Blackjack II GPS

[Hilton]

Hi,

According to emails I have received, Google Maps finds the GPS immediately.
However, scanning the com ports in C# does not. Even with the Modaco hack,
looking for the GPS doesn't necessarily work.

Any idea how Google Maps get their GPS code to work with an unmodified BJ 2?

Hilton

 

[Paul G. Tobey [eMVP]]

It's probably using the GPS intermediate driver, rather than acting like an
application-accessible serial port. Take a look at the Windows Mobile 6 SDK
help. I'd expect that there's some means to make the GPS appear as a serial
port only, too, via the GPS Intermediate Driver Control Panel applet. No?

Paul T.

 

[Hilton]

Paul,

I don't think so. The GPS is not exposed on any port - see modaco.com to
expose it on COM4. The GPS Intermediate Driver requires a COM port.

If Google maps can get GPS data, how can we? Frustrating.

Hilton

 

[Peter Foot]

There was a thread on this in the smartphone.developer group recently. You
need to go through the GPS intermediate driver as the Blackjack II gps
hardware talks directly to this with a special driver rather than spitting
out NMEA over a COM port. Since GPS intermediate driver supports
multiplexing you can use it even when Google maps is running. There is
sample code in the Windows Mobile SDK for using the GPS intermediate driver
from .NETCF.

Peter

 

[Hilton]

Peter,

Thanks for the info.

It uses gpsapi.dll - I just got it to work on my WM6 Pocket PC. Do you know
if the gpsapi.dll file is always/only on WM6 devices?

Thanks,

Hilton

 

[doolaard]

Peter,

Thanks for the info.

It uses gpsapi.dll - I just got it to work on my WM6 Pocket PC. Do you know
if the gpsapi.dll file is always/only on WM6 devices?

Thanks,

Hilton

There was a thread on this in the smartphone.developer group recently. You
need to go through the GPS intermediate driver as the Blackjack II gps
hardware talks directly to this with a special driver rather than spitting
out NMEA over a COM port. Since GPS intermediate driver supports
multiplexing you can use it even when Google maps is running. There is
sample code in the Windows Mobile SDK for using the GPS intermediate
driver from .NETCF.

--
Peter Foot
Microsoft Device Application Development MVP
www.peterfoot.net|www.inthehand.com
In The Hand Ltd - .NET Solutions for Mobility

Paul,
I don't think so. The GPS is not exposed on any port - see modaco.com to
expose it on COM4. The GPS Intermediate Driver requires a COM port.
If Google maps can get GPS data, how can we? Frustrating.
Hilton
Paul G. Tobey [eMVP] wrote:
It's probably using the GPS intermediate driver, rather than acting like
an application-accessible serial port. Take a look at the Windows
Mobile 6 SDK help. I'd expect that there's some means to make the GPS
appear as a serial port only, too, via the GPS Intermediate Driver
Control Panel applet. No?
Paul T.
Hi,
According to emails I have received, Google Maps finds the GPS
immediately. However, scanning the com ports in C# does not. Even with
the Modaco hack, looking for the GPS doesn't necessarily work.
Any idea how Google Maps get their GPS code to work with an unmodified
BJ 2?
Hilton

The gpsapi.dll is present starting from WM5

Jan

 

[Hilton]

Hi,

I had used File Explorer to browse "\Windows" on my X51 with "Show All
Files" enabled and gpsapi.dll doesn't show. It does show on my WM6 X50v.
So after reading your post, I wrote a simple "Find File" app which search
for gpsapi.dll and lo and behold it is in "\Windows" on both devices!

Perhaps a WM5 "Show All Files" bug then? Either way, thanks for the info,
I'm a happy camper now.

So, if I understand this correctly, the user no longer has to set the COM
port and baud rate and it'll just work? When I try GpsSample, it just
worked. That would be cool.

Hilton

 

[Hilton]

Quick follow-up:

GpsSample works on Pocket PCs with both WM5 and WM6, but not Blackjack with
WM5 (even though the COM Port/Baud Rat combo works in a separate program)
which means that the BT is setup correctly), testing continues...

Hilton

 

[Paul G. Tobey [eMVP]]

The File Explorer doesn't show all files no matter what you set it to do.
If you use the Remote File Viewer, *that* will show all the files.

Paul T.

 

[Joel]

I could have sworn some one mentioned this same problem with this same phone
about 4 days ago.

http://www.wmexperts.com/articles/blackjack_ii_mustinstall_gps_h.html

[...]there is a problem with the implementation on the Blackjack (and in
fact the Moto Q9H I understand, a device I believe this patch will help with
too). The problem is that although the GPSID is configured and applications
such as the built in Telenav and Windows Live Search can use the system
fine, there is no COM port exposed to allow the vast majority of
applications that use this connection method to use the GPS.

 

[Hilton]

Right, but... Google Maps works fine with the GPS without this patch.

I could have sworn some one mentioned this same problem with this same
phone about 4 days ago.

http://www.wmexperts.com/articles/blackjack_ii_mustinstall_gps_h.html

[...]there is a problem with the implementation on the Blackjack (and in
fact the Moto Q9H I understand, a device I believe this patch will help
with too). The problem is that although the GPSID is configured and
applications such as the built in Telenav and Windows Live Search can use
the system fine, there is no COM port exposed to allow the vast majority
of applications that use this connection method to use the GPS.

Quick follow-up:

GpsSample works on Pocket PCs with both WM5 and WM6, but not Blackjack
with WM5 (even though the COM Port/Baud Rat combo works in a separate
program) which means that the BT is setup correctly), testing
continues...

Hilton

 

[Scott Gifford]

I have used the api, as promoted on the MSDN, but have not had any
luck getting it to work with the Blackjack II. Though it does work
fine with on all the emulators for WM6 Standard and Pro (combined with
FakeGPS.cab).

I have code based on the MSDN GPS code that runs on a BlackJack.
Perhaps your carrier has locked out the GPS functionality? Do
third-party GPS apps, like Google Maps, work? Does the sample GPS app
from MS work at all? What errors are you seeing?

Tip for the BJII: Accessing some cool realtime data dial in
*#9999*0# use the Back and More for a few options though navigation
is tricky.

Thanks, I just had fun playing with this, although now my keyboard LCD
is blinking. Hopefully a reboot will fix it.

----Scott.

 

[Dick Grier]

Many vendors do not expose GPS data (NMEA-0183). They use a proprietary
format, and do not link it through to WM. That may be the case with your
device.

Dick
--
Richard Grier, MVP
Hard & Software
Author of Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to Serial Communications, Fourth
Edition,
ISBN 1-890422-28-2 (391 pages, includes CD-ROM). July 2004, Revised March
2006.
See www.hardandsoftware.net for details and contact information.