I was wondering if the PDA has a screen rotate function. ie so you can mount it horizontally and see the test the right way up. I was thing on a bike it could go inside the road book holder. (which alot of people have these days)

Karim

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http://www.mobipocket.com/en/Downloa....asp?feature=3

http://bestpocketpda.com/modules.php...article&sid=15

...but only for CE, not Palm OS.

[This message has been edited by POB/London (edited 28 April 2003).]

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no, wait:

http://www.palmgear.com/software/sho...cfm?prodID=610

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Road book holder! That’s an idea. The couple of PDA units I used over the past either had no rotate function or had it but didn’t work properly. I’ve heard of a software solution for this but never tried it. There are horizontal PDA units but you sort of open them up like the Nokia Communicator with a keyboard in the lower part. Not sure if this would fit.

In any case, if you place the unit inside the road book holder then you won’t be able to give it any commands.

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A.B.

OasisPhoto.com – Images from the Magical Sahara.
ShortWheelbase.com – Jeep preparations.

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A.B.
OasisPhoto.com – Images from the Magical Sahara.

You might want to look at RAM Mounts from the USA. They will certainly have a robust system for mounting a PDA to a motorbike along and may even have a suitable cable for running off the battery.

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Jon Harbour

Middle East 4x4

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Jon Harbour

Middle East 4x4

Hi
I use a RAM mount for my GPS, they are really good.(solid/rubber mounted/can contort into tons of positions) they fit touratech mounts for GPS's perfectly. They would be good for a PDA too.

The otter boxes look good, even have a cable outlet possible.

OK, for those who dont have a PDA/GPS system could we recommend a good setup? including software (TT/QV/Ozietc etc)

I am guessing the list would look something like

PDA
12V power cable
PDA to GPS data cable
Protective enclosure and mount system
GPS( with 12V cable and mount)
Mapping software for both PC and PDA
(what is agreed best)
Digital Maps/ Sattelite Images etc (format?)(editing software?)

Karim

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Extra things:

I also saw a GPS with bluetooth, this could be nice. Since alot of PDA's can have this. means one less wire...

Also need to add to the list

Memory Expansion (CF or SM?)(how much)
PDA mains adaptor for programming at home

Ok I better go back to work now, they'll kill me...

Karim

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Surely, by mounting the PDA onto the bike you're asking for trouble? Reading the bike instruments and a GPS is hard enough! Why not keep the PDA stored (in a forearm pocket of a rallye jacket, in a map pocket, or in one of these things) and "dock" your electronics only when you need to? We all know that unnecessary complications always end in trouble....

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Hi all,

RAM products are now available in the UK from

http://www.gpsw.co.uk/acatalog/GPS_C...ucts___22.html

I mentioned it already elsewhere - I use a PSION V. It has a bigger (albeit not clearer) screen than a PDA and costs a fraction of the price second-hand.

In my LC, apart from a Garmin GPS128, I also have a Garmin TracPac LP35 GPS - it's a two channel receiver the size of an active antenna. It provides all the signal to the moving map applications, so no GPS interface is needed. On a bike it'd would be just as good an idea, provided you can ensure your PDA is bullet-proof. If you lose it, gone is your GPS just as well - no way to read your position and relate to a paper map. I have a PC and Psion and a full-fledged GPS receiver, so there's no need to worry about that. Also, to interface the various devices, copy data, waypoints & logs between them or connect other external receivers, I've created a custom breakout box. A rough idea is presented here:

http://www.eh71.dial.pipex.com/_land..._interface.pdf

Rgds,
Roman (UK)

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Roman (UK)

If you were to go with a PDA GPS sleeve, such as the Navman unit, you can use it handheld as well with no need for a cable to link to the GPS. You can still run a 12V cable to the battery to provide charging, in fact you will need to do so.

The set up I use in my Patrol is:

iPAQ 3970 (Bluetooth)
Tom-Tom Navigator GPS receiver (I don't have need for handheld GPS)
OziExplorer CE (I found out elsewhere today that this offers voice prompts for route navigation! )
256MB SD RAM card.
RAM iPAQ Mount

Planned additions are a dual slot CF expansion pack, more memory in the form of a 1GB CF card

The RAM mount works brilliantly - I've tested it up and over the dunes in the UAE and across some nasty corrugations in a Wadi near the Oman border.

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Jon Harbour

Middle East 4x4

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Jon Harbour

Middle East 4x4

Holy Moly, you guys sure know a lot of techy stuff! I'm amazed its taken 25 replies for someone to cordially opine "No, it would not be useful on a bike - in fact it would be dangerous to try and read it while riding off road". Even the Dak riders use a super-clear printed paper rolling 'maps'.

In a car with a pax to read a laptop I've seen it done - you can watch yourself move across the screen but I do believe there is a danger of inadvertantly driving up someones (or even your own) exhaust pipe. In the real world of Sahara travel - even off piste - how vital is it to know where you are on a map every second? In my experience, never. I have a distant destination/waypoint and I drive or ride as the terrain permits towards that point or just explore a small area.

What is needed for desert navigation? Knowledge of where you are + which way to go - and perhaps a means of storing where you've been for later. Can anyone honestly say that it is easier and faster to read a scanned map off a PDA screen that an original paper version?
And even as a back-up to conventional paper nav - I still have not read above a real world use of a PDA that cannot be done by Ozifying your route directly off the GPS once you get home?

With all this IT catching on, years ago the publisher DK tried to reinvent the paper guidebook by developing PDA-like readers for CDs or whatever. Plan was you'd walk around Venice with your digital reader - zooming in on this and that with commentaries, etc - until some Balkanian ne'er-do-well grabed it off you or the battery failed.
DK went bust trying to be too clever. Fact is, it may not be sexy but one cannot beat the printed paper format - be it book or map - for fast access to information on cheap and reliable media.

Even among fellow Rough Guiders - where you'd think a laptop while updating on the road would save a lot of time - carrying one is rare for all the usual reasons. We update on print outs and translate to a computer once in a stable environment.

Keep it simple, reliable and enjoy the desert for what it is - an all round wilderness

Chris S

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Adventure Motorcycling Handbook 8 • Morocco Overland 3 • Overlanders Handbook 2 • Twit

i thoroughly agree with mr scott. not only are maps and books generally more reliable, they don't suffer from rough handling, dust, dirt, damp or theft. also, if you need something to put under the side stand of your bike when parking in the mud or sand, you can consider your looney planot africa guide. it isn't useful for anything else.
cheers
ChrisB

[This message has been edited by chris (edited 09 May 2003).]

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... and, finally, can you swat a fly with a PDA?

Rgds,
Roman (UK)

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Roman (UK)

depends on the size of the fly.

CB

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CURRENT RR WITH REGULAR UPDATES: The Wife Takes on Chlamydia: A South American Retrospective