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GPS ALERT !



In response to a recent post concerning a problem with GPS units, I 
contacted the manufacturer of my GPS, Garmin, and got the following 
response.


Anyone who owns Garmin's should rest assured that they are safe if out
on a trip when the rollover occurs on Aug. 22, 1999, and more importantly
the much feared Y2K event will not affect Garmin GPS units.



>
>
>
>Thank you for your recent inquiry regarding Garmin products.  
>
>As we approach the end of the millennium many customers have concerns
>regarding the year 2000, otherwise known as Y2K, and GPS products.  We hope
>this letter will answer all of your questions and help in any planning
>required for this event.
>
>Garmin took Y2K considerations into account from the beginning of its
>product development.  As such Garmin products should continue to operate
>after the year 2000.  Products that display two digits for year will display
>00 for the year 2000, 01 for the year 2001, and so on.  If you are
>interfacing a Garmin product to an NMEA device such as a plotter or moving
>map, you should check with the respective manufacturer to be certain that
>these products can properly receive the 2 digit date in the NMEA data.
>
>Another important event for GPS receivers will occur on August 22, 1999.
>This event, known as GPS week number rollover, is when the week number
>transmitted in the satellite navigation message will change from 1023 to 0.
>The GPS week number rollover will not cause navigation errors for Garmin
>products if operated during the rollover event.
>
>Some older Garmin products may need to perform an "auto locate" or "search
>the sky" operation in order to acquire satellites and perform navigation
>functions after the GPS week number rollover occurs.  In order to facilitate
>our customers Garmin will issue instructions for each product a few weeks
>prior to the GPS week number rollover event.  All Garmin products currently
>manufactured by Garmin are Y2K compatible and do not require any user
>intervention in order to operate after the GPS rollover event takes place.
>
>The GPS system is operated by the Government of the United States of America
>which is solely responsible for its accuracy and maintenance including any
>GPS control segment and space segment issues associated with Y2K and GPS
>week number rollover.  The GPS system is subject to changes which can affect
>the accuracy and performance of all GPS receivers.
>
>We hope this letter answers your questions about Y2K and the GPS week number
>rollover event.  If you have any additional questions or concerns please
>contact Garmin's Technical Support department.
>
>
>Thank you and best Regards,
>
>
>David Mitby
>Product Support Specialist
>
>
>GARMIN International
>1200 E. 151st Street
>Olathe, KS 66062  USA
>http://www.garmin.com/
>
>tel. 800/800.1020
>      913/397.8200
>fax. 913/397.0836
>
>
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From:	ams000@aztec.asu.edu [SMTP:ams000@aztec.asu.edu]
>> Sent:	Saturday, October 24, 1998 4:44 PM
>> To:	techsupp@garmin.com
>> Subject:	http://www.garmin.com/support/
>> 
>> Hello,
>> 
>> I have heard that there is a glitch in the GPS system that will 
>> kick in on at the end of Aug. 21, 1999.  Is this so, and 
>> if so, how might I correct it?
>> 
>> I have a Garmin mod. 50 GPS.
>> 
>> 
>> Thank You.
>> 
>> Steve Schoner>

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