On one of the recent s2k meets, someone had a pda with navigation. I liked the idea of something portable and I have a spare laptop that's collecting dust. Any information to make this possible? I have an old pda, but I think it might be dated.

 

Delorme makes some units that plug into the serial ports of your laptop (or with a special cable to your PDA.) Then you have software that comes with the unit to manage your maps.

You will get better integration with the laptop as there is more room for maps and a better speaker for alerts.

However, Delorme was making the street pilot for use with Palm PDAs when I had my Palm Pilot Pro (OS 2.0) so that old PDA may still have some life.

 

Latest Delorme Earthmate uses USB to a tiny receiver. I have it - Works great!

 

Yes, I use a CF GPS with a PCMCIA adaptor in mine when I need it. You can also get a serial GPS.

 

I have been through this all. My advice is to buy the Street Pilot 2610. Mounts great on the dash and does more than the Delorme software, etc. It is a pain in the ass to have the laptop hooked up the whole time. You are always better off with a dedicated device.

Dean