Kingston Amateur Radio Club

GPS - Global Positioning Systems
           GPS General Information
           GPS Software
           GPS Hardware Projects
           GPS Vendors

Mapping and Maps
           Online Interactive Maps
           FREE Canadian Maps (Natural Resources Canada)
           Maps for downloading
           Mapping Software

Quick introduction to GPS and Mapping:

Many Amateurs are using GPS systems to interface to mobile APRS equipment to send their location through the APRS system, and PCSAT.

There are many good web sites out there with information on GPS and GPS equipment so see the links to see these pages.

One of the things that newer GPS equipment have are maps. Also it is nice to have local maps that you can use to preplan waypoints, routes, etc for uploading to your GPS and for use with your flavour of APRS and/or GPS navigation programs.

It has been easy to get good maps of the United States as they have digital format maps that are free or low cost, while in most countries, including Canada, you pay the government high prices for these digital maps, if available. In the Mapping Links you will find a source of Canadian maps that you can download for FREE and use for yourself form the Canadian government.

How about a 'Geocaching' style foxhunt?
Combine fox hunting and using a GPS to find hidden transmitters and caches. Hide a series foxes and caches.
Find the first fox and it will give you a location to find using the GPS.
That cache will give the frequency for the next fox and so on.

GPS - Global Positioning System

GPS systems have become very popular over the last few years and will help you navigate from Point A to Point B. Amateurs have been using a GPS interfaced into a computer and TNC, or to a standalone tracker interface to send their static and mobile positions to other Amateurs around the world.

Remember even though the United States has turned off the built in error for civilian GPS, it can be turned back on at any time. Also you should not rely solely on a GPS for navigation. If it breaks down or batteries go dead, can you use a compass and map to bring you back to civilization?

SA (Selective Addressing Error) has been off since 12:04AM EDT May 2, 2000.
Read about it HERE

           GPS General Information
           GPS Software
           GPS Hardware Projects
           GPS Vendors

GPS General Information

Joe Mehaffey and Jack Yeazel's	GPS Information Website (excellent site for info and sources)
GPS Navigator Magazine	An On-Line Magazine for GPS Enthusiasts
GPS Primer	Simple explanation of how the GPS system works
How GPS Works	Trimble's Excellent tutorial
GeoCaching	Use your GPS in a worldwide "stash" locating game
Global Positioning System Overview	Peter H. Dana, The Geographer's Craft Project, Department of Geography, The University of Colorado at Boulder

GPS Software

APRS Software	Amateur Radio - Automatic Position Reporting Position
OZI Explorer	OziExplorer is interactive, scanned map, trip planning software.
GPS Trackmaker	Communication Program for GPS and Data Treatment (many GPS models supported (Free) Lots of features!!!
Waypoint +	Interfaces a Garmin GPS to a Win95/NT PC
GARtrip	The PC Software program for Garmin GPS Receivers
GPS Utility	A program for manipulating GPS information
GPSS	from Sunninghill - for in-car navigation by GPS and GSM, with speech and voice recognition

GPS Hardware Projects

Larry's pPlug for Garmin GPS	Build your own Garmin PC Interface Cable and power cable using pPlugs you can order through a local distributor in your Prov, State, country VA3KGB's Building a Data/Power Cable for Garmin GPS using the Pplug and a dead mouse (262 KB)
	Another Build your own Garmin PC Interface Cable
Magellan 315	Build your own PC Interface Cable
Tiny Trak	GPS to Radio Tracker Interface, a GPS position encoder which, when connected to a GPS and a radio, will transmit its location at an adjustable rate

GPS Vendors

Casio Wrist GPS	Garmin	Magellan
Delorme	Leica	Thales
Eagle	Lowrance	Trimble

Mapping and Maps

The following links will take to to maps available for use online interactively, downloadable maps and to mapping programs so that you can make your own maps.

           Online Interactive Maps
           FREE Canadian Maps (Natural Resources Canada)
           Maps for downloading
           Mapping Software

Online Interactive Maps

MapBlast
MapQuest
Ontario Road Maps	PDF format maps

FREE Canadian Maps (Natural Resources Canada)
Topographical maps that correspond to the published map sheets and Landsat 7 maps of the same sheets are available at: Natural Resources Canada's Toporama web site.

These map images are free to use, however, ensure you read the legalese of the license and modification use as these are copyrighted maps!

The topographical maps are GIF images and do not show all the details of the normal map sheet but are detailed enough for your GPS/APRS/Navigation Programs. There are no Grid lines, borders or legends on the images, and any information on the American side of the border is missing from the images. Landsat 7 map images do show the American side where applicable.

Also check out GeoGratis at Natural Resources Canada, a web site and FTP site that distributes geospatial data of Canada. Data is available for download, without charge!

Coming Soon: A cross reference that will give you the coordinates of the four corners of the Toporama maps so that you will be able to input these coordinates for calibrating the maps for various programs.

Maps for downloading

APRS Maps Index	Kingston ARC Map listings for DOS, WinAPRS, UI-View maps, shown with thumbnails, (various formats)
APRS Maps	Links to various sources of APRS Maps
USGS DRG Home Page
USGS FTP Site	DRG maps from the USGS

Mapping Software

dlgv32 Pro	is a limited-feature version of commercial software called Global Mapper The USGS has obtained from Global Mapper a license to freely distribute this limited-feature version.
MICRODEM	is public domain (free) software for Windows 95 and NT. It was originally designed for display and analysis of digital elevation models (DEM). It will display USGS DRGs, DEMs, and DOQs, including the creation of 3D block diagrams with the imagery draped over the DEM. It will interface with a NMEA GPS. It can also display a variety of other imagery and DEMs
ERDAS MapSheets Express	ERDAS MapSheets Express is the FREE viewing tools from ERDAS for imagery and vector data from popular software packages and vendors such as the USGS. It is based on the popular Microsoft Office Compatible Geographic Imaging tool, ERDAS MapSheets, and allows users to view, manipulate and map data easily and quickly. MapSheets express supports data in a variety of formats including ERDAS IMG, GeoTiff, TIFF, JPEG, and ShapeFile. It can create maps in HTML format for use on web site or sharing over networks, as well as allowing users to copy and paste maps into popular applications such as Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Corel WordPerfect, etc.
GPSy / GPSy Pro	GPSy - List price $50.00US Features: GPSy is a sophisticated Macintosh GPS communications and GIS mapping program. GPSy connects your Macintosh to a broad range of Global Positioning System (GPS) navigational units and has advanced mapping, logging, and data transfer features. GPSy has extensive support for USGS DRG topo maps, Internet DGPS-IP servers, GPSyLinks to Internet Map Servers, StreetAtlas 4, and IPC's MapFan II, as well as user-scanned maps, Magellan and Lowrance/Eagle data transfer protocols, Sony IPS protocol, Rockwell Zodiac/Tripmate binary protocol support, Trimble TSIP support and much more. GPSy Pro - List price $100.00US Features: Same as GPSy above, but adds NOAA/BSB, Maptech, Canadian NDI, and Swedish BSB chart support as well as nautical charts and numerous speed and memory optimizations.
DEMWorks	DEMWorks is a free Windows application for visualizing DEM and GeoTiff/DRG files. The application can show relief shading, shading by height, 2D (point-to-point) terrain profiles, line of sight analysis, 3D regions, 3D regions with texture overlays (such as aerial photography), and 3D regions with line of sight analysis overlays. DEMWorks also provides several printing options
Terrain Tools Freeware Edition	is a quick and easy mapping package. Coordinates can be entered using the mouse, typed in, or imported from external files. Scanned topographic maps, air photos and other bitmap images can also be incorporated.

Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and Mapping

Global Positioning Systems (GPS)
and Mapping