Latitude/Longitude and UTM conversion in compass

[jlillest]

Cool, so it's just the same grid-helping tool that I've used in the past just slightly different.

Also, just to clear up a few things, the Compass we're talking about is a piece of software. It's written to reduce and plot cave surveys, it's made by Fountainware. Compass also has a built-in Datum converter.

Cavers don't often work too much with compasses and grids to navigate across the land (at least in my experience). Generally, while walking through karst terrain there is enough unique land features to micro map read and determine your location on the map. Especially these days, with the advent of cheap and accurate GPS devices (Thanks DoD!) you can navigate and log points without ever having to own a compass or paper map.

[adam0321]

That clears up the compass thing. I feel a little silly. I love gps's but we(the military) have become way to dependent on them. Last time we were in Iraq I watched my point man walk all around the house we were going to because his GPS was walking him in circles, close but circles none the less. I walked up to him pulled the GPS out of his hand told him to take out his map protractor and compass and tell me exactly where we were, after failing to produce these items I gave him mine, he had no clue where we were without the darn machine. When we got back to the house(which we were standing right next to) I thrashed the heck out of him for two hours then fired him as point man. electronics are great but you should still know the basics

kinda like computers and tables if you think about it

[adam0321]

has nothing to do with cave diving but it was a funny story