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Garmin 60cs & Ms Streets & Trips


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I purchased a 60cs and MS Streets & Trips but am having a lot of trouble interfacing the two. I have no trouble interfacing the included MapSource Basemap software that was included with the 60cs and the 60cs. The Basemap software allows me to select a USB port, rather than Com1 or Com4. S&T only gives me the option to configure through Com1 or Com4, but MapSource Basemap gives those options plus the USB option. My laptop only has USB, so there is no other connection option. I'm sure someone else has the 60cs and S&T. Does anyone have a possible solution?

 

Thanks!

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Probably not much help, but I use the yellow Etrex with MapPoint 2004, which, like S&T, only recognizes the serial connections.

 

I bought a serial <-> USB converter, and as long as I turn on the Etrex after the converter is recognized by my laptop, it works fine. Otherwise, the laptop thinks it's a mouse, and jumps the cursor all over the screen.

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Well, that really sucks. I obviously can't return the software now. Maybe I'll sell it on ebay or something. Anybody want it? How is Delorme? I've heard a lot of bad things about the newer versions.

Edited by slunk
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On this subject of Streets & Trips and the 60CS -- I've been using only USB for everything and now want to use S&T with my GPS and see it requires a serial port. I'm wondering if I even got a serial cable with my 60CS? If I did, I can't find it but will look harder if I know I really did get one. Did one come with the 60CS???

 

Thanks!!!

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On this subject of Streets & Trips and the 60CS -- I've been using only USB for everything and now want to use S&T with my GPS and see it requires a serial port. I'm wondering if I even got a serial cable with my 60CS? If I did, I can't find it but will look harder if I know I really did get one. Did one come with the 60CS???

 

Thanks!!!

The 60cs only comes with a USB cable. But I assume you could get a USB to serial adapter and it would then work with S&T. Places like CompUSA sell the adapters. You can probably find them a little cheaper online though.

 

Adapters

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On this subject of Streets & Trips and the 60CS -- I've been using only USB for everything and now want to use S&T with my GPS and see it requires a serial port.  I'm wondering if I even got a serial cable with my 60CS?  If I did, I can't find it but will look harder if I know I really did get one.  Did one come with the 60CS???

 

Thanks!!!

The 60cs only comes with a USB cable. But I assume you could get a USB to serial adapter and it would then work with S&T. Places like CompUSA sell the adapters. You can probably find them a little cheaper online though.

 

Adapters

I just remembered that I HAD bought a combo charger (cigarette lighter) and serial cable when I bought the GPS ;) I just found, though, that my laptop doesn't have a serial port. BUT, a friend of mine here has a Garmin USB to serial adapter which makes it work. :blink: Now, my last problem is I don't have the car adapter to plug my laptop into the cigarette lighter. I've checked Dell's site and they don't list one for my laptop. But they do list a universal adapter that's good for laptops for 70 watts -- is there a way for me to tell how many watts my laptop is???

 

Thanks...

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Check the bottom of the laptop and/or the AC adaptor for the electrical info sticker. If the adaptor doesn't say how many watts, just multiply the *output* volts times the amperes (probably something in the range of 16V and 4A) to get watts. This will be a max value, normal operation should be less. 70W will probably cover most laptops, my new Thinkpad is rated @ 70.

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Here is what I use to serially connect my 60CS to my laptop:

 

r12c.gif

 

GPS geek

 

Now my laptop does not have a serial port, so I use this adaptor:

 

USB.jpg

 

However, every time I hook up my 60CS to Microsoft Streets and Trips 2005 my laptop crashes! It will work for a short period of time and then the screen goes blank and about 5 min later I get the message something like "Windows has recovered from a serious error". So now I am using National Geographic Topo! 4.0 until I purchase Delorme Street Atlas.

 

Woggs1

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In my opinion it is Microsofts problem. They release MS&T 2005 with no USB support, and all the newest laptops dont even have serial ports anymore! come on, they are supposed to be 'the' software company, and they are relasing products that are way behind in technology, and buggy. I am not happy with Windows XP either, I had a chance to talk to one of the guys on the XP develpment team and he was just apologizing about XP being "unstable" and they will fix the issues in a future OS. And of course we all have to live with Microsoft because they have been accused of using methods that get rid of the competition. I should have known better than to buy a Microsoft product!

 

Just my $.02

 

Woggs1

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Here is what I use to serially connect my 60CS to my laptop:

 

r12c.gif

 

GPS geek

 

Now my laptop does not have a serial port, so I use this adaptor:

 

USB.jpg

 

However, every time I hook up my 60CS to Microsoft Streets and Trips 2005 my laptop crashes! It will work for a short period of time and then the screen goes blank and about 5 min later I get the message something like "Windows has recovered from a serious error". So now I am using National Geographic Topo! 4.0 until I purchase Delorme Street Atlas.

 

Woggs1

If that adapter uses the Prolific chipset then using an updated driver will most likely fix the problem.

The driver I'm using right now that works like champ is this one.

http://www.zapp.ro/help/download/?.content.language=en

I had an older driver and the same thing was happening to me.

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BlueDeuce, maps are a totally different problem than tracks and waypoints.

 

Woggs, a key difference in Garmin/USB and NMEA is that the former is a totally proprietary standard controlled by one company and subject to change at whim while the other is an established electrical and logical standard accepted by a large number of vendors and established over the course of many years. It isn't hard to see why there's a gap here.

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I recommend to owners of a Garmin 60 series GPSR to avoid MS S&T 2005, especially for non-serial laptop use. I am of the opinion that Microsoft is behind the times in offering Garmin USB support in S&T 2005. I come to this opinion by offering the following facts. I use GSAK, that offers Garmin USB support, I have National Geo Topo! 4.0, that offers Garmin USB support and I have USA Photomaps that offers Garmin USB support. Gsak and USA Photomap are to my understanding one-man operations, while National Geographic is a major corporation. I also have a hard time believing that Garmin would change their 60CS USB proprietary standard on a whim. In order for them to do that they would have to change the firmware in all the sold units, as well as the drivers for all their sold software, which would be a customer service nightmare. It is my opinion that the Garmin USB protocol is already set, and available to those software developers who make the effort to include in their products. So, if those other programs can include this USB support for Garmin, why can't Microsoft? USA Photomaps is freeware and it has the support! The way I see it Microsoft has failed miserably in this regard (and in other non-gps aspects as well). Perhaps the reason is that Microsoft products are so buggy and bloated that they just can’t adapt to the dynamic changes in technology in any kind of timely manner. Another thing that I do not like is that nowhere (until very recently on their website) is it documented that MS S&T will not support USB GPSRs. This is just my humble opinion (can you tell I am not a fan of Microsoft? Maybe it has something to do with their stock price a few years back, and that I am an advocate of open-source software but that is another topic).

Edited by woggs1
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Adding my 2 cents

 

I have purchased a 60cs [ still in the mail ] and also have MS S&T 2005. I was hoping to interface the to so I wouldn't have to order Garmin's maps, at least for a while. My research into the two has turned up these factoids.

 

1. S&T requires NMEA 0183 V 2.0 or later.

 

2. NMEA is currently only a serial protocol.

 

3. When you hook USB upto the 60cs it defaults to Garmin's protocol and not NMEA and is basically the only protocol used on USB [ from the PDF manual ]

 

4. Other comm modes are still available over serial connection while USB is connected[ from PDF manual ]

 

5. My experience in connecting other devices by converting the interface type [ like woggs1 did ] often resulted in the same problem he experienced. Sometimes corrected by what Geek-Qualizer did.

 

So it is not solely a MS S&T problem, it is a MS and Garmin and NMEA problem. :o;)

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4. Other comm modes are still available over serial connection while USB is connected[ from PDF manual ]

My experience while developing GPSBabel's USB support for these models contradicts that. I remember that sentence in the manual, but that's not how I remember it actually working.

 

Once the USB endpoint is enumerated, the serial interface quit listening to commands in my testing. (During development I often wanted to alternate between the two cable types without having to physically unplug the USB hose.)

 

I can't recall if it was before or after the 3.50 update when I concluded that just didn't work.

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I did not realize the USB/MS&T thing was an issue until my company gave me ThinkPad T60 that only had USB ports. What I did discover was the docking station included a serial port and that appears to work. ;)

 

My question is – if the docking station has a serial port – is there some sort of adaptor that I can get that will proved a serial port so I don’t have to lug around the docking port when I travel? :lol:

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I had the same problem, I got the GPS Gate software ( http://franson.com/ ) and it worked. This software creates a "virtual port" and will make S&T recognise your GPS, just like if it was hooked to a serial port.

 

S&T did crash every once in a while on me though. Since then, I have just went out and purchased the regular little USB plug in GPS reciever that comes with Streets & Trips, and I use it. It works great, and I don't have to mess with plugging in, and unplugging the GPS all the time. (I was using a 60csx)

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