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Getting Started

To take full advantage of Cumulus, you need a PDA with a GPS receiver and a set of map files. Currently Cumulus supports the hardware devices Nokia Internet Tablet N800/N810 with Maemo OS2008. It can also run on a Linux desktop under X11/Qt4.
PDA
As long as the program runs on the PDA and you are in move the automatic shutdown of the screen to save battery life is deactivated. If you move slower the screen is switched off after your programmed time. If you move faster the screen is automatically switched on. The speed border can be configured in the general settings. For operation over several hours you need to supply external power to your PDA. Furthermore it is recommend to switch off all automatic connection or update attempts (WLAN, version updates, ...) before take off. Such attempts in the air can block the work of Cumulus for a while and peeving you with popup dialogs.
GPS
You can use any GPS receiver or a bluetooth GPS mouse that can be hooked-up to your PDA and outputs NMEA data records, either by using a serial, an USB or a bluetooth connector. Cumulus can be used without a GPS receiver but is far more useful with such a device.
Once you manage to connect your GPS to Cumulus select the correct device and baud rate in the GPS Settings. Refer to your GPS manual for the correct settings. The most common decices are:

The default NMEA connection speed is 4800 bps for bluetooth devices it maybe higher.

If you have a Nokia Internet Tablet N800/N810 it is not necessary to setup a special GPS decive. Available devices will be recognized automatically during startup of Cumulus unless you want to connect to a GPS device via USB. In this case you have to select the USB device in the GPS configuration tabulator.

Press G or click on the GPS status indicator in the statusbar to check the GPS status, if your GPS device is setup. With the Escape key you can leaf the GPS status page.
Personal
Define in Personal Settings a data directory, where your data files containing waypoints, tasks and logger data are to store. Recommend is a place on the SD (Secure Digital) Memory Card for the Nokia Internet Tablets. Furthermore set your home position to the area where do you fly to get unskewed map draw results. See Personal Settings for more details.
Glider
Define in Glider Settings your preferred gliders. See Glider Settings for more details.
Maps
Cumulus uses the same maps as KFLog the KDE Flight Logger. Download the maps, airspaces and airfields you need and install them on your Desktop resp. PDA. See Maps for more information.
Waypoints
Cumulus uses waypoints to facilitate navigation. You can either edit waypoint files on the PDA or prepare them on the desktop using KFLog and transfer them to the PDA. See waypoints for more details on waypoints.
Tasks
Cumulus supports also the definition of flight tasks. You can either edit the task file on the PDA or prepare them on the desktop using KFLog and transfer them to the PDA. See tasks for more details on tasks.
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