[ale] OT: GPS/nav units?

[Paul Cartwright]

On Tue February 26 2008, Jim Lynch wrote:
> The standard usb to serial cables are notoriously bad for connecting GPS
> units to laptops.  It's so bad that some dealers have constructed cables
> that work.  The problem is that they are more expensive than a pcmcia
> serial card.  I bought a pcmcia card on ebay and it works great with my
> laptop, Etrex and GPS 76.

good to know!
>
> Another option is here:
> http://www.pfranc.com/cgi-bin/P/pUSB32/garmin-GPS-cables.
>
> I don't know if this cable works, but pfranc has a pretty good
> reputation.  I purchased a 4 pin connector for the GPS 48 from them a
> while back and, in  spite of my lousy soldering, it worked OK.
>

it's a moot point now. Since the Etrex failed to provide accurate mapping of 
my property, I don't really need to connect it to my PC.. I live among 100+ 
foot tall oak/hickory/sweetgum/pine trees, and when I get down to where I 
wanted to map my property, the Etrex said" accurate to within 118 feet"..
so, there is no point in mapping bad data:)
and that was in the winter, when the trees had no leaves.. in the 
spring/summer, you can't see much past your own feet in the woods!
besides, my NEW Garmin C-340 is a much neater toy! and of course to update IT 
you need winders!


-- 
Paul Cartwright
Registered Linux user # 367800
Registered Ubuntu User #12459