Three ways to track your lost smartphone

You’ve lost your most prized possession: your mobile device. Don’t write it off just yet. We explain what to do when your cellphone goes missing.

1. Track it down digitally
Install iHound on your iPhone so you can keep tabs on it if it’s lost. When activated, the application uses the GPS and Wi-Fi built into the device to zero in on its location and sound an alarm. If you’re a BlackBerry or Windows Mobile device user, try GadgetTrak: It can locate your phone with GPS or data collected from cell towers. And if you’re nervous about a sticky-fingered filcher accessing your files, you can also use it to wipe data off your smart phone remotely.

2. Stick an ID tag on it
Don’t doubt the morality of your fellow citizens: An ID tag with alternative contact information could be your best hope for recovery – especially once the battery dies. If you’d rather not advertise your personal details, buy a TrackitBack tag ($20 each). The sticker displays an ID code that the finder can report through a toll-free number or website. Jason Wagner, founder of the Winnipeg-based company, says the recovery rate for lost phones outfitted with TrackitBack IDs is 85 per cent.
One TrackitBack client lost his BlackBerry at the Sydney international airport, Mr. Wagner says. On his journey back to Halifax, he called the airport at each stop to see if it had been recovered. Meanwhile, someone had found the phone and reported it to TrackitBack’s office, which had couriered it to his home in Halifax. The man and his phone were reunited in just a day and a half.

3. Report it to your service provider
Most service providers, including Bell Mobility and Rogers Wireless, recommend you call them if you lose your phone so they can block further use. You may not get your phone back (smart thieves will simply unlock the device before selling it), but this will at least prevent them from running up charges on your account.

*And don’t do this

Get out of a taxi without making sure you have your phone. It’s one of the top spots missing mobiles are found.
By the numbers
40: Percentage of U.S. and British mobile users surveyed who say they'd rather lose their wallets than their mobile devices
Source: Research firm Coleman Parkes

Third Step How to buy a cheap gps

Third Step How to buy a cheap gps.

First, You have to know what kind of Gps you wanna get. It's a lot of brands and models. You have to find out their properties, options, modules, function that they all have. Then you write that name down.

Second, If you want to Online Search, you should to know their websites, then find out the kind of Gps you wanna get and compare the price. And eBay.com can save your money than 40%. if you do not wanna buy gps on eBay, you can check price with garmin site, magellan site, tomtom site or other gps site that you know, just make sure that you are buying from reputable seller.

Last, You should also make sure that you find out for extra discount or coupons before you do decide to buy a cheap Gps.

Google Maps to use proprietary data in the US

Google Maps is no longer using Tele Atlas as a map data provider in the United States, we learned today. This change was explained in detail in a post from Andrew Lookingbill, Software Engineer with the Mountain View company on a Google blog:

"Today you may notice that the United States looks a bit different in Google Maps -- all of that new green park land was probably a giveaway. That's because we've worked directly with a wide range of authoritative information sources to create a new base map dataset. In our experience, these organizations that create the data do the best job of keeping it accurate and up-to-date.For example, in the US there are a number of


publicly accessible geospatial datasets created by the government for the Census, land surveying, and transportation. These datasets provide information on everything from road networks and water bodies to toll roads and bridges. By integrating this information, and working with specialized data sources like the USDA Forest Service's Forest Boundaries and the US Geological Survey's National Hydrography Dataset, we've been able to expand and improve features in our maps like parks and water bodies.

Satellite, aerial, and Street View imagery also helped. With overhead imagery, we could zoom in on roadway details to figure out details like the size of the road. Our Street View imagery, which you know as a tool to help you explore new places, turns out to be very helpful to understand road restrictions and confirm street data by reading street signs."

What has been expected for some times is now a reality and we guess that the United States is only the first part of the plan for Google: other countries will come in due course. The next question that comes to mind is when is Google releasing its own turn-by-turn navigation software? That might come sooner than what everybody expected so far...

My .02 on the 920T/930T - federal agent

I have a TomTom GO 920t there are a few things that bother me. I have a 920t /currently running Navcore 8.01 and the newest north american maps.

My Background:
I work for an alphabet agency. I spend countless hours on surveillance and travelling to arrest badguys and take their contraband. I can say for the most part the 920 is great. However their are a few things that cause me concern and will prompt me to sell the TT and get a Garmin.

The 920 has all the Bells and whistles. I love the map share feature but the biggest problem I see right now is that TT is running off Tele Atlas. Tele Atlas maps are not as accurate as Navteq. I hear a lot of people saying their are limitations to both providers but I can tell you that in my experience that is not true. Tele Atlas is not as good on the West Coast.

It has been my experience that Navteq and Tele Atlas bring back similar results in established neighborhoods but in new places Tele Atlas has some problems. The address/block information is off. So if you search for an address that is not well established you could be 1/2 mile away from where you need to be.

Which is why the TT POI database

is filled with errors. I just got the new maps and attempted to put in new POI's "By address." Doing so places the POI about 1/2 mile away from the actual location. I conducted a search of POI's in the Database and learned that 7/10 poi's in that area were off by almost a 1/2 mile. (The POI's appeared to be in the middle of the dessert). It's not the device. It's Tele Atlas. Was easy to figure out. I used Yahoo maps (Navteq) and Google Maps (Tele Atlas) to search for the same address. They were off by almost 1/2 a mile.

Don't believe me try it yourself (758 S Watson rd, Buckeye, Arizona) type it in your TT or google you get sent to rattlesnake land. Type it in Yahoo maps / Garmin you get the right location.

I'm not bashing the TT. The device is great. The tele atlas maps the TT's are based on are off at least where I was trying to put these POI's in.

I will say this, the new maps and IQ routing makes a big difference on routing. Understand that I have a government issued Garmin Nuvii 205 that I compare the routes to on a daily basis. With IQ routing the TT's routes in my local area are very close to the routes I would drive on a daily basis. The Nuvii 205 routes are not as good as the TT with IQ but are better than the TT's without IQ. (I know quality of routes are subjective. This is just my opinion based on about 90-100 routes travelled).

So here is my summary. If TT finds the address. My experience has been that it will get you there using the best route. Again this is compared to a Nuvii 205 without traffic and without any advanced routing like what is found on the high end Nuvii's. I have always found the address using TT (100 or so trys) with one exception. I was searching for an address for a search warrant and put in the correct city and address. Unfortunately according to Tele Atlas I was not in the city of Goodyear I was in Buckeye. Well I didn't know that and I had no idea which city to search for because I'm not from that area. Caused me to have to get to the location with the assistance of another agent. Shoudn't ever have that problem when I have a GPS not a deal breaker though I just have to realize the limitations of the search engine. Didn't have the Garmin then so I couldn't compare.

The POI database is where the Garmin 205 is leaps and bounds ahead of the TT. I'm not certain how many POI's the 205 has preloaded. I can say this though I have never been driving in circles looking for a meet location since I picked up the Garmin it has always been spot on.

Two weeks ago a got the auto restart bug. Couldn't use the GPS until I came home and reloaded the OS, Maps and flashed the device. All is well now but I would have been PO'd if I needed to get to a meet or travelled out of town while it was bugging out like that.

Again I'm not down on the TT I'm just aware that there are some limitations. The mapshare function is absolutely awesome. There are a lot of things that make the TT a great device. I just think in a year or so when it's time to get a new device I'm going to test the waters with a high end Garmin.

And if this thing start bugging again Ebay and a new Garmin sooner than later. I can't afford to have an unreliable device.

Just my .02

HowTo: Add Itinerary Planning to TomTom ONE 3rd Edition

Here are instructions on how to restore the TomTom ONE 1st Edition main menu on the TomTom ONE 3rd Edition, allowing access to Itinerary Planning (which was something I really was disappointed TomTom chose to skip on the 3rd Edition). A lot of us got the ONE 3rd on Black Friday ($130) and were disappointed by how stripped down it was. While you can't get back SD and BlueTooth support, you can easily get back Itinerary Planning.

NOTE: THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL ONLY WORK WITH TOMTOM 7.x. DO NOT UPGRADE TO 8.x OR ANY OTHER VERSION BEFORE OR AFTER APPLYING THIS MODIFICATION! If you do (like I did), your TomTom will freeze when turning on and will completely lock up and reboot when you try accessing Itinerary Planning. See the bottom of this post for details on how to un-break it if you accidentally upgrade. The fix is relatively simple.

Please remember that while this is not a hack (TomTom actually explains how to perform menu and POI customization in their SDK documentation) and it does not void your warranty, you should still proceed at your own risk, since we are transferring files to the TomTom unit. Never unplug your TomTom while files are transferring. And always remember to make backups. So now that's out of the way, let's start:

1) Open WordPad, NotePad, or some other simple text editor of your choice and copy and paste the following block of text (this restores the TomTom ONE 1st Edition menu). You can customize this menu and add and sort your own tasks however you like. See http://opentom.org/Menu_structure for details.

MENUBLOCK|BLOCK_MAIN|BTM_DONE|
MENUPAGE|TASK_PAGE1|Main Menu 1 of 2|
MENUITEM|TASK_NAVIGATE_TO|
MENUITEM|TASK_MENU_FIND_ALTERNATIVES|
MENUITEM|TASK_DELETE_ROUTE|
MENUITEM|TASK_ADD_FAVORITE|
MENUITEM|TASK_MENU_PREFERENCES|
MENUITEM|TASK_PAGE2|
MENUPAGE|TASK_PAGE2|Main Menu 2 of 2|
MENUITEM|TASK_MENU_PLAN_ATOB|
MENUITEM|TASK_SHOW_MAP|
MENUITEM|TASK_MENU_ROUTE_INSTRUCTIONS|
MENUITEM|TASK_SHOW_ROUTE_DEMO|
MENUITEM|TASK_ITINERARY|
MENUITEM|TASK_PAGE1|

2) Save the file as TomTom.mnu (case sensitive). Make sure no additional extensions are added to the file name! You don't want TomTom.mnu.rtf or TomTom.mnu.txt. By default, Windows does not show extensions of known file types, so it's easy to make a mistake here.

3) Plug in your TomTom ONE 3rd to your computer via the included USB cable, turn it on, and tap Yes, when it asks you if you want to connect to your computer, and then (through your computer) create a new folder in the root directory of your TomTom called SDKRegistry (case sensitive).

4) Upload the file TomTom.mnu to SDKRegistry. Once the upload is complete, unplug the USB cable after safely preparing the TomTom (either through HOME, click Device > Disconnect Device, or through Windows, right click on Safely Remove Hardware icon and click Safely Remove Hardware). Itinerary Planning should be in the same location (page 2) on the Main Menu as it was on the TomTom ONE 1st Edition.

These instructions will disallow access to a few features on the 3rd that you may want (don't worry, it's easily reversible). So you might want to tweak this menu a bit depending on what you use. Tweaking menus will not remove any features (like MapShare), it simply changes the menus and doesn't let you access the features not included in the menu. And it's not a hack. It's a customization, so it won't void your warranty.


Here's a few pics showing my TomTom ONE 3rd Edition with Itinerary Planning working:





-How to undo this-
Just plug in your TomTom and delete the SDKRegistry directory.

-How to customize menu more easily-
Visit http://www.skux.net/tomtom/menubuilder2/index.php, select your language flag on the top (default is German), and then follow the instructions on that page to customize the menu. You can also download a program that's very similar to this site at http://www.gregoryduncan.com/ttmd/index.php.

-How to custimize the menu manually-
OpenTom.org has a list of menus available for the Go (most are compatible with ONE as well) on their wiki at http://opentom.org/Menu_structure

-I accidentally upgraded to version 8.x and now my TomTom freezes when I try to access Itinerary Planning-
This was annoying, but thanks to forum member tendawolf, it's a simple fix:

1) Go to your My Documents folder and navigate to TomTom\HOME\Download\Program\ and delete the version 8 folder. If you don't have the version 7.x folder there, you can download it at
http://www.savefile.com/files/1677339 or http://www.minihost.org/kubel/TomTom_Application_for_ONE_3RD_Edition.zip

2) Make sure you perform a backup just in case something goes wrong. If you aren't worried, you will at least want to back up MapSettings.cfg from the map folder, as this will be overwritten and you will lose all your favorites when you go back to 7.x. Once you finish all these steps, you will want to re-upload your MapSettings.cfg back to the map folder on your TomTom. (Thanks dhn).

3) Plug your TomTom into your computer via the USB cable, turn it on, and tap "Connect" when it prompts you to connect to your computer.

4) Open TomTom Home if it doesn't automatically start. DO NOT INSTALL ANY UPDATES. Instead, click "Back".

5) Go to "Add Maps, Traffic, Voices, etc..." on the TomTom Home main menu.

6) Click the More arrow (about 3 times) and go to "Items on my computer".

7) Click the + sign next to Applications. "TomTom Application for ONE 3RD Edition" should show up. Click on "More info..." to verify that the version number is 7.x (7.116 if you downloaded the version from these instructions). If it is correct, click the "Add" button.

8) Let it finish and follow the instructions on the screen. (It should tell you to unplug your TomTom, let it restart, plug it back in, and click "Connect"). Once the blinking accessing icon disappears the the "do-not-unplug" picture disappears, it should be safe to unplug and give it a test. Several things will be reset, including the following: Language, home location, colors, voice, history (including recent POIs, auto-fill, and city buoyancy where it places most often used cities toward the top), favorites, keyboard, and probably a few other preferences and settings.

9) If you backed up any files, now would be a good time to restore them. Please note that some files that were compatible with v8.x may not be with v7.x.

10) Last, but not least, do not update "TomTom Application" ever again! You can install other updates, though.


credit:gpsreview.net

An Inexpensive External GPS Antenna (Part 2)

Following previous article
An Inexpensive External GPS Antenna (Part 1)

Final Assembly
I’ve found that an empty, upturned 8-ounce cream cheese container makes a practical radome for the antenna. More importantly, it helps protect the internalworkings from mechanical damage.
I usually don’t paint the container but I do remove the silk-screened label by using an automotive rubbing compound. It takes some effort but it does come off. Just follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Be careful not to apply too much pressure to the lid when you rub the label off. It’s made of a different plastic than the container and stretches easily.
You should be able to snap the base plate into the lid of the container. It’s a tight fit so just work your way around the lid until the entire base plate is flush with the lid bottom You might have to cut a notch in the lip of the lid to allow the coax to exit the unit cleanly. Carefully align the coax with the lid notch and snap the cover onto the lid. It’s normal for the top of the transmission line assembly to slightly raise the “bump” on the container bottom.

Theory of Operation
In a normal turnstile, we would have a double dipole configuration with both dipoles on the same plane but rotated 90° from each other. Additionally, the second dipole is fed 90° out of phase with an other ¼ wavelength of coaxial cable. This creates some difficult assembly problems since you would have to isolate the second dipole section from ground while maintaining the tight distance and spacing requirements. Due to the size constraints, this second dipole connection would require a very small diameter coax that might be difficult to work with and even harder to obtain. With this antenna, we cheat a bit and use a selfphased quadrature type feed.

To obtain circular polarization without a coaxial phasing line, the shorter dipole is cut so its impedance is 50 – j50 Ω. The longer dipole is fashioned into an inverted V shape and cut so its impedance is lowered to 50 + j50 Ω. With the combined asymmetrical dipoles and with them spaced slightly closer than ¼ wavelength to the ground plane, the antenna’s impedance is near 50 Ω with a much more omnidirectional pattern, an important consideration for reception of GPS satellites close to the horizon.

Operation

Connect the antenna to the GPS receiver and watch the signal-strength indicator.
You should see an improvement over the supplied stock antenna. You can tweak the antenna by bending the wires up and down gently and watching the results on your GPS unit. Be careful of the solder joint—it’s rather fragile. Adjust for maximum displayed signal. Repositioning the


antenna may also improve reception. With this antenna, I routinely receive five to eight satellites on my Garmin II receiver. If you are using a GPS unit that sends dc voltage volts up the coax to power an external preamp or amplified antenna, don’t worry. Since the elements are not grounded or shorted, there is no dc path. Just be careful not to let either end of the active elements touch ground.
[Be advised that some GPS receivers with internal patch antennas have an antenna switching circuit. This circuit disables the internal antenna when an amplified external antenna is attached. The receiver senses current flow that is intended to power the amplifier of the external antenna.
If your receiver has this feature, you will want the switch to activate and disable the internal patch antenna. Placing
1 kΩ to 5 kΩ across the ground and center conductor of the coax should be sufficient. Check with the manufacturer of your GPS receiver.—Ed.]

If you are mobile, most GPS receivers will do a fair job of receiving signals through the windshield of a car. During the
summer, however (and especially out here in the Southwest), the GPS gets baked while sitting in the hot sun.

Obviously, one way to solve this problem is to locate the receiver somewhere cooler and place this external antenna on the dash. Once that’s done, you’ve protected your expensive receiver while sacrificing a $10 antenna.
This design was not intended for outside use, hence the lack of external mounting suggestions. Any prolonged exposure to the elements will degrade the antenna’s unprotected metal parts. My suggestion—if you plan on using this unit outside, at least spray the metal parts with clear lacquer and seal the exposed coax end with RTV. Otherwise, don’t waste a lot of time weatherproofing it. Because these antennas are so cheap and easy to build, if one does deteriorate throw it away and build another. Perhaps you might want to keep a couple of spares on hand, just in case.

Tips for New GPS Navigation Users

Tips for New GPS Navigation Users

BY JONATHAN MELBY

You'll probably be a little anxious to get going when you first open the box and take out your GPS system. Here are a few tips that will help you get off to a good start.

Get a baseball cap

A GPS left sitting on the dash can be an attractive target for thieves. You can reduce the chance that yours will be stolen by keeping it hidden. One easy way to do this is to cover it with a baseball cap.

Help your GPS find satellites

A GPS receiver needs a little time to find satellites before it can calculate your initial location. This is harder to do when you're driving around (especially if you're changing directions or passing near large obstructions).

You can shorten the startup process by waiting in your driveway (or other open area) until satellite signals are acquired. Most models have a screen that shows the GPS signal status.

Mark a few waypoints

After your GPS has found its initial location, you should set waypoints for your home and a few other key locations. Familiar waypoints shown on the map make it easier to stay oriented as you're driving around.

Check your speedometer

Speedometers in many vehicles are inaccurate. If your speedometer and GPS don't agree, your GPS is probably closest to the truth.

Note: Speeds reported by GPS usually lag by a second or two, so you need to stay at a steady speed to get an accurate reading.

Ask people if they're in a new part of town

Newer subdivisions and office parks are often missing from GPS maps. If a destination is not in your GPS, let it take you to a nearby cross street and get directions from there. After you arrive at the destination, set a waypoint if you expect you might need to find it again in the future.

Make driving your top priority

GPS is fun to use, but be safe. Enough said.

Don't be bullied by your GPS

Your GPS may calculate routes that take you through areas you'd rather skip. Take the road(s) you want and let the GPS recalculate using your road instead.

If your GPS is stubborn and refuses the hint, most systems will let you setup "custom avoid" preferences to skip specific roads or areas. You can do this sometime when you find free time in a parking lot.

Watch the satellites screen

After the novelty of looking at maps of familiar areas has faded, you should spend some time watching the satellite status screen.

Although it's not especially productive, you can learn how sensitive your navigation system is to nearby obstructions that block GPS signals.

credit:roadmapgps.com

How to update map data on GPS device?

How to update map data on GPS device?

You can update online here: http://www8.garmin.com/unlock/update.jsp (you must enter the serial number). Or you can buy from amazon (search for Garmin map updates). It comes in DVD-ROM which you download through your computer to the GPS via a USB cable (should be provided with the GPS).

But since you just bought the GPS, I think it should have come with 2008 maps, and there should be no need to update. Depending on the area where you live or travel, roads usually don't change quickly enough to justify updating more often than once every two years or longer.

How to Update Your Magellan Maestro GPS

How to Update Your Magellan Maestro GPS

1. Visit Magellan’s homepage (www.magellangps.com). Click Products and select Maps & Software from the drop-down menu. You’ll see selections for Outdoors and Recreational Maps and Street Maps.
2. To obtain new Outdoors and Recreational Maps, first insert an SD Card into your device, then connect a USB cable from your notebook to the device and download the maps you desire for $29.99 to $99.99.
3. To obtain new Street Maps, click the name of your model and you’ll be taken to a page where you can purchase the DVD for $79.99.
4. Once you receive the Street Maps DVD, install it onto your notebook. Connect your unit via USB and download the new maps.

How to Update Your Garmin nüvi GPS

How to Update Your Garmin nüvi GPS

1. Point your browser toward Garmin’s update page (www8.garmin.com/unlock/update.jsp), and enter your product’s serial number.
2. If your device has new maps available, the site will direct you to a page where you can order an update DVD for $70.
3. When you receive the DVD, pop it into your computer (Mac or PC), and connect the nüvi via a USB cable.
4. The DVD will prompt you to enter a product key, which is on the back of the DVD’s jewel case. The software will automatically launch and begin updating the device.

How to Update Your TomTom GPS

How to Update Your TomTom GPS

1. Install the TomTom Home software onto your notebook from the device’s bundled updates DVD.
2. Plug in your unit via USB.
3. Click Preferences, and then Check for Update.
4. If a message appears stating that you have the latest maps, you’re done.
5. If a message appears stating that there are new maps available, click the Download button to sync them to your unit free of charge.

5 Reasons You Should Buy The 3G iPhone On Launch Day

Boston (dbTechno) - The 3G iPhone is coming, and it is coming fast. Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the 3G iPhone this past Monday during his keynote speech at WWDC, and consumers are already getting ready for it. For those still in limbo though, here are the top 5 reasons you need a 3G iPhone on launch day.

5. Price - Price plays a major factor in the decision of just about all consumers, and Apple knows that as they have dropped the price of the 3G iPhone down to $199 for the 8GB model, and $299 for the 16GB model. The iPhone is now clearly at a mass market price, making it close to being an impulse purchase.

4. GPS - One of the biggest complaints with the original iPhone was that even though it had the great Google Maps feature, it did not have full GPS, and therefore you could not track yourself as you went. Now you can get rid of that GPS you have in your car it seems, as the iPhone will be able to track you anywhere.

3. Games - The games are a major reason to own the new 3G iPhone as some big developers are working on some quality games for the smartphone. It looks like there may not even be a need to carry around a Nintendo DS or Sony PSP if you just want some quick fun on the go.


2. 3G - 3G is a huge factor in the new iPhone as everything the device does revolves around the network it runs on. The iPhone experience is going to increase and become far more enjoyable on the faster network, especially for YouTube and Safari browsing.

1. Still The iPhone - No matter how you cut it, the original iPhone was the best smartphone on the market, and the 3G iPhone is pretty much the same device with some nice improvements. If you didn’t own an iPhone before, there is absolutely no excuse for you not to own one now.

An Inexpensive External GPS Antenna (Part 1)

If you operate APRS or just need an external antenna for your GPS receiver, here’s one that is easy to build yet offers surprisingly good performance in a compact size. Best of all, it uses commonly available components and materials.

This antenna design is based on a classic turnstile
configuration (for circular polarization)—two dipoles are placed on the same plane but rotated 90° from each other. These dipoles are then spaced ¼ wavelength above a ground plane. A ¼ wavelength “parallelplate” transmission line (printed circuitboard material) serves as the connection method and mounting post for the dipoles.

Construction
Start with the base plate. Cut a 4-inch diameter circle out of thin hobby tin or brass. (It happens that the inside diameter of the container lid is 4 inches, approximately the same width as the hobby tin/brass sheet.) Mark the exact center of the base plate. This is where the parallelplate transmission line assembly is attached (see Figure 1). Cut two 4-inch lengths of #14 solid copper or brass wire and bend each in the exact center at 90°. Make the radius of the bend as small as possible. Set these aside, they will be soldered to the parallel-plate section later. Select an 8-foot length of RG-58/U, RG-174 or RG-188 coax. Attach a male BNC connector to one end (or whatever compatible connector is used on your particular GPS receiver). I used a solderless connector but removed the screw and then soldered the center conductor directly into the screw hole. If your GPS unit has a BNC antenna connection, you can use an Ethernet coax cable found at most computer stores. Just make sure they are 50 Ω. They’ll already have the BNC connectors crimped on each end.

Just cut in the center, trim to length and you’ll have enough
for two antennas. The GPS frequency is 1.57542 GHz so the longer the coax, the greater the loss. Use no more than 8 feet—less if you don’t need the length.

To make the parallel-plate transmission line, cut two 2-inch lengths of single-sided printed circuit board material that are 0.250-inch wide. Make sure it is glass-epoxy (FR-4 or G10 type material) and that it is 0.062-inch (1/16 inch) thick.

On one of the PCB strips, cut the copper foil with a sharp hobby knife or Dremel tool, as shown in Figure 1. This will be the “active” section of the parallel- plate where the other non-modified strip will be the “ground” side, as shown in Figure 2. The 45° cut on the active side is known as a “microwave turn” which allows the signal to effectively turn 90° to the coax. Glue the two strips together (copper outside) and set aside to dry.

I’ve found it easier to cut the PCB strips a bit wide and glue them together first. Then I just file both edges to the correct dimensions. A light sanding with #600 sandpaper finishes off the edges and removes any burrs.

Double-sided 0.125-inch thick PCB material could be used but can be difficult to obtain for the average hobbyist. Conversely, by using a single 0.063-inch thick double-sided material we would be working with a rather small and fragile structure (half the thickness equates to roughly half the width). This might not hold up during handling and operation. By using the two sections glued together, we’ve solved the problem by creating our own 0.125-inch thick material.

Solder the transmission line section to the base plate keeping it as square and plumb as possible. Drill or melt a hole in the plastic container the same diameter as the coax. Feed the end of the coax through the hole and attach the coax to the transmission line active side as shown in Figure 4.

Measure 1.78 inches up from the base end of the parallel-plate
section and scribe a line in the copper foil. Solder one of the #14 wires to the ground side of the parallel- plate section. Position as shown in Figure 4. Do the same with the active side—you may need a helping third hand as it’s difficult to hold the soldering iron, antenna and position the wires all at the same time.

Measure each leg of the horizontal wires and trim to 1.51 inches from the center junctions. Next, trim both the 45° wires to 1.82 inches from the center junction. If all went well, you should have approximately ½ inch between the tips of the 45° wires and the base. If not, carefully resolder or bend the wires to this dimension.

Using a fine saw or a Dremel tool, remove the excess length of the transmission line just above the wire junctions. Sand the exposed junction to remove any burrs and check for a short circuit.

Note that we’ve purposely kept the transmission line section length long, until after construction. The thin copper foil tends to separate from the glass epoxy during heavy duty soldering. The longer length acts as a heatsink to preserve the bond between the copper foil and the glass-epoxy base.

To Be Continue...