Comments on: Real-Time GPS Tracking In Google Earth Free – Setup

By: Leszek Pawlowicz

Leszek Pawlowicz — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 16:31:43 +0000

Did you look under Tools=>GPS?

By: jumpjack

jumpjack — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 10:41:11 +0000

other programs can and cannot se the unit, it depends on which COM port Windows does assign to it every time… That’s why I was looking for a method to avoid using additional programs.

Anyway, how do I specify in GE that I have a standard NMEA GPS?

By: Leszek Pawlowicz

Leszek Pawlowicz — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 19:38:11 +0000

Google Earth should support a standard NMEA GPS – don’t know why it’s not working for you. Have you checked to see whether other programs are able to see the unit, and get a position from it?

If you check out further posts in this series, you will find other programs that will accept NMEA input, and pass it on to Google Earth.

By: jumpjack

jumpjack — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 21:01:57 +0000

I am not able to connect my GPS to GoogleEarth free: looks like it SEES the device on the com port, but it refuses to connect!
It’s a standard NMEA GPS (BlueGPS with SirfstarIII chip): does GoogleEarth support it?
A tutorial about how to connect a generic GPS to GE would be cool! ;-)

By: Leszek Pawlowicz

Leszek Pawlowicz — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:23:39 +0000

No, you can’t install Google Earth on any mobile platform except the iPhone; that includes all GPS units.

By: bilal

bilal — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:17:15 +0000

I have a dvd/gps in dash unit. Is there a way to install google earth on it. The in dash unit is from china, and I need software for it, and I love google earth. can you please let me know. thank you.

By: Leszek Pawlowicz

Leszek Pawlowicz — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 03:43:18 +0000

The Foretrex manual indicates it does send position data through either a Garmin or NMEA interface, so it should do what you want. As the post indicates, cheap USB-to-serial adapters don’t always work with GPS units, but if yours does, you’ll have to check the instructions for the adapter to figure out how to set the serial COM port number, and tell the program you’re using which COM port the GPS is connected to.

You can “pre-cache” Google Earth data so that you can use it offline:

http://freegeographytools.com/2007/automatic-caching-of-google-earth-data-for-offline-use

Garmin’s nRoute program would let you do navigation as well, but you’ll need to have either a previous version of nRoute or MapSource installed on your computer.

If you’re planning to have your passenger be the one using this system for navigation, that’s OK. But I think that using a laptop with Google Earth for navigation if you’re the driver is a really bad idea; taking your eyes off the road to view the laptop on the car seat is a huge distraction. I know because I’ve tried it, and stopped doing it almost immediately for that reason. You’re better off getting a dashboard-mounted car-oriented GPS unit for that; it will give you the display you want, give turn-by-turn directions both by display and voice, and let you keep your eyes on the road. If you look, you can find cheap units for less than $100.

By: Dave, US ARMY

Dave, US ARMY — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 02:03:18 +0000

I just purchased a Garmin Foretrex 101 to use in Iraq. Upon return to the states, I want to use this GPS in conjunction with my laptop to track driving. I’ve read this website but still have some questions/issues. If possible, please provide a quick explanation on what I need to do to get this to work.
1) I bought the serial cable and an additional serial to USB cable to connect the GPS to my laptop
2) Will I have to change any settings to get the laptop-GPS compatibility?
3) While driving, you don’t have access to internet. So, are there “real-time” tracking programs with Google Earth realism that don’t require internet but run off the hard-drive?

Thanks, Dave