[gps-talkusers] Re: Post codes and zip codes
- From: Michael May <MikeMay@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 10 Mar 2005 08:59:12 -0800
Not sure if I am being bated or not. Individual state maps are not
available for the BrailleNote GPS at any price. Certainly not $250 per
state as you mention in your email. Maybe you were mixing up dollars and yen.
Maps for the BrailleNote GPS only come as a bundle for the entire U.S. as
part of the complete package. As most of you know, the list price is $1399
including all of the U.S., software and GPS hardware. The individual states
cannot be purchased separately.
Be aware when purchasing map data that one CD of maps does not have as much
or as good of quality data as 8 CDs of data. There are various compression
schemes which reduce the space required for map data. However, maps
designed mostly for highways or those without street addresses obviously
take a lot less room. This can be fine for some applications. This
difference in data quality and quantity accounts for much of the difference
in price between commercial products that cost $250 and those that cost
$800 and up.
Mike
At 03:49 AM 3/10/2005, you wrote:
>Hello, Liam,
>Are you still here? I hope so. In Japan, where I live now, and in the US,
>where I have a second home, as far as I know, the post code does not
>identify single dwellings. Map Quest is a free service on the Internet with
>versatile expandable map sections of the US in great detail and a little
>less detail in the rest of the world. Map Quest will give you a post code,
>normally called "Zip plus 4". If you enter Map Quest with the number
>address and street and town or city, you get a pinpoint location of the
>address with all adjoining streets and some points of interest, like parks
>and post offices.
>
>So far, that does not help GPS very much because GPS uses earth coordinates
>(latitude and longitude) to define locations. Garmin has a set of maps
>covering the entire US on a single CD. These maps also have street names,
>towns, and the like, but they do not contain street address information for
>houses or buildings. You could use Map Quest to get the physical location
>of the address, then the lat-lon coordinates of the same point for your GPS.
> Kind of clumsy, but it would work for trip planning.
>
>The reason I am describing this is the difference in price. The only price
>is for the Garmin map set, and I think it is about $67, you will have to
>check with Garmin on that. That is for the entire US. I have seen the map
>sets for the BN GPS for sale at the price of $250 per state. That is
>$12,500 for the entire US, including Alaska and Hawaii. A little difference
>in price, one affordable, one not, at least on my budget.
>
>Now, what in the world is an "embuggerance"? You gotta explain that.
>
>Dick Myers
>
>
>
>From: "liam" <liam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Reply-To: gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>To: <gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: [gps-talkusers] Re: Post codes and zip codes
>Date: Thu, 6 Jan 2005 22:04:40 -0000
>
>Richard,
>
>I understand that in the UK we might use post codes more than in the
>states. A post code in the UK will identify a house rather than just a
>general area. For us the use of a post code saves a lot of keyboard
>work. It's the norm to be able to search on a post code for both PDA
>based systems and car based systems.
>
>I don't understand your comment below about map quest. I don't want to
>look up a postal code I want to be able to jump to the address
>associated with that code.
>
>I'm hoping that you are not suggesting that systems should be set up to
>make the life of programmer's easier?
>
>I take Mike's point that it would need some restructuring of the data
>set or the indexes for referencing the data. I suspect what we have
>here though is a cultural point that in the UK we use post codes a lot
>and see the lack of them as a genuine embuggerance.
>
>- Liam
>-----Original Message-----
>From: gps-talkusers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>[mailto:gps-talkusers-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Richard Myers
>Sent: 06 January 2005 02:02
>To: gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: [gps-talkusers] Re: Post codes and zip codes
>
>
>Looking at this from a GPS programmer's point of view, post codes (zip
>codes) do not help ther GPS system to find a location. If you want Zip
>codes, go to MapQuest.
>
>From: "liam" <liam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Reply-To: gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>To: <gps-talkusers@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: [gps-talkusers] Post codes and zip codes
>Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2005 09:11:33 -0000
>
>Mike,
>
>This is where I show my lack of world knowledge.
>
>Isn't a post code the same as a zip code? Or can the zip code be
>calculated in some way? I'm puzzled as to why the use of post codes
>should be so difficult given that it appears to be standard, for the
>systems being sold in the UK at at the moment. Is the post code not
>held within the map data set?
>
>Regards - Liam
>
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>(8):[(8)
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>(8):[(8)
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