IGPoobah Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 OK, maybe I'm just ignorant, but I am curious how to take the coordinates I see on my etrex and make them simple lat/long numbers to plug into a mapping program. I haven't been able to find anything, was hoping someone could help me out... Quote Link to comment
crr003 Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 If you select Menu-Setup-Position on the GPS receiver you can change the position coordinates from the default hddd mm.mmm (Geocaching default too) to hddd.ddddd or hddd mm ss.s or UTM, or several country specific formats. d means degree, m means minute and s means second 60s = 1m 60m = 1d h=hemisphere as in North South East West. There are also several conversion programs out there which will do the same sort of thing on a spreadsheet or directly on a web page. Nil Satis Nisi Optimum Quote Link to comment
Tahosa and Sons Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 Not sure what you are looking for, but this may help you. WGS 84 is the Map Datum Lat/Long is one of the many Formats. One needs to know the difference between these two items. These links may get you on the right track. http://www.maptools.com/UsingUTM/mapdatum.html http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/faq.shtml Your Etrex is allready doing Lat/Long. As to how you put it into a mapping program, that is a different subject and it all depends on what kind of mapping program you have. When you finally get it figured out, the next thing to learn is how to use UTM's in lieu of Lat/Long for map work. Much easier to plot your position on a map as you traverse the terrain. Tahosa - Dweller of the Mountain Tops. Quote Link to comment
Lyra Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 Here is a link to JeEep.com that you can use to convert coordinates from any format to any other format. Always wear proper caching safety equipment! Quote Link to comment
solohiker Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 You are certainly not ignorant. The Map Datum and Map Format are confusing and setting the GPS is not very intuitive. Rule of thumb is to set your GPS for the map datum and format of the map you are using. I enter waypoints from this site in WGS84 datum hddd mm.mmm format, but when I seek caches I change the format and datum in my GPS. The GPS automatically does the conversion. Using the wrong map datum will result in positional errors. Be careful. Quote Link to comment
IGPoobah Posted January 6, 2003 Author Share Posted January 6, 2003 The whole reason I'm asking is because I have a map program (DeLorme Street Atlas 8.0) which interfaces with my eTrex Venture, and I'd like to be able to work backwards so to speak. I can download routes to my GPS, and even though the venture is not roadmap capable, I can still use the route DeLorme gives me and be pretty close. However, the only way I can insert GPS coordinates into DeLorme is simple lat/long like we all leaned in school. So, thanks, should be able to figure it out now... Quote Link to comment
thueringen-scout Posted June 7, 2003 Share Posted June 7, 2003 If you need I can give you a small self written tool for PC's. It is a calculator (appears similar like the Windows calculator) that is able to convert LAT/LONG coordinates in decimal format into degrees/minutes/secons and vice versa. If you need it just contact me: kaiwick@web.de Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.