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    Delorme Earthmate GPS LT-20 and CF-27

    Discussion in 'Panasonic' started by Dr Blood, Feb 12, 2010.

  1. Dr Blood

    Dr Blood Notebook Geek

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    I've been looking at this thing for a while now (especially as it's cropping up quite cheaply on ebay) and wonder if it would be a good solution for CF-27s. Does anyone have any experience of the LT-20 (and software) with a CF-27?
     
  2. capt.dogfish

    capt.dogfish The Curmudgeon

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    I can't speak from experience on the Delorme, but I can recommend the USGlobalSat BU 353 from a lot of experience! As I have said before, you will never need more accuracy from a GPS than you get with the BU-353 unless you are a civil engineer doing surveys or something similar. The CF-27 is plenty of computer for GPS and most mapping programs. We used them on the dredges for very critical positioning systems until a couple of years ago. I'll look for a picture of a CF-27 with 8 serial ports hanging out of the PCMCIA slots, I've probably got one around.
    CAP
     
  3. Dr Blood

    Dr Blood Notebook Geek

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    Thanks, it looks promising. What kind of GPS software would you recommend for use with the USGlobalSat BU 353 though?
     
  4. capt.dogfish

    capt.dogfish The Curmudgeon

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    There have been lots of threads on GPS software, there is another going on right now. It depends on what you want it for. To replace a Tom-Tom or Nuvi the two choices most of us use are M$ Streets and Trips and Iguidance, a personal choice, look on the web for screen shots. For off road, I use Delorme Topo, but there are other choices. For Marine use, my choices are Offshore Navigator, or Fugawi, free charts readily available. Finally, there is OziExplorer, it will use just about any map or chart you can find, there is a pretty steep learning curve however. I am personally not inclined to use any product from Garmin, I can't stand it when companies cripple their equipment to limit their use with only that company's map products which they whack up into small pieces to maximize your cost.
    CAP
     
  5. Old Git

    Old Git Notebook Consultant

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    I'm with The Capt. on this one.

    I use my Mk2 CF-27 for GPS at present. I use a Deluo Universal USB receiver (the magentic type that goes on the roof of you vehicle) and an older version of Fugawi. This combination works flawlessly and is surprisingly accurate. My only gripes are that you (I?) can't get maps to load automatically when moving from one sheet to another.

    I'm playing around with Oziexplorer at the moment, which offers this facility as well as lots of others, particularly the ability to use just about any map. First impressions are very favourable and the learning curve hasn't been too painful. I keep all my georeferenced maps, covering the part of Libya I'm working in, loaded on a 4GB Hitachi PCMCIA microdrive. These are .gif files of about 1.5MB each, so they are a little slow to load, but I can live with this. I also have a little utility that records waypoints/time continuously, so that I can georeference all my photographs back in camp.

    In the UK, the Deluo/CF-27 combo works perfectly with Autoroute 2007 and probably with many other similar programmes. Much better than a 2" TomTom stuck on the windscreen!
     
  6. mnementh

    mnementh Crusty Ol' TinkerDwagon

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    2"?

    I dunno if Tomtom EVER made one THAT small...

    mnem<~~~Bigger~~~<<<
     
  7. Old Git

    Old Git Notebook Consultant

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    Really? - they seem that small :rolleyes: Maybe I'm just part of the world-wide conspiracy of why women can't park!
     
  8. mnementh

    mnementh Crusty Ol' TinkerDwagon

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    That's just cuz they're driving SUVs the size of a dumptruck where they can't even SEE the curb and trying to park in a slot made for a Yugo...

    mnem
    Of course, 90% of SUV owners (male OR female) aren't qualified to drive a compact car, much less these things which SHOULD require a CDL...
     
  9. Old Git

    Old Git Notebook Consultant

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    Could be mnem - of course I was refering to the fact that for centuries men have been telling women that 6" is 9" :D
     
  10. Lady in Red

    Lady in Red Notebook Enthusiast

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    Have a look at BT-Q890 GPS nano.

    Lady
     
  11. mnementh

    mnementh Crusty Ol' TinkerDwagon

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    Lady -

    We were talking about GPS with LCD screens... :err:

    Old Git -

    Fair enuf; but women have been telling us "I'll be ready in 15 minutes" since there was such a thing as minutes... :rolleyes2:

    mnem
    He said "I think I want to buy a motorcycle."
    She heard "I'm in the mood for a really big fight."
     
  12. Skip G

    Skip G Newbie

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    I have used the LT-20 with my CF-27. Works well enough, with fairly quick warm lock-on. Can take >1 minute when its cranky, which is not too often.

    Skip