GPS antics

I have a 315 and if I leave it off for a number of months and turn it on it takes up to 10 mins to aquire the satelites again. After that I can turn it off and back on the next day and it picks upthe satelites in a couple of minutes if that.

Leroy

My Map330 has had a coouple of 'episodes' too, but then just carries on without missing a beat.

Not wanting to be a conspiricy theorist, but I wonder if the US Military are mucking around with the system due to a perceived threat somewhere. W keeps the keys to the whole system at his place from memory.

Buggered if I know.

Yep, fickle bloody things aren't they.

I have a Meridian Platinum and if I haven't used it for a while, it goes walk-about for a while, acquiring the satellites.

Best thing I have found to "speed things up" is to run a re-calibration of the built-in compass. Don't know if your model is similar, but this works for me.

I nearly smashed mine during a visit to the Flinders a while back.
I went on "Sky Trek" and thought I would check the Trek Notes to see if they were OK.

I had a minor problem in trying to clear existing tracks and the night before, over a couple of reds, had ended up "erasing all" memory to overcome the problem so that I would start afresh the next morning.

WELL, boys and girls, I got to the start of the Sky Trek route and turned on the GPS to begin recording. GUESS WHAT! I had to completely re-initialize the friggin' thing before it would talk to me. Now, due to my other convoy members to consider and a couple of other travellers waiting behind to begin also, I had little alternative but to "throw" the device in the back of the car and forget all about recording the Trek that particular trip.
It's a wonder everybody didn't hear my expletives Interstate, They were certainly colourful enough. Bev was trying to hide.

Anyway, I have since "gotten over it" without noticeable permanent damage and it now gives me an excuse to return and "do it again".

Bill.

G'day young fella,

On our last trip, I had 2 instances where at best I had 2 satellites receiving and about 6 others ghosting in the background. Yes it was overcast with some clear patches but everything worked ok on other overcast days. I just left the thing running and after about 30 min. all was working as it should until it dropped out again. One occasion wasin the Pilbara and the other near Hutt River Province. I subscribed to the conspiracy theory at the time but who knows?
Everything works fine now. Well not exactly now cos it's hissing down at the moment and I'm at work. (Lunch Break)

Cheers
donuts

I've found with my Etrex that sometimes if it is a really cloudy day and I try and get a satellite lock when on the move it takes forever if at all to do so. However if I leave it on the bonnet for a little bit before the trip (or use external antenna) so it gets reception before we start moving all is well.

Not sure about the Magellans but on the Garmins you if you have to reset it or have moved to the other side of the globe then you can speed up the aquisition times by telling it roughly where it is on its map.