GPS units and GR-Level III

[dmckemy]

I've tried switching and using different ports (including COM5), but unfortunately that didn't do much either. I clicked on the "Show GPS Monitor" button under "Windows" in GRLevel3, and even though the GPS is plugged into the computer and is working just fine on Atlas, GRLevel3 just says it's waiting for the signal...I'll try looking into Franson GPSGate here soon if I can't get this to work.

 

[Mark Blue]

I've tried switching and using different ports (including COM5), but unfortunately that didn't do much either. I clicked on the "Show GPS Monitor" button under "Windows" in GRLevel3, and even though the GPS is plugged into the computer and is working just fine on Atlas, GRLevel3 just says it's waiting for the signal...I'll try looking into Franson GPSGate here soon if I can't get this to work.

For those chasers who use the Delorme LT-20 puck in conjunction with the Delorme serial emulator software program and have the fortunate luck to have everything work all of the time - you are a select group of users!! I've tried helping folks in the past and it seems that the Delorme LT-20 speaks in a proprietary format that can cause problems with programs like GPSGate.

My laptop has built in Bluetooth, so I bought the Delorme BT-20 puck and have been very happy with how it works. When you fire up the Bluetooth stack software on your laptop along with the BT-20 puck the signal is picked up through COM Port 40. Then you use Franson's GPSGate to split the signal from COM Port 40 into multiple "virtual" port that your other programs like GRL3 can see. This is how I have my setup configured and it's bulletproof. I don't know if you've just borrowed what you have, but if you're planning to buy and have Bluetooth on your laptop, I'd highly recommend going that route.

 

[JeffGonzales]

I've tried switching and using different ports (including COM5), but unfortunately that didn't do much either. I clicked on the "Show GPS Monitor" button under "Windows" in GRLevel3, and even though the GPS is plugged into the computer and is working just fine on Atlas, GRLevel3 just says it's waiting for the signal...I'll try looking into Franson GPSGate here soon if I can't get this to work.

You should get GPS gate any ways if u plan on using the gps for GRlevel3 and for a roadmaps and spotter network. Here is how i was able to get the GPS to work for me. I posted this in another thread but here it is. If you get GPS gate this should work just follow these steps:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

What i did when i had the problem, since i was using GPS gate i was able to asign it to a different COMM port that GRlevel3 uses.

If you right click on the GPSgate icon, click settings, then click output tab. On the drop down arrow select the COM Port and click add. After u click add a screen will pop up that says Serial port setting. Select the drop down arrow and then select COM port 1 or 2.

After u add that then you can open up GRlevel3 and select the COM port that u selected in GPSgate and it should work.

If you dont have GPSgate im not sure how t will work, but if you run Microsoft Streets and trips 2009 you will need GPSgate any ways to run different applications with one GPS unit.
__________________
By the way I use Globalsat BU 353 for my GPS. It is cheap and connects by USB and very easy to use.

 

[jshields]

i found this old thread and thought i would reply to it rather than start a new one! anyways i bought streets and trips 2008 with the usb gps puck. i installed it and everything worked on streets and trips. now last night i installed the delorme serial emulator, so i could use grlevel3 with the gps puck as well. for one time i had everything working, grlevel3 gps function was working and streets and trips was working with the gps on. i closed everthing to work on something else and later tried to open everything again but something has gone wrong!! i can no longer get my computer to even recognize the gps puck. when i open up streets and trips and try to use the gps ftn, it says it can't find a gps unit like nothing is plugged into the usb port. i've restarted my computer several times, and only then s and t will find the puck, but there's no signal seemingly coming through, bc it never finds my coordinates. i close everything and try it again and then s and t goes back to saying it cant even find the gps puck again like its not even plugged in to the computer. the puck seems to be working bc it has the little blue light on when its plugged into the computer. i've tried this both with delorme running and not running. of course now grlevel3 gps function isn't working either. any ideas anyone?!!

 

[Skip Talbot]

Check out this site if you haven't already:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894511

We might have recommended the Delorme Serial Emulator in a previous thread, but you are using Microsoft Streets and Trips with the Microsoft USB puck right (Pharos I believe)? The Delorme Serial Emulator is only for the Delorme USB puck that comes with Street Atlas. I'm not familiar with the Pharos puck, but it sounds to me like it doesn't need a serial emulator, just something like Franson GPSGate. A common problem is using a different USB port when you plug the GPS in. Everytime you plug the GPS into a different port it creates a separate COM port for the device to use. This can cause conflicts on the machine if other devices are attempting to use the same COM port. Also, the drivers might not install properly when the additional COM ports are installed. You'll have to go into the Device Manager and see if there are conflicts on the COM ports and try reinstalling the GPS drivers. This is probably part of the above article, though, and I would follow that first.

 

[jshields]

skip- thanks for the link, i hadn't seen that site before. i am going to try all the steps it suggests there and i'm guessing this will fix my problem! thanks for the help

anyone have any guesses whether the program virtual serial ports emulator by eterlogic will work or that could tell me if they are using that program?!

Check out this site if you haven't already:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894511

We might have recommended the Delorme Serial Emulator in a previous thread, but you are using Microsoft Streets and Trips with the Microsoft USB puck right (Pharos I believe)? The Delorme Serial Emulator is only for the Delorme USB puck that comes with Street Atlas. I'm not familiar with the Pharos puck, but it sounds to me like it doesn't need a serial emulator, just something like Franson GPSGate. A common problem is using a different USB port when you plug the GPS in. Everytime you plug the GPS into a different port it creates a separate COM port for the device to use. This can cause conflicts on the machine if other devices are attempting to use the same COM port. Also, the drivers might not install properly when the additional COM ports are installed. You'll have to go into the Device Manager and see if there are conflicts on the COM ports and try reinstalling the GPS drivers. This is probably part of the above article, though, and I would follow that first.

 

[Brandon Jenkins]

Thought I would post this question for those of you who are currently using a Delorme puck (I have the LT-40) and GPSGate.

I have everything setup and working but after a short period of time (usually ~20 minutes) my GPSGate icon turns red and stops receiving data from the GPS puck (or the serial emulator) despite the fact that it still has a fix. I found others who have had this issue online but I was never able to find a solution. Hoping someone here has ran into similiar.

I suppose if I can't find a solution I will be ordering the Globalsat puck soon enough.

 

[Skip Talbot]

Brandon, I had the same problems when running the serial emulator, and its one of the main reasons why I bought a different GPS. It was just more trouble than it was worth trying to make that puck work with the emulator.

 

[Brandon Jenkins]

Good to hear, I think I will just purchase the Globalsat puck and be done with it then. I figured it was just the serial emulator ceasing to function properly.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Mark Blue]

Thought I would post this question for those of you who are currently using a Delorme puck (I have the LT-40) and GPSGate.

I have everything setup and working but after a short period of time (usually ~20 minutes) my GPSGate icon turns red and stops receiving data from the GPS puck (or the serial emulator) despite the fact that it still has a fix. I found others who have had this issue online but I was never able to find a solution. Hoping someone here has ran into similar.

I suppose if I can't find a solution I will be ordering the Globalsat puck soon enough.

I've noticed that GPSGate seems to go to sleep sometimes and what I do is right click the icon in the system tray, open the application (select Settings from the alternate context menu I believe), then click on run "setup wizard" button. Without doing anything I just cancel out of the "setup wizard" and GPSGate wakes up and turns green. I usually have to do this at the beginning of the day after booting up, but it seems to work like magic. I actually use the BT-20 puck with the native Bluetooth stack software that came with my Toshiba laptop.

 

[Brandon Jenkins]

Just for future reference, I was able to get the Delorme (LT-40) working well with the serial emulator alone. After some advice from Marcus I cut GPSGate out of the equation. Plugged the GPS puck in, launched the serial emulator (already had all 3 ports turned on for NMEA) and then proceeded to load GR/SN/Streets and Trips without issue and run them for a couple hours. Of course I had already ordered and received the Globalsat puck (which works flawlessly with GPSGate) so I will still be selling the delorme, but just wanted to put it out there that it did in fact work without issue. It seems to be an interaction issue with the serial emulator and GPSGate that causes it to cease functioning after a period of time.

 

[Jane Herbert]

a million thanks in advance....

I'm trying to work out which mapping system to use on our XP laptop with GRLIII.....Delorme Streets & Trips or MS Street Atlas?...is there a big difference in resolution between the two types of maps? Reading back through the discussion, here seems to be a split between those in favour of 1 and those in favour of the other..and the tossing of coins isn't helping me develop a preference for one or the other as the chase world seems pretty evenly split

We have a TomTom GPS and I know that won't work......so...

If Delorme, should it be the Street Atlas plus Earthmate LT-40 (or something else) - do we need GPSGate also?

or MS Streets & Trips plus a Globalsat BU353 and GPS Gate

or some other combination that I haven't explored yet? (I'm being a bit blonde here, but once the decision is made and the $$ are dispatched, then I'll make it work....)

I'd love your current opinions please and is anyone using the 2010 software and is there much of a difference to the earlier software?

 

[Wes Carter]

a million thanks in advance....

I'm trying to work out which mapping system to use on our XP laptop with GRLIII.....Delorme Streets & Trips or MS Street Atlas?...is there a big difference in resolution between the two types of maps? Reading back through the discussion, here seems to be a split between those in favour of 1 and those in favour of the other..and the tossing of coins isn't helping me develop a preference for one or the other as the chase world seems pretty evenly split

We have a TomTom GPS and I know that won't work......so...

If Delorme, should it be the Street Atlas plus Earthmate LT-40 (or something else) - do we need GPSGate also?

or MS Streets & Trips plus a Globalsat BU353 and GPS Gate

or some other combination that I haven't explored yet? (I'm being a bit blonde here, but once the decision is made and the $$ are dispatched, then I'll make it work....)

I'd love your current opinions please and is anyone using the 2010 software and is there much of a difference to the earlier software?

Jane, in my opinion based on experience with DeLorme Earthmate, DO NOT get that GPS. That's the one that is riddled with problems we are discussing in this thread. There are two others I own, the Globalsat BU-353 and the Microsoft Pharos that work flawlessly.

As far as mapping software goes, I have both of those also. The DeLorme Street Atlas has a lot of good features but I think it's harder to use. The Microsoft Streets and Trips is very easy to use.

In fact, here is you a heck of a deal. This is the 2008 version, but not much has changed in the Plains since then so I would not sweat a thing. But you can get the Pharos GPS and the Microsoft Streets and Trips 2008 for $15 and change. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-list...p?ie=UTF8&qid=1270127281&sr=8-1&condition=new Scroll down to the independent sellers to get the best price. I've ordered a lot of things from Amazon.com's private sellers and never had a problem.

 

[Jane Herbert]

Thanks for your feedback Wes....Microsoft Street & Trips looks like the way to go!!