found.

 

Stephen (gelfling6)

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