Rino 530 PC connection

[Jay H]

Those with the Rino 530 GPS (this is the older discontinued one, not the 530HCx, but I assume the PC interface is the same), how do you upload and download waypoints to it? It has a USB interface as I noticed my USB cable fits into the back and Win.2k recognizes it though I get no icon or device on it. I don't have mapsource. I talked to MapTech aka MyTopo and they said early 2009, they are working on a beta to connect with the 503 series but just curious for those that have a Rino 530, what kind of cable comes with the unit? A basic USB cable or an older DB9 serial cable? Garmin's website seems to indicate it comes with a USB cable but I do see an older DB9 cable available..

What does Mapsource use?

jay

 

[lumberzac]

I have 530Hcx and it came with a USB cable as well as a CD with a Mapsource program. The Mapsource program that came with the unit has nothing more than a few roads and lakes; nothing very details, but the program lets you upload and download waypoints and tracks between the PC and the GPS unit.


I also have NG Topo! 4.5 for the northeast on my PC, which I can upload tracks and waypoints from the GPS. The only problem I have is I lose the waypoint names when they upload onto the computer.

 

[Papa Bear]

You can also use a general purpose program to manage the unit. I use GSAK, which has a database and lots of features for displaying and managing waypoints. GSAK ( = GPS Swiss Army Knife) is written for geocachers but it's good for any set of waypoints that you may want to track. I use it for Benchmarks,

It's share ware. Here's an primer for getting it and using it: http://gsak.net/GSAK101_English.doc

There are no doubt other programs around that will solve your problem, perhaps some more attuned to hiking. Perhaps others on the board will chime in with examples.

 

[Jay H]

Thanks, I have a basic USB cable from the dead Canon camera that I unfortunately purchased this past summer. I got Windows to recognize it, I downloaded the drivers from garmin and it looks OK, but I couldn't get Terrain Navigator to communicate with it.

I posted a question on Maptech's support forum after not seeing the unit in their list of supported GPS units and they responded that a beta release (v8.5x) of their base TN product is coming out early next year that is supposed to support the 530 family... I guess I'll have to wait them.

The 530 that I found has Mapsource loaded in it so I could get away with just marking waypoints close enough to the summit for it to be useful as a backup device for winter hiking.... But eventually I'd like to be able to use it as I did with my now-flaky Etrex Vista.

Jay

 

[DougPaul]

If the GPS has an NMEA communication mode, try setting it on both the GPS and the software.

NMEA (National Marine Electronics Association) is a hardware-independent communication mode.


GPSBabel supports the Rhino 530. You can use it to transfer waypoint, route, and track info between the GPS and a data file on the computer. It supports many different file formats including Maptech Exchange Format used by Terrain Navigator. GPSBabel is free and opensource. http://www.gpsbabel.org

Doug

 

[Jay H]

Yes, the 530 does seem to support the NMEA output, at least I can set that in the GPS itself.

I'll check out GPSBabel soon..

Jay