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jaycr
Occasional Visitor
Joined: Mar 01, 2006
Posts: 40
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 Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:40 pm Post subject: Waiting for valid GPS ... and waiting ... and waiting! |
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| Hi, I wonder if anyone can help. I have a 730T and until a couple of days ago had no problems. Now though I have a problem where evry time I switch my unit on it stays at the "waiting for valid GPS signal" stage for ever. The only way I can get around it is to do a paperclip reset every time and then it gets a fix. This seems only to have ocurred since I did my last "quickGPSfix" a couple of days ago. I was running version 8.35 but reverted to 8.302 to see if that helped but it's still the same. Has anyone else had experienceof this and can anyone help? Any advice would be much appreciated as always. Many thanks, Jim |
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PaulB2005
Pocket GPS Moderator
Joined: Jan 04, 2006
Posts: 9323
Location: Durham, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 12:47 pm Post subject: |
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Can you check to see if you have an "ephem" folder on the device with 2 or 3 files in it. I'm sure someone else had this problem yesterday.
If you don't and you have a backup, try copying the ephem folder from a backup to the device and switch on again. |
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mb300tdGREEN
Occasional Visitor
Joined: Jul 10, 2006
Posts: 20
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:10 pm Post subject: Waiting |
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| I have had the same problem on my Tom Tom one original since updating map and updating quickGPS fix. Indeed, the unit kept cycling round shutting down and waiting for a signal. Eventually I restored my back up, but doing this through Tom Tom Home, I have no idea how to access the back up files to see whether there is an ephem file. I assumed that something was wrong with new map. |
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PaulB2005
Pocket GPS Moderator
Joined: Jan 04, 2006
Posts: 9323
Location: Durham, UK
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:16 pm Post subject: |
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The map won't affect the ability of the unit to get GPS Fix.
Whilst you can backup the unit with Home it's much better to do a complete backup through Windows Explorer. See FAQ 1 here It allows you to recover all or part of the unit and is more reliable. |
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dhn
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Joined: Oct 08, 2007
Posts: 2544
Location: Toronto CANADA
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:21 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, there are some posters in a US forum also reporting a bad gpsquickfix dl from the weekend.
Delete contents of the ephem folder on the unit and ephemeris folder on the computer in TomTom/Home/Download/Complete and it'll force a new dl today which appears to rectify the problem.
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mb300tdGREEN
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Joined: Jul 10, 2006
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 1:24 pm Post subject: |
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| Thank you! |
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jaycr
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Joined: Mar 01, 2006
Posts: 40
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 2:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Thankyou very much PaulB and others for your quick reply. I'll do as you suggest and I'm sure it'll solve the problem. Many thanks once again. I know of no other forum where there are so many eager to help. |
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keendartfan
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Joined: Jan 25, 2008
Posts: 5
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 4:23 pm Post subject: |
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| I had the same problems yesterday. I updated the QuickGPS fix file last night via Home and this morning I had a fix in about 10 seconds. |
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twotonemark
Regular Visitor
Joined: Jun 10, 2004
Posts: 85
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:48 pm Post subject: |
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Thank you for this post guys...........my 720 was a nightmare today. I thought to myself I hope i'm not the only one and theres a post on the forum when I get home 
Just hooked up to HOME and a new QuickGPS fix was downloaded.Hopefully that'll sort it.
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iPhone 6 - TomTom WE- CamerAlert - Brodit Passive Adjustable mount.
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andy-c1
Lifetime Member
Joined: Feb 05, 2005
Posts: 1039
Location: East Sussex
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:51 pm Post subject: |
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| keendartfan wrote: | | I had the same problems yesterday. I updated the QuickGPS fix file last night via Home and this morning I had a fix in about 10 seconds. |
i'm the opposite ,I updated Monday night and all today i have been struggling for a gps fix even managed 15 miles before i got 1 and that was in-between turn off and resets to no avail
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DennisN
Tired Old Man
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 14902
Location: Keynsham
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:09 pm Post subject: |
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| andy-c1 wrote: | | i'm the opposite ,I updated Monday night and all today i have been struggling for a gps fix even managed 15 miles before i got 1 and that was in-between turn off and resets to no avail |
It's a mistake to drive off before getting a satellite lock - I don't know the technicalities of it, just that if it's looking over the bonnet for satellites and you start swinging it every which way, you're bound to give it problems. Try looking at the door through binoculars, then close your eyes, turn round, open your eyes and the door won't be there any more AND with tunnel vision, you could be some time finding the right direction to look.
I bet Mike comes along pretty soon to tell me I'm talking B***********t!
Now where's that thread from the guy who was wondering whether to download QuickGPSFix? Must give him a link to read this one!
PS QuickGPSFix didn't cause me the slightest problem this week (and no other week either since February 2008!).
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Dennis
If it tastes good - it's fattening.
Two of them are obesiting!! |
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mikealder
Pocket GPS Moderator
Joined: Jan 14, 2005
Posts: 19638
Location: Blackpool , Lancs
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:36 pm Post subject: |
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| DennisN wrote: | | I bet Mike comes along pretty soon to tell me I'm talking B***********t! |
Nah, You keep using the binoculars to look at the door whilst spinning yourself around - I am off to bed instead, not feeling like offering a technical explaination on something created by a marketing department that isn't needed - just use the device at least once every three days and stop connecting it to the PC, you won't notice any degradation of signal, in fact quite the opposite when the qGPS data is wrong, not using this means the device will simply work.
I fail to see why two or three seconds saved on the start up time taken to acquire a position fix warrants five minutes messing around connecting the device to the computer every few days.
Use the option if you think its worth it, but in reality at best it offers little benefit, at worst (a corrupt qGPS File) can really screw up a device when on the road with you driving across fields according to the display - each to their own I guess, but I haven't used this in some considerable time as its simply not needed IMHO - Mike |
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gatorguy6996
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Joined: Feb 16, 2008
Posts: 695
Location: Florida, USA
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| Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 11:09 pm Post subject: |
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Mike, I don't bother with quickfix updates either. The longest I've waited for a lock is about a minute and a half, and that was after my 740 was off for a few days and I started off before it got it's fix. With regular use it's always been under 30 seconds or so. The possible 10 second savings isn't worth the too common bad data that fouls things up for several days.
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Garmin 1695 / 255 / 760 w/MSN - Droid w/Google nav + Navigon - Navigon 8100T - Dakota10 - GPSMap76C - GeoMate Jr. |
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andy-c1
Lifetime Member
Joined: Feb 05, 2005
Posts: 1039
Location: East Sussex
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| Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2009 5:58 pm Post subject: |
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never had a problem in the last year of doing what I do  yesterday was the worst I've experienced apart from going back to my tomtom version 6 
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AndyVaughan
Lifetime Member
Joined: Apr 13, 2006
Posts: 1500
Location: Rossendale
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| Posted: Wed Jun 17, 2009 6:49 pm Post subject: |
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I am using a 930 without qGPSFix and it takes all of about 10 secs to get a lock - I still haven't finished connecting all my cables and faceplate on the car stereo etc.
On my 920 I used qGPSFix in the mistaken idea that it was needed, when it comes back from its holidays I will not bother - be interesting to see how long it takes to get a lock as the last time it will have been powered on was in Holland........
And Mapshare is getting disabled as well - another complete waste of time. |
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