Posted on 06/23/2015 9:46:40 PM PDT by goodn'mad
Requesting help from Fellow Freepers. Major screw-up. Flew in from S. Korea and tried to update my TOMTOM GPS in order to help me find my way around the Sumter, SC area.
To make a long story short....I think I corrupted and/or deleted files actually embedded on the GPS. Now can't get it to do anything.
Does anyone have a link to software that can restore the GPS to factory settings? I'd be happy with that. Or, maybe a POC of someone who specializes in restoring GPS devices? Thought they would be plentiful but I guess not.
The GPS is a TOMTOM XL 310. Older model. Hardware is cherry and barely used. The software is totally hosed. Hate to throw it away. Or, is this the only option? I feel like a dunce. When it comes to computers and handheld devices, maybe I am. Thanks.
Yer cuttin’ me off??? It’s not even......some time of the night! Thirty.
I like that. Lots of “wise acres” out there. Tks.
Ok, have another on me....................
Either that or some people are just losing their touch.
So what you should do is put it powered on outside with the best "view" of the sky possible. For example, in your car in a parking lot with minimal trees and buildings around. Power on the unit and wait. You can select the satellite status display and see that the sats that are in use. See your manual, but the display looks something like:
If you try to do this inside or under trees the unit may never get the needed data and will not function.
Hope this helps. I've had this happen multiple times and you just have to be patient.
It may have a perfectly good almanac stored. (The almanac is a long term, low precision ephemeris.) When it powers up, it assumes it is near where it was last powered off. When I fly out of state, it can take a while before my TOM-TOM comes around. It that’s all that’s bugging it.
I thought modern people used GPS systems on their cell phones today? I had no idea that there were some actual people still using pure crap like Tom-Tom.
Back in the past I had a Tom-Tom system and operating it was very akin to working a 1972 IBM clone. When navigational systems came out on cell phones it totally obsolesced Tom-Tom and better yet....easy to use and much more accurate.
I don’t know how many times I almost crashed my truck while trying to adjust something on the Tom-Tom and worse yet, having to pay for map updates every time you turned around.
Throw that thing away, come into the modern world. As they say in the movie “Oh Brother Where Art Thou”...”Come on in, the water’s fine!”
Correction: 1982 IBM Clone
Husband had bought a GPS thing a few years ago. We were somewhere down in Alabama; blindly following its directions. It had us going down an old road that quickly turned into a dirt cattle trail that turned into pure mud at one point. I can’t remember just how we got out of that one. Aliens I suppose; or maybe husband managed to turn the car around. - We did get to our destination; which was a place we had, ironically, been a few years before when it was under some other name. - I did manage to use the restroom before I busted; although it was not a terribly welcoming situation.
I bought a Magellan way back when it only gave lat/long coordinates. Now they practically give GPS’ away in Cracker Jack boxes. I also spent hundreds of dollars on a red LED watch in the 70’s which you could not see in daylight.
I am not getting an apple watch. Ever.
;-)
Wow you went from South Korea to South Carolina using your GPS. You need to stop looking at the GPS screen and look around from time to time! : )
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