GPS INFO PLEASE
Submitted: Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 21:03
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robbo44
HI ALL, A LITTLE BIT OF INFO PLEASE. WE HAVE PURCHASED A GPS THE BRAND IS GPSMART. WE WERE GIVEN READINGS FOR OUTBACK AUSTRALIA AND WE ARE HAVING A PROBLEM PUTTING THEM INTO OUR GPS. THE UNIT WILL ONLY LET US PUT IN 8 NUMBERS AND ANYTHING OVER 5 DIVERTS BACK TO 5, EG:-
NSW...150.777642 -30.495672 WHEN THESE READINGS ARE PUT INTO UNIT THE RESULT IS AS FOLLOWS. 150.55554 - 30.45555. WE WERE TOLD THAT THE UNIT WE HAVE NEEDS TO BE CONVERTED TO DECIMAL NOT SECONDS. WOW WE ARE VERY CONFUSED. IS THERE SOMEONE WHO HAS THIS SAME UNIT OR IS THERE ANOTHER UNIT THAT IS SIMPLE TO USE AND IS RECOMMENDED. HOPE THERE IS SOMEONE OUT THERE WHO CAN GIVE US SOME INFO.
Reply By: dja - Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 21:54
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 21:54
The spec and 'Tech Support' is available at
http://www.fortuna.com.tw/GPSmart.htm , but I saw no usefull info there to assist your dilema.
It may be that your desired position is
-30 29 44.4192 E
150 46 39.5112 S
I deduced this from entering your point into Oziexplorer and then changing to deg min and sec which is what I reckon your unit is looking for.
A normal way to interpret the format is to create a waypoint at your current position and then compare this to what is on a map. This should provide you with a quick answer.
I'd suggest that you carefully put the instrument in the next Trading Post or bottom drawer of the filing cabinet and invest in a new $200 Garmin Etrex or $300 Garmin Etrex Legend or Magellan equivilent from Brian at
http://www.gpsoz.com.au/ or similar reputable dealer.
I trust this assists
dja.
AnswerID:
113990
Follow Up By: robbo44 - Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 22:05
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 22:05
g'day dja, many thanks for your info i will try what you have said about putting in my waypoint and see what it reads. The place we purchased the unit from will take it back and refund, as we have already been to
test their knowledge and they did not know anything about the unit at all , they only sold them.its a worry. I will let you know how we got on.
FollowupID:
370016
Reply By: kgarnett - Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 22:13
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 22:13
Hi Robbo,
I have the same GPS and have no problems.
You can specify the format in the GPS setup.
The options are :
DDD.DDDDD*
DDD* MM.MMM'
DDD* MM' SS.S"
eg if position is 150Deg 30 Mins 45 sec then the options are:
150.5125 (ie 150 + 30.75/60)
150* 30.750' (150* 30 + 45/60)
150* 30' 45.0"
Take a look at how it shows your current position to determine the expected input format.
Please also note that you can also set the datum in the setup- the options are ADG 66,ADG 84,NZD 49,WGS 84.
Hope this helps rather than confuses !
AnswerID:
113998
Follow Up By: Play Rough - Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 23:30
Wednesday, Jun 01, 2005 at 23:30
I've also have the same unit as a cheap interface to oziexplorer via a comms cable i got from expansys. and it seems to work
well
Regards
Craig
FollowupID:
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Follow Up By: Big Woody - Thursday, Jun 02, 2005 at 07:33
Thursday, Jun 02, 2005 at 07:33
Hi Robbo,
kgarnett has hit the money with his reply mate. You will find that you can change the format for entering co-ordinates.
Personally, I like using the digital format that your GPS is currently set at but when it comes to sharing co-ordinates I change the setting on my GPS to hh:mm:ss.s as that seems to be what most people are using. I then enter the waypoints and set my GPS back to using the digital co-ordinates and the waypoints stay where you have set them.
Also
check that your datum is set to the same datum as the person who has given you the co-ordinates. It seems the most common at the moment is WGS 84.
Don't sell your GPS, just change the setting and it will do exactly what you are trying to do.
Cheers,
Brett
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