[aprssig] APRS LAT/LONG standards

[Robert Bruninga]

>>> KG6RWO at comcast.net 05/28/05 5:23 PM >>>
>If we've gotten rid of the seconds, why keep the minutes 
>along with the "base 60" aspect.  Decimal degrees seems 
>imminently more sensible.

It has nothing to do with absolute sensibility.  It has to
do with being comaptible with all existing standards
and applications to eliminate conversions when providing
communications support!  Let me say it again:

GPS uses DD MM.mmm
FAA uses DD MM.mmm
Forget it, I'm not going to list every human navigation
system over and over and over that uses the DD MM.mmm 
standard, because it is THE standard.  And it is why
APRS also uses that standard.

THe idea for a human communicatinos system across
professional bondaries (which HAM radio public service
communicatiosn is all about) is to use A STANDARD
that everyone else uses.

Sure there are DOZENS of other ways to do it and 
each has its advantages, but the REEASON FOR
DD MM.mmm is so that everyone does not have
to do conversions.    Yes, internally, of course,
everything is converted to decimal numbers, but the
human interface should be the standard used in all
voice communications between existing professional
systems that we will most likely be communicating 
with.

That is DD MM.mmm...

de Wb4APR, Bob