I have a Garmin 182C onboard, which I've used for coastal navigation in northern Florida waters. I would like to connect my GPS system to an Apple power book... I may purchase the newest version, or I may use my 12" G4 power book with memory upgrade and superdrive. What else do I need in terms of hardware and software?
Many thanks for your input and suggestions.
PYXIS
To connect your Garmin 182C to your Mac you need two cables
Garmin power/data cable (you may already have this)..
http://shop.garmin.com/accessory.jsp?sku...10083%2D00
And a Keyspan Serial Adapter..
http://www.keyspan.com/products/usb/usa19hs/
Those two cables connect together. You will need to attach a DB-9 connector to the power/data cable using pins (2,3 & 5). That DB-9 connector plugs into the Keyspan Adapter. Refer to the Garmin manual on which color wires are transmit, receiver and ground. Most marine electricians can help with this.
A far easier solution is to use a USB GPS like the BU-353. It plugs straight into the Macs USB port and provides position, speed, course and satellite info to the Mac.
http://www.gpsnavx.com/html/USGlobalSatBU353.html
As far as navigation software I would recommend GPSNavX for your 12" G4 Powerbook. Also recommend the Maptech NOAA BSB raster charts DVD. So with GPSNavX, the DVD and the GPS you get a complete charting solution.
www.gpsnavx.com