Hi

I like the earthmate receiver also but have a few problems. It will work great, find satellites fast one day, and the very next day won't even lock on to any. Do you have any suggestions. It is like night and day works great on or two days the next day I may have to sit for an hour before the beacon comes on and then it may go off again and never lock on. Any help would be appreciated.

Ron

Julie,

I bought the DeLorme Earthmate / StreetAtlas 7.0 / Solus Pro combo last year for use with with my Palm IIIxe.

I generally do not use the Solus software for mapping ( I think it is pretty lousy) but instead use GPSPilot's "Fly" software. The Fly software does now support the Earthmate. While a little pricy, the ability to load your own digital maps from any source onto the Palm makes the Fly software more valuable. I am a pilot so the ability to add aviation specific maps was a big plus. 

The only real issues I have encountered are:

1. Earthmate is battery only. And you don't have any way of knowing what shape the batteries are in. I'd love a "replacement battery pack w/ cord" power solution that allows the Earthmate to be powered via a 12 volt DC car cigerette lighter outlet. At the very least, some kind of battery meter would be nice. If you've seen or heard of either of these as aftermarket third-party add-ons, I'd love to know about it.

2. The serial cable connection is way too flimsy. Whenever I use the Earthmate with the Palm, I invariably knock the connector out of the Palm, which is an obvious hassle while flying or driving. I have tried bending the little metal clips out on the cable to provide a firmer connection, but it doesn't last very long or work very well. Again, if you know of any better way to keep the cable firmly and securely attached to the Palm, I'd love to hear them.

3. DeLorme does not provide any free upgrades to either the StreetAtlas or the Solus software. 

4. The Solus Pro software (version 1.5) sucks.

David J.W. Lauridsen, Jr. 

I know your review is somewhat dated, but you should note that the Earthmate is usable with most GPS software now. In fact, I have only found a few pieces of software that won't work with the Earthmate. Granted, most require a workaround, but there exists a small utility that converts the Earthmate signal to an pseudo-NMEA output for those products that don't support the Earthmate. (for PC applications)

Check out:
http://www.ozemail.com.au/~tooraj/eartha2nmea.htm

Or, there is also a hardware solution at 

http://www.byonics.com/gst-1/

I've also found other Palm-based apps provide for the Earthmate, most notably GPS Atlas, GPS Compass, etc.

You also fail to mention the HUGE benefit of the Earthmate itself (the antenna) being a separate unit. This enables you to place the antenna on your dash or rear deck in your car and still be able to recieve signals, unlike the handheld units which must be on the dash to get GPS frequencies, which in turn makes them very difficult to read. And who needs more difficulty reading while you drive?

Nice website, keep up the good work!

Julie,
   In the event that you would like to pass this on.

There is now a device which will convert Earthmate GPS output
to NMEA Sentences.

     See http://www.byonics.com/gst-1

Currently the NMEA sentences furnished are:

    GPRMC, Recommended minimum data message.

    GPGGA, GPS fix data message.

    GPGSA, GPS DOP & active satellites message.

Not currently included is:
    GPGSV, GPS Satellites in view.  This message is
    used by some programs to provide a graphics display
    of satellite positions but does not affect the
    GPS Latitude and Longitude position.

-Dan

I bought the DeLorme StreetAtlas 6 "Road Warrior" package
at CompUSA for $199 which includes SA-6, the EarthMate,
EarthMate to Pilot cable, and Solus Pro.

Works pretty well unless you are inside somewhere. The
maps from SA-6 are too big.  I've just bought some property
to build a house and am planning to compare the GPS data
which I capture via EarthMate/Palm3x to the surveyor's
report.....it should be an interesting comparison.

I'll experiment with transferring data back out to mapping
packages to evaluate the 3D (elevation) data which is also
captured.

Regards,  JR

I have used DeLorme Street Atlas for several years and in general been quite
happy with it on a desk top computer.  I have found errors in the database but
usually in areas where there is new construction.  In older areas I have found
dirt roads and long driveways on the map that other databases didn't have.

I was expecting the same quality when I purchased Solus Pro for my WinCE box. 
When I installed it I found they don't download a map database section, they
download a graphic and if you are zoomed out to get an area map not only is it a
huge file but you miss all the local roads and the street names.  When you
"Zoom" in all you get is a magnified version of the original graphic.  This is
totally useless.  I also have a copy of Microsoft Streets which does download a
database.  The CE application is somewhat simpler than the desktop one but you
get a full set of streets and names that you can zoom in and out of just like on
the desk top.  I must say I was severely disappointed with DeLorme on this one.

Chris DeWitt

Hi Julie,
  I bought the Earthmate as soon as the Palm mapping program Quo Vadis
was reprogrammed to work with it. Quo Vadis is an excellent program
whose only fault is that there is no way to premark a route. There are
plans to add this in a future upgrade. Once you purchase Quo Vadis all
map downloads are free. It works very well with the Earthmate although
it seems to take a little longer to show my location than SA6. Large
maps are broken into smaller maps so you can load only what you need.
The maps will interlink flawlessly and when you drag your stylus along
the screen the map scrolls in the direction you drag and the street name
follows you along as the road you are following scrolls by. Very slick.
There are multiple levels of zooming and there is a tracking function
where a pointer points in the direction of your selected destination.
Quo Vadis also works just fine in flash ROM which is where I have it
stored. You can load all your surrounding counties and not even see a
hit on your RAM.
  I have some major problems with the SA6 maps. The main problem is that
they take up entirely too much memory on my Palm unit. I downloaded a
map for a location 5 miles from my house. It wasn't even a complete map
and it still took up 150K. Almost any map you load, whether it covers 5
miles or 500 miles will take up 300K or more. I just don't understand
this. With the two other map programs I have for my pilot I can download
my entire county in under 300 K. Why should a 5 mile trip from my house
take up the same amount of memory.What Delorme should have done is use
the outlining in SA6 to allow you to outline the desired viewing area
and then download just that area into the Pilot. SA6 is very
frustrating. There are almost no names on the streets in my area maps.
Just a bunch of "SR444" type state codes which mean nothing to me. I am
almost never able to pull up a location by the address.  The ZIP and
telephone search methods are a joke. I think with a laptop it would
probably be a pretty cool deal but for the Pilot it stinks. If they
could make the map downloads reasonable in size and allow zooming
multiple levels, add more street names, add more addresses and complete
telephone numbers (currently you enter only the area code and the first
three digits), it would probably be ok.
  As for the Earthmate itself, it rocks plain and simple. It is one of
the coolest things I have seen for the Palm. It is extremely helpful,
especially at night when I can look at my Palm and see what street is
coming up in total darkness way before I can see the streetsign (Using
Quo Vadis). It is very accurate and had no trouble locking onto where I
was at any time. It is an amazing piece of hardware. If the software
that came with it were half as good they would really have something.

David Simmons

Hi, Julie --

I have some additional comments on the Earthmate/StreetAtlas6 system:
StreetAtlas presents some interesting problems.  I haven't been able to
spend a lot of time learning the system, and its quirky ways are neither
well-documented nor readily apparent to the user.  I have found that in
some cases the routes that SA6 selects when you choose "fastest" are
actually quite good -- they're routes that I had not thought of, with
surprisingly low traffic levels.  Probably nobody else thought of them
either!

However, if what I see in my local area is any indication of the quality
of the whole,  SA6's map database is seriously flawed!  I live in a
private, fenced and gated community on the Monterey Peninsula in
California (The Del Monte Forest/Pebble Beach).  There are only five
gates, plus a service road, which allow access into the area.  There is
a state highway which passes through the Forest without allowing access
-- there are overpasses, etc., so that the Forest's roads cross but do
not intersect with SR68.  SA6 doesn't recognize that fact, and does some
interesting things in its routings.  It will route you to an overpass
and then onto the road below -- I guess you are supposed to jump down in
your kangaroo-car...  And nowhere does it tell the unsuspecting tourist
that there is a gate coming up, and he will have to pay a $7.25 toll to
pass through it.

I bring this up because it makes me reluctant to trust SA6 away from
home.  If the routes are WRONG where I know my way, I can't see myself
trusting SA6 in (for example) Los Angeles, where I may find myself in a
bad area at a bad time of day, with no way to figure out how to get out
of there!

By the way, the new Solus Pro ver.1.1 DOES zoom maps -- apparently only
at the start and finish, and only a one-step zoom in a region around the
start and around the finish of the route.  I haven't had time to check
to see if I can trick it by inserting stops,etc.  Anyhow, that's a step
in the right direction...so to speak!

I am learning to force SA6 to take proper routes locally.  It can be
done and is fun to do, but it's time consuming!  The new version of
Solus Pro works much better that the first version (the one included
with Topo) or Solus Basic (which didn't work AT ALL!)!  And I have to
admit that I do not have a notebook computer, so I haven't tried driving
with SA6 and a computer other than the Pilot.  Still, at least for the
present, I look on my Earthmate as a fairly expensive toy, rather than a
tool...

Milton Bank

PDOP: Position Dilution of Precision

This is a value indicative of the "quality" of the GPS receiver's calculated position, based on the location of the satellites currently being tracked.

If the satellites being tracked (usually a minimum of four) are spread out in all directions around you, the geometry for calculating your exact position is better than if the satellites being tracked were all directly overhead, in a line, etc.

My GPS displays numerous types of "DOP" values, including:

Term Name Description
VDOP Vertical Dilution of Precision Accuracy of altitude calculations.
HDOP Horizontal Dilution of Precision Accuracy of latitude/longitude calculations.
PDOP Position Dilution of Precision A combination of the Horizontal and Vertical DOP.
TDOP Time Dilution of Precision Time in relation to V, H, and P DOP.
GDOP Geometric Dilution of Precision Geometric location of the satellites in relation to the receiver.

Typically, just the PDOP value is referred to for gauging system accuracy. The lower the PDOP value, the better. Although
I don't know of any particular "scale" for use with these values, a typical PDOP value would be 2.5

I bought the Earthmate, and have experienced some of the difficulties
mentioned by others...  I think the biggest disadvantage is that you
can't zoom the maps, and most things don't work in
transparent-to-the-user fashion.  You can pick your own routings, for
example, but from the instructions given you would think you had to go
the way SA 6.0 tells you -- and you won't get much help from DeLorme,
either.  Not because they're not pleasant, but their people don't seem
to know the programs very well.  I'm getting the SolusPro update for
free, but that's because I bought TopoUSA as well as SA 6.0.  Topo is
neat, but not for driving!

Hey! Read your review on the Earthmate and had just bought it on Ebay!.
Wish I had known it won't work with all the other GPS SW for the Palm out
there. One thing though: Delorme sells the whole Palm package (Earthmate,
Street Atlas 6, Solus Pro, and cable) for a special bundle price of $219
direct. I actually ordered it cheaper by buying it on Ebay though I don't
know if that is something you would wanna mention to others. (I bought my
Palm III on ebay too and saved a bundle! )

Jeff Leggett

I fault DeLorme for removing a very useful feature - Street Atlas 5 had a POINTS
OF INTEREST feature that let me easily find the nearest hotel/hamburger joint/movie
theater. It's been demoted and made much less usable in SA 6.

Also, THey were not clear about having to BUY an extra program, Solus Pro, in or
der to use the P3 with the GPS unit. (I have the older tripmate unit) I bought
the special cable, got everything hooked up, only to find when I started the
Solus basic that I couldn't initialize the unit. REALLLLY ticked me off. <G>

I also find that if you try to download a long trip, say more than 30 miles, that
when you go to uncompress the map in P3 that you get an out of memory error message.

But when it works, it's pretty neat.

Thanks for another very good review. I was thinking of buying this unit.
Probably won't now. I think they are price gouging on the Solus Pro and have
heard alot of bad things about their customer support. Using a proprietary
format is also a real negative. I was not aware this had changed from the
previous unit they sold.

-Terry