Some of you are probably familiar with the GPSReview forums, I have been a moderator there for many years. Starting on September 13, I have been getting "Invalid URL" error messages when I go to http://forums.gpsreview.net
It's unclear at this point exactly what is happening, but there's a good chance the company that owns the site just decided to pull the plug without warning. I'm in touch with someone who should know, he is also uncertain what's going on but says he hopes to know more soon.
Anyway, this may very well be the end. Last year the plug was pulled on the the GPSPassion forums in a similar way with no warning. LaptopGPS also shut down last year, but that was announced in advance.
This sure feels like the beginning of the end of dedicated GPS devices. Not something that will happen overnight, but the trajectory seems pretty clear. Garmin is the only company that still makes handheld devices for the US market, giving them a de-facto monopoly.
We shall see. My Montana 600 died several years ago and I am not going to replace it. Still use a Garmin DriveTrack 71 in the car and like it. But I am no longer offering Garmin format maps on my own site and am developing my own free GPS web app as an alternative.
Interesting times, for sure. Let's hope the lights stay on here at GPSFileDepot!
It's unclear at this point exactly what is happening, but there's a good chance the company that owns the site just decided to pull the plug without warning. I'm in touch with someone who should know, he is also uncertain what's going on but says he hopes to know more soon.
Anyway, this may very well be the end. Last year the plug was pulled on the the GPSPassion forums in a similar way with no warning. LaptopGPS also shut down last year, but that was announced in advance.
This sure feels like the beginning of the end of dedicated GPS devices. Not something that will happen overnight, but the trajectory seems pretty clear. Garmin is the only company that still makes handheld devices for the US market, giving them a de-facto monopoly.
We shall see. My Montana 600 died several years ago and I am not going to replace it. Still use a Garmin DriveTrack 71 in the car and like it. But I am no longer offering Garmin format maps on my own site and am developing my own free GPS web app as an alternative.
Interesting times, for sure. Let's hope the lights stay on here at GPSFileDepot!
