GPS for walking...

[xoggoth]

BTW these things secretly keep a log of where you've been

That would have been great, I could use it to find my mobile phone I dropped in the woods last week. I will have one last attempt to find it today but there is little hope for my poor little phone. Sob.

[xoggoth]

also often navigate using the sun

I used to do that until I found out the bastard was dishonest. I would know exactly which direction to go and it would try and fool me by shining from the North.

[TimberWolf]

I used to do that until I found out the bastard was dishonest. I would know exactly which direction to go and it would try and fool me by shining from the North.

Yeah, Australians are always getting lost.

You can use the moon too, though my memory of this is a bit flakier, specifically relating to its accuracy. I have used it though. If you contiue an imagined line of the shadow of the earth on the moon (there is probably a name for this line, but it escapes me) to the horizon, that's south, or north in the southern hemisphere. So I guess at full moon, south is directly below the moon. Course the stars would be easier to use than the moon, except for Australians again.

[Troll]

I used to do that until I found out the bastard was dishonest. I would know exactly which direction to go and it would try and fool me by shining from the North.

You should have cross referenced that with which side of a tree the moss was growing on

[EternalOptimist]

Yeah, Australians are always getting lost.

You can use the moon too, though my memory of this is a bit flakier, specifically relating to its accuracy. I have used it though. If you contiue an imagined line of the shadow of the earth on the moon (there is probably a name for this line, but it escapes me) to the horizon, that's south, or north in the southern hemisphere. So I guess at full moon, south is directly below the moon. Course the stars would be easier to use than the moon, except for Australians again.

I had one of the most 'doh' moments of my life when some spotty youth in Australia explained to me a few years ago how to find North with a digital watch.

He told me to just imagine a clock face, and imagine where the hour hand would be. (The look on his face was 'jeez mate, dont they teach you poms ANYTHING in school ')

[TimberWolf]

I had one of the most 'doh' moments of my life when some spotty youth in Australia explained to me a few years ago how to find North with a digital watch.

He told me to just imagine a clock face, and imagine where the hour hand would be. (The look on his face was 'jeez mate, dont they teach you poms ANYTHING in school ')

One trouble I have is remembering whether to point the hour hand or the twelve o'clock position at the sun before bisecting the angle (it's the hour hand, but I checked again just now in case). Usually an approximate direction will do me, fortunately as it isn't super accurate anyway.

[doodab]

Not much good if you run miles through dank drippy woods.

Neither are most GPS units as they won't get a signal.

[Paddy]

Neither are most GPS units as they won't get a signal.

The later and more expensive GPSs will work fine even inside a concrete building.

[xoggoth]

Neither are most GPS units as they won't get a signal

Ah yes. Second time I've forgotten that point. Did a bug identification app on Android and emailed a site with lots of photos suggesting we did a link to them for those species we did not have. He said they had already paid someone a lot of dosh to look into it and gave up as nobody could get a signal out in the sticks.

Does one need GPS? Wouldn't it be possible for a device to work out a fairly exact position from sun direction, time, compass position and declination? Like orienteering for people who can't be arsed to do it themselves.

The later and more expensive GPSs

Naturally I am looking for something exceedingly cheap. Thought that went without saying in my case.

[NickFitz]

Ah yes. Second time I've forgotten that point. Did a bug identification app on Android and emailed a site with lots of photos suggesting we did a link to them for those species we did not have. He said they had already paid someone a lot of dosh to look into it and gave up as nobody could get a signal out in the sticks.

Does one need GPS? Wouldn't it be possible for a device to work out a fairly exact position from sun direction, time, compass position and declination? Like orienteering for people who can't be arsed to do it themselves.

I assume he meant a mobile phone signal - if anything, a GPS receiver is likely to perform better in the countryside than in a built-up area, as it can see more of the sky.