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garmin software compared to google

Unfortunately, not for maps or software. Garmin's maps (and map updates) are purchased for a single GPS. If you went from the N??vi 5XX (great low cost, waterproof units, IMHO) to a Zumo at a later date, the maps could NOT be transferred.

However, any routes that you have created CAN be transferred to another unit.

Cheers,
mmm. guess it is marketing pure and simple?

do you save your routes on your PC (or MAC) or in an SD card or thumb drive?

if you use an SD card, (i saw in one post that the Zumo will take an SD card)
do the SD cards empty completely out each time and re-load clean? so far i have only used SD cards for cameras but may begin to use them to store music and use them in other ways as well.

or is there X amount of built-in memory in each GPS unit? OR can you save your routes within the parameters of software apps like Street & Trips?

(sorry if this is straying off topic, don't mean to hijack)
 
I don't save my routes on the SD card as my Zumo 660's internal memory still has plenty of space for routes.

I do save all of my MP3 files on the SD card and they play just fine from there. I have tested saving routes on the SD card and they will work; however, the Zumo typically recalculates the route when the routes are imported from the SD card. This may or may not be a problem depending how many "shaping" points I used to design the route.

Once anything is saved on the SD card, it stays there until deleted. There is no need to clean the card unless you want to start from scratch. Nor does the Zumo ever delete anything from the card.

Every GPS has internal memory; the newer Zumo 66X series has much more memory than the 550 series.

Lee
 
Base Camp routes to Google Earth

I have used the Base Camp feature under the VIEW tab of View map in Google Earth feature successfully to visualize road features. Has anyone found a way to view Base Camp routes in regular Google Maps? I prefer to print them out from Google over Base Camp.
 
{snip}...
3) Microsoft Streets and Trips -- I have begun using the 2011 version recently and have been favorably impressed with its features and its ability to faithfully transfer routes to the Garmin. It allows changing routes by the drag and drop method. The POI database is fairly complete and is DOES have the ability to set stops and define the amount of time to be stopped. It also has some handy sliders to adjust your speed preferences +/- average speed (which I take to be the speed limit value). One of really swell features of S&T is its connection to a national road construction database to find out whether your chosen route will encounter construction. If so, it highlights the part of the route where the construction occurs. This may become my everyday favorite for route planning.

Hold on a minute, Bucko!

Earlier, as I was planning a route to Bloomsburg with MS S&T, I was overjoyed at the results! However, after having been off the grid for a few days, I returned to planning some other summer trips this afternoon and early tonight. Much to my utter disappointment, my New Hampshire routes (Kanc, Hurricane Mtn. Road, etc.) got murdered in the GPX exchange to the Garmin. CRAP! I thought I had found a winner.

I can only assume that my Bloomsburg drag and drop route I chose in S&T followed the natural routing algorithms built into Garmin, and/or that S&T natural routing was out of whack enough that my corrections more sensibly followed a new route. :dunno

Also, in my research, I noticed that BaseCamp creates a version 1.1 GPX (XML) file. However, Google, MapQuest, and S&T output a 1.0 version of the GPX file format. If I create a custom route in BaseCamp (dragging and dropping the auto-routing version) and save it as a GPX file, it creates a huge file with many, many "vias". I created the identical route in S&T using drag and drop to modify the auto-routing, and then exported the new route as a GPX 1.0 file (my only option). It yielded a GPX file with only three vias!

So, jumping to a grand conclusion based on only this minute amount of research, it may be that a Garmin unit (at least mine) needs a GPX version 1.1 schema to preserve a source's exact routing. If anyone knows of another routing program (Delorme Street Atlas USA?) that can export a GPX 1.1 schema file, it would be interesting to see how Garmin would handle that file.

So, that means we're back to the Garmin offerings. Yuck!

None the less, I have become fond of the resources available in S&T when route planning, so I may use it to define the route, then use drag and drop in BaseCamp to match the route and faithfully download it to the N??vi.

Lee200 -- Hope the above (disappointing news) clarifies your first question, and I am using a Garmin N??vi 550.
 
{snip}
(1) do you save your routes on your PC (or MAC) or in an SD card or thumb drive?

(2) do the SD cards empty completely out each time and re-load clean?

(3) is there X amount of built-in memory in each GPS unit?

(4) can you save your routes within the parameters of software apps like Street & Trips?

...{snip}

Rider --

(1) I save my routes (GPX files) on my SD card in the Garmin. Actually, it is a MicroSD card in my N??vi 550. That makes my GPX files easily transportable from device to device and frees-up the built-in memory of the unit.

(2) As mentioned earlier, the card retains files written to it until you delete them.

(3) Yes, the amount of memory differs from unit to unit. You should be able to find out how much memory each unit has by looking up the specs on the Garmin site.

(4) Yes. The various programs store your routes in the software's native format (".est" files in S&T). Exporting the native formats to GPX files is up to you to: (a) create the files and (b) manage the files' storage locations.
 
Thanks Theo for testing MS Streets and Trips. It was worth a try.

Guess we're back to using MapSource. It's a shame really that Garmin doesn't make a GPS model specific version of MapSource which would use the identical routing algorithms as our 550/66X series Zumos. MapSource is written for use by all Garmin models so it's not surprising that each works a little differently.

I've had some success converting Google Maps routes to Zumo routes using this website, but for really complicated routes, MapSource is still the only way to go.

http://www.elsewhere.org/journal/gmaptogpx/

Lee
 
Only because I didn't see it mentioned...

The Harley website has a Ride Planner section that I prefer over any of the others I have tried (Google, MapQuest, Yahoo):

http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/Ride_Planner/Ride_Planner.jsp?locale=en_US

For my summer trip (~10k miles, US only), I plotted using multiple start/stop points and way points, breaking the trip into sections by day/mileage. When I exported to the BaseCamp, all the points were there, and, from what I could tell, all the routes were identical. But...

(ain't there just always a "but"?)

I knew I was going to be using BaseCamp to fine-tune the route, so I was primarily only concerned with the retention of the waypoints and the start/stop points. So things may well have gone a bit wonky. The Zumo is new to me (never traveled with any GPS before), so I'm still figuring things out with it.

When I''m done (any day now!) I'll be able to upload it right back into the Harley ride planner and share it. In theory, all the routes will be the same. I'll let you know how that turns out heh.

imo, you're not going to find a single planning solution that does everything you need. Best case scenario you narrow it down to 2 or 3 things, each of which has something that makes your life and your ride a little easier. Worst case scenario... well... bring your paper maps anyway and you're covered :)
 
Reasons I found why the planned route in Mapsource is calculated differently on my GPS unit:

- I used "shorter distance" on Mapsource but "faster time" on the GPS unit (or vice versa).

- On Mapsource you can define you personal average speed for different types of roads. My GPS unit doesn't have this setup so it maybe different and hence the route may come out differently.

- Setting road/street avoidance feature (no U-turns, unpaved roads,...) may be set different in Mapsource and the GPS unit.

I usually have enough planned way points loaded and I let the GPS do the fine tuning of the route. Going in-and-out of urban areas I usually select "faster time" to avoid little side streets. In the open I usually select "shorter distance" to hit the "scenic byways". Mostly in conjunction with avoid "unpaved roads" unchecked in the GPS unit.

One of the reasons why once at sunset in Kansas in order to reach the state park before darkness I ended up with my front wheel stuck in a corn field. :laugh

/Guenther
 
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