Netbook Project #1 - Navigation & Travel Fun
I’m enjoying my Asus Eee PC netbook and have been tinkering around with a few projects to let me get more out of it. The first one that struck me was to use it as an in-car navigation system on family automobile trips, rather than my laptop as I have done in the past. (Before going any further let me point out that my role on long family driving trips is as the navigator so I’m not simultaneously driving and attempting to use a computer. When it’s my turn to drive someone else in the family takes over as computer navigator).
Though I’ve had good success using my laptop for navigation they are large, consume lots of power (and so even get hot), don’t fit well anywhere in the car, and are harder to stow out-of-sight when we stop. The netbook form factor is much better on all counts.
Here’s my solution:
Mapping Software: I’ve been using Delorme’s Street Atlas USA program for a long time and had a copy of the 2005 version at hand. Like most netbooks mine doesn’t have an optical drive so installing Street Atlas meant copying the CD onto a USB flash drive on a desktop system then installing on the netbook from the flash drive.
Data Communications: My netbook doesn’t have on-board Bluetooth and while I could have used a USB cable to hook it to my GPS that would have limited placement of both items in the car plus meant dealing with a cable. Instead I added the well-reviewed Asus USB-BT21 Bluetooth mini-dongle ($10 from Newegg.com with free shipping). Installing the driver and Widcomm (Broadcomm) Bluetooth stack again required copying the CD to a flash drive though could have also been done from the Asus web site.
GPS & Data Logger: My GPS unit is a Wintec WBT-200, which I bought several years ago. I like that the WBT-200 is small, has good battery life, supports Bluetooth and USB communications, recharges through the USB port, and is both a GPS receiver and data logger capable of recording over 12,000 points. Even though I now have a GPS receiver in my cell phone I tend to carry the WBT-200 with me whenever I travel. While the WBT-200 is now discontinued there are other similar (but better) units available.
Setup: Configuring everything was easy. I inserted the Bluetooth mini-dongle into one of the Eee PC’s 3 USB ports, turned on the GPS and paired it with the netbook while it worked out a position fix, then launched Street Atlas USA and told it to connect to the GPS via the comm port identified during the pairing process. My position showed up on the map and I was set.
Using Street Atlas means I can plan and save routes then navigate along those routes, getting real time updates on distance to next turn, distance to next stop, etc. And I can use the netbook for anything else I might need while in the car, such as checking a TripTik downloaded from AAA, transferring photos from my digital camera, listening to music, or even watching a movie. (Again, I am not driving while doing any of this. Honest.)
Extra Credit: Two other items make the setup even more usable:
I ordered a car power adapter for the Eee PC from Semsons.com so I am not limited by the battery life of the netbook. I also have a USB “finger trackball”, which is like wearing a small trackball (with buttons) on your index finger. When used with the netbook instead of a mouse the finger trackball lets you move the cursor, click buttons, and interact with applications from a comfortable distance. This is perfect for in the car when the built-in track pad is hard to control precisely and a mouse requires a working surface. You can find them lots of places, including Amazon.com.
Final Thoughts: I have a big cross-country driving trip planned in mid-December and will use it to test my netbook navigation and in-car entertainment system. Clearly I’ll let you know how it goes. (“Hey, are we there yet?!?!?!…..”)
