Groundspeak Portal

Just a bit of musing....

Waymarking and geocaching rely on the set of satellites originally set up by the US Dept of Defense ("defence" downunder!!). I understand that about $500M of US taxpayers money keeps the whole thing afloat each year.

Now with the system as is, I have the privelege (as well as any of the US "unfriends") of a very precise nav aid. Now, so far as I know, I pay no rent for the use of these US satellites nor do any "unfriends" either.

Whilst I might pass on offering any donation at this time, 1. does this make waymarking/geocaching the most expensive sport (even more expensive than racing Fornula 1!) ? and 2. does any US taxpayer ever get ticked off for subsidizing my enjoyment?

I for one am a US taxpayer who is enraged by your use of my equipment and demand that you pay me 32 cents for each time you turn on your GPS receiver from here on out. .

No it doesn't bother me a bit that you get some enjoyment out of it.

The cost of living is even higher here, so please remit $10.27 per GPS use. Thank you.

 

Or not...

Can I be your "unfriend"?

BQ

i get a notice everytime an unfriend turns on their gps.

and im watching you all....

chapterhouseinc:

i get a notice everytime an unfriend turns on their gps. and im watching you all....

We know where you are. Now if we could just get Bin Laden to use a GPS.

Fatcat

TheBeanTeam:

I for one am a US taxpayer who is enraged by your use of my equipment and demand that you pay me 32 cents for each time you turn on your GPS receiver from here on out. . [:D

Hmmm... with this and more expensive option following, ummm... would an old ice cream container on top of the fridge in the kitchen be ok... and if and when I remember, I'll put in a contribution....

Just a little more serious though (please stop laughing I AM trying to be serious for once....) effectively US Defense has given away its system to whoever wants to use it. As a group, with about 1M caches and 200k waymarks around the world, geocachers and waymarkers would very likely constitute the largest user group of any of the GPS system.

But more importantly, an armed force not friendly to the US particularly also gets to use a very precise nav aid for their purposes (which might be quite "evil"). In days gone by, the last thing was giving away a military advantage to your enemy. But isn't that what we see here? So in developing the gps system, why didn't Defense simply keep quiet about its big gps system and keep a miltary advantage?

GPS technology is great now that I have it, but I actually am bemused that I have been given it in the first place. Anybody able to clue me up or is it a case of if you told me you would have to shoot me?

the blue quasar:

Can I be your "unfriend"?

BQ

....snifff....... snifff snifff...... and I thought ..... (sniff) that I had some frien ... (snifffff) frien ........... friends.......................

3l diesel:

the blue quasar:

Can I be your "unfriend"?

BQ

....snifff....... snifff snifff...... and I thought ..... (sniff) that I had some frien ... (snifffff) frien ........... friends.......................

Well I'm not a United Statesian citizen... so every day I'm stealing your satellite signals. How "unfriendly" is that?

Pirate GPS! SAT-HACK!

Maybe our Canada Arm had a "hand" in the deployment of them.

BQ

Ha! Your Canadian arm woulda dropped it. He he he he he ha ha ha ha .
oh got to catch my breath...
ha ha ha.
Oh I kill me!
Diesel, I take paypal.

3l diesel:

But more importantly, an armed force not friendly to the US particularly also gets to use a very precise nav aid for their purposes (which might be quite "evil"). In days gone by, the last thing was giving away a military advantage to your enemy. But isn't that what we see here? So in developing the gps system, why didn't Defense simply keep quiet about its big gps system and keep a miltary advantage?

According to this early paper about selective availability and the decision to turn it off,  there is possibly a way to selectively deny unfriendlies from using the system.

This thread discusses the same issue. Apparently there are signal jammers and even more interestingly signal spoofing is mentioned as ways to inhibit enemy use.

I think I have experienced a bit of this. One time while out using my GPS receiver I couldn't get anything to work right. Hundreds of feet off  and then wild fluctuations. I just couldn't figure out what was going on and finally called it a day. When I got home I heard that a major ground invasion of one of our unfriendlies was begun that day. Coincidence.....maybe.

At a geocaching event, I saw someone with a t-shirt that read:

"I use multi-million dollar satellites to find tupperware lost in the woods...

What's your hobby?"

I don't where they found it or made it, but it gave me a chuckle.

 

The satellite signal you are using is mine, and I need it when I come over to visit.  I expect it to be in good condition when I arrive.  BQ, Team Sieni, Dragontree, and Windsockers have all benefited from my personal signal. 

I'm nice, that way.

Your personal signal???

Don't make me come to Joliet.

i have experienced this 'not accurate at all' phenemonon several times....

some times it can last a few minutes, others hours....

i chalk it up to jack bower in some stupid chase using my signals to watch the car he is chasing on his cell phone (you know, for a cool utube post later, tomorrow)

I really enjoyed reading this! It's nice to see the FUN side of all of you!! Thanks for the laugh's Oh and by the way the 3 beer's helped too! heehee. HA!

rangergirl141:

I really enjoyed reading this! It's nice to see the FUN side of all of you!! Thanks for the laugh's Oh and by the way the 3 beer's helped too! heehee. HA!

Mmm.... beer.

Next time I'm in Florida...

BQ

HA! you got a date! As long as I can bring the BF too!  oh hell, I'll leave him home, he's not into any of this anyway!

TheBeanTeam:

3l diesel:

But more importantly, an armed
force not friendly to the US particularly also gets to use a very
precise nav aid for their purposes (which might be quite "evil"). In
days gone by, the last thing was giving away a military advantage to
your enemy. But isn't that what we see here? So in developing the gps
system, why didn't Defense simply keep quiet about its big gps system
and keep a miltary advantage?

According to this early paper
about selective availability and the decision to turn it off,  there is
possibly a way to selectively deny unfriendlies from using the system.

This thread
discusses the same issue. Apparently there are signal jammers and even
more interestingly signal spoofing is mentioned as ways to inhibit
enemy use.

I think I have experienced a bit of this. One time
while out using my GPS receiver I couldn't get anything to work right.
Hundreds of feet off  and then wild fluctuations. I just couldn't
figure out what was going on and finally called it a day. When I got
home I heard that a major ground invasion of one of our unfriendlies
was begun that day. Coincidence.....maybe.

Well I had a read of these notes suggested and as I thought, what I was asking was anything but new. Still, there seem to be questions. One thing from those notes was mention of "competing" European and Russian systems and some desire to hold advantage by making it readily available. Still seems strange if I take the viewpoint that the GPS system was intended for military functions.

I was commenting here at work about this same matter and a remark was made that the internet was of course a spin off from the US Dept of Defense (hey when are you guys going to get spelling lessons - it should be "defence", and pretty things are in "colour", ships come into "harbour", the female parent is "mummy", and the left is correct side of the road to drive on...... ouch!!! stop hitting me......)..... so another initiative is released into the wild.....

Alright, I will just get back to it then. I still have a waymark on Sydney Terminal (railway station) that should have been submitted ages ago still unfinished. Maybe I should just stick to things I know about....

Thanks for the remarks, but please, especially for two of you, remember, don't drink and drive......

cheers

especially for two of you, remember, don't drink and drive......

cheers



26

rangergirl141:

I really enjoyed reading this! It's nice to see the FUN side of all of you!! Thanks for the laugh's Oh and by the way the 3 beer's helped too! heehee. HA!

The fun side? Is waymarking not fun?


;)

http://community.livejournal.com/gps_devices/33910.html

0ccam:

rangergirl141:

I really enjoyed reading this! It's nice to see the FUN side of all of you!! Thanks for the laugh's Oh and by the way the 3 beer's helped too! heehee. HA!

The fun side? Is waymarking not fun?


;)

Waymarking is FUN,   reading the forums and seeing some of the intense conversing is somewhat intimidating. Just saying it was nice to read a fun(lighthearted)  post.

PS I just lost my parrot who was killed by my dog(accident). I posted that at 2:30AM cause I was crying my eyes out(crying in my beer). It was the first time I smiled in 3 weeks.

rangergirl141:

especially for two of you, remember, don't drink and drive......

cheers



26

Sorry, that was ranger talk. 26(message received)

rangergirl141:

Waymarking is FUN,   reading the forums and seeing some of the intense conversing is somewhat intimidating. Just saying it was nice to read a fun(lighthearted)  post.

PS I just lost my parrot who was killed by my dog(accident). I posted that at 2:30AM cause I was crying my eyes out(crying in my beer). It was the first time I smiled in 3 weeks.

I'm sorry about your parrot.
*suitable ashamed of his sarcasm*

-0ccam

0ccam:

rangergirl141:

Waymarking is FUN,   reading the forums and seeing some of the intense conversing is somewhat intimidating. Just saying it was nice to read a fun(lighthearted)  post.

PS I just lost my parrot who was killed by my dog(accident). I posted that at 2:30AM cause I was crying my eyes out(crying in my beer). It was the first time I smiled in 3 weeks.

I'm sorry about your parrot.
*suitable ashamed of his sarcasm*

-0ccam

In a strange coincidence, I miss RNPH. She's from FL just like RangerGirl141 is and has Parrot in her user name.

Cue Rod Serling.

BQ