The first thing that must be said for GPS Tuner is that it is very pretty. The GUI controls, icons and interface use cartoonish, but nice looking and conspicous graphics.
The programme itself goes beyond the usual map display with overlays and pop-ups, but actually has a number of different pages, each with it's own display style.
The default is naturally the map, complete with collapsible display menus. I'll spare the tedium of listing all the regular features found in most decent map progs (they're on the retailers website if you must) and skip to the novel bits.
The map header bar will show LAT/LONG, waypoint details, current heading/altitude/speed, distance/bearing/eta of next waypoint or simply remove itself from the map. Very unobtrusive all in all but I find I'm getting used to having these details at a glance. Especially since my GPS unit is usually bouncing about in a pocket out of sight.
Another really nice touch, is the on screen map calibration. Obviously the PDA and stylus are not my first choice of calibration tools, but the ability of taking a picture of a map (say a hiking trail, or a map of the local area bought at a ranger station), swaping the card from camera to PDA, poking up a couple of quickie calib. points and setting off into the woods/jungle with more then a slightly vague idea of where you are going is very appealing. Not to mention D/L's from other mobile users you might run into, or even Google, if you happen to be fortunate enough to snag a bit of net time on the go.
Next up is the trip computer. It contains all of the usual trip/destination/current location details that one would ever want in a grid format (no map, but clear and easy to read details about max speed, average speed and distance, etc.), capable of displaying in 2, 4 or 6 blocks per page and every block can be customized to meet your needs. It will also produce a speed or altitude graph for the trip as well. Good for cyclists and runners, but only mildly interesting for my purposes.
Lastly is the Compass. This neat little tool is a legitimate compass, however has space for up to 7 data sets to be super-imposed over it. In addition to that, the system has quick-drop templates for driving, hiking, etc making switching between car and foot travel only one click away. Each template also has 3 independant sheets for current information, waypoint details and 'travel to...' displays. Keep in mind, all 7 of the data sets can be customized to your preferred types and locations and this is key for maximum functionality, IMO.
It will even tell you where the sun is, in case you missed it.
This system also has a voice prompt system for following routes. This programme will not auto-plot a route, but can at least guide you down your own, or downloadable ones in standard GPX, KML, etc. formats.
Why so much attention paid to waypoints and getting to/from locations?
It seems that the designer is also an active Geocacher, hopefully meaning there will be enhanced geocache capabilities included in later versions.

Although the interface is slick, streamlined and remarkably small (only a few KB for the install), there are some glaring issues that will keep this programme from becoming my only, or even #1 GPS tool.
First and foremost, there is no GeoTIFF support ... or any TIFF support for that matter. Making all of the USGS and (free) NRCAN topo/CANMATRIX maps utterly useless. A major downfall for any serious North American competitor.
This programme will only use JPG images for the map. The website indicates that this is to speed up processing and allow the use of wider area, higher resolution images. A bi-product advantage is that commonly available image editing software can do wonders with all the JPG maps. Photoshop has been king in my quest for Costa Rica maps.
The next glaring issue is the lack of customization of the icons. True, you can replace the files with different icons to get a unique look and feel, but you are seemingly stuck with the categories of waypoints provided. Documentation is a bit fragmented, so admittedly, there may be a way to change these that I have yet to stuble upon.
Finally, the calibration data is stored in a proprietary format that is not easily converted into a World File or other industry standards. A semingly epidemic habit that has infected every map system on the market that I've seen. Thankfully it is plain text, making it somewhat workable for the particularly industrious and easier to convert then many others (Garmin, Ozi-Explorer, Memory-Map, I'm looking straight at you here)
Altogether, the significant lack of maps will be the downfall of this programme. The free Map Calibrator programme will snag pre-calibrated tiles from Google (sat. and road maps only), Terra-server. All you need to do is copy them to your PDA for instant usability, but this can get tedious if you are looking at a large area and want high resolution. Still, an excellent step in the right direction to make up for the loss of GeoTIFFs.
As a final judgement, I'd rank this as an excellent companion tool to a more powerful system or as a great entry tool into the pocket GPS and Geocaching world. The price is unbeatable and the range of tools will cover most needs.
As I mentioned earlier, it's cheap enough (both in dollar and memory terms) to round out a second programme that will support vector and Geotiff maps.
The purpose I may end up using it for after exhausting the demo. It's only $30 after all.

Finally, all the pieces have fallen in place! Vacation is approved, tickets are purchased and in my possession, waivers are signed and I even know where my luggage is!
I'm set to head down to Costa Rica at the end of May.
Scope out a few volcanoes.
Hike through Tropical and Dry Rainforests.
Experiment with unusual looking foods and of course, consume my bodyweight in food and alcohol daily at an all inclusive resort.
Let's see if I can breech the 1000 pic mark this time, I think I actually have enough card space for that now.
Unfortunately, I've discovered that there really hasn't been an abundance of reliable geodetic surveys of Costa Rica. This makes tracking down a Geotiff map apparently impossible for less then $80 and finding topo-maps nearly as difficult. This does seem to make my usual programme (Memory-Map Explorer; previously reviewed and still my fave) somewhat useless for the trip.
I could upgrade to MM Pro and hand calibrate ($100, just to upgrade), buy a great looking cartographic programme called Didger ($389 USD) that will do everything I will ever want with GIS and map data, or I can try out something new ... and cheaper.

Hunting around (a lot), there seems to be a new(ish) contender on the PDA map market by the name of GPS Tuner. It has a free on line map calibration programme that works very well and intuitively, a free trial demo and can be bought for as little as $24 USD.
Now that's closer to what I'm looking to pay for the novelty of knowing where I am.
Check us tomorrow for a review of this neat little prog with it's pros and cons.

... and by the way, happy May Day!

Oh finally!
Our prayers have been answered. Now you too can smell like grass, Play Doh or jelly beans!
The range of perfumes from Demeter Fragrance is truly astounding. There really is one for every mood.
Feeling a little sassy, slap on a bit of Chocolate Covered Cherries or Cinnamon Bun and you're set for an evening as a tasty treat.

No? How about something spicier like Fresh Ginger (Oh c'mon now, we all know she was the second best thing going on Gilligan's Island).
Can't stand being sober? How about a whiff of Cosomopolitans or White Russians.
Still feel like dirt? Well there's a smell for that too, so why not just send that message to everyone in the office so they'll spare you the indignation of "Good Morning!".
Most of these are not only colognes, but come as soaps, body lotions and room sprays.
So screw baking, a spritz of Brownie and you can easily pretend you've been slaving for hours ... just be sure to hide the Tim Horton's box before your friends arrive.
The disturbing part is ... the sounds of some of these stinks aren't half bad ...

So?
The GPS worked like a charm from start to finish, tracking me in 1 second intervals from here to Fairbank Provincial Park (and all the various side tracks along the way.
Oddly, I had no connection issues between the GPS and the Dell Axim.
If you think it's odd for me to say that, let me point out that it was a bluetooth connection ... ok, it's also on Windows ... and Windows Mobile 5 at that.
For the record, Sudbury is also 260m higher then my house. It really is all up hill from here ...
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So now you have a GPS unit.
Sure. It floats and will tell you when you're going the wrong way to get to your house, but how do you know where the hell you are?
2000 years of technological evolution and we come back to ... the map.
Ok, so they're a little better then sticks in the sand, but is this really the best option?
Apparently.
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God no ... say it ain't so!

Monopoly the Movie!

Can you believe they're talking about loading the movie with sexy, young people to encourage them to get interested in board games?
Do they seriously think the movie will be that good ... hey, maybe it's a porn ...
that might work.

"Hey baby, nice community chest. Mind if I scoop your free parking?"
"Whatever Mac, but it's $200 for passing Go or you can put that thimble away." (queue porn music)
"Wow, I remember when it used to only cost $25 to ride the Reading!"
"Yeah, but that was before we all took a bribe to elect that dog for mayor, things are different now and we gotta pay the tax or it's a one way trip to jail." (cue porn music)
"Relax baby. I've got a get out of jail free card, I know a Mountie on the inside ..."
*banging on door* "Hey! You two freeloaders still owe me $1000 for use of the hotel! Don't you tell me you're not in there! Your car's still parked on my lawn ..."

Can't wait for that next new family favourite,
Lobotomy! The Home Game.


(" ... because I'd rather have this bottle in front of me then ... a frontal lobotomy!!! ")

What can be said of this uniquely simple technology, RSS. A lot, I'm sure, but I won't get into most of it (try Harvard for more details, if you need a history lesson).
Most know that it stands for Really Simple Syndication (and a host of other more technical sounding terms, depending on the site you read).
A handy way to distribute news, blogs, podcasts or anything else that updates on a relatively frequent basis.
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