This has been one of the most frustrating technological pursuits I’ve ever been through, and I’m not done yet!

My goal was to use my phone as a GPS navigator using Google Earth for maps. I’ve got enough GPS units to know where I am and how to get to where I want to go. What I need is a GPS unit that will show me where I am on a satellite images with the zoom capabilities of Google Earth. Real time thunderstorm overlays would be nice, but I can wait on that.

We spend a lot of time in the Florida Everglades. Topos are useless, marine charts aren’t accurate, but sat photos reveal subtle details that reveal much. This topic started me on the quest to find the software and GPS receiver that would turn my Palm Treo 700p Smart Phone into an Everglades dream device.

Alas, it’s not going to happen for a while. There are only three pieces to the puzzle: software for the phone, the GPS receiver, and the phone with its Bluetooth connection.

Although the Palm Treo 700p is a couple years old it’s still a state of the art device. It was the last of my worries while putting together this system.

In the beginning my biggest concern was the software. The features of GPSWatch exactly fit my mission. I downloaded the trial version and it worked fine on my Treo, albeit without a GPS receiver. I wanted to be sure the Java program would work on my phone. It did, no problem.

Next was the Freedom Keychain receiver. The first place I ordered it from said it was in stock- wrong. After a week that order was cancelled and another ordered, express shipment.

Meanwhile, the full version of the software was ordered with payment made by PayPal. Although the funds were debited to my account and PayPal notified me that the transaction was completed, it took five days for the download to be authorized. Finally, upon authorization to download, it took three more days of working with the support team to get the software loaded on the Treo.

The Freedom Keychain receiver arrives. Open the phone and go to the Bluetooth app to pair them up. No Go.

Two days of talking to the support teams of Freedom, the GPS vendor and Palm left me with mixed results. Palm says it ain’t gonna work while everyone else says that can’t be right.

The software looks solid. The GPS receiver looks solid. The Palm Bluetooth software looks to be the problem. Other Palms work fine with the receiver, just not the 700p. It’s just a software update, but I’m not holding my breath.

Looks like a project ahead of it’s time.

Oh well, I’m off to Exuma for some bonefishing and filming a TV show. I’ll leave the electronics behind.