[OSM-talk] Mapping with a data logger

[Mike Collinson]

At 03:24 AM 23/03/2008, S Knox wrote:
>Dear All,
> 
>I'm going to Cuba in early April, and would like to map some of the roads there. Unfortunately, I have discovered that GPS equiptment is not permitted and anything found during searches will be confiscated, or at the very least impounded until departure.
> 
>I have looked into purchasing a data logger, due to it being less conspicuous and less expensive should it "disappear on departure", however an exhaustive search of the internet has failed to find anything below about £50, when delivery to the UK is taken into account. I know that doesn't sound like much, but it seems a lot to map somewhere when I already have a perfectly good GPS. Does anyone know of anywhere that I could beg, rent, buy or borrow a low-value data logging unit? I thought as these are getting much more mainstream, particularly with businesses, there must be a second hand market, but it would appear not.
>
>Regards and Happy Easter
>
>Steve


There's an Australian company doing dataloggers but I don't think it is in your price bracket and I'd sure they'd raise a red flag:

http://homepages.tig.com.au/~robk/
http://homepages.tig.com.au/~robk/price.html 

Some other possible solutions:

1) If you have a digital camera that takes SD memory cards, buy a low cost GPS device that uses them.  Put the card with your tracks in the camera at, shall we say, key moments.  I can confirm that is quite possible to use the same card to take photos with affecting other data on the card.  "See, just a camera".  If you lose the device, or hand over the card you've put inside, the tracks are safe.

http://wiki.openstreetmap.org/index.php/GPS_Reviews

In particular, many OSM members have bought a NaviGPS device from www.storagedepot.co.uk .  Out of stock at the moment but around GBP 60 as I recall.

2) I have a PDA with a GPS device built-in.  Expensive but very inconspicuous.

Que tenga buena suerte!

Mike