New geocaching software for PalmOS

[+RayDar_]

There is a new program for PalmOS users with GPS

receivers.

 

This is the first PalmOS program aimed specifically at geocachers!

 

It is available at palmgear.com:

 

http://www.palmgear.com/software/showsoftware.cfm?prodID=41565

 

Enjoy!

[+Dan_Edwards]

Looks like a pretty cool program. It does look like it would be a great interface for Geocaching.

 

I was going to download it til I saw that it was OS 3.5 only. I am thinking of getting a new Visor pro...

[+the england's]

It will run on any Palm OS 3.5 and above.....I dont know if it will add much to my caching but I'll check it out

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Well after checking it out I must say I think I like it and I think I may just be able to use this.

 

"Before beginning a hunt, it is wise to ask someone what you are looking for before you begin looking for it." Pooh

 

[This message was edited by embi on May 04, 2002 at 07:01 AM.]

[Team Bohica]

Looked like exactly what I wanted but it only runs on PalmOS 3.5. That leaves out all us Visor Deluxe users. Not that I have any problem using the NavCompanion software, but it'd be nice to have something with a little more features.

[+Nos402]

I am highly impressed. So deeply configurable. It totally blows NavCompanion away! Sorry to those who can't use it, I'm not trying to rub it in, I promise!

[+Crusso]

The program info says it can be used with or without a GPS receiver. If w/out, what exactly does it do? I read all the program info and still am a little confused on what exactly this program is good for. I have a prism & a Garmin V. Does this tie them together, do I need a map program in my Prism?...... ???

[jfitzpat]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Crusso:

The program info says it can be used with or without a GPS receiver. If w/out, what exactly does it do? I read all the program info and still am a little confused on what exactly this program is good for. I have a prism & a Garmin V. Does this tie them together, do I need a map program in my Prism?...... ???

---

 

If you have a Garmin V, I'm not sure what you would use the program for at all. You already have a more effective trip meter and nav screen.

 

I'm not saying that the program is bad, just that higher end GPSr's already do pretty much everything the app seems to do, and more.

 

I think that the idea is to try to make add on GPSs for Palms more feature competetive with standalone GPSr's. Or, as RayDar mentions in their Palm Gear listing, "better".

 

But, most non base level standalone units now offer mapping. And, still offer better battery life, are waterproof, and are much more durable.

 

Frankly, I think that the last three are pretty big issues for the "outdoorsman" (and women ). But, of course, no software program is going to address them.

 

-jjf

[idefix]

Hello

I am looking for the exact software... but for my Ipaq. Does someone know a link or has a program like GeoNiche for my Ipaq (PocketPC 2002 and navman gps)

 

Thanks a lot,

Idefix

[+parkrrrr]

Hey, what better place to post this... There are five things I'd like to be able to do with Palm GPS software that I currently can't, and all of them are relevant to geocaching:

 

1) Use UTM. My topo maps are in UTM, why can't my GPS be?

2) Estimate horizontal position error. Cetus shows me the current HDOP, which is better than nothing and more than anyone else seems to bother with, but someone should be able to do better. I know, I know, the algorithms Garmin uses are proprietary and all that. But surely some usable research exists on the topic.

3) Project a waypoint. There are caches that depend on the ability to do this.

4) Have lots and lots of text describing a waypoint. The use of this one should be obvious.

5) Easily edit and create waypoints and routes on the desktop. GPSPilot comes the closest to even trying to support this functionality, but even their desktop support sucks bigtime.

 

[+RayDar_]

Warm Fuzzies wrote:

 

> 4) Have lots and lots of text describing a

> waypoint. The use of this one should be obvious.

 

Warm Fuzzies obviously hasn't tried GeoNiche. You can enter at least 1K of text for each waypoint.

 

Here are some things you can do with Palm GPS software (GeoNiche v1.1) that you can't do with a conventional GPS receiver:

 

1) Have virtually unlimited waypoints (put 40,000 or more into GeoNiche if you want)

 

2) Beam your waypoints and recorded routes to a fellow geocacher.

 

3) Assign every button on the unit one of 45 different functions.

 

4) Check your appointment schedule.

 

5) Decode geocaching encrypted hints.

[+Nos402]

Is this out yet? I can only find 1.0. I liked it so much I registered it!

 

Also, is it possible to add a battery meter for the Magellan GPS companion? I found thius was the ONLY feature of NavCompanion that I missed when it was gone.

 

[This message was edited by Heath and Jess on May 07, 2002 at 05:34 AM.]

[+parkrrrr]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Ray Dar:

Warm Fuzzies obviously hasn't tried GeoNiche. You can enter at least 1K of text for each waypoint.

---

 

True. We haven't had an opportunity to get out and do some geocaching for several weeks now. But when we do, I'll take it for a spin.

 

However, this brings me back to what was my fifth point: 1K of waypoint text isn't a whole lot of good unless there's a way to enter it on the desktop. Sure, I could copy and paste from a memopad entry, but... well... ugh.

 

quote:

---

Here are some things you can do with Palm GPS software (GeoNiche v1.1) that you can't do with a conventional GPS receiver:

---

 

Some of those are more properly things you can do with a PDA in general, like the appointment schedule one, but your point is well-taken. I use a Palm and a GPS Companion to geocache, but I really miss the five things I noted above. The reason I put them here is because as a geocacher and the author of some Palm GPS software, you're in a position to do something about that lack. Other than the horizontal error estimate thing, they're all pretty easy to do.

 

In addition:

 

6) Allow me to use magnetic north in addition to true north. Tracker almost gets there - it lets me specify a declination for waypoints - but that's only because it's sort of designed for pilots. It doesn't actually compute or correct for declination on the fly. Planetarium can compute the declination for a location, but no available software lets me enter that declination and correct for it. I think you can get the math you need to compute this from USGS.

 

7) Make sure your desktop software has a COM Automation interface so I can talk to it with ActiveX controls and Windows Script Host scripts. For an example of usage: I want to write a button that sits on my IE toolbar and waits for me to push it while viewing a cache description, then goes and extracts the cache info and creates a waypoint automatically. Palm almost got this one right with the 4.1 Palm Desktop beta, but they fell just short of the mark.

 

[+Dan_Edwards]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Warm Fuzzies - Fuzzy:

 

6) Allow me to use magnetic north in addition to true north.

---

 

Fuzzy,

 

I don't know if your using the Magellan software, but it does allow you change between magnetic and true. That said I would like it to be a feature of any GPS software I would get.

 

I had given up on GPS and my Palm and I was just going to break down and get a stand alone GPS. But now this program has renewed my tinkering interest.

 

I think instead I will upgrade to the Visor Pro. That 16mb of memory is sounding good, and the faster processor would be a big boon for the spell check on Wordsmith. The new version of the Palm OS would allow me to have more then one serial port open at a time. That would allow me to use the SprintPCS phone attachment at the same time as the fold away keyboard. That faster processor would also be great for drawing web pages...

 

Oh I can feel the geek blood kicking into full!

 

Dan

[+parkrrrr]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Dan Edwards:

I don't know if your using the Magellan software, but it does allow you change between magnetic and true. That said I would like it to be a feature of any GPS software I would get.

---

 

I am using the Magellan software. Please tell me how to change it to use magnetic bearings. I know the nav2 screen shows a little 'T' by all of the headings and bearings and such, but I've never been able to find a place to change that and Magellan doesn't seem to believe in documentation.

 

[+Dan_Edwards]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Warm Fuzzies - Fuzzy:

I am using the Magellan software. Please tell me how to change it to use magnetic bearings. I know the nav2 screen shows a little 'T' by all of the headings and bearings and such, but I've never been able to find a place to change that and Magellan doesn't seem to believe in documentation.

---

 

I had a feeling you might ask for me to remember how to do it. Well I have been up and down Navcompanion and I can't find it. My best guess is I am putting memories of someother program because I can't get it to do it again. Sure is a vivid memory though. It's so vivid my emotional side can't give up just yet, but my logical side gave up a while ago...

 

Dan

[+Dan_Edwards]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Warm Fuzzies - Fuzzy:

Hey, what better place to post this... There are five things I'd like to be able to do with Palm GPS software that I currently can't, and all of them are relevant to geocaching:

 

1) Use UTM. My topo maps are in UTM, why can't my GPS be?

2) Estimate horizontal position error. Cetus shows me the current HDOP, which is better than nothing and more than anyone else seems to bother with, but someone should be able to do better. I know, I know, the algorithms Garmin uses are proprietary and all that. But surely some usable research exists on the topic.

3) Project a waypoint. There are caches that depend on the ability to do this.

4) Have lots and lots of text describing a waypoint. The use of this one should be obvious.

5) Easily edit and create waypoints and routes on the desktop. GPSPilot comes the closest to even trying to support this functionality, but even their desktop support sucks bigtime.

 

http://216.202.195.127/warm.gif

---

 

I would like one program to have all of the above a lot too. Here are some of the solutions I have come up with.

 

1. GPSCalc will do the conversion of UTM to Lat/Long, but then your cuting and pasting...

2. If the GPS outputs this data, you can use NMEAmon to montitor the organized raw data from your GPS.

3. NavCalc will let you do some very advanced waypoint projection, but then your cuting and pasting again. One very cool feature is to project a waypoint from two locations and the angle.

4. It looks like Geoniche has this from what I could tell from my short running on a Palm 3.5 device. But for anything prior to 3.5 I would say your SOL.

5. I have not found a good solution for this. With TopoUSA and Solus you can put in markers, but Solus is useless in the woods.

[+parkrrrr]

I've decided that when I have some free time (ha!) I'm going to teach myself enough palm programming to write a Desk Accessory that will let me see and enter waypoints in UTM, convert from NAD27 to WGS84, and do projection and triangulation. Why a Desk Accessory? My plan is to make it work with the databases of Tracker, Nav Companion, and whatever other programs I can reverse-engineer the waypoint databases for and run "on top" of those programs. Then, I'll be able to launch it from my favorite program with a simple button press using TealLaunch, and return to the map without ever losing info like the trip odometer. Yeah, it won't tell me what my current location is in UTM or NAD27 or whatever, but it'll let me create waypoints from my UTM or NAD27 maps, which is more important, and if I really want to know my current location in one of those systems, I can always create a waypoint and translate it.

 

Of course, this is all contingent on my finding free time, which is something I already don't have enough of...

 

[+Dan_Edwards]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Warm Fuzzies - Fuzzy:

I've decided that when I have some free time (ha!) I'm going to teach myself enough palm programming to write a Desk Accessory that will let me see and enter waypoints in UTM, convert from NAD27 to WGS84, and do projection and triangulation.

---

 

That sounds like a pretty cool idea I will have to look into that too. I found a pretty good Palm programming book. One of the cool things about this book is that it includes examples of GPS and location calculation programming. I wanted to pick it up while I was on vacation, but I was running low on cash. Funny you can never take enough of that on vacation.

[+TresOkies]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Dan Edwards:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1565928563/qid=1021754832/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/103-2482552-2403843

 

I can definitely recommend this book for a number of reasons...

It was the first real programming book for the Palm OS

It's published by O'Reilly and Associates, which is usually more than enough to recommend a geek book

Neil (the author) is very active in the Palm developer community, unlike the authors of a lot of Palm programming books who came along later

Neil worked at Palm for a while

I worked on the book (just had to sneak that in there)

Has a freebie version of CodeWarrior for Palm in it. Granted that version is now 3 years old, but it will get you started. If you decide to go the CodeWarrior route (as opposed to the GCC/freeware route), you would definitely be better off shelling out the $300+ for the latest version.

 

-E

 

--

N35°32.981 W98°34.631

[+Dan_Edwards]

quote:

---

Originally posted by TresOkies:

 

+ Has a freebie version of CodeWarrior for Palm in it. Granted that version is now 3 years old, but it will get you started. If you decide to go the CodeWarrior route (as opposed to the GCC/freeware route), you would definitely be better off shelling out the $300+ for the latest version.

---

 

Ahh, but in my book even a better reason is that even though CodeWarrior is included in the book, it still covers everything via both environments. I have seen other books that when they include a programming environment the stick to that one almost exclusively.