+Insp Gadget Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 Just wondering if anyone is using a Garmin Forerunner for Geocaching. If so, how well does it work? Quote Link to comment
+robert Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 FYI http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php...1&hl=forerunner Quote Link to comment
+Karma Hunter Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 I wondered about this too so I went to the Garmin website and downloaded the PDF owner's manual to read about it. The manual does a good job of showing the various screens and functions (much better than the "screen examples" that are shown on the item description page of the website). As the link in the previous post indicates, it is useable, but with limitations (no lat/lon display, no bearing, etc). Too bad. Seems like a nice small unit that receives the info you want, just doesn't display it in the form a geocacher might prefer. Quote Link to comment
+skeeter-n-lucy Posted January 13, 2004 Share Posted January 13, 2004 I like mine for it's stated purpose. I think enetering coordinates would be a hassle. Pretty good for exercise though!!! Quote Link to comment
+Insp Gadget Posted January 13, 2004 Author Share Posted January 13, 2004 Anyone know if you can use this puppy as a watch? Can you turn the GPS off when not needed? Quote Link to comment
+CoasterManiacs Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 All- I've had mine for about a week. Found my first cache with it yesterday. You can enter coordinates manually, or you can enter them using EasyGPS and send the location through the serial cable to the watch. You can use it as a watch - if you are inside the watch will prompt you if it cant find a signal, and asks if you are indoors. If so it will turn the gps off. I would find it too bulky for an everyday watch though. Quote Link to comment
+Insp Gadget Posted January 19, 2004 Author Share Posted January 19, 2004 I got mine on Friday and used it all weekend. It performed very well for Geocaching, however I was rather disappointed at the manual. There are at least 2 things in the manual that, to me, should have been covered. 1. The serial cable. I did njot see anywhere in the manual about the serial cable. I had to hunt around till I found out where it plugged in! 2. I wqas playing with the virtual partner the other day. At one point a #1 and later a #2 appeared in front of my virtual self. Anyone know what these numbers mean? I saw no mention in the manual about them at all. Quote Link to comment
+CoasterManiacs Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 I had the same problem with the serial cable... took a while to figure out how to use it. The manual did make no mention of it. I have not yet used the virtual partner function yet... I get beat by enough people in races... why add another? But, I see numbers on maps in the navigation mode that correspond to your position when a lap is triggered (either automatically, if you have it turned on, or manually). Did you run an out and back when you noticed it? Also, I have one question about the forerunner. When I am using a Goto and stop moving, the directional arrow begins spinning around and pointing every which direction. Is this normal? I don't remember for sure, but I didn't think it used to do this prior to upgrading the software version. I would think if you stopped moving it would continue pointing in the direction it was last pointing toward? I'm new to GPS... so I'm not sure if its normal. I guess it would be telling me that since it doesn't have a magnetic compass in it, and since it does not know which way I am currently facing, that it can't tell me which direction I should be headed? Quote Link to comment
+eff-J Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 I guess it would be telling me that since it doesn't have a magnetic compass in it, and since it does not know which way I am currently facing, that it can't tell me which direction I should be headed? Yup, that's exactly right. - Jeff Quote Link to comment
+geo-jedi Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Does anyone know how to use a PC to talk to the Forerunner? We just got one of these and have been using it as intended for tracking running workouts. It works as advertised. I wonder what the logging software will do. The garmin website says it is due sometime in February. I figured out the serial cable but I don't seem to have any software that recognizes the device. I saw somewhere on the gc boards that someone was able to talk to the 201 with some kind of Mac software but on the PC neither garmin's mapsource nor ExpertGPS seemed to be able to connect. With that said, it will be rather painful using this to geocache if you really have to enter each coordinate by hand. Although you can enter coords by hand, it is even more tedious than some of the older garmins. One must linearly scroll through the alphabet and use a combination of "enter" and arrow keys to get the data in. Team Geo-Jedi Quote Link to comment
+CoasterManiacs Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 (edited) I'm downloading the LOC files from the Geocaching website, and using EasyGPS ( http://www.easygps.com/ ) to transfer them to my forerunner. Also - Garmin issued a software update on Jan 14th - don't think it applies directly, but they do mention MapSource - might be worth a try --------------------------------- Changes made from version 2.10 to 2.20: Disallowed MapSource or other external software to power down the unit while in battery-charge mode. Updated language translations. Fixed a small rounding error on History speed calculations. Edited January 19, 2004 by NSMB Quote Link to comment
+geo-jedi Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 ExpertGPS is supposed to be the upgrade to EasyGPS - it's written by the same folks. It asks me to specify which GPS device and there is no Forerunner in the list. Do you have to do something similar in Easy GPS? Which model Garmin is closest to the Forerunner? I am running 2.10 Forerunner software. Has anyone uploaded the new 2.20 software yet? Has anyone also been able to upload tracks? Geo-Jedi Quote Link to comment
+CoasterManiacs Posted January 19, 2004 Share Posted January 19, 2004 Try selecting Garmin as manufacturer, and XXX (All Symbols) as the model. I believe that's what worked for me Quote Link to comment
topografix Posted January 23, 2004 Share Posted January 23, 2004 ExpertGPS is supposed to be the upgrade to EasyGPS - it's written by the same folks. It asks me to specify which GPS device and there is no Forerunner in the list. Do you have to do something similar in Easy GPS? If someone with a Forerunner wants to send me the specifics, I'll update EasyGPS and ExpertGPS to include this GPS model in the next release. I need to know: Exact list of waypoint symbols available Length of waypoint names: Number of waypoints: 100 Number of routes: Does it even do routes? Number of trackpoints in Active Log: Quote Link to comment
+Insp Gadget Posted January 23, 2004 Author Share Posted January 23, 2004 ExpertGPS is supposed to be the upgrade to EasyGPS - it's written by the same folks. It asks me to specify which GPS device and there is no Forerunner in the list. Do you have to do something similar in Easy GPS? If someone with a Forerunner wants to send me the specifics, I'll update EasyGPS and ExpertGPS to include this GPS model in the next release. I need to know: Exact list of waypoint symbols available Length of waypoint names: Number of waypoints: 100 Number of routes: Does it even do routes? Number of trackpoints in Active Log: Here goes: Icons: Flag House Car Tent Square Deer Boat ? (Looks like a small motorboat) Fish Anchor Sinking ship Swimmer Water skier Hiker Skull and crossbones First Aid Phone man and woman Question mark Tree Camera Picnic table gas pump fork and knife Hotel $ Golf course Business building Plane Balloon 6 characters for a waypoint name No routes No idea how many trackpoints in a log. Hope this helps! Quote Link to comment
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