Does NetStumbler support USB GPS devices?

Questions and configuration information about the NetStumbler software

Does NetStumbler support USB GPS devices?

Postby Blazer » Fri Jan 02, 2004 5:30 pm

Subject says it all. I know it supports serial GPS devices, but what about USB?

Thanks
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Postby sparafina » Fri Jan 02, 2004 5:53 pm

No.
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Postby javageek » Fri Jan 02, 2004 6:21 pm

It will support Serial GPS's hooked up to USB-Serial converters though.
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Postby hkelley » Sun Jan 04, 2004 11:46 am

Not sure where Sarafina gets his information, but I have used Netstumbler successfuly for two years with a RoyalTek Sapphire USB GPS with absolutely no problems. The USB provides both power and signal to the unit. I use the GPS with both MapPoint 2002 US and MapPoint 2003 Europe.

I do not use a serial to USB converter.
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Postby Kazig » Sun Jan 04, 2004 12:00 pm

Originally posted by hkelley
Not sure where Sarafina gets his information, but I have used Netstumbler successfuly for two years with a RoyalTek Sapphire USB GPS with absolutely no problems. The USB provides both power and signal to the unit. I use the GPS with both MapPoint 2002 US and MapPoint 2003 Europe.

I do not use a serial to USB converter.



USB = Universal Serial Bus

Just find the correct Com driver for the USB device (So you can assign a port number to the port) and assign NS to look at the assigned port.

Then the answer would be maybe!

Yes, if the device manufacturer provides com drivers.
No, if the device manufacturer does not provide Com drivers .
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Postby sparafina » Sun Jan 04, 2004 12:32 pm

Originally posted by hkelley
Not sure where Sarafina gets his information, but I have used Netstumbler successfuly for two years with a RoyalTek Sapphire USB GPS with absolutely no problems. The USB provides both power and signal to the unit. I use the GPS with both MapPoint 2002 US and MapPoint 2003 Europe.

I do not use a serial to USB converter.


The question was about USB being SUPPORTED. The answer is NO.

Can you get something to work with it, probably. Either through a USB to serial connector or in the case of the Royal Tek through drivers. If I recall correctly the Royal Tek Sapphire (I have an OEM board) units have both serial and usb on the board, so this might be the reason it works well. Will other USB GPS devices work with NetStumbler? Your mileage will vary.
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Postby hkelley » Sun Jan 04, 2004 12:45 pm

Just for the sake of debate -- no jibe intended -- is anything really "supported" when you are dealing with freeware?

Stumbler is designed to work with a series of chipsets, as I understand it, but not to the exclusion of other devices which may or may not work effectively with it.

"Support" is probably not the right word but I guess it is close enough as long as you don't take it too literally.
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Postby sparafina » Sun Jan 04, 2004 1:59 pm

I am not splitting hairs. What is SUPPORTED is in the README.

NS SUPPORTS only one chipset: HERMES.
It only SUPPORTS communications to a GPS via serial port.

Everything else is a hack.
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freeware?

Postby fordem » Sun Jan 04, 2004 4:18 pm

Originally posted by hkelley
Just for the sake of debate -- no jibe intended -- is anything really "supported" when you are dealing with freeware?


Perhaps you're not aware that these terms have defined meanings

NetStumbler is not freeware - click on Help and then License Agreement - you'll see that it has been defined by the author as "BeggarWare"

beggarware: Any free software, generally downloaded from the Internet, where the author "begs" for a donation to help support continued development.

freeware: Software, where the author retains the copyright, whilst making the program available to others at no cost
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Postby tonya1 » Thu Jan 22, 2004 1:36 pm

i have a Earthmate GPS with the USB to COM driver and it works fine with the StreetAtlas and gpstest but. I am unable to get it to work with NetStumbler I am using COM5 9600, 8, 1, None. NetStumbler say the GPS is listening but no LAT/LON data is seen.
Anyone got any ideas what I am doing worng, better yet has anyone got one of these thing to work.
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Postby chevowner » Wed Feb 25, 2004 4:03 pm

I have a USB Earthmate GPS, it works fine with NS, why do you need a USB-serial converter. Seems like a waste.
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Postby auger282 » Sat Apr 24, 2004 12:29 pm

whats your configuration.. I too have a brandnew earthmate usb and its not working properly in 0.4
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Postby fordem » Sat Apr 24, 2004 3:08 pm

auger282 wrote:whats your configuration.. I too have a brandnew earthmate usb and its not working properly in 0.4


This is a lot like the NS works with unsupported cards issue - what works for you, won't necessarily work for me - even with identical systems and configurations.

Here's why - the drivers for most USB GPS and USB-Serial converters that can be used to hook a serial port GPS to a USB port work by emulating a serial port - has to be done this way to allow use with GPS software that was mostly written to talk to serial ports.

Most USB ports can't be configured to use IRQ 3 & 4 - which are the traditional serial port IRQs - BUT there is no standard definition for anything over COM4

Here's where the problem lies - every laptop installation will configure itself differently on the USB ports, depending on what else is installed - PCMCIA cards, miniPCI cards - so your COM port emulation is not going to be the same as mine, even with the same laptop and the same cards - because it changes everytime you connect/disconnect a plug'n'play device.
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Postby Banished » Tue Jun 08, 2004 5:00 pm

tonya1 wrote:i have a Earthmate GPS with the USB to COM driver and it works fine with the StreetAtlas and gpstest but. I am unable to get it to work with NetStumbler I am using COM5 9600, 8, 1, None. NetStumbler say the GPS is listening but no LAT/LON data is seen.
Anyone got any ideas what I am doing worng, better yet has anyone got one of these thing to work.
Tony


I've recently figured out how to do this, so here goes...

I have a laptop (WinXP Pro, SP1) without a serial port. I also have a Delorme Earthmate USB device and Street Atlas USA 2004. Since NetStumbler only has native connectivity with serial ports, I was left with no way to make NetStumbler work with the Earthmate. Then I was directed to the Delorme web site and to try the serial port emulator they provide. (It's also on the SA2004 disk, but I didn't know it at the time.)

It took several configuration attempts getting NetStumbler to recognize the Earthmate using the serial port emulator. The answer is to use the generic NMEA setttings which are at 4800 baud by default. That meant first configuring the emulated COM port (port 4, in my case) from the default 9600 baud to 4800, disabling the 16550 high-speed serial interface, and rebooting. Unfortunately, the generic NMEA settings reduce the functionality of the Earthmate (e.g. no WAAS), so it does have an impact when using programs such as Delorme's Street Atlas USA.

Delorme kindly provides a GPS Test program with the serial port emulator. Setting the GPSTest program configuration to match what I had set on the emulated COM port, got the test program to work and gave some confidence the Earthmate was communicating through the emulated COM port.

Then, in NetStumbler, it was necessary to change the GPS options to match the port speed, select generic NMEA (not Earthmate!), then reboot again.

So, the short answer is install the Delorme USB to serial drivers, modify the emulated COM port settings to 4800 baud and disable the 16550, run GPSTest and modify the GPS settings to 4800 baud & generic NMEA, then run NetStumbler and modify the GPS options to 4800 baud and generic NMEA. Reboots are required after installing the drivers, altering the COM port, and altering NetStumbler.

I'd like to know if this works for anyone besides me.
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Postby Arobas » Tue Jun 08, 2004 5:18 pm

Yes it works.. i currently own a BU-303 GPS bought on Ebay.. they are very popular.. and it works really fine with netstumbler..

you have my approbation Blazer!

btw.. this GPS work with a special driver who simule a serial port.. so thats why it works with NetStumbler
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