MM Location API and MBM GPS

[Sjoerd Simons <sjoerd simons collabora co uk>]

Hey,

I'm wondering how to best integrate my MBM 3G modems GPS with MM and
Gypsy. The GPS on this device works as follows: The modem exposes three
serial ports that all support AT commands, one can use AT commands to
turn on the GPS, query it's status (e.g. whether it has a lock) and
adjust some other settings. To read the actual location information from
the GPS another AT command can be send to any of the three serial ports
to turn it into an NMEA streaming port. At this point you can point any
normal GPS application (like gypsy or gpsd) to this serial port an
everything works nicely.


Looking at the recent Location interface of MM the ``suggested'' way to
implement this seems to be that MM turns one port into the NMEA port and
relays the NMEA information over dbus in the Location property, which
seems somewhat over the top. It seems more natural to be able to ask MM
nicely whether one can have a serial port with NMEA enabled and just use
that, at which point Gypsy can take care of everything else.

Assuming i'm not the only one that thinks that's a nicer way of doing
things, i'd be happy to propose a GpsDevice interface with the needed
functionality. I wouldn't put it in the Location interface as that feels
more like: the modem itself provides location information instead of the
modem has a slave device which gives raw nmea. 

Comments, suggestions, flames ? :)

-- 
Sjoerd Simons <sjoerd simons collabora co uk>
Collabora Ltd.