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13-05-2019, 13:47
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#1
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Merritt Island, FL
Boat: 1999 Maxum 4100 SCA
Posts: 155
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Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
I have my settings for feets/nm/kts, etcs ... but when I do a measurement on a chart it shows up in meters until I reach 0.1 nm (200 yds). Do I have a setting wrong or is that just how things are. TIA.
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13-05-2019, 14:58
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tierra del Fuego
Boat: Phantom 19
Posts: 6,295
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by PJHoffnet
I have my settings for feets/nm/kts, etcs ... but when I do a measurement on a chart it shows up in meters until I reach 0.1 nm (200 yds). Do I have a setting wrong or is that just how things are. TIA.
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It is how things are, under one cable measured distances are displayed in meters for nautical miles selected as distance unit as the decimal value would make very little sense.
For statute miles selected as unit the value is in feet under 1/10 mile as it is obvious that the user has some problem with standard SI units.
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13-05-2019, 15:36
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#3
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Merritt Island, FL
Boat: 1999 Maxum 4100 SCA
Posts: 155
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by nohal
It is how things are, under one cable measured distances are displayed in meters for nautical miles selected as distance unit as the decimal value would make very little sense.
For statute miles selected as unit the value is in feet under 1/10 mile as it is obvious that the user has some problem with standard SI units.
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Thanks for the response ... and understand the decimal nm comment, but perhaps yards would be better than meters since nm's are measured in yards?
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13-05-2019, 16:30
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#4
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Registered User
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Tierra del Fuego
Boat: Phantom 19
Posts: 6,295
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by PJHoffnet
Thanks for the response ... and understand the decimal nm comment, but perhaps yards would be better than meters since nm's are measured in yards?
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Looking at the map of the world with countries using the imperial system being the ones in red I tend not to agree...
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13-05-2019, 17:13
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#5
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Moderator

Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: SF Bay Area
Boat: Islander 34
Posts: 5,480
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by PJHoffnet
Thanks for the response ... and understand the decimal nm comment, but perhaps yards would be better than meters since nm's are measured in yards?
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Originally nautical miles was defined as one minute of Arc along the great circle on the planet. So 60 nautical miles would be one degree along the circumference of the Earth.
As to meters just * 3 to get approximate feet. Close enough anyway.
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13-05-2019, 17:38
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#6
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: QC, Canada
Boat: Kelt 8.50
Posts: 190
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by sailorchic34
Originally nautical miles was defined as one minute of Arc along the great circle on the planet. So 60 nautical miles would be one degree along the circumference of the Earth.
As to meters just * 3 to get approximate feet. Close enough anyway.
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The meter is more closely related to the nautical mile than the yard.
Citing Wikipedia: "The metre was originally defined in 1793 as one ten-millionth of the distance from the equator to the North Pole"
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13-05-2019, 18:19
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#7
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 804
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by sailorchic34
Originally nautical miles was defined as one minute of Arc along the great circle on the planet. So 60 nautical miles would be one degree along the circumference of the Earth.
As to meters just * 3 to get approximate feet. Close enough anyway.
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3.3 is close enough... *3 diverges from reality a bit too quickly
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13-05-2019, 18:27
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#8
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 804
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by sailorchic34
Originally nautical miles was defined as one minute of Arc along the great circle on the planet. So 60 nautical miles would be one degree along the circumference of the Earth.
As to meters just * 3 to get approximate feet. Close enough anyway.
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Originally and still is  For those of us that use paper charts using the degrees of latitude from the margins is how we measure distance.
That said almost all other computer nav systems that I know have an option to set NM and yards for sub 2 cable distances.
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13-05-2019, 18:36
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#9
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Moderator

Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: SF Bay Area
Boat: Islander 34
Posts: 5,480
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moo
3.3 is close enough... *3 diverges from reality a bit too quickly
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I've never worried about reality, too much.
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14-05-2019, 01:04
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#11
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2017
Posts: 804
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by conachair
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Yea I couldn't be bothered getting into that. The guys who defined it didn't know that the Earth wasn't a perfect sphere; after all they had never seen it
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14-05-2019, 05:54
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#12
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: QC, Canada
Boat: Kelt 8.50
Posts: 190
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Re: Units set to feet/nm ... measurements show as meters
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moo
Yea I couldn't be bothered getting into that. The guys who defined it didn't know that the Earth wasn't a perfect sphere; after all they had never seen it 
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Some still think earth is flat. So no nautical mile for them.
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