Help needed with mapsphere and new GOSGET BU-363 GPS reciever

[ade]

hi there I am using mapsphere with a new GOSGET BU-363 gps reciever,
have only tried it inside the house but the reciever wont pick up a signal, well at least i think it wont.
the LED on the reciever isnt flashing, just on constant which according to the instructions means it is looking for a signal, but in the gps status box on mapsphere, once the gps is connected, it shows what I assume is satellites it has aquired but also in the top left corner of the gps staus box in map sphere, two little question marks flashing, but still the LED on the reciever is constant not flashing? the gps reciever configuration says it is connected on 4800 baud. does this all sound normal? I thought it ahould work in the house but do I need to go outrside with it? kieren you out there and able to help me again?
thanks
ade

[Bushwanderer]

Hi Ade,
If a GPS receiver is some distance (say 500km) from when it was last turned on (tested) it can take a long time to acquire satellites.

The best thing (for your first time) is to place it in the open with no/minimal obstructions from trees/man made structures. This will enable it to acquire a current almanac.

Best of luck,
Peter

[ade]

cheers mate, I will give that ago

[AussieAub]

Hi Ade.
Just spotted your post. Sorry for the delay, been between jobs and sorting a new house.
Let me have another look when I get home tonight when I have my unit in front of me.

Watch this space....

Cheers,

[AussieAub]

in the top left corner of the gps staus box in map sphere, two little question marks flashing, but still the LED on the reciever is constant not flashing? the gps reciever configuration says it is connected on 4800 baud. does this all sound normal?

Haven't seen those question marks before.
Knock the baud rate up one, try 9200 or 9600 from memory, which ever one it is.
Maybe reinstall the drivers for the GPS receiver?
Probably a stupid question, but you have hit the "GPS on" button in MapSphere to activate the current location?

Can't think of anything else just now, but will have a better think tonight. Had a number of cold ones last night with some friends, and was in no state to look at a computer.....sorry! :angel:

[ade]

hey kieren, i got the gps working just have some questions about the mapshere program, I changed the baud rate to 9600 but what is the baud rate? in the gps status box, what do the bars with numbers under them mean? what are the toggle track-up and toggle autoscroll buttons for? and the toggle gps button as well? also is decimal degrees the usual to show co-ordinates? do i need to do anything with the error measurment? is it possible to reset the odometer, not the trip odometer, wots the difference between trips and tracks
thanks for your time mate you`ve been a great help, drop in next time your in tom price
ade

[AussieAub]

hey kieren, i got the gps working just have some questions about the mapshere program, I changed the baud rate to 9600 but what is the baud rate?
The baud rate is the number of times per second a serial communication signal changes states; a state being either a voltage level, a frequency, or a frequency phase angle.
If the signal changes once for each data bit, then one bps is equal to one baud. For example, a 300 baud modem changes its states 300 times a second. (not my words, copied from somewhere on the net!)
So by changing to 9600, all you've done is speed up the data received frequency. Some older units/programs don't like going above 4800. I have found on my equipment that running at 9600 seems to work best for me, but I wouldn't say that will be the case for everyone.


in the gps status box, what do the bars with numbers under them mean?
The bars are signal strength, and the numbers underneath are corresponding numbers to the circles above (rough diagramatic picture of the satellites above your location).


what are the toggle track-up and toggle autoscroll buttons for?
Track up shows/rotates the map images to suit direction of travel ie, the "pointer" will always show "up" if ON, and rotates the map to suit, rather than showing you a map pointing north, but the pointer, say, going left/right.
Autoscroll keeps the pointer in the middle of the screen and moves the map/image around it.


and the toggle gps button as well?
Reads or doesn't read the GPS signal, for positioning. Think of it as a start, pause and stop button for recording your tracks.


also is decimal degrees the usual to show co-ordinates?
I think its most commonly used, but thats really a user preference. Irrespective of what units you choose, they can be easily converted to other formats if you wished.


do i need to do anything with the error measurment?
No. At least not unless you see the track is considerably way off from where you think you should be. But I have found MapSphere with Google imagery to be fairly accurate, to maybe a metre or two.


is it possible to reset the odometer, not the trip odometer, wots the difference between trips and tracks
Again, use the GPS toggle button, but with the odometer reset. This will give you a number of individual tracks/trips that have a common start/stop point.
TRACKS are your saved "tracks" (route you've saved), where I believe TRIPS is online information shared with other members of the MapSphere community. This will hold info you choose to add, your recorded tracks, photos, trip notes, and any other info you wish to add. Say you go on holiday, it can be used almost as an online journal - albeit a little limited.


thanks for your time mate you`ve been a great help, drop in next time your in tom price
ade

My pleaseure mate. Just hope the info I give you is proving useful!! :cool: :D
I prepare drawings for the minerals shipping and transport industry, and an ocassional trip up and around the Tom Price area isn't un-heard of.
If I get the opportunity again, I'll let you know.

[ade]

hi kieren, been making tracks with mapsphere now, got a question, under the options in tools, you can change the co-ordinates, decimal degrees etc but how do I get the coordintes to show up on the screen/map? and my position window shows the altidude and camera elevation, is this right? I thought it would show my position in coordinates? or can i type in coordinates to show on the map so as I can drive to them?
cheers ade

[AussieAub]

hi kieren, been making tracks with mapsphere now, got a question, under the options in tools, you can change the co-ordinates, decimal degrees etc but how do I get the coordintes to show up on the screen/map?
Hi again Ade.
Take a look at the attached screenshot I've taken. Especially the bit I've marked with a red box.
Your present GPS co-ords are shown in the "Position" tab of the "Position" window.
You'll see there are two values: one is your present position shown by the marker on the map representing you when GPS is active/on (Camera Co-ords), the other is the co-ords of the computer mouse pointer as you move over an area on the screen (Cursor Co-ords).
Once you change the co-ord types from the "Tools" pulldown menu (DD.ddd or DDD.mm'ss), the values in the "Position" box will automatically change. "Camera Co-ords" also relates the to the centre point of the screen(s)/map(s) whan GPS is not active, ie centre of the camera view.


and my position window shows the altidude and camera elevation, is this right? I thought it would show my position in coordinates?
Yes that's right, and yes it does! Refer to the attachment again. You may need to stretch the "Position" window up a little. Move your mouse between the "map box" and "position box" and you can stretch the boxes as you can any other Windows window. I have a feeling your "Position" box is a little too short to show all the info.
As you can see, I changed the look of my MapSphere to only show 2 map views (I think defualt is 3), allowing me to have more "on show" in my position window.


or can i type in coordinates to show on the map so as I can drive to them?
cheers ade
Unfortunately no. This is not a SatNav device like a TomTom etc, more of a tracking device, similar to OziExplorer (unless Ozi has now been updated to do that...?)

Hope that helps a little more....:cool:

Cheers,

[ade]

thanks kieren, you where right about the position window not showing everything, is there a way to control how much it zooms in and out rather than pressing the buttons and letting the computer decide and can the datum of the gps be set through mapsphere?
cheers mate
ade

[AussieAub]

Hi Ade.
Using the scroll wheel on a mouse gives you a little more control on zoom than using the + and - buttons.


can the datum of the gps be set through mapsphere?
Not sure I understand what you mean there mate...?!

Cheers,

[ade]

[QUOTE=AussieAub;1424724]Hi Ade.
Using the scroll wheel on a mouse gives you a little more control on zoom than using the + and - buttons.

oh well unfortunately my laptop doesnt have a mouse wheel

Not sure I understand what you mean there mate...?!

nor do i really, I have a hema wall map of the area up here and it says to set the gps datum to WGS 84 (world geoditic system 1984) ?
Cheers

[AussieAub]

oh well unfortunately my laptop doesnt have a mouse wheel
Bummer! :p


I have a hema wall map of the area up here and it says to set the gps datum to WGS 84 (world geoditic system 1984) ?
Cheers
Ahhh, of course! Short answer then....no!!
Hema, Garmin, Ozi units/programmes etc are a little more advanced than MapSphere in that respect. They can read user scanned maps and images. You would then need to match the datum of the map/image to the machine and the GPS receiver. As MapSphere presently only reads from online map sources, the plug-in/in-built data of the program has presets based on which map source it is using.
For example, when using Google images, the datum will automatically be set to whatever Google images uses. If you were to change that datum, you would theoretically be shown your incorrect location on Google images.

Does that make sense?

Cheers,

EDIT: Just checked on the Google Earth site (http://earth.google.com/support/bin/static.py?hl=en&page=guide.cs&guide=22373&topic=23750&answer=148112) and it does in fact use WGS84 Datum. :D:cool: