GPS Lead to Arrest

[+htomc42]

http://breakingnews.nydailynews.com/dynami...EMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

Thief steals car GPS system; cop looks at programmed home coords and returns it to owner,

arrests thief!

[+CYBret]

http://breakingnews.nydailynews.com/dynami...EMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

Thief steals car GPS system; cop looks at programmed home coords and returns it to owner,

arrests thief!

 

On the other hand, it is NOT a very good idea to program in your home coordinates and call them "HOME." Do you really want some guy who stole your GPS to have your home coordinates and start wondering what other kinds of cool toys you have there?

 

Many GPS's have welcome screens that you can use to enter your contact information if the unit is stolen (name, phone number, email, even address). The cop could have gotten the information from that as well.

[+Cpt.Blackbeard]

I label mine "HOME", otherwise I'll never figure out what it means and I'll be hopelessly lost forever.

 

[+WeightMan]

I label mine "HOME", otherwise I'll never figure out what it means and I'll be hopelessly lost forever.

 

I label mine AAA so it is always near the top when I list waypoints alphabetically. At least I can remember what it means.

[+admo1972]

On the other hand, it is NOT a very good idea to program in your home coordinates and call them "HOME." Do you really want some guy who stole your GPS to have your home coordinates and start wondering what other kinds of cool toys you have there?

 

I agree that on the surface, it seems a bit scary that a thief may get your home address if he steals such an item. Plus, a thief who breaks into a car can get your name and address quite easily by grabbing insurance and registration. Your address isn't what they're after, and such fear is misplaced. My address is published by the phone company and distributed everywhere, for free, to anyone who asks. And I highly doubt that owning (or have owned in this case) a GPSr makes me a bigger target to a thief. Now, if I leave an empty HDTV box outside of my house, leave all the lights off and the front door wide open, THAT would make me a target.

[+Segerguy]

On the other hand, it is NOT a very good idea to program in your home coordinates and call them "HOME." Do you really want some guy who stole your GPS to have your home coordinates and start wondering what other kinds of cool toys you have there?

 

I agree that on the surface, it seems a bit scary that a thief may get your home address if he steals such an item. Plus, a thief who breaks into a car can get your name and address quite easily by grabbing insurance and registration. Your address isn't what they're after, and such fear is misplaced. My address is published by the phone company and distributed everywhere, for free, to anyone who asks. And I highly doubt that owning (or have owned in this case) a GPSr makes me a bigger target to a thief. Now, if I leave an empty HDTV box outside of my house, leave all the lights off and the front door wide open, THAT would make me a target.

Zactley!!!!! Any thief could follow me home from the shopping center, look at the post on the front porch and get my address. They wouldn't even have to steal my GPSr to get it!!! And, my Boxer and German Sheppard would certainly not be to "Happy" if they tried to break into my house when I'm not home!

[+the hermit crabs]

I label mine "HOME", otherwise I'll never figure out what it means and I'll be hopelessly lost forever.

 

I label mine AAA so it is always near the top when I list waypoints alphabetically. At least I can remember what it means.

I labeled mine " HOME" (with a leading space) so it's always first on the list.

[+joranda]

I label mine, "Stay away"

[+Isonzo Karst]

Sorta on topic, I picked up a functioning gps out in the woods. No home coords, no contact info. Owner lives near me, but turns the unit on after driving a while - lotsa tracks in the woods, lotsa points marked TRK (truck).

I'd return it, if he'd personalized it in any way......

[+Claroman]

I call mine "HOME" because Garmin has a one touch feature to navigate to home location with a press and hold on "FIND". I don't think this would work if I called it something else and it's a feature I use regularly on the road.

I do not leave this GPSr in my car when parked so as to minimise theft risk and I have not bothered to programme a home location in the hand-held GPSr I use for Geocaching (now that I have a second unit more suitable for that).

Take all reasonable precautions against the bad guys but don't let them spoil your life with fear otherwise they win.

 

Claroman

UK

[+welch]

I call mine "HOME" because Garmin has a one touch feature to navigate to home location with a press and hold on "FIND". I don't think this would work if I called it something else and it's a feature I use regularly on the road.

I do not leave this GPSr in my car when parked so as to minimise theft risk and I have not bothered to programme a home location in the hand-held GPSr I use for Geocaching (now that I have a second unit more suitable for that).

Take all reasonable precautions against the bad guys but don't let them spoil your life with fear otherwise they win.

 

Claroman

UK

I was thinking the manuel for mine specifically says it has to be called HOME or I can't use that feature.

[+KBI]

I don't label my home waypoint "Home." Yes, that would be risky to call it something that obvious.

 

Instead I use my Social Security number.

[+elmuyloco5]

http://breakingnews.nydailynews.com/dynami...EMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

Thief steals car GPS system; cop looks at programmed home coords and returns it to owner,

arrests thief!

 

On the other hand, it is NOT a very good idea to program in your home coordinates and call them "HOME." Do you really want some guy who stole your GPS to have your home coordinates and start wondering what other kinds of cool toys you have there?

 

Many GPS's have welcome screens that you can use to enter your contact information if the unit is stolen (name, phone number, email, even address). The cop could have gotten the information from that as well.

 

If a cop can find the welcome screen with your info that you listed above, why wouldn't the criminal be able to?

[Neos2]

Sorta on topic, I picked up a functioning gps out in the woods. No home coords, no contact info. Owner lives near me, but turns the unit on after driving a while - lotsa tracks in the woods, lotsa points marked TRK (truck).

I'd return it, if he'd personalized it in any way......

Any chance the TRK waypoints are truckstops?

 

If so, you might want to post a note over at geotruckers dot com

[+ArcherDragoon]

I use "Code Name Phoenix"...

[+wimseyguy]

I don't need no stinking GPS to navigate myself back home. I just use it to take me to the adventures. The day I can't find my way home on my own is the day I stop leaving the house.

[+Cpt.Blackbeard]

I don't need no stinking GPS to navigate myself back home. I just use it to take me to the adventures. The day I can't find my way home on my own is the day I stop leaving the house.

 

I don't need it to find my way home with either, but I enjoy standing somwhere far away, like Old Faithful, and checking my home waypoint to see how many miles away it is and what direction. GPS is good for more fun than just finding caches.

[+WRITE SHOP ROBERT]

I hope no cop ever finds mine, i have listings for caches like "dead body" and other such horrors. I can just see them going out to the desert and digging up all the Cache area.

[+ICHTHYS]

I recovered a stolen gps for an airplane once, with $1000 bose headphones. About $2500 worth of stuff total.

 

Because of the home coords we were able to locate the owner and return the property.

[+Bad_CRC]

I put a waypoint to the police station in, and call it "unlocked valuables"

 

 

no, I don't. I just call "home" "home"

[+ironman114]

Sorta on topic, I picked up a functioning gps out in the woods. No home coords, no contact info. Owner lives near me, but turns the unit on after driving a while - lotsa tracks in the woods, lotsa points marked TRK (truck).

I'd return it, if he'd personalized it in any way......

 

Same thing happened to me. I found mine on the highway 10 years ago. Nothing shown for home. I contacted Garmin and they hadn't even registered their $600 unit. So they couldn't contact the owners either.

 

Their mistake my gps.

[+benh57]

My 60csx startup screen has my phone number on it. You can personlize the message in the setup menus. (i forget which one, exactly) That assumes the person knows how to turn it on, the power button took me a while to find when i first got it.

[+Jaz666]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

[+Isonzo Karst]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

 

This won't get your lost GPS returned to you. Most units have a place to add a phone # or (some) an email address. I'd return GPS I found to the owner if I could.

[+TJ07]

Thats awesome

[+carolnbarney]

Folks, let me interject a suggestion/comment from a recently retired LEO. The average thief/thug/(insert your preferred description) running the streets is usually way too lazy to stop to figure out what they have gotten or how to use it. Their first move is going to be in no particular order to take it to a pawn shop, drug dealer, willing buyer, or other place to turn it into quick cash to finance their particular need that day. What may be a great thing to one of us is probably going to mean no more to the thief than a small am/fm radio.

 

While coordinates to home are fine, you might get better/quicker response from the police if you marked your unit in a permanent way with your drivers license number and the abbreviation of the issuing state. Just make sure your correct address is on your license. The average officer is not going to know how to operate a GPS, but the average officer can with your drivers license number and the abbreviation of the state find out your name and address in 15-30 seconds.

 

P.S. As far as the idea of whether or not to call coordinates to where you live "home" or something else goes, I have to vote for home for one reason. That reason being if you do happen to have your GPS found by an officer that knows how to use it, they will probably know home equates to owner but will not know what anything else you may call it indicates.

[+Cpt.Blackbeard]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

 

This won't get your lost GPS returned to you. Most units have a place to add a phone # or (some) an email address. I'd return GPS I found to the owner if I could.

 

You found it, thank you!. It's been missing so long I no longer remember where or when I lost it or even what make and model it is but I eagerly await it's return!

[+vw_k]

There have been horror stories here in the UK (not sure if they are true or urban legends) about thieves stealing a car with Sat-nav/gps and being able to find the owners home, if you've stolen someones car there's a good chance their home will be empty and convenient to burgle!

 

I'd rather mark my GPS with a phone number, if someone finds it and is generous enough to want to return it they can call me.

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

 

This won't get your lost GPS returned to you. Most units have a place to add a phone # or (some) an email address. I'd return GPS I found to the owner if I could.

 

You found it, thank you!. It's been missing so long I no longer remember where or when I lost it or even what make and model it is but I eagerly await it's return!

WTG Captain, glad you're going to get your GPS back! We'll all be waiting to see what kind of unit he sends you!

[+ironman114]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

 

This won't get your lost GPS returned to you. Most units have a place to add a phone # or (some) an email address. I'd return GPS I found to the owner if I could.

 

Same here.

 

I tried to find the owner but couldn't. If he had registered it I would have returned it.

[+Cpt.Blackbeard]

Simple solution is to call the waypoint home, but set it a few streets away.

 

This won't get your lost GPS returned to you. Most units have a place to add a phone # or (some) an email address. I'd return GPS I found to the owner if I could.

 

You found it, thank you!. It's been missing so long I no longer remember where or when I lost it or even what make and model it is but I eagerly await it's return!

WTG Captain, glad you're going to get your GPS back! We'll all be waiting to see what kind of unit he sends you!

Thanks Rambler, no one will be more surprised them me when it arrives.

 

I actually do have a GPS I haven't seen in a few years, A Magellan 200XL I bought new at Wally World for $138.00 way back in the 90's. It's not really lost though, it's here in the house and I think I know where, but I have no use for it anymore.

[+gelfling6]

I don't label my home waypoint "Home." Yes, that would be risky to call it something that obvious.

 

Instead I use my Social Security number.

 

Opens up an even worse can of worms! read "Identity Theft"

 

I usually label mine 001, and keep the coordinates jotted down inside the battery compartment.

 

On most Etrex, there's plenty of room in there for a strip of paper & some tape.

 

Stephen (gelfling6) (who's waiting for Tom Tom to send his dad a new oneV3. White screen of Death Syndrome.)

[+Team Cotati]

I don't need no stinking GPS to navigate myself back home. I just use it to take me to the adventures. The day I can't find my way home on my own is the day I stop leaving the house.

 

Beautiful.

[+yawetag]

I labeled my home coords "Not Home". I figure that will deter the criminals.

[+kg6dfh]

If you Valet park your car, a dishonest attendant will have your home address (vehicle registration and/or insurance), the keys to your house (do you seperate them?), and the knowledge that you are not at home.

 

Easy pickin's