 What a great article. We all take the internet for granted now, but it would have been necessary to buy a book and magazines at one time. There's all the information you need, free with a few clicks. Nice one OM.
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 Thanks for the feedback. Over the next few weeks we're hoping to bring you reviews of all the popular receivers on the market - and continue to expand the routes available as downloads for GPS.
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I note that the article is 'in association with GPS Training'. I am not sufficiently knowledgeable about GPS receivers to judge the competence of Peter Judd and Simon Brown, who manage this company, in training walkers in their use. But I do know somethtng about cartography and, judging from their book Getting to Grips with GPS, they are by no means as expert about maps as they could be. Here are some of the more glaring errors:
Page 3: Referring to Ordnance Survey maps, the authors state 'These maps contain rights of way information for England, Wales and Scotland'.
Correction: rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland.
Page 16: 'It is difficult to choose the best global positioning system for your needs.'
Correction: at present, there is only one global positioning system with universal application. What the authors probably mean is that it is difficult to choose the best GPS receiver.
Page 101: the captions of the illustrations of the maps are incorrect. The map at the top of the page purports to show an extract from a 1:50,000 Landranger.
Correction: it is a 1:25,000 Explorer.
The caption on the map below purports to show an extract from a 1:20,000 Explorer map.
Correction: The OS does not publish any maps with a scale of 1:20,000 and it is, in fact, a Landranger which has a scale of 1:50,000.
Page 105: the illustration of an extract from Anquet software bears the caption '3D view of OS Explorer mapping...'
Correction: it is a view of 1:50,000 Landranger mapping.
Page 116: on the illustration of a route card, the grid reference of the waypoint for the pub, derived from the map, is given.
Correction: this is a fundamental error. The authors appear to be unaware that the pub symbol on Explorer maps is not a precise location. All that can be deduced from the symbol is that the village had at least one pub at the time of the survey. The pub might have closed between the survey and publication of the map, and even if it still exists, it could be several hundred yards from where the symbol is placed. If there is more than one pub in the village, there will still be only one symbol.
It's interesting to note that the precise location of car parks and public conveniences is indicated by an arrow.
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 Hugh, did you really go through the book writing down the page number of every error!  A bit OCD, i think!
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Even with the eight identified mistakes throughout the whole book I'd place more faith in Peter and Simon than any "expert" who gives single foreign women the impression that the UKs hills are full of predatory men waiting to jump them, suggests men should slam gates on other walkers rather than hold them open and ignore fellow walkers despite centuries of tradition.
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 I think GPS is one of those things that can be a help or a hazard. Almost everyone can afford one these days, but if the user does not have a good grasp of map and compass navigation, over dependence on technology leads to disaster. I'm not opposed to them (I own three different ones) but I agree with Hugh - if the teaching contains basic errors, it is a recipe for disaster when the GPS unit fails. Neil
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You're unlikely to die if the pub is a hundred yard walk away. You might die of thirst if it is closed though!
The 'errors' don't seem to be major ones, so i can't see how anyone can call it a recipe for disaster! Map and compass work can't be learned by book alone anyway.
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 Stumblebum. The errors are typos as much as errors, I've rooted out the book and checked and Hugh is right. How sad!
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Here are some of the more glaring errors: Page 3: Referring to Ordnance Survey maps, the authors state 'These maps contain rights of way information for England, Wales and Scotland'. Correction: rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland. In that case who do I sue for selling me a fake OS map? I have OS Explorwer 392 (Ben Nevis & Fort William" in front of me and clearly marked on the legend is Rights of Way information! Page 16: 'It is difficult to choose the best global positioning system for your needs.' Correction: at present, there is only one global positioning system with universal application. What the authors probably mean is that it is difficult to choose the best GPS receiver.
Sorry to say Hugh, but if you're going to pedantic then you're actually the one who's incorrect! The authors did not state "with universal application". In actual fact there are are several Global Positioning Systmes, including GLONASS, COMPASS and IRNSS. What we commonly refer to as GPS is the only fully functional Global Satellite Navigation System but not the only Global Positioning System. I Page 116: on the illustration of a route card, the grid reference of the waypoint for the pub, derived from the map, is given. Correction: this is a fundamental error. The authors appear to be unaware that the pub symbol on Explorer maps is not a precise location. All that can be deduced from the symbol is that the village had at least one pub at the time of the survey. The pub might have closed between the survey and publication of the map, and even if it still exists, it could be several hundred yards from where the symbol is placed. If there is more than one pub in the village, there will still be only one symbol. It's interesting to note that the precise location of car parks and public conveniences is indicated by an arrow. This is an assumption on Hugh's part that they are unaware of the accuracy of the pub symbol......and the argument given that the map only shows the existance of a pub at the time of the survey is purely there for the sake of argument as the same can be said of absolutely any feature on a map. It should also be noted that these errors are in the book Getting to Grips with GPS....not the OM GPS Guide
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I find this thread quite depressing. It's a reflection of certain aspects of British society.
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I find this thread quite depressing. It's a reflection of certain aspects of British society. So do I Mike, it seems to have deteriorated into a personal attack and pedantic tit tat. But on that note of pedantry it states in the legend under the title of public rights of way "(Rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland)" Just had to put my tuppence worth in  Please can we stop being so rude to one another, there really is no need
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Steve posted a happy and enthusiastic comment on the GPS article, and certain people couldn't wait to post a pedantic load of bollocks.
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Here are some of the more glaring errors: Page 3: Referring to Ordnance Survey maps, the authors state 'These maps contain rights of way information for England, Wales and Scotland'. Correction: rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland. In that case who do I sue for selling me a fake OS map? I have OS Explorwer 392 (Ben Nevis & Fort William" in front of me and clearly marked on the legend is Rights of Way information!
Dave, I've just made sure by checking both my older Ben Nevis OL map and my brand new Glen Coe Explorer - both have legend information regarding Rights of Way / Public Access - in common with the series for the whole of GB - but both also immediately follow that heading with a note "Rights of Way not shown on Scottish sheets", before going on to display the symbols (as used in England and Wales). I have no idea whether the errors Hugh highlighted from the book say anything about anyone's competence or are closer to being typos - I expect some things creep through in much published work - but is there really any need, in the context of a GPS / navigation topic, to hark back to that 'Women and Safety' episode from several years ago, or to indulge in unprovoked name-calling?
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So do I Mike, it seems to have deteriorated into a personal attack and pedantic tit tat. But on that note of pedantry it states in the legend under the title of public rights of way "(Rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland)" Just had to put my tuppence worth in
Very true, but if you really want to be pedantic then "Rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland" IS giving Rights of Way information....the information being that they're not displayed
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 POTWU (Pedants of the world unite)
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Anyway, we are unlikely to have another thread like that one, one that made the national press, I mean, Huge isn't publishing another book at the moment is he?
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The TB radar pick up a bit of friction then 
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So do I Mike, it seems to have deteriorated into a personal attack and pedantic tit tat. But on that note of pedantry it states in the legend under the title of public rights of way "(Rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland)" Just had to put my tuppence worth in
Very true, but if you really want to be pedantic then "Rights of way are not shown on maps of Scotland" IS giving Rights of Way information....the information being that they're not displayed
Technically correct Dave but I think we all know what Hugh is getting at and that's the lovely green lines we all know and love on our English maps that aren't on Scottish maps. Still don't agree with the name calling - not very professional
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You know what? You're right! It's as professional as trying to discredit someone's work based on typos from another publication written by acknowledged leaders in their field. So rather than be unprofessional can I suggest that if you have further questions regarding Getting To Grips With GPS you direct them to either the authors or their publishers. Matt the reference to that thread was relevent in terms of assessing the competance of the complainant in the same way that the use of a totally different publication was used to question the competance of the people who reviewed the feature prior to publication.... but again point taken, criticism is only to be taken never to be given. Apologies to Mr Westacott, and feel free to pick through every line of any publication you wish for errors, no matter how constructive or non-constructive such arguments are because I quit!
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Thank you for the apology, Dave, which, although welcome, was not necessary; I'm used to dodging brickbats hurled by OMers!
I suppose I'm just a silly old duffer (says he disarmingly) but I believe that facts are sacred. It simply is not acceptable to dismiss elementary errors of fact in an instruction manual as typos. As the Good Book states 'By their fruits ye shall know them.' The only firm evidence I have that Messrs Judd and Brown are experts in the use of of GPS receivers is contained in the book that they authored.
In order to be an expert in the use of GPS receivers, you also have to be fully conversant with maps. On the evidence that I have seen, neither of the authors know as much as they should about maps. I know little about GPS receivers but I am aware that in order to compile a route, the waypoints comprising it must be permanent and that their exact location known. Pubs do not satisfy these requirements so it was a serious error to include one in the example of a route. I wonder if the authors are familiar with other conventions such as footbridges on Landranger maps, contour intervals and the depiction of bodies of water?
You appear not to have grasped that the law covering public paths in Scotland is quite different from English and Welsh law. Also, the key to each series of OS maps is standardized so it is not country-specific. Virtually all paths in Scotand are depicted as black pecked lines. Some of these may be rights of way but it is impossible to tell from OS maps. The only routes that have special symbols are the West Highland Way, the Southern Upland Way the Speyside Way and the Great Glen Way together with a handful of recreational routes, such as the Kelvin Walkway, that have been specially created. The key to Explorer maps explicitly states that rights of way are not shown on Scottish sheets. I am content to accept this statement as a fact.
And yes, Mike, I do sometimes write to authors and publishers when I discover significant errors in their books. Shortly after the book was published I contacted Messrs Judd and Brown about the errors I have complained about on this thread and received a non-committal acknowledgement. Incidentally, what does OCD stand for?
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