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PUBLISHER'S LETTER www.siliconchip.com.au Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Leo Simpson, B.Bus., FAICD Production Manager Greg Swain, B.Sc.(Hons.) Technical Staff John Clarke, B.E.(Elec.) Robert Flynn Ross Tester Rick Walters Reader Services Ann Jenkinson Advertising Enquiries Rick Winkler Phone (02) 9979 5644 Fax (02) 9979 6503 Regular Contributors Brendan Akhurst Rodney Champness Garry Cratt, VK2YBX Julian Edgar, Dip.T.(Sec.), B.Ed Mike Sheriff, B.Sc, VK2YFK Philip Watson, MIREE, VK2ZPW Bob Young SILICON CHIP is published 12 times a year by Silicon Chip Publications Pty Ltd. A.C.N. 003 205 490. All material copyright ©. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Printing: Macquarie Print, Dubbo, NSW. Distribution: Network Distribution Company. Subscription rates: $59 per year in Australia. For overseas rates, see the subscription page in this issue. Editorial & advertising offices: Unit 8, 101 Darley St, Mona Vale, NSW 2103. Postal address: PO Box 139, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097. Phone (02) 9979 5644. Fax (02) 9979 6503. E-mail: silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au ISSN 1030-2662 and maximum * Recommended price only. 2  Silicon Chip GPS navigation in cars How many times have you been really frustrated as you drove down an unknown city street? While I know Sydney comparatively well, there have been times when I have been completely lost, in spite of the fact that I had an up-to-date street directory open on the seat beside me. One of the big problems, in Sydney at least, is that there just aren’t enough street signs and some of the signs on major highways are downright misleading. On some long streets in Sydney, you can travel for kilome­tres without seeing a sign which clearly identifies the street you’re actually on. And many a driver has been unwittingly forced to cross the Harbour Bridge, the Harbour Tunnel or has entered a tollway because of confusing signs. I am sure that this is partly because the bureaucrats who design the signs never actually travel on the roads where they are posted. But now there is a solution in the form of GPS navigation in cars. This has been available for a number of years in up-market BMWs and in recent months has been available as a no-cost option in Hyundai Sonatas. And it has just been released as an option in Holden Commodores. The system covers Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Canberra, as well as major high­ways. It draws information from three local global positioning satellites, maps on CD-ROM and the vehicle’s speed and direction to guide you through a maze of city streets. Your car is actually depicted on an on-screen map, with all the streets identified. And the map moves as you drive along, which is a big advance over what happens when you are using a street directory – when you change the page you have to orientate yourself again. You can set up the system to give you voice prompts along the way to a particular location and it will give you plenty of warning of up-coming turns; with calm, measured suggestions in dulcet tones. This could be a real boon for me - some of the most heated arguments I’ve ever had with my wife concerned street directions. Why is that? What is it about driving along unknown streets that causes stress with your loved one? Mind you, even with GPS navigation in a car, I’m not sure that there would not still be the occasional uttered swear word. Let’s face it: city streets will still be city streets and the traffic will still be the same. On the other hand, the GPS navigation system in the Commo­dore is pretty pricey at $4495, considering that the Hyundai Sonata’s is at no extra cost and the cost of some handheld GPS receivers is now under $300. On the positive side, this technolo­gy can only get cheaper. In the meantime, I might have to continue to make do with the street directory. Either that or catch taxis! Leo Simpson