GPZ GPS Security

[nvchris]

Here is one,

https://www.huntinggpsmaps.com

 

There are several available, some free. Google 'hunt maps GPS"

 

Also there is a free plugin for google earth that shows pvt lands.

[brogansown]

Tom V.,

What Copper Member said.  I bought mine from huntinggpsmaps.com.  They are sold in several versions and by regions and states.  Mine is for Oregon.  They probably sell them for any GPS Unit that will receive the microSD card. Once installed and in the field the unit gives the names of the owners as you walk up to the property line.  This includes BLM, State and Forest Service Land.  I think mine cost $99, but don't know if they all cost this amount.  They were right up to date too and I really don't know how they are able to do that.  Again my unit is the Garmin Dakota 20.

Gary F.

[jasong]

Add this as a new networked link in Google Earth to display land ownership if anyone is looking for a free land ownership layer on their phones or computer: http://www.geocommunicator.gov/ARCGIS/REST/services/SurfaceManagementAgency/MapServer/export?

 

Not sure how to attach a non-image file here so you'll have to do it manually. Keep in mind that since its a networked link it will only work online though. Edit: ok I guess the forum is autoformatting that link instead of displaying the entire text, so you'll have to right click and then copy link and paste.

 

This is just the tip of the iceberg, I have hundreds of various layers I've found, and you can too. Just google for WMS and REST links, most government agencies from the USGS to NOAA have them and they can be crazy useful.

[Clay Diggins]

Be careful of the Geocommunicator WMS and REST services. They haven't been updated in a very long time. I don't know how current the hunting maps are but I doubt they reflect the most recent changes either.

 

The Surface Management link you are using above hasn't been updated since 2005. Yep 10 years stale locational information. There have been a lot of changes in those 10 years.

 

At Land Matters we update the Surface Management layers as well as the Mining Claims maps as often as they are updated on the secure BLM back end servers.

 

For the Mining Claims Maps that's on the 1st and 16th of every month. Regular as clockwork. We are working towards a daily update system.

 

For the Surface Management Land Status Maps (and soon Subsurface Management status) it varies. The last update from the BLM on Surface Management boundaries was January of this year.

 

The PLSS (CadNSDI) is being updated approx monthly now. Recently most of those updates are in Oregon and Washington but there are other changes elsewhere fairly regularly.

 

The currency and accuracy of this information is important for anyone visiting the public lands. We do our very best to keep this information up to date. We host and update these constantly changing maps on our own servers rather than relying on stale government presentations.

 

Check out the Land Status maps at Land Matters. There is a lot more there than just mining claims.

 

Barry

[nvchris]

Best part is Land Matters is FREE!

 

But do donate what you can!

 

 

 

The private property lines that border Public lands rarely change. So that old data is still valid for most uses.

[Steve Herschbach]

There currently is no import/export function and it is absolutely the number one thing limiting the usefulness of XChange and the GPS system as a whole.

That said I think I may be able to hack the system via a script. Hacks already exist for the CTX 3030 that can be applied to the GPZ 7000 but they are more work than they are really worth and not something just anybody can do. Anyone interested can find details at Access and Export XChange Data and Direct GPS Track Data Extraction

An issue related to this is using two computers. Let's say I use a home computer for most work with XChange and use it as the main data repository. Now I take a laptop onto the field, and because the GPZ fills up to the max with data I dump it all to XChange on the laptop and erase the GPZ. Now I have some data on the laptop and some on the home PC. How do I get it all onto the main PC? An export/import function makes that easy. And of course makes it easy to use with other programs or Google Earth.

I honestly do not see people really getting fully on board with this until an export/import function is implemented. Since this could serve both the CTX and GPZ user base a simple hack via a script might be worth a few bucks to the person that develops it.

[Norvic]

If anyone writes such a script I`ll be amongst the first rush to buy it. The fellow who developed Oziexplorer has looked at it and shook his head. A GPS with screen on a gold detector will be standard once users realise the usefulness of this.

[Steve Herschbach]

Hello Dave,

I have pretty well cracked both the GPZ7000 and the XChange databases using the tips I provided at the links above. Both as you note are a SQLite database but in slightly different formats. I am writing a script to export XChange data to Google Earth kml format which is fairly easy, and another to export directly from the GPZ7000 itself. That way data already in XChange can be exported, and, once that is done, data exported directly from the GPZ without even using XChange.

I enjoy scripting, which I used to do a lot, so it is a fun little project. I am considering making the scripts available but what works for me can be pretty basic. Making something that works for others is quite a bit more work though as it requires a lot more polish to make sure others can't screw things up. Lucky for you to have a son to do it for you!

The other nice thing is once in kml format it is easy to convert to use in almost any mapping software. I just bought OziExplorer to experiment with importing into it. Importing into Garmin Basecamp was very easy.

The problem with scripting is it can get addictive. I was fussing with the code last night customizing the find point information in Google Earth to modify the icons and pop up balloons that display the information on nugget depth and weight. I ended staying up way past my bedtime.

I will be writing about using the Zed GPS system a lot in the next month. I am comfortable enough with it now I stopped using my Garmin. I agree - I like the Zed GPS system and having it has become a key part of how I prospect now.

[Norvic]

Way to go Steve and Dave, if your looking for a someone to test your script, I am here, and I`ll pay for such. As I`ve said from the outset the GPS and map software is way up there with the detector in prospecting tools. The paper map is being replaced, although not completely, it is good to lay out the paper on a table but not in the field.

 

 To import and export data simply direct from Xchange or the GPZ into our moving map software on our PCs or notebooks as we can with our handheld GPS`s or droid phone`s, will be a big step in the right direction. A GPZ with a droid screen (as per smart phones) would be a great next step for detector manufacturers. This will come I feel surely as prospectors become experienced with moving map software. We as customers dictate the features of the products we purchase.

 

Not only will this be for gold detectors but for coin detectors also, my son is starting to use the GPS on his CTX as he searches out the old settlement sites in the "big smoke" where he lives. He is finding this and Google Earth powerful productive tools.

 

Whilst I`m no expert, am self taught, I have used Oziexplorer for many years I am here should you require assistance with Ozi.

[jasong]

Now that we know the 7000 can be updated it seems like the easiest solution would be for ML to simply provide a patch to allow a user to opt to save GPS data in KML format, which is something I suggested a few times back in March too. 

 

Not only does it streamline the process, but it potentially allows for importing of geometries back into the 7000 GPS. Or...potentially image overlays as well. I might actually use it if that were the case, as it is now I still have to velcro my phone to the top of my screen to see where all my outlines are at and there is no reason for me to use 2 GPS units.

 

Right now I look at the GPS as an afterthought more suited for coin or relic hunting where you don't need to map out and locate geologic structures or topography or map thousands of different waypoints. It's ok for low-res gridding or basic navigation as I prospect, but it's not a prospecting oriented feature is what I'm trying to say, it has the same limited functionality of even the most basic GPS apps and no further, but the machine is built for 1 purpose: prospecting; so the GPS should have the functionality a prospector requires and a good first start would to be allow import/export in KML format as well as implementing some basic geometry rendering.

 

I'm not saying this to anyone in particular, more to ML. Anytime I send emails to them wether it's the AUS or US branch I just get boilerplate responses from someone who clearly does not understand what I am trying to communicate, so it seems like this medium is a more effective way to communicate ideas to them.