When the program starts, you must first connect to the GPS unit if you are going to retrieve it's points. The "Connection OK" box indicates whether the  connection has been made. On program startup it appears as shown:

 

  

 

Note that many portions of GPS2CAD are still usable without a GPS connection. This includes adding and viewing your own points, importing and exporting points, connecting to AutoCAD, just about any function that does not require a GPS data or function.

 

 

When a connection to the GPS unit has been established, you will see "Connection OK":

 

 

If the connection fails, you will see "No Connection:

 

Should this occur, you should click the "Connect GPS" button to establish or re-establish connection to the GPS. 

 

Troubleshooting your GPS connection

Few things can go wrong when connecting to the GPS unit, but on occasion it can become a problem. Here are some guidelines for resolving the connection:

 

• If you encounter an error while trying to connect, you may receive this error message:

 

 

• Magellan units sometimes require a second click shortly after the first to establish a connection (don't ask  why...we're working on it!)
• Magellan units must be set to a baud rate of 4800, and the NMEA string = V2.1 GSA. To do this, use the menu button on the GPS unit to set these values: press Menu\Setup\Baud Rate\4800 Baud and Menu\Setup\NMEA\V 2.1 GSA
• Double check the COM port that you have selected in the GPS2CAD Setup window. Make sure it is active and connected to your GPS unit
• Make sure the GPS is turned on. Oddly enough, this is frequently the cause of "No Connection"
• Check that your GPS unit has fresh batteries. Generally, low battery power will cause the GPS to turn itself off; so even thought you "know you turned it on..." it may have turned itself off because of low batteries.
• Check the output Interface settings of the GPS units. For Garmin, the settings should be:

         Format: Garmin 

        Transfer Mode: Host