GPS phones, etc.

[Thayer]

As I promised yesterday, here are some contacts regarding GPS systems.

       *Magellan Systems Corporation
        960 Overland Ct.
        San Dimas CA 91773
                phone (714) 394-5000          FAX (714) 394-7050
                toll-free (800) 669-4477  (presumably only works in US)
                technical info (at least on NAV1000PRO, probably others):
                    Dan Cassidy  (714) 394-5013  (very helpful & knowledgeable)

       *Trimble Navigation
        645 North Mary Avenue
        PO Box 3642   (use for mail address)
        Sunnyvale CA 94088-3642
                phone (408) 481-8000         FAX (408) 737-6057
                toll-free (US) (800)-TRIMBLE

          also: Trimble Navigation Europe, Ltd
                Trimble House
                Meridian Office Park
                Osborn Way
                Hook, Hampshire RG27 9HX
                ENGLAND
                       phone 44-256-760150    FAX  44-256-760148

                Trimble Japan:  81-472-74-7070

Trimble's book I mentioned is "GPS: A guide to the next utility" (1989),
available free on request (last I knew).

       *West Marine     (sell GPS's from several mfrs, by mail/phone/FAX order)
        500 Westridge Drive
        Watsonville CA 95076
                Customer Service (800) 262-8042 [M-F 5AM-5PM Pacific Time]
                Technical ??'s  (800) 538-0775         "
        Large annual catalog of boating gear etc. (including a lot of general
information as well as product info), with seasonal supplements.  They also have
stores in WA, OR, CA, FL, MD, NY, MA

Gary Noonan already posted Garmin's address, etc., so I won't repeat that.

        One difficulty I didn't mention is that you need a fair bit of open
sky to use a GPS receiver.  We were generally able to get fixes OK at roadside
locations, even one-lane roads, and in one very open Eucalyptus forest, but
denser forests are a problem (unless you get a *long* antenna you can stick up
high or climb a tall tree).
        Rechecking some notes I found with our catalogs, Dan Cassidy at
Magellan told me that multichannel receivers do better at dealing with the
selective availability problem than single-channel, but "differential" fixes
with 2 receivers are the only way to get *much* better fixes.  Chances are
that's not really necessary for most users on this list.

Margaret Thayer, Zoology-Insects, Field Museum of Natural History
Chicago IL 60605, USA  Phone:312-922-9410 x404  Email:thayer at fmnh785.fmnh.org