Garmin GPS 3 Manual

							The GPS III’s Main Menu provides access to the waypoint, route, track log, timer
and setup features of the receiver. The Main Menu can be accessed at any time using
the MENU key.
To display the Main Menu, press the MENU key twice.
The 6 menu options are divided into categories by function: waypoints/nearest
waypoints, routes/track logs, trip computer, and system setups.
To select an option from the Main Menu, highlight the desired item and
press ENTER.
The following menu options are available:
Waypoints— allows you to create, edit or delete waypoints. See pages 42-47.
Nearest— displays up to nine nearest waypoints within 200 miles of your present
position. See page 48.
Routes— allows you to create, edit, activate or delete routes. See pages 54-58.
Track Log— lets you specify whether or not to record a track log (an electronic 
‘breadcrumb trail’ recording of your path), define how it is recorded or save track 
log data for future use. The Track Logs Page also provides an indicator of the mem-
ory used for the active track log and options to clear the track memory or start a 
TracBack route. See pages 52-53 for TracBack information.
The Track Logs Page is divided in two main sections: one for the active log (the log 
currently being recorded) and available memory, and the second section showing
any saved track logs and the total number saved. The active log stores up to 1900
track log positions, based upon the criteria specified in the Track Log Options. Up
to 10 additional track logs may be saved in memory, with up to 250 track log posi-
tions in each saved log.
Press MENU twice to display
the Main Menu.
Select the desired menu option
by highlighting it with the
rocker keypad and pressing
ENTER.
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Main Menu
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							Track Log Settings
To view the Track Log Options, highlight ‘Active Log’ or any of the ‘Saved Logs’
(on the Track Logs Page) and press MENU.
The following options are available:
TracBackconverts the track log data in memory into an inverted route (of up to 30 way-
points) and begins navigation along the route. See pages 52-53.
Save Active Logextracts up to 250 of the most significant points along the active log,
saves this information as a ‘saved log’, and clears the active log. Up to 10 saved logs may
be stored in memory, along with a 13-character name. The default name is the date the
log was saved, but you can specify any name you wish.
To rename a saved log: 
1. Highlight the saved log you wish to rename and press ENTER. An information box appears, show-ing the name of the saved log, the number of points in the track log and the total distance covered.
2. Highlight the track log name field and press ENTER.
3. Use the rocker keypad to enter the new name for the saved log. Press ENTER when finished.
Clear Active Log / Delete Saved Logclears the selected track log, active or saved, from
memory. Highlight the ‘Active Log’ to display the ‘Clear Active Log’ option, or highlight
any of the ‘Saved Logs’ to display the ‘Delete Saved Log’ option. You should select the
‘Clear Active Log’ option at the beginning of any trip where you’ll want to convert the
track log data into a TracBack route. See pages 52-53.
To delete a track log: 
1. Highlight the track log you wish to delete (active or saved) on the Track Logs Page, and press 
MENU to display the Track Log Options.
2. Highlight ‘Clear Active Log’ or ‘Delete Saved Log’ and press ENTER.
3. Press ENTER again to confirm (or press QUIT to cancel).
The Track Logs Page shows
available memory for the
active log (the log currently
being recorded) and lists any
saved track logs.
From the Track Logs Page,
press ENTER to view the
Track Log Options.
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Main Menu: Track Logs
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							Track Log Settings (cont.)
Delete Allallows you to clear all track logs, active and saved, from memory.
To delete all track logs from memory:
1. Select ‘Delete All’ from the Track Log Options and press ENTER.
2. Press ENTER again to confirm (or QUIT to cancel).
Setup Loggingprovides a setup screen to define how track log data will be recorded. The
Setup Logging Page provides options for ‘Record Mode’, ‘Interval’ and ‘Interval Value’.
Record Modelets you select one of three track recording options:
‘Off ’ – No track log will be recorded.
NOTE: Selecting ‘Off ’ will prevent you from using the TracBack feature.
‘Fill’ – A track log will be recorded until the track memory is full.
‘Wrap’ (default) – A track log will be continuously recorded, wrapping through
available memory; replacing the oldest track data with new data.
Intervaldefines the frequency with which the track plot is recorded. Three 
interval settings are available:
‘Resolution’ (default) – Records track log based upon a user-defined variance 
from your course over ground. The resolution option is recommended for the 
most efficient use of memory and TracBack performance. The distance value 
(entered in the ‘Interval Value’ field) is the maximum left/right deviation 
allowed from the last defined ground track before recording a new point.
‘Time’ – Records track log based on a user-defined time interval.
‘Distance’ – Records track log based on a user-defined distance between points.
Interval Valuedefines the distance or time interval used to record the track log.Select ‘Save Active Log’ to save
the active log data for future
use. This process extracts the
most significant points along
the active route (up to 250)
and creates a ‘saved log’.
The ‘Setup Logging’ option
allows you to change the 
criteria used to record the
active track log.
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Main Menu: Track Logs
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							Trip Computer— provides readouts for average speed, maximum speed, odome-
ter, trip odometer and trip timer. These readouts can be reset from the Trip Computer
Options.
To reset a trip computer readout(s):
1. Press MENU (with the Trip Computer Page displayed). An options list is displayed.
2. To reset all trip computer readouts, highlight ‘Reset All’ and press ENTER. 
3. To reset a single readout item, highlight the desired option and press ENTER.
NOTE: The ‘Reset Trip’ option resets trip odometer, trip timer and average speed readouts.
Setup— provides a group of pages to perform various system setup functions,
including selection of position format, units of measure, setting various alarms, con-
figuring the display and backlighting. Each available page is denoted by a ‘file tab’
which identifies the function of that page. 
To select a Setup option, highlight the file tab for the desired function.
The information is automatically displayed when the file tab is highlighted.
‘Trip Computer’ provides
readouts for the trip odometer,
trip timer, average speed and
maximum speed. Options are
provided to reset these figures.
The ‘Setup’ option uses file
tabs (across the top of the
page) for quick selection/
review of unit settings.
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Main Menu / Setup Menu
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							The file tab headings and setup functions for these pages are: 
Simulator Enable/Disable; Settings for simulated Track, Speed 
and Altitude
System Backlight timeout, Battery type, Display Contrast and
Display Orientation
Units Units of measure settings for – Distance & Speed, 
Heading and Altitude
Timers Count up/down User Timer, Battery Timer, and
usage timers for current day and since new
Time Formats for local 24 hour, local 12 hour (AM/PM) or
UTC; Difference setting from UTC to local time
Alarms Alarm Clock, Arrival Alarm, Off Course Alarm
Position Position Format (latitude/longitude, UTM/UPS,
Maidenhead, regional grids); Map Datum selection
Interface Format (NMEA, RTCM, GARMIN proprietary); 
Mode setting for use with PC or a second unit
The following pages describe, in more detail, the available settings for each Setup
file tab item.
To display the desired 
information, highlight the
appropriate file tab (using the
LEFT/RIGHT keys on the
rocker keypad).
Once the desired setup option
is selected, use the UP/
DOWN keys on the rocker
keypad to select the desired
item on the page.
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Setup Menu
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							Simulator Settings
Modelets you turn the built-in simulator on or off.
To enable/disable the built-in simulator:
1. Highlight the ‘Mode’ field and press ENTER.
2. Select ‘Simulator Off’ or ‘Simulator On’ (as desired) and press ENTER.
Speedlets you select a simulated speed when the simulator is enabled.
Track Controlallows the built-in simulator to automatically align track heading to the
desired course (when using a GOTO or route), or allows you to manually adjust the track
heading, as desired.
Trackallows you to manually enter a track heading. This setting is only available when
Track Control is set to ‘User Track’.
Altitudeallows you to specify a user-defined altitude for your simulated position.
To select a simulator setting:
1. For track control, highlight the ‘Track Control’ field and press ENTER. Select ‘Auto Track’ or
‘User Track’ and press ENTER.
2. For simulated speed, user track, or altitude, highlight the desired field and press ENTER. Enter
the desired value using the rocker keypad and press ENTER when finished.
‘Simulator’ allows you to 
configure the built-in 
simulator feature.
The ‘Track Control’ setting
allows the simulator to 
automatically “line up” on the
correct bearing to a 
destination waypoint.
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Setup Menu: Simulator
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							System Settings
Backlightlets you keep the screen/keypad backlighting on continuously (‘always on’)
when selected, or enable the automatic shutoff to preserve battery life. Automatic shutoff
times from 15 seconds to 4 minutes (since last key press) are available.
To set the backlight timeout:
1. Highlight the ‘Backlight’ field and press ENTER.
2. To keep backlighting on continuously, select ‘Always On’ and press ENTER, OR
3. To set a timeout duration, select the desired time period and press ENTER.
Batteryis used to designate the type of batteries currently being used to power your GPS
III: Alkaline, Lithium or NiCad. This setting ensures accurate readings from the battery
gauge on the Satellite Status Page (see page 27).
Contrastlets you adjust the screen for optimum viewing in all lighting conditions. Screen
contrast is set using an on-screen bar scale. Contrast can also be set from the Satellite
Status Page, as described on page 25.
To set the screen contrast:
1. Highlight the ‘Contrast’ field and press ENTER.
2. Use the LEFT/RIGHT keys on the rocker keypad to select desired level and press ENTER.
Displayallows you set the display orientation to horizontal (‘Landscape’) or vertical
(‘Portrait’).
NOTE: Display orientation can also be changed by pressing and holding the PAGE key.
You can adjust the screen 
contrast from the Satellite
Status Page or from the
‘System’ settings.
Display orientation is
adjustable by pressing/holding
the PAGE key or from the
‘System’ settings.
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Setup Menu: System
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							Units Settings
Distance & Speedlets you select the desired units of measure for distance and speed
readouts in ‘Nautical’, ‘Statute’ or ‘Metric’ terms.
Headinglets you select the reference used in calculating heading information. You can
select from ‘Auto Mag Var’, ‘True’, ‘Grid’ and ‘User Mag Var’. ‘Auto Mag Var’ provides
magnetic north heading references which are automatically determined from your current
position. ‘True’ provides headings based upon a true north reference. ‘Grid’ provides
headings based on a grid north reference (and is used in conjunction with the grid posi-
tion formats described on page 74). ‘User Mag Var’ allows you to specify the magnetic
variation at your current position and provides magnetic north heading references based
upon the variation you enter.
Altitudelets you select altitude readouts in ‘Feet’ or ‘Meters’.
To select a units setting:
1. Highlight the desired field and press ENTER to display the available options.
2. Select the desired option and press ENTER.
3. If ‘User Mag Var’ is selected in the ‘Heading’ field, highlight the heading reference field (immed-
iately to the right) and press ENTER. Enter the magnetic variation at your current position using 
the rocker keypad and press ENTER.
WARNING: If ‘User Mag Var’ is selected, you must periodically update the magnetic vari-
ation as your position changes. Using this setting, the GPS III will not automatically cal-
culate and update the magnetic variation at your present position. Failure to update this
setting may result in substantial differences between the information displayed on your
GPS III and external references, such as a magnetic compass.
Select nautical, statute or
metric units of measure from
the ‘Units’ settings.
The ‘User Mag’ option allows
you to define the magnetic
variation for your area. ‘Auto
Mag Var’ is the preferred set-
ting in most cases.
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Setup Menu: Units
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							Timers Settings
User Timerlets you select a count up or count down timer. For a count down timer you
may also specify the count down duration.
To select a user timer setting:
1. For a count down timer, highlight the ‘User Timer’ field in the right-hand column, press ENTER andenter the count duration using the rocker keypad. Press ENTER to accept., then—with the left-handcolumn highlighted—press ENTER to view the User Timer options. Select ‘Down’ and press ENTER.
2. For a count up timer, highlight the ‘User Timer’ field in the left-hand column, press ENTER and
select ‘Up’. Press ENTER to confirm.
3. To reset the timer or turn the timer off, highlight the ‘User Timer’ field in the left-hand column, 
press ENTER and select ‘Reset’ or ‘Off’ (as appropriate). Press ENTER to confirm.
Battery Timerprovides a running count of how long the GPS III has been in operation
with the current batteries. The timer automatically stops when using an external power
source. The timer will automatically reset when depleted batteries are replaced, but can
also be manually reset.
To select a battery timer setting:
1. Highlight the ‘Battery Timer’ field in the left-hand column and press ENTER.
2. Select ‘Off’, ‘On’ or ‘Reset’ (as appropriate) and press ENTER.
Since Midnightprovides a running count of how long the GPS III has been in operation
since midnight of the current day. 
Since Factory Resetprovides a running count of total GPS III operating time since the
receiver was shipped from the factory.
The ‘User Timer’ option pro-
vides both count up and count
down timers.
The battery timer will auto-
matically reset when depleted
batteries are replaced with a
fresh set.
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Setup Menu: Timers
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							Time Settings
Time Formatallows current time to be displayed using a 12- or 24- hour clock. This
field is also used to select between local and UTC time readouts.
To select a time format:
1. Highlight the ‘Time Format’ field and press ENTER to display the available options.
2. Select ‘Local 24hr’ or ‘Local 12hr’ to display local time references. ‘Local 12hr’ will show current
time using a traditional AM/PM format, OR
3. Select ‘UTC’ to display universal time references (also referred to as ‘Greenwich’ or ‘zulu’ time).
Local Time Zoneis used to define the current local time. UTC date and time are calcu-
lated directly from the satellites’ signals and cannot be edited. If you prefer to use local
time, you may designate an offset, either ‘Behind UTC’ or ‘Ahead of UTC’. The offset is
the difference, in hours and minutes, between local time and UTC time.
To enter the local time zone:
1. Highlight the ‘Local Time Zone’ field and press ENTER.
2. Select the desired offset amount (in hours and minutes) using the rocker keypad and press ENTER.
3. Highlight the offset direction field (immediately to the right) and press ENTER.
4. Select ‘Behind UTC’ or ‘Ahead of UTC’ (as appropriate) and press ENTER.
Timedisplays the current time based on the settings made above and information 
provided by the satellites received.
Datedisplays the current date based on the settings made above and information 
provided by the satellites received.
Enter an offset amount to
adjust the time display to
your local area. In the United
States, all offset amounts will
be ‘Behind UTC’.
If you’re unsure of the exact
offset, select a ‘Local’ time
format, then enter offset 
values until you arrive at the
correct local time.
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Setup Menu: Time
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