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Why wont my GPS work in Vancouver?

The Chaos Crew

By The Chaos Crew
in How do I...?

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The Chaos Crew

+The Chaos Crew

Posted
Posted

I can't help but think I'm missing something obvious here

 

I have just arrived in glorious Vancouver on vacation, and have brought my GPSr with me for caching and general getting from A to B purposes

 

Trouble is, it can't find a single satellite.

 

I'm not getting any bars coming up at all on the little histogram thingy at all when it tries to acquire satellites on power up.

 

Is that because we are surrounded by skyscrapers?

 

Or is it looking for the satellites it usually finds in the English sky, do you think???

 

I have no idea how these things work :) can ya tell? :ph34r:

 

Do I need to somehow tell it I've gone 8 time zones west?

 

Was hoping to do some caching today, so relatively urgent help would be gratefully received

 

Sarah

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StarBrand

+StarBrand

Posted
Posted

Turn it on and select 'new location' (menu on sat page). Use the map to click on your approximate location. Go outside and get the thing a clear view of the sky for about an hour. You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

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The Chaos Crew

+The Chaos Crew

Posted
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Posted

Turn it on and select 'new location' (menu on sat page). Use the map to click on your approximate location. Go outside and get the thing a clear view of the sky for about an hour. You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

 

you are a star, thank you :)

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Fuchsiamagic

+Fuchsiamagic

Posted
Posted
You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

Is that only with certain GPSr units? I took my GPSMap60CSx to Florida from the UK recently and it work straight away as soon as I switched it on. :)

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theosus

+theosus

Posted
Posted
You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

Is that only with certain GPSr units? I took my GPSMap60CSx to Florida from the UK recently and it work straight away as soon as I switched it on. :)

 

They are confusing beasts.... I took mine to florida...a couple times now. sometimes I have to sit it in window for a while, and sometimes it starts right up.

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UncleJimbo

+UncleJimbo

Posted
Posted

Turn it on and select 'new location' (menu on sat page). Use the map to click on your approximate location. Go outside and get the thing a clear view of the sky for about an hour. You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

I have taken my eTrex Vista HCx from coast to coast in the US and to Europe, and I never had to do that. :)

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Shop99er

+Shop99er

Posted
Posted

Turn it on and select 'new location' (menu on sat page). Use the map to click on your approximate location. Go outside and get the thing a clear view of the sky for about an hour. You will be ok. It is just confused and doesn't what sats to look for and where. Anytime you go 500 miles or more with it off you have to do that.

I have taken my eTrex Vista HCx from coast to coast in the US and to Europe, and I never had to do that. :)

 

I never have to go through this with my Maggy.

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hairball45

+hairball45

Posted
Posted

The few times I've traveled any distance the GPS was ready to go upon arrival. I let it look out the window while we flew. My last trip was over a couple of time zones and it took oh, five or ten minutes to figure out where it was, but it locked on then. I had an aisle seat and felt funny about reaching over the woman sitting next to me so the GPS could be happy.

h

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sbell111

+sbell111

Posted
Posted

An hour is kind of extreme. Hopefully, it will get a lock in just a few minutes.

 

That being said, the UK and Vancouver are a honking long way from another. The sats that it was expecting to find are not within view. That, along with the fact that within Vancouver the unit probably has a very limited view of the sky, makes me totally understand the unit's inability to 'find itself'.

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BlueDeuce

+BlueDeuce

Posted
Posted (edited)

As I understand the system needs to update the almanac that 'knows' where the sats are scheduled to be. Anytime you travel over 250 miles with your gps off you should Bake the gps so it's current. The newer units may or may not require this, the older ones do.

Edited by BlueDeuce
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4wheelin_fool

4wheelin_fool

Posted
Posted (edited)

I can't help but think I'm missing something obvious here

 

I have just arrived in glorious Vancouver on vacation, and have brought my GPSr with me for caching and general getting from A to B purposes

 

Trouble is, it can't find a single satellite.

 

I'm not getting any bars coming up at all on the little histogram thingy at all when it tries to acquire satellites on power up.

 

Is that because we are surrounded by skyscrapers?

 

Or is it looking for the satellites it usually finds in the English sky, do you think???

 

I have no idea how these things work ;) can ya tell? ;)

 

Do I need to somehow tell it I've gone 8 time zones west?

 

Was hoping to do some caching today, so relatively urgent help would be gratefully received

 

Sarah

 

When the units are new is when the problem is the most extreme. My blue Garmin vista showed me in China when I first turned it on and it took a long while to figure out which satellites to find. The Garmin V I had showed Olathe Kansas, but the date was off by more than 2 years. (I got it on clearance)

Edited by 4wheelin_fool
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