Thanks, Jane. Will give it a try.
Ann Narie Wood


On Saturday, March 19, 2016, Jane Hadley <hadleyj1725 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Good to know, Wally, that Google can handle the degrees-minutes-seconds
> format. I just tried it and you are correct, so no converting to decimal
> format is necessary. That is a change for Google, I believe, because in
> the past, when I input degrees, minutes, seconds format to Google Maps, my
> recollection is either that it placed me half way across the world or just
> declined to process it. But Google is constantly updating and improving the
> functionality of its various apps, so I should not be surprised.
>
> Jane Hadley
> Seattle, WA
>
> On 03/19/2016 10:36 AM, Wally Davis wrote:
>
> Thanks Jane; great job.
>
>
>
> I was mulling over how to explain use of a GPS. One comment though is
> that Google will read the degrees, minutes, seconds format even though it
> outputs in decimal degrees. If you use a phone, tablet, or camera in the
> field you probably get your position in degrees, minutes, seconds. Giving
> either format will allow everyone to see the location on Google.
>
>
>
> Wally Davis
>
> Snohomish
>
>
>
> *From:* tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
> <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu');>
> [mailto:tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
> <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu');>]
> *On Behalf Of *Jane Hadley
> *Sent:* Saturday, March 19, 2016 5:17 AM
> *To:* Tweeters, Dear
> *Subject:* [Tweeters] Location tools
>
>
>
>
> Hello Tweesters--
>
> Kevin Lucas recommended a free phone app that he likes for sharing
> location information by providing longitude and latitude coordinates.
>
> I'd also like to recommend a free phone app that I use Called "GPS Test."
>
> The GPS Test app for Android reads and displays GPS information from your
> phone's internal GPS.
>
> Because it's a GPS app, it is not dependent upon Internet access, which is
> fortunate, given that we birders are often in remote areas without Internet
> access.
>
> On my phone (a Nexus 6P), this app tells me my latitude and longitude
> coordinates, my heading in degrees, my altitude, the time, my location on a
> map, and the speed at which I am traveling.
>
> I use it most often for the lat-long coordinates and especially to get my
> altitude.
>
> The GPS Test app allows you to share or save the lat-long coordinates in a
> number of ways, including email, text message, Twitter, Keep, or copy to
> clipboard. (Probably Facebook, too, but I don't have Facebook on my phone,
> so I can't say for sure.)
>
> The GPS Test app is available at:
> https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.chartcross.gpstest&hl=en
>
> I do not know whether it is available for the iPhone.
>
> Ann Marie Wood said in a post that "GPS coordinates sound like a good idea
> but, frankly, I've never figured out how to use them, with or without my
> Garmin or IPhone."
>
> On Google Maps using the Chrome or Firefox browser (and possibly other
> browsers as well), here is how you can obtain lat-long coordinates for a
> particular spot on the map.
>
> Click on a spot on the map and a small label will pop up at the bottom of
> your screen giving the coordinates. First, click on those coordinates in
> the little box. Then on the blue and white panel on the left, click on the
> "Share" icon and copy the link. (If you want a shorter, more manageable
> version of this link, check the "Short Link" box.)
>
> Once you've copied the link with the coordinates, you can paste it into a
> text, email message or document. The recipient can paste the link into the
> address bar of his/her browser and be shown immediately the spot on the map.
>
> Now here is how you can use GPS coordinates that you are given to find a
> spot on the map.
>
> The first thing to note is that latitude and longitude coordinates can be
> given in several different formats. The ones used by Google are in the
> decimal format: for example, 47.669605, -121.926026
>
> The ones we may be familiar with from our school years are given in the
> degrees, minutes, seconds format: 41?25'01"N and 120?58'57"W
>
> If you have coordinates in the degrees-minutes-seconds format, you'll need
> to convert them to decimal format for use in Google maps.
>
> There are many converters between these formats online. Here's a simple
> and easy one:
> https://www.fcc.gov/media/radio/dms-decimal
>
> The GPS Test app that I recommended above displays the lat-long
> coordinates in the degrees-minutes-seconds format, which you would need to
> convert to decimal format to use on Google maps. However, if you use the
> "share" function in GPS Test to save or send the coordinates, the app
> actually saves them in a URL (i.e., http// link) using Google-compatible
> decimal coordinates, so no conversion is necessary. Just click on the link
> or paste it into your browser's address bar.
>
> If you have Google-compatible decimal coordinates rather than a URL,
> simply go to Google maps and paste the coordinates into the map search box
> and you will be taken to the spot.
>
> You can click on the directions icon (blue diamond with white arrow) to be
> given directions to the spot. You can also use Google Maps' "Satellite
> View" and "Street View" functions to see exactly how the roads and
> intersections look, though Street View often isn't available on remote
> roads. And Google Maps is certainly not infallible. As several people have
> mentioned, if you're in particularly difficult locations, it might be
> better to have directions from a person who is familiar with the area.
>
> Jane Hadley
> Seattle, WA
>
>
>
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