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Getting Started with your GPS
Welcome to the exciting world of GARMIN GPS!
The GPS 120XL represents GARMIN’s continuing com-
mitment to provide marine users with quality naviga-
tion information in a versatile, user-friendly design they
will enjoy for years to come. To get the most out of
your GPS receiver, be sure to read through the initial-
ization and Getting Started sections of this manual, and
refer to the reference section for complete details on
the GPS 120XL’s advanced features.
Initializing Your GPS for First-Time Use
The first time you power up your new GPS 120XL
is an important step in getting the best possible future
GPS performance.
Because a GPS receiver can only receive signals
from satellites above the horizon, it needs to know
what satellites to look for at any given time. By using
an almanac (a timetable of satellite numbers and their
orbits) stored in the receiver’s memory, the GPS 120XL
can determine the distance and position of any GPS
satellite and then use this information to determine
your position.
To obtain this almanac data, your GPS receiver
needs to be initialized -- or given the opportunity to
“find itself”-- the very first time it is turned on. Once
you have initialized the unit, the GPS 120XL will com-
pute future fixes more rapidly, usually in a few
minutes.
Remember that initializing the unit is only neces-
sary under the following conditions:
• First-time use from the factory
• If the receiver has been moved over 500 miles
from the last calculated position with power off
• If the receiver’s memory has been cleared and all
stored data has been lost
5
Welcome Page
The welcome page will
appear as soon as the GPS
120XL is turned on and
remain while the unit con-
ducts a brief self-test.
GETTING
STARTED
Initialization
120XL Man RevB 7/10/98 10:54 AM Page 5