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Q.
Is the
Virtual GPS as accurate as a real GPS? A.
It all depends. Navizon Virtual GPS is using WiFi
triangulation and Cell tower triangulation to provide a
location information (as opposed to satellite signals
triangulation for the GPS).
So if
you are in an urban area like New York City or San Francisco
and you are in an area that is covered by the Navizon
database, the Virtual GPS is going to use WiFi triangulation
and since there are plenty of Wifi access points all around
you, the position that it is going to identify is going to
be pretty accurate (less than half a block). So is it more
accurate than GPS? Probably yes, since GPS devices won't
work most of the time in those densely populated area and
will indicate 0,0 for your latitude/longitude information
(which would put you off the coast of Ghana in the Atlantic
Ocean).
Same scenario if you are
in an indoors environment where GPS simply doesn't work.
If you
are in a rural area, Navizon Virtual GPS will most likely
use Cellular Tower triangulation to identify your location.
In this case, it will not be as accurate as a real GPS.
Triangulation based on Cellid can only give you an
approximate location (3 to 4 blocks in an urban-suburban environment, 1 mile or 1.5 km in a rural environment) while satellite
positioning would give you a much better accuracy (a couple
of feet or a meter). But hey, if the
goal is to find the closest Mac Donald's around you when you
are on the highway, why would you need a super-accurate
position anyway?
If you
are in an area that is not covered by our database, then of
course, GPS will work better since we will only be able to
identify your location based on your area code (like in this
other FAQ), while the GPS will give you your exact location.
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Q. What is the difference between Cell ID positioning and Cell tower
triangulation?
A.
Cell ID positioning consists in using your serving
cell tower (the tower that your phone is communicating
with) and use its position to find yours.
Cell
tower
triangulation consists in looking at all the
cellular towers around you and calculate your
position based on the signals that your device
receives from each tower.
Triangulation techniques typically offer a much
better accuracy than standard Cell ID techniques:
from 1000 to 2000 meters with Cell ID down to
100-200 meters with triangulation.
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Q. What computing platforms does Navizon run on?
A.
Navizon runs on:
-
Windows Mobile
-
Series 60
-
Blackberry
-
UIQ
devices
-
iPhone
Click on the links above to see the list of
compatible devices
In
addition, Navizon
works on almost all laptops (Windows XP, Windows
Vista and Mac OS X).
Q. What
if I want to start mapping Wifi and Cellular towers?
What hardware do I need?
In
order to contribute data, you will need a Windows
Mobile, Symbian or UIQ phone with a GPS. Some
Windows Mobile,
Series 60 and
Blackberry devices come with a built-in GPS. But
if your phone doesn't come with a built-in GPS you
can get a Bluetooth GPS like the ones that are
sold here.
If you
have a Bluetooth GPS, you can also use the
laptop version of Navizon to map Wifi access
points (and even cellular towers if you have a Nokia
or Sony Ericsson phone).
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Q: I am using the
Virtual GPS and I am getting a wrong location. Why is that?
A: Navizon is based on a community of users
mapping the wireless landscape in their area with a GPS device
so that users who don't have a GPS device can get a positioning
device with Navizon Virtual GPS. The more users in any give
area, the more accurate the coverage becomes.
Now for your question: the most
likely explanation is that your area has not been covered by
another Navizonian. So in theory, the software should display
"No position info". But since it could still be useful to have a
rough idea of where you are (let's say if you are traveling and
you are searching for a restaurant in your area), Navizon will
still display a location based on your area code when it cannot
identify the towers around you: we figured it's better than
nothing.
So if Navizon displays a
location that is off by several miles, it may very well be that
you area is not mapped and that we are using the area code to
provide you with a location information.
But don't worry: help is on the
way. The Navizon community is growing very fast and there are
new users every day in many different areas of the world. So the
location that you are getting is likely to become better and
better over time.
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Q: How can I check that my area is
mapped?
A: On our website, login, choose your area and then
hit Coverage. You should see the symbols of Cell Towers and
Wi-Fi access points.
If your area doesn't appear to be covered, you can
either:
- map your area yourself by getting a GPS device. You can
even get one for a few days, drive around with Navizon
running with this GPS and then return it. This way, you will
have built your own virtual GPS in your area.
Or
- tell someone you know who might have a GPS device to use it
with Navizon. If he/she lives in your neighborhood that will
most likely result in having your area covered by the service
Or
- wait for someone else to map
your area
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Q: When I launch Navizon on my iPhone,
I get a message saying "No known Cells or WiFi nodes in range". Why? What can I do?
A: If you are getting this message it is possible that your area is not covered by our service yet. You can check the coverage in your area by logging on to the member section and clicking on "My coverage".
One other possibility is that your device cannot "see" any Wifi access point or cell towers because you are inside a building that prevents you from seeing a large number of wireless beacons. One thing you could try is to go outside
your building and try it there: the fact that your device will be able to see more towers and Wifi can certainly help.
Q: But I don't understand. I have perfect cellular reception from where I am.
A: Yes, but in order for Navizon to get your position, the towers and/or Wifi access points around you need to be known by our service. Again, you can check the coverage by go in the member area and checking the "My coverage" section.
Q: OK, so is there anything I can do to make it work.
A: If you have a GPS device, you can map your area with the
laptop version or with
any other version available for other phones (if you have another phone). If you don't have a GPS device, then you can wait for someone else in your neighborhood to do the mapping. Since our coverage grows very fast, you can check on a regular basis to see if your area is now covered by the service.
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Q:
I would like
to contribute data to the system. How do I get started? A:
In order to
contribute data to the system you would need a phone or
computer that can connect to a GPS device. Since the
iPhone doesn't have this capability, here are the
options available to you.
- Use a
different phone that is able to connect to a GPS. You
will find the hardware requirements
here.
- Use your
laptop computer and connect it to a GPS device
- Tell a
friend who has a phone and a GPS to use it with Navizon.
Not only he will map your area so that you will be able
to get your position on your iPhone with Navizon, but
both you and him will earn money with the Navizon
rewards and referral programs.
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Windows Mobile / S60 FAQs |
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Q. When I hit
start, it says
no positioning information. Why? What can I do?
A. This problem may
have different causes:
If you are using Navizon without GPS, it's either
because your area hasn't been mapped, or because you get
no Wi-Fi signal .
We advise you to check that your area is covered by
Navizon's network and that you get a Wi-Fi signal. If
both of those conditions apply to you, then the problem
comes from the setup.
If you are using Navizon with a GPS, you have
this problem because you don't get any satellite signal
(in a building, or in an area with many high buildings).
We advise you to check that your GPS is correctly
installed.
Otherwise, it's because the setup hasn't been made
correctly. Here is what you should check:
- Make sure that Navizon is
connected to the right COM Port. help...
- Have you entered you password and username?
- Have you chosen the right mode between remote (requires internet access) and local (requires to
download your area data on our website)?
- Have you activated the Wi-Fi yourself for the first
use of Navizon?
- Did you check Manage Wi-Fi power (on Smartphone) or Allow Navizon to manage power (on pocket PC)?
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Q.
There is no data in my area. What can I do?
A.
There are 2 options available to you:
1) if you have
a phone or laptop and a GPS device, you can use it to
map Cell towers and/or Wifi access points in your area.
You can check the hardware requirements
here.
2) If you
don't have the required hardware to collect data, you
might have a friend who does. If so you can
refer him to
Navizon. This will do 3 things for you and him:
build coverage in your area, earn him money through the
rewards system and
earn you money with the referral program (20% of the
rewards he makes).
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Q.
I entered my account info in Navizon and I am getting a message saying "Invalid username or password". Why is that?
A. The username and password fields are case-sensitive. So you need to enter them
EXACTLY as you created them when you registered your profile
The problem is that many devices make the first letter upper-case by default. So sometimes, if I enter johndoe, the device will make it automatically "Johndoe" (notice that the first letter is upper case).
So what can you do about it? Several things: you can either make sure that you enter the first letter with the right case. If you don't know how to do it, and your device is annoyingly making the first letter automatically upper-case, then you can always double the first letter of your username and delete the first letter once your done. Example: you enter Jjohndoe, then you delete the first letter and it becomes "johndoe". At this point you should be all set.
And make sure you do the same with the password!
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Q: How can
I Check that my GPS is installed correctly?
A: If your GPS LED is green
but not blinking, your GPS is installed but you have no
positioning information. You are not getting a position fix from
the Satellite (you need to have an unobstructed sky view)
- You can try to go outdoors.
- Make sure that you hit the start soft-key
If your GPS LED is grey, this means
that your GPS is not installed correctly. You should proceed as
follow:
- Check that your device's bluetooth is on, and that your GPS is
on.
- Make sure that Navizon is connected to the right GPS COM port. help...
- If it is not working yet, you should try to reinstall your GPS
device.
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Q. When I hit Start, it says connection to
server has failed.
What can I do?
A. This means that you have no internet
connection.
- If you have an internet access on your device, check
that you are connected, if you can't, it's surely
because there is no coverage.
- If you don't have an internet access on your mobile
device, you must change the mode from remote to local,
and then download your area data through our website
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Q.
How does Navizon determine the exact locations of
Wi-Fi Access Points and Cellular towers?
A. When standard GPS signals are available to Navizon Users with GPS devices this information is used in concert with available
Wi-Fi and Cellular signals to calculate the specific, physical, geographic locations (and altitudes) of all Wireless Access Points and Cellular Phone Towers in the vicinity. There's some complex mathematical "mojo" involved but we call this process "Mapping the Wireless Landscape".
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Q.
How is it possible to navigate WITHOUT GPS! I mean come on now - "Software Only GPS" - who are you guys trying to kid?
A. "Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished nerds, geeks and jocks... NO kidding, NO foolin' and NO guff! --- this stuff really works!" Our developers may be revolutionaries but they're also extremely good at making things work -- and the Navizon Wireless Positioning System works incredibly well!
Since Navizon knows the EXACT geographic locations of Wireless Access Points and Cellular Communications Towers in a specified city or neighborhood it's able to use the Wireless Networking (Wi-Fi 802.11) and/or Cellular Phone capabilities (or both) that are present within a similarly equipped Pocket PC device, to accurately determine your exact Latitude and Longitude on planet Earth (so let's hope that's the planet you're on!) and then uses this positioning date to inform your Personal GPS Navigation Programs and other Location Based Software Applications on your Pocket PC.
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Q: What exactly happens when I Sync my Pocket PC PDA with the Navizon Network?
A: If you're a hard core or frequent GPS user
the GPS positioning information that Navizon has stored
on your device is added to the Navizon Network Server
upon Sync. This data is now accessible by you and other
Navizon Network Members at anytime, which means that you
can now navigate cities and neighborhoods using Wireless
Positioning only (no need for a GPS device). When you
perform a Navizon Data Sync you'll see that Navizon
Positioning Information is grouped by Major Metropolitan
Cities -- which means you can select and download
Positioning Data for the cities or neighborhoods of your
choice -- from around the world.
Thanks to the
data sync process you earn points that can be converted
in rewards
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Q.
My Cell Phone Company offers a similar kind of Cellular
Navigation Service for my cell phone they tell me they
can simply add to my monthly bill. How is Navizon
Premium different from my carriers cellular navigation services?
A. First,
Navizon is carrier independent, so you don't have to be
tied with your current carrier, and it would work even
if you travel abroad.
Second, while few Cellular Phone companies are beginning
to offer Cellular based positioning, they don't offer
Wi-Fi positioning system which is more accurate.
Last but not least, carriers will charge you a monthly
fee and often have "restrictions on use" or complex
pricing schemes whereas Navizon users have
access to an UNLIMITED NUMBER OF ROUTE CALCULATIONS,
UNLIMITED USE OF NAVIZON'S TOOLS, as well as FULL-TIME
accurate Wireless Positioning capabilities for major
metropolitan areas, all of this for FREE!!! and
if you don't have a GPS, you can buy our Navizon Virtual
GPS for a one time license
of $24.99.
So yeah, I guess you could say we're kinda different from the services the big Cellular carrier networks offer.
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Q:
Is the Navizon Application or the Navizon Network tracking me or "keeping tabs on me"? Doesn’t that invade my privacy?
A: This is a favorite lunch room topic at Navizon and we have a lot to say about the issue of Privacy so let's start saying ABSOLUTELY NOT!
Navizon does some pretty sophisticated and amazing stuff using available devices and communication signals but does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING in the way of tracking or monitoring individuals... and while we're on the subject.... as much as we're glad you're a member of the Navizon Network we DO NOT KEEP OR MAINTAIN ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION about our Members. Our architecture is very similar to that of the original GPS system so no unique, traceable or personal information is ever exchanged during any Navizon process.
In using Navizon your privacy rights are protected... you can find more information on our Privacy Policy here.
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Q.
I thought Peer-to-Peer Networks were illegal now? Is Navizon a Legal Network?
A: You bet it is! Absolutely Legal.
There are many people and corporations who would like us all to believe that all P2P Technology is illegal but the fact is -- it's not. The use of P2P Networks to trade in copyrighted materials has raised some important legal questions that are now being addressed by various courts but since Geographic information about locations and places can't be copyrighted and GPS navigational signals are a shared public resource, Navizon's unique approach is not only perfectly legal -- we think it's a great way to access, share and use available resources to enable Wireless Positioning and Personal Navigation.
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Q:
After I’ve launched my GPS software application and the Navizon Client application I still don’t get signal from my GPS receiver. Why?
A: At the first use of Navizon software on your
mobile device you must define a COM port to enable data communication between your GPS receiver and your
mobile device. You can access all the functions of GPS Receiver via your GPS device settings.
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Q:
I don’t know my COM port
settings. How do I find them?
A:
Just select the one that has "bluetooth" or
"GPS" in the
description name if you have a GPS device. If you
don't want to deal with COM ports you can also use
"Bluetooth direct" and it will attempt to connect to
your Bluetooth GPS directly. If you don't have a GPS and
want to use Navizon Virtual GPS , you need to set the
GPS port to 'NO GPS' .
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Q: Are there any maps included with Navizon?
A:
Yes Navizon will connect to some third party web
services to display your location as well as those
of your buddies and Geotags on a map.
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Q:
If I start using Navizon with a GPS device will I see an immediate improvement in GPS performance?
A: Navizon will start showing increased accuracy (speed and performance) within One or Two days of first use. By using Navizon in your favorite areas and on your preferred routes, you will quickly map the
Wi-Fi landscape around you. This system feature applies wherever you go with your GPS device. Once your
Wi-Fi map is built, you will never be left without
positioning information again, even when GPS signals are
lost or dropped in your city or neighborhood... if you
don't own a GPS receiver you can join the Navizon Network
with Navizon Virtual GPS and enjoy all Navizon's features
for only $24.99...it's just that simple!
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Questions about the
rewards system...
Q: I mapped a ton of data already. Am I going to get
rewards for that?
A: Yup. This reward plan is retroactive. So if
you have mapped data already you might already have
rewards waiting for you. Go and check the “rewards” page
of the user area.
In order to earn new points from now on you would have
to upgrade to the version 3.
Q: Who’s impacted?
A:
- Navizon GPS users are not impacted
except for the fact that they can now earn points and
turn them into dollars
- Users who don’t have a GPS and were here before can
still use Navizon free of charge
- Users who don’t have a GPS device and are just joining the
network will need to pay a fee. However they can use
Navizon Virtual GPS free of charge for 15 days as there is
an evaluation version.
Q: OK, that’s nice but how can this help me?
A: If you have a GPS that’s simple: load the
version 2 of Navizon, connect it to your GPS, keep it
with you at all times et voila… you have turned your
phone into a virtual taxi meter. And now you can earn
dollars without having to deal with annoying customers
or drunk people throwing up in you car. Well, except if
you’re an actual taxi driver.
If you don’t have a GPS, you will have to pay a small
fee but at least you will know that this money will go
into the pocket of the people mapping the stuff for you.
Thanks to this incentive, they will map even more and
you will get an even better positioning system.
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Q:
How can I activate manually the data sync process?
A:
If you don't have an internet connection on your mobile
device, connect it to your PC with Activesync.
Login on Navizon Website, and hit "Sync" on your device.
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Q: Is there a whitepaper on Navizon that I can download?
A:
Yes, you can get a whitepaper
here.
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