Polish GPS Coordinate system to use with a GPS

nick789uk

Hi could anyone tell me what coordinate system they use in Poland so that I can set my GPS over there, I know in the uk we use OSGB but I dont have a clue for Poland and I am going there to do some walking in the mountains, any help would be very appreciated and thanks for your time.

Andy_P · Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 11:00 am Post subject:

This is a bit of an open-ended question....

What sat-nav system are you using, and what do you want to do with it?
Are you hoping to copy map references from local guide books, or to just drive around?
So are you interested in what format to enter co-ordinates in, or the accuracy of the actual positioning system?

There is a map datum which is called is OSGB36, but "OSGB" is often used to refer to the OS mapping co-ordinate system with the two prefix letters.
I ask because the vast majority of "normal" sat-navs do NOT use OSGB, they all use the WGS84 datum and Latitude/Longitude coordinates, in use the world over.

Some hand-held GPS systems can convert from OSGB grid references but very few "driving" sat-navs can, but nor do they need to if you just want to navigate around the country on mapped roads!

Some background on the various map datums in Wikipaedia here, which gives some idea of when they are important and when they can be completely ignored by the average user.
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nick789uk · Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 12:30 pm Post subject:

Hi thanks for the early reply I am going into the mountains and will be taking my garmin etrex with me, what I am looking for is the system they use in poland for the gps to give me a fix, as I already said in the UK we use the OS grid system in the GPS but I am not sure what datum or system they use in Poland any ideas thanking you again for your time

GerryC · Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 5:19 pm Post subject:

As Andy said, you are asking an open ended question. With the popularity of GPS, the WGS84 longitude/latitude system is used throughout the world. I would not be surprised if more people use that in the UK than the nation-specific OSGB system (though they may not realise it).

The big question for you is: what system are the co-ordinates in that you have for locations in Poland?

Gerry

M8TJT · Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 7:37 pm Post subject:

Let me have a crack at this and put a slightly different spin on it

Andy_P · Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 9:55 am Post subject:

Thanks everyone for clarifying what I was trying to say.

I realised at the time it wasn't one of my clearest answers, but I'm glad everyone else thinks it's not the most straightforward of questions!

I think I'm right in summing it up as
1. Whatever mapping datum you use, the GPS system will still show you where you are coorrectly on it's OWN maps.
2. The confusion is only likely to occur if you tried to compare coordinates on a paper map to what the screen is showing
3. It is down to local custom what coordinates system guidebooks may use, and it's down to the GPS system whether it can accept or convert those coordinates to the WGS84 system it uses internally.

.... still not sure if any of this goes far to answer the original query!
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M8TJT · Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 6:14 pm Post subject:

Pardon my ignorance, but does the Garmin Etrex have maps?

sussamb · Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 10:20 pm Post subject:

Yes and no Smile

The basic Etrex doesn't, the others come with Garmin's 'basemap' which is pretty limited, but you can download maps either from Garmin or various freely available (and free) sites.

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