GPS TO LAPTOP CONNECTION PROBLEMS

alisdair4

alisdair4

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midnightdrifter.net
I am having a problem with the conection between GPS and laptop. The GPS is an elderly Garmin 65 (mid 90s, I think).

When I attach the GPS connection to the USB port, the laptop goes crazy - mouse pointer runs all over the place etc. Has anyone got any ideas why this happens?

I am attaching to the GPS via a serial/USB adapter. The adapter is not the problem as it works perfectly with my handheld GPS.
 
Because in the infinite wisdom encased in Windows XP they automatically try to install drivers for a USB mouse.

However, they can not seem to detect the difference between a serial mouse on an adapter and a serial GPS on an adapter.

So start it up without the GPS attached. Look under system and find the mouse drivers.

Now start it up with the GPS attached and when the mouse goes ballistic then turn OFF the power to the GPS. You will get back control.

Look under system and find the new driver that was installed. Open it and at the bottom tick the box to disable it.

Well that was from memory so you will have to improvise if I have the sequence wrong.
 
laptop thinks it's a mouse. just switch off gps, remove usb/serial, restart laptop, plug in usb/serial, run application ... then switch on gps
 
[And I vowed never to come here again]:-

The problem is that Windoze thinks a GPS on a serial-to-USB cable, is some kind of ‘pointing device’ and throws the mouse pointer all over the screen, as the NMEA sentences come in. Be aware it is very difficult to gain control over the ‘mouse’ and it can cause severe system issues if it decides to delete or re-format your hard-disk on it’s way round the screen!!!

The sequence is:- You need to power up your PC/Laptop/Sinclair C5/Apple Mac/Osborne, or whatever with the USB-Serial interface connected. Windoze will recognise the device and add it to the device table.

Then (and only when all those Mega-Processes have finally finished booting up) turn ON the GPS.

In fact it is better to switch on the GPS immediately after you have invoked whatever program you intend to us it on, Autoroute/OziExplorer/Ladies-in-Polish layby’s etc

There really IS no other way out of this, because of the Windoze ‘auto Hardware device install’ routine.

If you have multiple software needs that you want run the GPS into, do get a copy of this product it really helped us this summer in Europe:-

http://franson.com/gpsgate/

When this software boots up, it finds the USB-Serial interface and gives you multiple comms ports that each ‘appear’ to have a GPS on; one can be used for each application that need to ‘see’ the GPS it is really good, stable and solved all of our comm Port-vs-System crash issues, which were quite frequent before adding this one.

Cheers, CRB
 
I've got one of these .... I'm pretty sure it was load the drivers, then plug and go. Depending on your software, you might have to identify the virtual COM Port that the Usb connects to....

It's usually a case of going into device manager and seeing what it says.
 
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