still a GPS/Chartplotter moron

B

BJL

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Stupid question but.....I still don't know how to really use my chartplotter and I always lose patience trying to learn while on the boat. If I purchase an adapter can I turn it on in the comfort of my house and play around creating routes, etc? Does it pay to get the adapter that goes with my PC or just the AC adapter?
 
it woudl help if you'd start by telling us what brand/model you have!!

in my opinion, there are way too many unneeded features in most plotters and in 99% of cases you dont' need to use waypoints, routes and a bunch of other stuff. In fact, i never do! it's a distraction more than anything else.

I use the plotters to see my position and what's around and that's about it. I usually put a waypoint near my destination to keep track of my ETA... sure the route may not be straight to because of obstacle but usually it's close enough to be accurate or I know that the ETA will be 15' off because of the actual route i need to take...

forget all the bell and whistle, keep you eyes outside and jsut use the primary function
 
Sorry Pascal............it's an older Garmin 176C. I'd like to use the Go To feature, etc. One of the problems is that it's hard to read with the sun glare and I usually don't keep the bimini top on. So I'd like to be able to bring it in the house and just learn some of the features indoors.
 
I don't think Radio Shack has the one I need. It's a 4 pin thing that plugs into the GPS
 
Almost certainly, Garmin will sell a "power supply pig-tail" with the correct plug on one end, and loose wire on the other. At that point you can do one of several things, but one of the ( ultimately ) easiest is to attach a cigarette lighter plug to the loose end of the pig-tail. This will allow you to plug in to a 12V power supply that has a cigarette lighter type power socket.

( Ask a friendly neighborhood Ham operator to do this for you, if it is confusing. They live for this stuff! Feed him. They generally cannot feed themselves... )

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Before the boat became "Gone With The Wind", I set up many of my common tracks into the GPS. Then at trip start, I simply activated a route. This allowed me to leave one display panel set to "highway mode" which was convenient. It also allowed me to hand the helm over to one of my less nautically inclined fishing buddies with instructions to "don't hit any thing, and keep it between the lines". ( I still maintained watch... )

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An alternative it to find an old copy of Maptech's free PC software and mess around with that. Most of the functions that you will find on the Garmin are available on the software, and it will let you become more familiar with GPS operations in a generic sense. Then when onboard, the plotter menus will make a great deal more sense.
 
You can run it for many hours off the internal batteries (AA akaline). It has a simulator mode so you can do whatever you want at home. When in simulator mode it isn't searching for satellites, so it uses less power. Download the manual from Garmin, put it in simulator mode and away you go. Remember that any waypoint you add or delete in simulator mode is a permanent addition or deletion.
 
Radio shack does have the power supplies that would work with your GPS but you would need an extra DC power cord like on your boat from Garmin and possibly an extra GPS antenna to plug in at home for full use.

Or just get get garmin's AC/PC adapter # Garmin GPSMAP 176/176C Accessories

A/C Adapters
Part No Description

010-10277-00 AC/PC, USA Adapter, 4Pin .... about $45. An i/n search of " Garmin GPSMAP 176/176C Accessories " will provide a long list of adapters, cables , antennas , etc. for that unit, just as they may be listed in the back of your manual.

But why not read about one feature at a time in the manual at home and try that next time out, and so on. I use waypoints and routes every trip to use in conjunction with the A/P to save time and fuel.Often its great to just meander of course, but over the course of a season using the waypoints & routes save a lot of fuel just going to destinations to which I know perfectly well how to navigate .

To me it would be a waste of all those convenient features these thing offer to not be well aware of what they are and how to use them. I don't think of them as a distraction in the least as I use them as much or little as I care to.
 
looking at the manual on the Garmin site, the 176C can use batteries (4AA) so you dont' have to worry about power cords...

the interface is standard garmin, pretty intuitive... to set up a waypoint, scroll to where you want the WP to be and hold the Enter key... you can change the name if you want to be fancy or just save it. then select the way point on the chart to activate it, or select it from the menu, waypoint list.

http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/74_QuickStartGuide.pdf
 
The DC cord is pretty much a necessity if you plan to use it on the boat, as the batteries won't last forever. Yes you can create routes etc while you're sitting at home in your recliner (and the batteries will outlast your attention span), but in order to properly understand how the device works, you have to be able to MOVE; and that means you have to be on the boat. You really need an afternoon on the boat dedicated to learning the GPS. Hopefully the Admiral can steer while you navigate (or vice-versa). Leave the brats and other distractions home.

To be honest I never bother with the "routes" function on my 176C, that tiny screen is more trouble than it's worth; I use the interface cord and my laptop. Lots of software out there, some of it free.
 
After you enter a GOTO or activate a route in simulate, you can manually crank in a speed. Then you will being moving in simulate mode. In fact it will follow the whole route. If you want you can manually set in a course also, and you can then see how the cross track error alarm works. If you want to navigate a route quickly, crank in 100 knots.

I agree that its easier to do route planning on the PC.
 
Bill, do you find the screen hard to see as far as brightness, glare, etc.? The main reason I wanted to play with the thing in the house is because it's hard to see in the sun.
 
i've never seen a GPS that was that hard to see outside, make sure the display brightness is set to max.
 
I've found it best/fastest to learn any of my GPS units by just turning them on and letting them work! After a few times, I usually modify the display to my preferences [north up/track up], what features to show. Things like that. Garmin is very user friendly.
 
In my opinion, Garmin is one of the easiest to learn.
Raymarine is one of the hardest to learn.

If you fish offshore La. and Tex., you will need to learn how to use a GPS.
I use mine for inshore fishing also. I have a lot of oyster reefs and snags marked on mine.
We also have some cuts and passages that were once marked and no longer marked.
If you go a small distance off course, you will get stuck or damage.
When I find these types spots, I make a waypoint every 200 ft. or so to make sure I am on the right course.
 
I have a 176C. It has been awhile since I used it as I now have the Garmin 3210 on the boat and a Nuvi 760 for the car.

The batteries last for several hours when using it in the simulate mode inside. I have used it both as a road unit and with the bluechart. It does have some visibility problems, but if you get it into the correct orientation it can be seen.

In the marine mode I have never set up routes or way points. I am just interested in where I am and what is around me.

George
 
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