News, Reviews, and Tutorials
These articles are provided as a resource for GPS navigation enthusiasts. Many were first published in my email newsletter. Sign-up for the newsletter to receive notice of new publications and gain access to premium content.
Most Recent Articles
The History of eXchanging GPs Data
I give BACKPACKER credit for the well written iHike Guide (June 2008) but I found myself giggling over all the hype about the sharing of location data being "new." Patrons of sites like TravelByGPS.com have been using for years what you report as "new tools" and "new rules" for the "digital revolution." Moreover, the 13-page guide give scant few references to the standard that facilitates trip planning, documenting, and sharing - the GPs eXchange (GPX) file format - which has been proliferating for almost 7 years. When you sensationalize what is common practice, you look a little silly. [More...]Published August 2008
Newsletter Archives -
Organized by GPS Application
Newsletter
Archives
GeoCache TourGuide Tutorial;
How to create a Garmin TourGuide using data from Geocaching.com.
There are lots of reasons to keep you eyes on the road, especially when driving around national parks – the sudden appearance wildlife and scenic vistas are reasons enough to be looking out the windshield and not at little displayscreen. Recently, on a trip to Yellowstone National Park, I combined GPS Touring with Geocaching. The fun of it was being able to enjoy the scenery, without having to fiddle with my GPS while driving. When I came within proximity of a cache, my car navigation system alerted me and pointed to the approaching cache location. Every time, I experienced a rush of excitement when considering whether or not to take on the challenge. Here is how to… [more]
Published November 2007
GeoCaching; A Park Ranger’s
Perspective
"If you stash a cache in Ranger Joe’s jurisdiction with out asking
permission, you are missing a great opportunity to make a friend and place
a really good cache"
Published May 2002
Got GPS, now what?
Here's what to put into your GPS to get more out of it.
Published January 2005
GeoTours - Marketing your destination in cars and on the web 24/7
In cyberspace and down at street-level, GeoTours are the latest and greatest way to market your destination. Visitors to web sites employing GeoTours Premium Services can view virtual tours using interactive, multi-media maps, then download the tour to car navigation systems and experience the real places with GPS-guidance, audio narrative and visual images. For any size Destination Marking Organization (DMO), GeoTours are the most cost effective ways to orient visitors - from near and far, all day, everyday. [more...]
March 2008
GPS Tours; Enhancing
the Buyer’s Perception of Community
GPS technology now gives agents, brokers and developers - even individual
sellers - the power to influence prospective buyers, by delivering informative
messages about the community while their navigation system points them to
properties for sale [more...]
Published June 2007
Eagle Nest Locations
The presence of an Eagle's Nest, or other protected species, affects property
values. Local laws may prohibit construction within a certain distance of
nests. Appraisers in South Florida use GPS to pinpoint nest locations.
Published August 2005
Navigating to Undeveloped
Property
Here is a brief note on how to use GPS car navigation to show clients lots
on undeveloped property.
Published November 2005
Tracking for those you love with Alzheimer's
Disease
Ethical issues aside, keeping tabs on a child or elderly parent in a
non-invasive way is certainly something to be encouraged, not frowned upon.
Published September 2005
Using the GPS for
People Tracking
Until recently, tracking people with Global Positioning System technology
required purchasing expensive hardware and software. Now, complete solutions
are available through cellular service providers.
Published May 2004
Revised August 2006
DeLorme Blue Logger
With wireless bluetooth connectivity and a 10,000 datapoint memory, DeLorme's
Blue Logger is a useful device in your GPS toolbox. I use mine to GPS enable
moving map programs on my laptop and Palm PDA and occasionally, I'll use
it as a self-contained passive tracking device that I can use to map my
families travels.
Published January 2006
Topofusion
Scott explains how Topofusion GPS mapping program has caught on as a multi-sport
adventure racing performance training tool.
Published 25 May 2005
Sports Watches
Investing in a GPS running watch can make a large difference to runners
and joggers, as well as to those who need a physical training program to
recover from surgery or disease.
Published 9 July 2005
SlopeTracker
Next time you're bombing to the base of the mountain, look for the SlopeTracker
kiosk and stop by to have your GPS tracklog turned into "bragging rights
to go."
Published 10 January 2006
TrailRunner - Connecting
you ForeRunner with your Mac
This tutorial describes the techniques and tools you need to successfully
utilize the recording features of your Garmin ForeRunner/Edge, to journalize
your workouts in the diary and to plan new routes and upload those back
to the ForeRunner/Edge.
Published January 2007
DeLorme Street Atlas 2007
We've all been there: the traffic starts to slow and in the distance
you see brake lights for miles. An exit ramp is about to pass you by. Do
you bail or wait it out? Street Atlas 2007 gives you the navigational tools
to end up ahead of all those poor souls stuck in virtural parking lot.
Published August 2006
Navigating by Voice
The only safe car navigation systems are those that allow the driver to
control the software by voice. This allows you to keep your eyes on the
the road while navigating, but using a speech program can be frustrating
unless you take the time to do the training and use a good microphone.
Published December 2003
Using a Mouse GPS
It's not really a mouse, it's a GPS receiver that looks like a mouse. Adding
a mouse-type GPS to a portable computer is one of the least expensive ways
to start navigating. Here's my experience with the Rayming TripNav TN-200
and the DeLorme Earthmate USB port powered GPS receiver.
Updated October 2003
Navigating
Between the Ditches
"Here
are some tips on how you can make your handheld GPS and laptop computer
a car navigation system that is as safe as the more expensive built-in systems."
Includes links to OEMs and software developers. Photo: Carlos Puch
Revised February 2003
BackCountry Navigator
One of the great features of BackCountry Navigator is support for wireless
connectivity, enabling users to download GPS maps and data "on-the-fly".
This is really exciting news for GPS enthusiasts and this interview with
the developer, Nathan Mellor, reveals details about the program you won't
find anywhere else.. [More...]
Published April 2007
Interview
with Clive Barker - Global Land Navigator
Clive knows that the Global Positioning System is a powerful resource
for land navigation, which can lead you to places you want to go, but it
can also get you in a lot of trouble [more...]
Published October 2006
Climbing a 14er
Here are some words of wisdom to share about climbing the highest peaks:
Go over and over the plan in your head, think about the serious things that
could go wrong and how to respond to them. Then if something bad does happen,
you've already visualized your response and can act more quickly. More...
Published August 2006
Interview with Ken Rivera
of SlopeTracker
Next time you're bombing to the base of the mountain, look for the SlopeTracker
kiosk and stop by to have your GPS tracklog turned into "bragging rights
to go."
January 2006
Interview with
Scott Morris of Topofusion
Scott explains how Topofusion GPS mapping program has caught on as a multi-sport
adventure racing performance training tool.
May 2005
FRIENDS
Magazine Interview Doug Adomatis
Since traveling is one of the most popular retirement pastimes, and hiking
around with a GPS is healthy activity, it makes sense for FRIENDS Magazine
to publish an article entitled "Hiking Goes High-Tech" (July/August
2004). I am honored that FRIENDS Magazine asked me to contribute to the
article by explaining travel by GPS.
July 2004
The Commercialization
of Exchanging GPS Data
Finding your way is getting a little easier, but it may cost you a little
more. Offroute, Inc.’s GPXchange™ promises widespread adoption of a common
GPS data format by hosting a large central database and charging for its
use. While commercializing the customarily free practice of exchanging
GPS data may be distasteful to some, the proposed business model is appealing
to freelance authors who create quality trail guide content.
March 2003
Garmin Mobile XT: GPS
Navigation On-the-go
I would not go anywhere without my cell phone and now I'm never without
GPS navigation. If you are looking for another GPS, consider Garmin Mobile
XT running on your Windows Mobile or Symbian phone. You get all the features
of a dash-top device, without having to carry anything more than your phone.
Here are the PROs and CONNs of... [More...]
Updated May 2008
Review of Garmin® nüvi
760
"Nuvi 700-series is the first line of GPS devices from Garmin that
incorporate advanced navigation features heretofore missing in dash-top
technology - point-to-point navigation along a prescribed route. The ability
to communicate routing along with location-triggered multi-media presentations,
gives travel guides, interpretive rangers, tourism directors, and other
publishers of location information an improved technological means to deliver
their message in a consistent and reliable way, assuring that their clients,
visitors, and subscribers will have the desired experience.". More...
April 2008
GeoTours - Marketing your destination in cars and on the web 24/7
In cyberspace and down at street-level, GeoTours are the latest and greatest way to market your destination. Visitors to web sites employing GeoTours Premium Services can view virtual tours using interactive, multi-media maps, then download the tour to car navigation systems and experience the real places with GPS-guidance, audio narrative and visual images. For any size Destination Marking Organization (DMO), GeoTours are the most cost effective ways to orient visitors - from near and far, all day, everyday. [more...]
March 2008
Review of FlameReader, Text-to-speech Software
FlameReader is a great tool for adding audio to GPS tours. FlameReader converts any text to speech and records to mp3. There is no need to copy and paste; FlameReader reads your narrative script directly from Word documents. The voices of "Kate" and "Paul" are particularly natural sounding, and you can use them both to make your narratives sound like a conversation. Here are samples of FlameReader audio and [more...]
February 2008
For years people have been wanting a Garmin that will display USGS topo maps, but topo maps are typically found as raster images and Garmins use vector maps - two completely different ways of storing and rendering maps images. Raster maps are like pictures with the smallest details represented by a pixel. Vector maps are point, lines, and polygons stored and displayed using their mathematical constructs. Converting pixels into points lines and polygons, is usually a task for professional cartographers and expensive software tools - until now. Here is how to... [more...].
February 2008
TourPoint software enables you to create professinoal-looking GPS tour guides for personal or commercial use. Especially designed for use with Garmin® car navigation units, TourPoint integrates audio format and visual images along with descriptive text to create media-rich GPS tour guide content. [More...]
October 2007
GeoTours Mobile
GeoTours Mobile plays GPS tour guides, fully supports GPs eXchange (.gpx)
data with related audio (.mp3) and image (.jpg) content, and GeoTours Mobile
is all you need to use GPS maps from TravelByGPS.com on your GPS-enabled
Windows Mobile PDA or smartphone [more...]
Published July 2007
Review of HP GPS Navigation Software
HP GPS Navigation software is full-featured, offering turn-by-turn guidance
for less than most dedicated dash-top units. A trial version comes with
the select HP handheld devices, which makes it tempting to purchase. The
biggest drawbacks are a due to the hardware limitations common to most PDA's:
poor screen visibility in daylight conditions, in-car mounting considerations,
and limited map memory, requiring you to anticipate what maps you’ll need.
The advantage is that you can have one device that serves as a personal
navigator and replacement for your cellular phone, digital camera, laptop...
[More...]
April 2007
Review of Garmin® nüvi 360
I opened the box and there it was looking at me - the nuvi 360. It came
with all the accessories I needed to start navigating, but it was late.
I plugged in the AC adapter to charge the battery while I thumbed through
the manual, putting my self into a restful bliss, dreaming of the days to
come with my new travel companion. More...
September 2006
DeLorme Street Atlas 2007
We've all been there: the traffic starts to slow and in the distance
you see brake lights for miles. An exit ramp is about to pass you by. Do
you bail or wait it out? Street Atlas 2007 gives you the navigational tools
to end up ahead of all those poor souls stuck in virtural parking lot.
Published August 2006
Which GPS?
One of the most common questions I receive is “Which GPS do I buy
for…” My answer is most always “It depends…”
Updated November 2007
DeLorme Blue Logger
With wireless bluetooth connectivity and a 10,000 datapoint memory, DeLorme's
Blue Logger is a useful device in your GPS toolbox. I use mine to GPS enable
moving map programs on my laptop and Palm PDA and occasionally, I'll use
it as a self-contained passive tracking device that I can use to map my
families travels.
12 January 2006
RoboGEO
RoboGEO is a great application for creating travel guides. I recently set
out to document Atlanta nightlife and used RoboGEO to help me organize the
digital pictures and GPS field data. Here is how I did it...
Published November 2005
Google Earth
...like most new Google Earth users I know, I immediately spent several
hours browsing the globe for places I've been and places I'd like to go.
It is kinda like when I used to get my hands on a new paper map. My wife
knew she could keep me entertained for hours by spending a couple of bucks
on a topo at the local outfitter. Now that I have Google Earth, she has
to flip the breaker to get me to come to dinner...
Published August 2005
Review
of Garmin's eTrail CD
Pull a bunch of data off Ordnance Survey maps, put it in a flashy macromedia
production of TRAILS Magazine's top 200 best UK walking routes, tack on
some code from Wherefromhere Ltd, and you've got Garmin's eTrail CD.
Published 2 July 2003 (12 KB)
Simple GPS maps can be created with waypoint and track data. Here are three articles which will give you good overview of the the basic techniques.
Mission Planning; Navigating the Iditarod
"In the old days, mushers needed a sense of direction akin to that of migrating geese. Now with a little help from Lowrance Electronics, Inc., the first-ever crossing of the Iditarod by an ATV will be attempted with the aid of the Global Positioning System".
Published November 2002
Beginner Tips for Documenting Hiking Trails
If you are new to using GPS while hiking, here are some tips that will help you create clean tracklogs of your favorite hiking trails.Published August 2001
Make Your Own GPS Maps from GIS Data
"Can’t get the coverage you need? Here’s how to map out your travels of just about anyplace in the world, using free software and on-line data resources." - Includes an example of using GPS TrackMaker with GIS data.
Published October 2002
Garmin / Magellan / Lowrance compatible GPS base maps (aka background maps), are a little more difficult to create than simply editing and transferring waypoints and tracks. This task involves tediously tracing (digitizing) or importing georeferenced map features, converting the map data to a compatible format, and transferring to the GPS receiver. Fortunately there are some great software products available for these tasks.
Installing
Garmin-compatible GPS maps
If you own a Garmin, Mapsource is a great program for viewing and transferring maps to your GPS. However, Mapsource is not free and it has limited support for free maps in IMG format that you find on the Internet at places like MapCenter. Each week, I receive several emails from people asking where to find maps of such-and-such a place and how to transfer these maps to a GPS receiver.
January 2008
Creating Maps for Garmin
GPS using Mapwel Software
Mapwel is a great software package for map authors who want an off-the-shelf,
all-in-one solution for creating Garmin compatible background maps. Tools
for all three steps in the map authoring process are included with Mapwel
software.
Published May 2005
Other
Resources listed at this site for Making your own GPS maps and tour guides.
First visit the my Map Authroing Resources page.
Then, I invite you to join the Map Authors Discussion Group
at yahoo.
Click to join map_authors
Annual (more-or-less) Reviews of
Significant Developments in GPS Map Authoring
The History of eXchanging GPs Data
I give BACKPACKER credit for the well written iHike Guide (June 2008) but
I found myself giggling over all the hype about the sharing of location
data being "new." Patrons of sites like TravelByGPS.com have been
using for years what you report as "new tools" and "new rules"
for the "digital revolution." Moreover, the 13-page guide give
scant few references to the standard that facilitates trip planning, documenting,
and sharing - the GPs eXchange (GPX) file format - which has been proliferating
for almost 7 years. When you sensationalize what is common practice, you
look a little silly. [More...]
Published August 2008
Navigating the Virtual World;
Interactive, Adventure Travel Simulations
"So what does Google Earth™ and Blizzard Entertainment's World
of Warcraft™ have in common? Answer: Both are desktop vehicles for
Virtual Travelers, and both signal the coming of real adventure travel simulation
software for a new bread of location information consumers."
Published February 2006
Google Earth
...like most new Google Earth users I know, I immediately spent several
hours browsing the globe for places I've been and places I'd like to go.
It is kinda like when I used to get my hands on a new paper map. My wife
knew she could keep me entertained for hours by spending a couple of bucks
on a topo at the local outfitter. Now that I have Google Earth, she has
to flip the breaker to get me to come to dinner...
Published August 2005
Developments in Map Authoring
Garmin and Backpacker, Nokia and Lonely Planet, Trimble and Nextel, Falcon
Guides and Trails.com... read this article about who's partnering to deliver
travel and recreational map info directly to your GPS.
Published February 2005
The Commercialization
of Exchanging GPS Data
Finding your way is getting a little easier, but it may cost you a little
more. Offroute, Inc.’s GPXchange™ promises widespread adoption of a common
GPS data format by hosting a large central database and charging for its
use. While commercializing the customarily free practice of exchanging
GPS data may be distasteful to some, the proposed business model is appealing
to freelance authors who create quality trail guide content.
Published March 2003
How to report errors, submit feedback and corrections to GPS maps
Every week I get emails from business owners complaining that their place is either not on the map or is not in the correct location. Here is what you can do to drive customers to [more...].
January 2008
Using a car navigation system while driving can add a little holiday cheer during an otherwise stressful experience. Assuming you already know how to set a destination and GO! these tips will help you get to where you are going with less delay, and more enjoyment form your dash-top device [more]
December 2007
Comparison of Iridium and
Globstar Satellite Phones
When you are traveling in remote locations and in unfamiliar territory,
communication is essential. If you are on a GPS adventure - more than 15
miles from a major city or highway - chances are that you will be out of
range from most cellular networks and a satellite phone will be required.
Updated July 2004
Personal
Security and GPS
"Awareness of your surroundings and communication with others, are
every citizens weapons in the war on terror. Arm yourself with a cell
phone and a GPS." Photo: Garmin
Published November 2001
Rechargeable Batteries
If you go through batteries like I do, do yourself (and the environment)
a favor by using rechargeable batteries. Here's how to buy in to the savings
- gradually.
Experiencing (Sur)real
Locations
Where Google Earth takes you from outer space to aerial images
of location, the film makers, Anders Weberg and Robert Willim, take you
from images of location to they call "untamed reality". You are
invited to experience it for yourself - with or without your GPS. - Published
May 2006.
More Tutorials on other Web Sites
Here's a few sites I recommend for getting more information on how to use your GPS
GPS for Fun and Practice
http://www.gps-practice-and-fun.comCockpit GPS & Small Boat GPS by John Bell (www.cockpitgps.com)
Details on using handheld GPS while boating and more.Articles and Tutorials at KeenPeople.com (www.keenpeople.com) especially on geocaching and creating custom basemaps for Garmin GPS.
And of course you can always find good GPS information at these highly proclaimed web sites:
*Each article title is a link. Some articles are documents in Acrobat Reader (.pdf) file format. You may view the files on-line or download them to your computer. (To download, IE browsers: right-click to "Save Target As...").
