By examining the evolution of the GPS program over the last 40-plus years and by looking at specific historical milestones, we might be able to determine the future, or one of the alternative futures, of GPS.
Mar 13, 2008
By:
Don Jewell
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The recently released Defense Department Directive 4650.05 on Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) serves as an update to an earlier version. It amounts to an evolution in formal guidance, nothing more, and the changes it incorporates should not come as a surprise to anyone. Especially anyone who has been keeping track of how GPS decisions have been made over the last few years ? least of all the United States Air Force (USAF), current stewards of space and of GPS, the largest government-funded, -maintained, and -supported constellation in space today.
This is a fully functional Windows handheld computer made by a GPS company that tightly integrates GPS into the unit, and it is difficult — if not impossible — to not consider both functions as one unit.
Feb 27, 2008
By:
Don Jewell
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The Nomad Finds a Home in the Military
The "nomad" I am writing about is the Trimble Nomad personal handheld computer and GPS device. I have been testing the Nomad, which is actually built by Tripod Data Systems, a Trimble company, for some time. You might even call it a long-term test, just like the cars in the automobile magazines that they drive for a year to see if the wheels fall off. I have had two different Nomads to review, and they have both been absolutely outstanding. My total testing time has been on the order of six months.
Looking back, and looking forward. After a look back in military history, let's immerse ourselves in the technologies that I hope will provide the future of navigation and GPS as we know it.
Feb 13, 2008
By:
Don Jewell
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Consider with me for a moment what navigators and warfighters of that day were able to ply as the tools of their trade.
The real hook is the historical context and the revelations of the mysterious influences that drove the workings of the "inner sanctum." The inventions and breakthroughs that came just in time are incredible. Each and every one was a piece of the puzzle that has become the GPS we enjoy today.
Jan 23, 2008
By:
Don Jewell
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A Review of "Global Positioning System — Systems Engineering Case Study"
When was the last time you sat down in your favorite chair, in a nice quiet room with a warming fire in the fireplace and the snow falling gently outside, to read your favorite government report? I mean, when no one was holding a gun to your head? I can hear your responses now (with the expletives deleted).
The Space Foundation's annual symposium will take place this April, with speakers including Michael W. Wynne, secretary of the U.S. Air Force (USAF), and Air Force General Victor E. Renuart, commander for NORAD/USNORTHCOM, the foundation announced earlier this week.
One of the most common questions I get from readers concerns the disparity over the “official” number of GPS satellites. This seems like a very simplistic question on the surface, but it has a less-than-simple explanation.
Jan 10, 2008
By:
Don Jewell
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As you read this, we are about two weeks into 2008, and I hope you have a great year. Certainly for GPS World this is going to be a phenomenal year, if for no other reason than the myriad new developments surrounding GPS. And that’s part of what we will explore in this, my first column of the New Year.
