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Subject:Re: Get GPS system ditch these Atlas was ..Re: For the Newbies - Vanago
From:Jim Felder
Date:Fri, 1 Sep 2006 10:14:45 -0500

On Aug 31, 2006, at 10:50 AM, Loren Busch wrote:

> On the hillside, narrow winding short
> streets, lots of trees, lots of traffic and stop signs.  The GPS
> totally
> failed, only got there when I recognized a couple of streets (I'd
> been there
> several years before).  Several problems contributed.  First, loss
> of signal
> running under trees.

Likewise NYC makes GPS difficult to use. Best use I ever made of it
was on a bicycle ride around the perimeter of the island, for the
most part. This was with an older, non-WAAS-enabled GPS, though.
Don't know if a newer one would do any better.

Like most GPS situations where the satellite communication is iffy,
it's best if you go somewhere with some clear sky and turn the unit
off and back on. Then move around and you have a good chance of
tracking OK. If you try to start up under tree cover or in a canyon
of buildings, you may never catch a signal.

Jim