Testing GPS

So, I'm told my new (to me) CF-28 has GPS - how do I verify that it does? Can I just connect to the a COM port with Hyperterm? Is there a simple and small program out there that I can see the GPS output with?

Thanks,

jv

 

So, it appears the GPS receiver is present.

First, I installed Maptech Offshore Navigator. The GPS setup wizard seemed to find the GPS on COM4. That seemed to correspond with the CF-28 Service Manual which says the GPS is on "Serial D." The nav program reported "invalid GPS data."

Second, I tried Hyperterm on Com4, 4800, 8, none and 1, no handshaking. HT "failed to connect" to COM4. Quit Offshore Navigator, but same result.

Restarted Windows (2k), tried HT again, same settings, and I got NMEA sentences. Yea! Don't know what it was saying, but at least it's present.

So now - I'd really like to have a simple program that can display in English what the GPS receiver is saying, including satellite info, etc. Anyone?

Regards,

jv

 

Google "Winfastgps download" and see what you get. It's my understanding that it is a freeware app that allows you to tweak your GPS settings. It also has satellite data.

Give it a try and let us know....

 

Just wondering is it showing up in the Device Manager and what the info of it is? Easier then pulling it out to find that info.

 

It's not in a slot - it's mounted to the inside of the top part of the bottom case, on the left. The antenna is a bump on the left side. It's cabled to COM4, so it doesn't show up in device manager.

I would recommend a cheap USB or Bluetooth GPS reciever, which will work as well or better, and is much less costly to add.

 

Does it show up in DMI Viewer??

 

I see what you are talking about... I was looking at CF-28s on ebay. (Something I do every day for some reason.) I saw a picture of the installation and the little hump on the side. Do you give up the phone and ethernet jacks for the GPS?

 

Toughbook, can you link me the pic?? As i have seen in the config site the option of having Lan/Wifi/Moden and GPS. So there must be a way of having all of them.

 

No, the bump for the GPS antenna is on the left, the Ethernet and phone on the right.

I haven't yet gotten a fix with the GPS receiver, so I don't know if it "all" works, but it does transmit some NMEA sentences on the serial port.

 

what gps software are you using?????
my one connects straight away when i use navigator...
(when i mean straight away it more like 8-10secs)

 

What is "navigator?"

 

pc navigator,
there are afew softwares you can use to play about with navigon is one which you can do lots of things with????????

 

Right! I forgot. I have it. I only see sentences with no fix, I guess I have to lease it with a view of satellites for a longer time. How long to a 3D fix from "cold" for you?

 

well from cold start it depends the longest it has been is a minute or so, but most of the time it normaly just take half a minute(30secs) to get a fix,
but after that the rest of the day it roughly takes 8-10secs.....

where are you trying to get a fix from, best place is outside for a much quicker fix, once it has the first fix you will be fine after that and it will only take afew secounds then, but like more gps devices the first fix does take just over a minute, my mates old sat nav system takes around 3-5minutes to get a fix from cold start....

 

I have a really stupid question for you guys lucky enough to have GPS built in to your laptops... Can you get a fix/signal from indoors or must you be outside? What about driving down the road? Do you have to prop it up on the dashboard to get a signal or is this GPS pretty strong? I'm really leaning toward buying a 1Ghz with GPS built in but don't want to waste my $ if it really isn't that good.

 

well funny enough thats exactly how i use mine, i have made a little stand on my dash by welding acouple of pieces of metal together and the toughbook just sits there fine, i normaly just use it for navigation for off road, cakmping etc.....
from where it sits on my dash i never have had a problem even before that when it just used to sit on the front passenger seat i'll still get a signal, only time you'll have to wait is from a cold start which can take afew minutes depending on where you have left the laptop, if from in-doors it does take afew minutes to get a full fix from cold, but if you start it from out side it will only take about a minute,
just checking now and i do get a good signal upstairs and downstairs only the rooms in between is where i dont get a signal....
previouly i checked it with my brother n95 to see how the signal was and there both worked out even, the n95 got a fix from cold withing 2mins from my living room and the toughbook took within 3min to get a fix....
i really do perfer the gps of the toughbook main reason i always take it when i go on my little trips...

 

There are also Bluetooth GPS receivers to consider - under $50.

 

jviss is right if you sort out the bluetooth hack, you will be able to use it with a bluetooth gps reciever, my mate bought one the other day for £22quid,
you can use velcros or something to attach it to the casing and away you go.....

 

Hmmmm... Now THAT is a good reason to put BT in the Toughbook!

 

finally we are going to be getting bluetooth in our laptops.....lol!!!
cant wait for you to finish it....

 

This guy is STONED!

http://cgi.ebay.com/Panasonic-Tough...86QQihZ003QQcategoryZ3666QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

$275 USD for the GPS retrofit for the CF-28!

 

this one is out of his bloody mind.....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RARE-PANASONI...579841QQihZ013QQcategoryZ131537QQcmdZViewItem

item number
230154579841

 

Thats sad that they will charge that much, but I the #### can charge as much as they want, as I got an email back from Panasonic,

Quote"
"Thanks for your enquiry.

Unfortunately, GPS modules are no longer available for the CF-28 as the product is end of life.

There are various options out there for USB GPS - I'd suggest talking to Andrew Curtis from C1 Consulting - 02 9943 0814

Thanks
Belinda"
Quote end"

So if you want GPS, a USB/pcmcia is the only way without paying them stupid prices. But for me that defeats the hole Mobile idea, being able to pick up the laptop at a sec notes, throwing it into a go-bag or back of a 4X4 and going, without being worried of ripping some thing out like a usb or pccard. or one of this items being cort on something then being ripped out, then these not being able to close the doors to, without the doors closed on these laptop they may as well be any other laptop that cant take a walk in the rain.

 

In all sincerity, if you really want an integrated GPS receiver that preserves the MIL-STD-810F-ness of the unit, that one for $275 on eBay is a very good value. I've seen these kits advertised for almost $900.

A decent waterproof USB GPS is $50 on eBay, more like $85 to $100 elsewhere.

 

what i advice is getting a bluetooth so it save the hassle of wires, and which ever bluetooth you buy just a rubber casing to protect it from the dirt/grime,
hopefuly(fingerscrossed) toughbook will find out the best way to shove a bluetooth device into the toughbook so it is perfectly built in.......

 

I'm going to gussy up my CF-28 800mhz and put it on ebay. There is a guy selling 1ghz CF-28's with GPS and touchscreen for $375 USD... I think THAT is an excellent deal. The auction shows he has 11 of them. The thing is... To make mine look good... I'd have to sell all the stuff with it so I'd be back at square 1 and have to buy,kame,hack my way back up... But then that's half the fun!

 

how much will you be selling it for then????????


bloody hell $375usd for a toughbook with gps once more

and the seller from uk who is charging £399quid just for the gps upgrade ....
what is this world coming toooo

 

I'll probably set a reserve of????? MMmmmmm Maybe around $750 - $800 USD. I paid $475 + $80 for the hard drive + $65 for the DVD ROM + $95 for the extra battery (front) + $100 for wifi and antennas + some I'm forgetting I'm sure. We'll see... I really want it slightly faster and definitely GPS internal!

 

fingerscrossed

if anything you can always list the parts seperate and get more money like that also...........

 

LOL the going rate I have seen of the cf-28 with GPS is under $400USD, so why the hell would I pay $300USD for a 2nd hand GPS setup card when for $100 or so more I and get the hole system.
Some of them sellers must have rocks in there head, if they think they will get money will that, when a simple ebay search will come up said laptops with the lot.

 

Well... The guy selling the 1Ghz CF-28 is down to just a few and the auction has ended. I emailed him asking for him to send me an invoice for one or put it up on ebay again so I can buy it. Then I can transfer some of my hacks over to it and sell the one I have.

We'll see... I want the internal GPS A N D I want the 1Ghz laptop!

I'm easy to please...

 

i was soooooo close in buying another cf-28,
i just want to keep one as a spare especialy since my cd drive died on me(rest its sole), buying one to keep as a spare is clever thinking i think, when you think of the parts some sellers charge, i have £200quid at the moment not much but aint needing it for anything els, i did have £500quid saved up a month ago for buying a cf-29 but since i had one for the entire weekend it just isnt worth it too be honest better stick with a cf-28 money wise much better........

 

I'm going to buy a 1ghz CF-28 with GPS this weekend. I'm waiting for the seller to get back to me with what he has in stock.

 

great news!!!!
have you put ur cf-28 up on auction yet??????????
or are you going to buy that one first then list it?????????
will you list it as one lot????????
or the cf-28 on its own and the extra's in a seperate auctions?????

 

I haven't done amything yet. I'll probably buy the new one and see what it looks like first... Then sell...

 

wise choice just in case there are any marks etc????????

but i read is auction and he says most are in good condition........`

 

Just stumbled across this forum while looking for general info on the cf-28
I took the plunge and bought one from US auction, with gps(sounds very much like the one mentioned above)
so can post about the condition when it arrives to UK, USPS, guessing gonna come via royal mail so could be forever :-( them being on strike half the time.

i have a p3 acer, broken screen hinges junk that would hang randomly if i installed xp and a duron vaio, again broken screen hinge which i replaced only for the new one to break within a year!!, looks like it was designed to fatigue
i vowed never to own a laptop again, despite having to travel from time to time, until i heard about toughbooks... if i break this one that really is it, no more.

i'm hoping to pull the ram(256M expansion) and HD(40gig) from the vaio(fx-201), crucial are quoting two different part numbers for ram despite looking to me identical... if anyone can think of a reason not to plug it in if it will fit i'd be grateful for a heads up .
also any reason i shouldn't be messing with the hard drive, what with gel packs and stuff?

i'm gonna stick tinyXP and maybe (k/x)/ubuntu on there and post how i get on if anyone is interested

James

 

well that is a great buy....
toughbook is buying the same one hopefuly he'll get is on monday,
the hinges on the toughbook are really strong, stronger then most laptops, but still how are ur hinges keep breaking, what are you doing sitting on them.......LOL!!!!!!!!
anyway about the ram long as it is pc100/pc133 sdram then you shouldnt get any problems at all........
hard drive well toughbook is the one to ask about that i had mine changed for me at the shop, but just bought a 60gb 7200rpm hard drive yesterday which i will be putting into my c-28 when i get it, the faster the rpm on ur hard drive the better currently my one is the 4600rpm(4400rpm )............
i wouldnt advice installing tinyxp unless it was made by urself or for a laptop, but much as i know tinyxp is mostly made just for desktop pc, and all options for laptops including battery saving..ect have been removed to make it more streamlined........
i advice you just make ur very own slimllined copy of xp and install it, specialy as you dont have a recovery cd, you can make ur own.........
if you need help making it then just pm me and i'll help out in anyway i can..........

 

a very good point about tinyxp djacid, the laptop stuff being stripped, ah well stripiing xp myself it will be then darn.
got so used to installing that everywhere too, my desktops are generally underspecced and i love the install.
i maybe interested in some guides or whatever to stripping out xp to the minimum for laptop use, also happy to download an image from somewhere if you know of something like tinyxp for laptops.

these laptops are a good deal though, especially for the UK, i mean even the parts for these go for silly money.
i'm half tempted to buy another to resell or break it up for parts.

side question, anyone got one of those backlit keyboards? do they have any downside, like usage, feel?
i love the idea of being able to type in low light, might look out for one if i manage not to sit on my hinges
the vaio fx-201 has terrible design flaw with hinges by the way, the right hand hinge isnt in the right place on the base and kicks out at a right angle to reach the side of the screen, this kick out is a horrible fatigue point, the left hinge was still going strong. -anyone want screen parts for an fx 200 series UK?

hmm, now to research some software to use that GPS reciever... give me something to do this afternoon

 

i have seen the black backlit keyboards going for £30quid with £15quid postage, i aint too bother about that, mine is the std white keyboard and i think it looks good, when am on one of my out back trips the lcd gives me enough light to see the keyboard anyway,
about software for ur gps, i use pc navigator, gps tuner with off roading maps,
if you want i can give you any of those softwares, also i vae all the microsoft gps software as well street,trips...etc..........
if you dont live too far you can come collect it.........
about streamlining winxp well i have a really good pdf file which tells you step by step on how to make it ur self, too be honest not hard at all, also it included sites where you can down load the latest driver packs plus windows update packages..............

 

The hard drive is easy to swap. 5 little screws (I think) and carefully pull everything apart. make sure you watch how it comes apart though there is really only one way to put it back together. Any 2.5" drive should work. (Except SATA drives) Some seem to think that the hard drives that are shipped stock seem to be some sort of "special" drive... 4200 RPM I think... (To withstand heat, vibrations, etc.) The part numbers I've seen don't show that.

I have the lighted rubber keyboard and I'm still not sure I like it. The "feel" is way different than a regular keyboard and it takes getting used to. You definitely type slower and sometimes you miss a key. It is nice typing in the dark/low light though. I may keep it on the new one I'm getting. I haven't bought it yet. I'm waiting for a few things I have to sell first so the money comes out of Paypal and not the bank account. (Yes... the wife IS watching!) I'm not sure about the RAM... I'd go to one of the many sites that sell it and cross-check it to make sure it will work before installing it.

I'm lickin' my chops waiting for my stuff to sell so I can get the 1Ghz with GPS...

 

which ram will you be installing?????????
am looking for a 512mb sdram to install, do you think it'll install and work........

 

thanks for the info on the drive removal toughbook
my main concern was seein the word gel pack, i had images of a burst bag and green sticky stuff spilling all over
looking at this tech manual the disassebmbly looks nothing like my sony, i had to strip the keyboard, speakers, shielding and cdrom to get to that.

i think i'm right, you have bought / hope to buy from the auction in usa (CA i believe), if i was in the usa i would have bought the 800MHz from another auction with the backlit and 512MB and gps, but the git wouldnt be persuaded to ship to UK.
kinda lucky i feel cause then i went for this one instead with the faster cpu, which to be honest is the sensible choice over the keyboard.

there are a few very good deals on these things over there, meanwhile they go for stupid amounts of cash here, if it all works and customs dont stop it i will be well chuffed. as a bonus i get a US keymap too, same as the sony playstation2 linux keyboard i'm using now
the only thing missing is the pound key, and with the exchange rate the way it is who wants to use pounds ;-)

djacid, if you wanna hold fire till i get mine, i can at least tell if my ram fits, and give you the crucial part number and specs on that.
i may well be interested to see some of your gps software if you are semi local, last time i used gps on a laptop was route66 and the microsoft one while in the states.

 

jamesjrl... The gel pack is just foam rubber. It's very squishy but there is no liquid.

I believe that the regula keyboard is fairly water resistant too. As I'm sure you have seen... The area underneath the keyboard is sealed anyway so there's not a lot that can go wrong. I suppose the regular keyboard could short out but all it would take (if the notebook got wet) would be to shake it off and let it dry and it would still work great!

 

Sorry to break up this great discussion on memory, but I have an update on GPS Testing" - the genesis of this thread.

Friday, spent some time in the driveway with a good view of the sky and the internal GPS finally got a fix. Took forever. I think it's because it was coming out of a cold reset. Subsequent fixes were faster.

Took the CF-28 to the boat this weekend. In the ****pit, under the bimini (a cloth canopy), about 72 miles South of where my house is, the thing acquired a fix almost immediately! Great! Six birds in view.

So this means for less than $500, I have the best self-contained marine chart plotter available!

Question: anyone have detailed specs for this GPS receiver? Anyone have a better GPS managment/test software than "Navigate?"

Thanks,

jv

 

Sorry for straying off the point. A new thread should have been posted!

By "forever" how long do you mean? Several minutes? Do you think you got a quicker fix on the water becasue there was no treeline or anything else in the way?

What software are you using to navigate?

 

well i do have more gps software, which i have copies over from time to time from work,
getting a fix from cold always depends on where ur laptop is located the fastest method is jumping straight into ur car, switching it on and start driving within a miniute or so you will have a perfect fix and the sat nav will be running fine.............
james how long you think you will be getting ur toughbook in, 5-10days or more........
i live in ealing but work down central

 

"Forever" was 30 minutes to "never." I think it was a combination of poor view of the sky (trees around house) and cold start. On the boat the view of the sky is great, as one can imagine.

 

jviss- i've got a fujitsu pda with built in gps that usually takes 5 minutes to get a lock, (often 30 secs) but maybe 1 in 20 uses fails completely from the same location (outside my house) and need to be powered off, my friend has a bluetooth reciever and he says he has had the same thing happen once or twice so i'd give it a few chances even in built up areas.
for me i find it isnt city but trees that kill mine.
this laptop sounds perfect for boating btw

-toughbook ah foam, not gel they lie phew gel sounded scary
only ever had one spillage incident - my (2 day old)commodore /plus4 back in '86
pint of orange juice into the keyboard while playing a game
switch off, rinsed in water, left to dry for hours no probs
computers were built then

djacid - checking the tracking apparently the laptop flew out of los angeles 11pm yesterday, would assume west coast time errr -8? ah search engine... yeah about -8.
so if customs dont stop it, royal mail stay off strike & dont play rugby with it for too long then i should see it this week

i'm often in the angel area. maybe we can get some screwdrivers out over a pint ;-)

 

ok too make life easier for everyone when it comes down to gps, i will make a iso image with bootable gps navigation software,
great thing about that is it will run of ur cd drive so will be fast too run and also the 2 gps software i will make bootable i will test over this coming weekend as me and my mate are going off roading, so what results i find i will update, also will include all maps of the usa plus europe......

and the down size to having a bootable navgation software is that the gps fix takes a longer time as its always starting from cold, after this weekend i let you know the result and deside what will be best what ever it is,
once completed i will upload the image on what ever site gives me the space and put the link here for you guys to download from........