Russia's Proton-M carrier rocket put three GLONASS satellites into orbit on Thursday, a spokesman for the Russian Space Forces said.
The Proton-M rocket blasted off from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan at 4:53 Moscow time (0:53 GMT).
"The launch and flight of the carrier rocket, as well as the separation of the satellites, took place on schedule," Alexei Zolotukhin said.
He also said the satellites' onboard systems were working well.
Glonass - the Global Navigation Satellite System - is the Russian equivalent of the U.S. Global Positioning System, or GPS, and is designed for both military and civilian use. Both systems enable users to determine their positions to within a few meters.
Russia currently has a total of 26 Glonass satellites in orbit, but two of them are not functional. The system requires 18 operational satellites for continuous navigation services covering the entire territory of Russia and at least 24 satellites to provide navigation services worldwide.
Only two out of the three satellites that were put into orbit on Thursday will be put into operation. The third will be kept in reserve. By mid-October, a total of 23 satellites will be operational.
Source:
NAVTEQ introduces Natural Guidance
Friday, 03 September 2010 01:16
administrator
Navteq introduces GPS Natural Guidance
Digital mapping company Navteq has introduced a new navigation system that guides drivers based on the way people naturally give each other directions, with Chicago as one of the initial cities in the launch.
Its new system, called Natural Guidance, gives instructions based on points of interest and landmarks. For example, instead of traditional navigation systems that tell drivers to turn after a certain amount of distance, Natural Guidance instructs users to “turn right after the yellow shop.”
Chicago-based Navteq provides maps, realtime traffic information and location data to in-dash navigation systems in cars and portable GPS devices, among other Web applications and gadgets.
“Research shows consumers desire more intuitive and practical directions because it is easier to follow and allows the user to keep their eyes on the road,” said Navteq, which is owned by Finnish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia.
The Natural Guidance system is available in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York, as well as several European capitals and Delhi, India.
Change History Changes made from version 3.0.5 to 3.0.6:
Added support for the GB Discoverer series of products.
Added support for the City Navigator Israel series of products.
Improved memory usage when drawing maps.
Improved auto routing calculation speed.
Improved address searching when searching near 'center of map'.
Improved indexing of map products installed on devices or SD cards.
Changed error reporting for imported files.
Fixed issue when rendering the '&' sign on map labels.
Fixed startup issue related to diacritics or the German Eszett in the database.
Fixed startup issues related to bad 3d settings.
Fixed errors that could occur when changing filtered route settings in the middle of creating a route.
Fixed errors when editing geotagged photos.
Fixed input of custom grid values.
Fixed issues that could happen when changing the map font.
Fixed issues that would result in sections of the map missing when using an NT map product.
Fixed issues when changing datum and grid.
Garmin® Introduces the nüLink!™ 1695 for Super-Sized Connected Navigation
Friday, 03 September 2010 00:58
administrator
Garmin® Introduces the nüLink!™ 1695
Garmin announced the nüLink! 1695 – a 5-inch touchscreen portable navigation device (PND) that connects drivers with relevant, online information from Garmin’s nüLink! service, including links to online information like Google™ Local Search, traffic, weather, fuel prices, flight status, and other real-time, location-relevant content, plus it uses nüRoute™ technology with trafficTrends™ and myTrends™ to make your daily commute easier than ever. The U.S. version of the nüLink! 1695 comes with one year of free Garmin nüLink! services out-of-the-box, and is also the first device to offer the nüLink! Store where customers can purchase optional premium services.
"The slim profile and large, sharp screen make this nüvi one of the most portable and best-looking standalone GPS devices that we've tested," raved CNET in their just-posted review of the nüvi 3790T. In fact, they were so impressed with this nüvi's design, features and performance, they gave it 4.5 stars and deemed the new 3790T an Editors' Choice pick! In addition to being the "best looking" PND they've tested, CNET also liked the voice command feature that lets you truly be hands-free by speaking the words you see on the screen or by speaking certain commands, the included traffic data, and Bluetooth capability. The bottom line? According to CNET, "the Garmin nüvi 3790T is an exceptional portable navigation device with just the right blend of form and function."
GPS IIF-1 - the newest satellite of 31 active in the GPS constellation
Boeing [NYSE: BA] announced that the first of 12 Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF satellites the company is building for the U.S. Air Force has entered service. GPS IIF-1 is the newest member of the active 31-satellite GPS constellation, which provides accurate navigation, positioning and timing information to more than 1 billion military and civilian users around the world. GPS IIF satellites offer new and enhanced capabilities, including a jam-resistant military signal, greater accuracy through improved atomic clock technology, and a protected civilian L5 signal to aid commercial aviation and safety-of-life applications. According to Air Force officials, on-orbit testing shows that the L5 signal meets all requirements. Based on program plans, the signal will remain in development status, broadcasting test data until initial operational capability is declared. The Air Force will send a message about this to GPS users worldwide.
Source (read more...): Sat News (direct link to the article)
Garmin Int recalling certain nuvis for battery replacement
Saturday, 28 August 2010 06:53
administrator
Garmin International recalls certain nuvis for battery replacement
Garmin announced that it is voluntarily recalling approximately 1.25 million nüvi personal navigation devices (of which approximately 796,000 units were sold in the United States) that contain batteries manufactured by a third-party supplier within a defined date code range and that have a specific printed circuit board (PCB) design. Garmin has identified potential overheating issues when the third party supplier’s batteries manufactured within this limited date code range are used in certain Garmin devices with the PCB design. It appears that the interaction of these factors can, in rare circumstances, increase the possibility of overheating, which may lead to a fire hazard.
Nuvi 215W price decreased from 11.900,- THB to 10.900 THB.
New Garmin GPS for cyclists - EDGE 800
Friday, 27 August 2010 13:27
administrator
New Garmin GPS for cyclists announcement - EDGE 800
Garmin International Inc., announced the feature-packed touchscreen Edge 800 for cyclists (...). New mapping options such as Garmin’s BaseCamp route planning and BirdsEye™ Satellite Imagery make it perfect for training, touring and riding on the trail. Edge 800 will debut at Interbike (Booth 2631) and Eurobike (Booth A5-201), where it won the coveted Eurobike Award for electronic components. (...)
Building on its popular predecessors, Edge 800 is smaller and sleeker than the Edge 705, yet features a larger 2.6” display with a simple touchscreen interface. And while Edge 800 gets its streamlined design from the ultralight Edge 500, the color display and versatile mapping options make exploration more enjoyable and efficient than ever. The latest version of Garmin’s free BaseCamp software (www.garmin.com/basecamp) gives users an easy tool to survey the terrain and plan routes. BaseCamp lets users plan and preview routes – along with viewing elevation changes – and then send those routes to Edge 800, Edge 705 and Edge 605 as courses to follow. (...)
3 September, 2010: total Geocaches in Thailand - 480
The Latest Geocaches: 1. Behind the mountains by Siamkiwi 2. Aquarium Nong Khai by astronom13 3. New! Ossaries by dunderhead 4. Check this out by ximines 5. BTS (Victory Monument) by ZBangkok 6. BTS (Phaya Thai) by ZBangkok 7.Pantip (All things digital) by ZBangkok 8. Phu Pha Lek Nationalpark # 2 # by astronom13 9. Bangkok pizza party by chancerandom 10. New! Phu Pha Lek National Park # 1 # by astronom13 11. The edge of Bangkok 33 or Samsip sam by ZBangkok 12. Pier - Kaik Kai by ZBangkok 13. Chance got snared in Koh Samui by nielsenc 14. Rama V by ZBangkok
A really short answer to this question is YES. The Garminfone has on-device sync with Microsoft Exchange for Outlook email. If you're using a personal, non-enterprise version of Outlook, you can sync your email by first downloading the free sync software from the GarminAsus.com website. If you're on your company's enterprise server, you will need to contact your network administrator to obtain the necessary information about your network prior to being able to sync your Outlook email, contacts and calendar.
Source: Ask GarminRead More ...
I am afraid there is no Garmin Mobile® BlackBerry for Thaialnd yet. :( (2 April, 2010)
Right now the Garmin Mobile is available for Europe and North America only.
Ref. and features description: https://buy.garmin.com/Read More ...
Please note, that the list order has nothing to do with our preferences. :)
1. TomTom: Updated: June 30, 2010 Current Version: 1.4.1 142 MB
2. Sygic Mobile Maps for iPhone - Southeast Asia Updated: 22 June, 2010 Current Version: 8.1.4.1 279 MB · Maps included: Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore with 6 digit postal code search, Thailand
3. Ndrive: Released: Nov 19, 2009 (no data) Version: 9.2.30 161 MB
4. MapQUest Updated: Mar 28, 2010 Current Version: 1.5.1 4.2 MB
5. PAPAGO I M6 Current Version: M6.4 Updated: 7 July, 2010 1.15 GB
Would you like to share some more options with iPhone users? Send us an e-mail :) Read More ...
In cycling, cadence is the number of revolutions of the crank per minute; roughly speaking, this is the speed at which a cyclist is pedalling/turning the pedals.
Cyclists typically have a preferred cadence at which they feel most comfortable, and on bicycles with many gears it is possible to stick to a favourite cadence at a wide range of speeds. Recreational and utility cyclists typically cycle around 60–80 rpm; racing cyclists around 80–120 rpm and sprinters up to 170 rpm for short bursts. The professional racing cyclist and Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong is known for his technique of keeping up high cadences of around 110 rpm for hours on end to improve efficiency. Some cyclists believe that some cadences are more efficient than others, but the wide range of preferred cadences among racing cyclists suggest that the difference, if any, is small. An important point is that any particular cyclist has only a narrow range of preferred cadences, often smaller than the general ranges listed above. This in turn influences the number and range of gears which are appropriate for any particular cycling conditions.
I am aware only about 1 model 2 models (July 2010/2553) sold in Thailand with the life time map update warranty, and it's nuvi 215W and nuvi 205W
Conditions:
1. The company reserves the right to cancel or change the promotion without prior notice. 2. The lifetime map update warranty is applicable to the units that join the promotion only. 3. The lifetime map update warranty can't be transferred or sold to any other units in any case. 4. The lifetime map update warranty would expired if there is a change in map format or system that render it incompatible with the unit.
The lifetime map update warranty would be suspended immediately to each unit's S/N if the company finds out that there is a violation such as: copying, modifying, editing, selling of such warranty without the company's consent.
Source: Garmin Thailand (ESRI) Read More ...
Have you downloaded the map into your Gamrin GPS, but the map does not show up? Make sure that the downloaded .img file is located in the Garmin Folder on your GPS or memory card. :)
When you want to use your map on the memory card, you have to create a new folder called "Garmin" and copy the map into it.
Related Info: Names of the map filesRead More ...
Absolutely! Any nϋvi with a photo viewer, which is the majority of nϋvis, will let you customize the start-up screen with a JPEG image. Whether you want to see a photo of your smiling kids or maybe you're a fleet operator that wants to display your company's logo, you can personalize the nϋvi with a few easy steps.
This step-by-step tutorial explains the process using the nϋvi 205series, but the steps are similar for most nϋvis.
Follow the steps:Read More ...
The answer is a resounding YES — Garmin Connect loves Mac and PC users equally. This has actually been true for more than a year, whether your device supports wireless uploads (such as Forerunner 310XT, Forerunner 405 or FR60) or uses a USB connection (Edge series, outdoor handhelds and Forerunner 205/305 models). For wireless devices, you’ll need the Mac version of Garmin ANT Agent. For USB devices, download the Mac version of Garmin Communicator Plug-in. Happy data logging to all of our Mac users out there!Garmin ConnectRead More ...
Garmin announced the nüLink! 1695 – a 5-inch touchscreen portable navigation device (PND) that connects drivers with relevant, online information from Garmin’s nüLink! service, including links to online information like Google™ Local Search, traffic, weather, fuel prices, flight status, and other real-time, location-relevant content, plus it uses nüRoute™ technology with trafficTrends™ and myTrends™ to make your daily commute easier than ever. The U.S. version of the nüLink! 1695 comes with one year of free Garmin nüLink! services out-of-the-box, and is also the first device to offer the nüLink! Store where customers can purchase optional premium services.
"The slim profile and large, sharp screen make this nüvi one of the most portable and best-looking standalone GPS devices that we've tested," raved CNET in their just-posted review of the nüvi 3790T. In fact, they were so impressed with this nüvi's design, features and performance, they gave it 4.5 stars and deemed the new 3790T an Editors' Choice pick! In addition to being the "best looking" PND they've tested, CNET also liked the voice command feature that lets you truly be hands-free by speaking the words you see on the screen or by speaking certain commands, the included traffic data, and Bluetooth capability. The bottom line? According to CNET, "the Garmin nüvi 3790T is an exceptional portable navigation device with just the right blend of form and function." 
Garmin International Inc., announced the feature-packed touchscreen Edge 800 for cyclists (...). New mapping options such as Garmin’s 
