[kphinney]

just about every marine gps system going has one, in fact I'm struggling to think of one (outside of a few handhelds) that has USB only, so the argument doesn't really stack up to me

A few handhelds? Allow me to help you in your struggle by referring you to GPSNavX's third post:

USGlobalSat MR350, BU303, BU353 USB
Zenstar USB
Any Bluetooth that supports NMEA-0183
Any Garmin that supports NMEA-0183 (requires PC interface cable and Keyspan adapter)
Magellan ColorTRAK and SporTRAK, GPS 300 series, Meridian series

And MacSail's 2nd post:

Magellan eXplorist (forgot the model number)
Garmin Oregon 200
Garmin Colorado 400c
Magellan Triton 500
Magellan Triton 2000
Garmin USB receiver (forgot the model number)
Bushnell ONIX 200

I haven't had a single non-USB marine GPS in about 10 years.

MarkH,

or am I missing totally the arguement here

Perhaps. I wouldn't post if I saw it as a nonconstructive topic or argument. My take is that GPSNavX requires add-ons, drivers, and cables to work with modern handheld GPS units. A few weeks back I upgraded to OSX 10.6 and all of a sudden GPSNavX wouldn't recognize my USB receiver. Obviously some 3rd party driver fell out of support under this OS. I've been using the same receiver for over 3 years and it is quite literally hardwired into my cabin top. I have a spare - same thing. Then I opened my other Mac GPS programs and they work flawlessly.

I came here looking to see if others were having this problem and I'm not sure if they are or not. Regardless, I'm not willing to trust my boat and life to a program that relies on old tech when there are now many more to choose from. At least a lot more than when I originally purchased GPSNavX 3-4 years back. In fact, with a dual boot MacBook Pro the possibilities are very extensive.

For me it's a no brainer. When it comes down to it you can either:
1) Continue to use GPSNavX and hope that the unsupported drivers stay available and working AND buy a particular GPS receiver or handheld that works with it,

OR 2) buy a new program that allows for the use of the modern USB communication protocol.

I'm playing it safe and learning a new program that works with all of my gear. If, in 4 years, that program falls behind I'll move on again.

That little stunt where GPSNavX stopped working cost me 2 days in delays, a dozen trips to different stores, and a slew of GPS units. Fortunately I was able to return the units, but I learned that it's better to have a program that works with modern gear or at least gear that doesn't require waiting around for a specific unit to be shipped across the US and then south of the boarder.