GPS tracking
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Loading ...I like cycling and walking. What I also like to do is record where I have been. My Nokia N95 has built-in GPS, but it is pretty poor reception. Besides, the software I use to record where I have been, AFTrack, doesn’t work with the internal GPS. So I now use a GPS receiver.
AFTRack is fine as a mechanism for recording GPS tracks, but I wanted to have a way of viewing them after the event. Of the various formats available for export I have only played with KML and GPX so far. Google Earth is the natural app for viewing KML files, and very good it is too. But there is a great site, Trailguru, which accepts GPX uploads and shows you altitude and speed profiles for the whole track. The intention of the site’s creator, Tim Park, is to build a database of tracks through a wiki interface. This will enable you to plan routes based on existing track segments, and to average over repeated track uploads, reducing the effects of GPS ‘jitter’.
You can see my first upload, a Sunday bike ride with my son, here.
July 29th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
My tips for getting the N95 GPS to perform better would be:
- Update the firmware
- Make sure the GPS data connection used is the main connection for your provider. I was pointing mine at Orange’s GPS server, and this slowed things down a lot. Point it at the main internet connection instead
- Don’t even start to connect until you are out in the open. Even being near a building can slow down the ability to connect.
I presently use Nokia Sports Tracker for GPS tracking, which does have a few nice features (I like the integration that can show you what you were listening to and where), but I will have a go at Trailguru now.