Author Topic: Navigation Systems (Read 281 times)

mietla · « **on:** June 25, 2003, 03:48:23 PM »

I'm thinking about getting a navigation system. I saw some GPS add-ons for pocket PCs (iPAQ, Toshiba etc.). They run around $250 + the price of the PC of course.

I do not really care for the PC itself (it's going to be dedicated to this purpose only), so want to buy the cheapest that will cut this mustard.

Any one has experience with a setup like that?

Is it worth the trouble? Maybe I should get a real thing like Garmin or Magellan.

Which PC would best fit into this role?

How would you rate the software that comes with it?
What territory does it cover? The entire US? A state? Bay area?

thanks in advance

swoopy · « **Reply #1 on:** June 25, 2003, 03:54:36 PM »

Road map £4.99 simple solution:)

mietla · « **Reply #2 on:** June 25, 2003, 03:56:33 PM »

five pounds for a stinking map? You are getting screwed

swoopy · « **Reply #3 on:** June 25, 2003, 04:10:03 PM »

john9001 · « **Reply #4 on:** June 25, 2003, 05:12:59 PM »

i remember when gas stations gave away free maps, but they could afford to then , gas was only 50 cents a gal..

get a stand alone GPS, you don't need a PC.

Chairboy · « **Reply #5 on:** June 25, 2003, 07:11:43 PM »

I just built a navigation system for my RV.

A friend of mine had a 333mhz laptop with a shattered screen, so I traded some parts to him in exchange for it. I removed the monitor and will be filling in the holes tonight and sanding/painting it to look good.

I have an Earthmate GPS that I'm connecting to it via serial, it in the cabinet above the driver seat. Fiberglass hull means it can get satellite lock w/ being visible. : )

The laptop I'm mounting on an accordioned metal bracket-bar that's being attached to the knee kick-bar that goes across the bottom of the whole dash. The laptop will be mounted on an aluminum plate I'm cutting and drilling this weekend.

I got a 12v power supply off eBay for $30 so I can plug it into the house batteries (the secondary power system that RVs have). No filthy inverters and their damn dirty waste heat for me, nosirree!

I have a Samsung 150MP LCD monitor with built in TV tuner that I am mounting on my dashboard so it can be used for the navigation system when driving and as the main cabin TV when stopped. Sound hooks into the stereo so I can use the whole RV sound system. The stereo I just installed has two honest to goodness RCA inputs, that's a rarity these days.

Another good thing about this monitor ($409 at Best Buy, open box) is that it also has S-Video and RCA video in, so I took a color CCD I had in my project box, built a 12v-5v power converter (gotta love that 7805, makes me feel so competent) and soldered some RCA connectors to a 50 foot piece of two conductor shielded cable from Radio Shack ($8). The video comes through great, so I'm going to mount the camera in back and have a nice backup camera system. The $300 dedicated backup systems have black & white and tiny monitors, people who buy those are suckers. : )

CyranoAH · « **Reply #6 on:** June 25, 2003, 07:55:34 PM »

Just get OziCE (it's shareware), a cable, and link an iPAQ to any GPS with a standard PC port. You got it all... moving map, creating georeferenced maps, etc...

Daniel

Chairboy · « **Reply #7 on:** June 25, 2003, 08:32:28 PM »

I looked up the program, it's pretty cool. They have a version for PC too:

http://www.oziexplorer.com

Of particular interest, the 3D mapping is cool.

I'm using Street Atlas (came w/ my GPS) on my RV navigation system, but I might want to play around with this. I already have a Garmin III+ that has been providing basic GPS navigation, the 3D topographic stuff might be worth a second look.