Man has always developed tools to help him deal with conditions on this planet. Hundreds of thousands of years have passed while Man has gone on to create tools to not only help him hunt but build homes (and even the Great Wall Of China). That same zest for creation that lead to building ships that could cross the oceans has now given us Global Positioning System, or GPS.

Millions of people around the world have adopted the use of GPS to the point that it is fast becoming a house hold accessory. GPS allows them to help plan their trips, keep tabs on their children and keep track of their vehicles. It helps though to understand the technology that makes this all possible.

Satellites that are orbiting the Earth are the key to making GPS work. They communicate with the GPS devices on the surface of the Earth. The signals from the satellites are relayed to the units on land. The signal is decoded and interpreted by the unit and data is graphically displayed on the screen. This data can show up as longitude and latitude or could be as simple as displaying what exit off the highway the driver should take next.

GPS was developed in the 1970′s and early 1980′s exclusively for the United States military to use. For almost two decades, the wonderment that is GPS was the U.S. military’s sole domain. Then in the 1990′s the technology was made available to the general populace. After it became commercially available, GPS slowly began its appearance int he marketplace and gradually accelerated its adoption into our culture to the point that a good GPS unit can be had for under $200.

All this makes GPS technology affordable to consumers everywhere. And since it has become more affordable, GPS systems are now seemingly in every vehicle on the road. By helping you make sure you are going the right direction, GPS saves you time, money and frustration on your next trip.

Buying a car gives you an opportunity to get GPS built into the multimedia system inside the dashboard. This means that you can not only get the functonality of GPS but the car will be worth more when you go to sell it. However, if you have a vehicle without a built in GPS, you should go buy one that fits your financial situation and preferences.

The last thirty years, GPS has gone from military hardware to an item on our dashboards that we cannot live without. What a journey, huh?

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