Brien,
Don't put a god @ddress out on the usenet or the spambots will grab it.

Brien Alkire wrote:
Can anyone make suggestions on what I should consider when purchasing a
hand-held GPS?

I am fairly new to sailing and don't own a boat. I charter them, and
frequently the boats either don't have GPS or I have to spend a lot of time
figuring out how to use them. I sail in So Cal and the local Channel
Islands.

I want a hand-held I can bring with me on charter boats. I am willing to go
with monochrome to save $. I am versed on coastal nav, but would
particularly like a GPS when navigating in fog. I'd like to be able to
interface with my laptop and overlay on charting software (don't own any
yet).
Find out more about this a Peter Bennett's (link below). There are
several free/share packages that are great for entering and storing
waypoints. In fog, I find it best to go to know and pre-loaded
waypoints (these can even be set on the way out - if you keep a list).
Aftermarket data cables are available if the unit is not supplied with one.

I started looking at some manuals for Garmin hand-helds.
Very Good Start - Thinking is the Cheapest Thing to Do

Any pointers on what I should consider?
Go where you can hold one in a hand and try to do standard operations

Any good articles on the basics, either on web or in a magazine?
Go to Peter Bennett's wonderful site ont the subject
http://vancouver-webpages.com/peter/

Any special considerations of chart/map software and standards I should know
about?
I am not fond of mappers and do not like anything that uses proprietry
charts (some older units can no longer be updated as they are not
supported any longer)

Any new technologies on the horizon I should consider before purchasing?
Peter will know about it - look there.

Any "wish I would have known about this before I bought mine" kind of
stories?
WAAS came along, but it is not really all that important as that if you
are on the GPS instead of visual and need that accuracy, you should be
anchored.

Thanks,

Brien
Any Time.
Matt Colie A.Sloop "Bonne Ide'e" www.yachtek.com
Lifelong Waterman, Licensed Mariner and Perpetual Sailor