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Help transferring routes to Garmin using Mac

artsnyder

New member
I need help. I am unable to transfer routes and waypoints to my Zumo 220 (It's a Nuvi 550 without Bluetooth apparently) using my new IMac with Mac OS X, version 10.6.7.

I had previously been able to transfer routes using my Microsoft based PC with no problem. However, when I went back to the Microsoft PC, after attempting it on the Mac, I can no longer transfer routes using Microsoft either.

Back to the Mac. When I send a route and waypoints, using Roadtrip, I receive a message that states "data transferred successfully". There then appears at the bottom of the screen the notation, " 24 waypoints and 1 route transferred" which is an accurate characterization of what I attempted to send to my Zumo.

The problem is that I cannot find the route in either "Custom Routes" or "my data" or anywhere else in the Zumo. Interestingly, about 75% of the waypoints are in "Favorites".

I have been corresponding with Garmin Tech Support for about the past two weeks to no avail.

Given that I can no longer transfer routes using Microsoft and never was successful using Mac OS, I'm beginning to wonder if there is something wrong with the device itself.

Any insights would be appreciated. Also, I am a techno idiot, so keep it simple please.

Thanks,
AGS
 
re transfer

I also use Road-trip or base-camp. Both work. I use a Zumo 550 but it should be the same.
After you say send to device and get the message that it was transferred successfully - after you eject the device from the desktop -
you then turn on the Garmin you should get a message that new data is found -
you chose manage data -
and import routes and waypoints -
skip map import -
the routes should be in the routes folder.

If not I'm not sure.
 
I use a Mac and both a Garmin 765T and a Zumo 660, so lets see what we can do.

I have used RoadTrip but have shifted to BaseCamp as it is not quite a quirky and does more than RoadTrip. Additionally, RoadTrip has not been updated since 24 Mar 09 (http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4332). Not sure Garmin is supporting it anymore. BaseCamp's latest update was 17 Feb 11 so it is the latest and greatest for the MAC. (http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4449)

First things first, when you installed the software, there should have been a button or menu item during the installation labeled 'advanced'. This needs to be pushed/checked to install not only the software but also the latest maps. A map incompatibility could be the issue. You can check which map version is in RoadTrip by clicking on the 'currently displayed map' in the upper right hand corner.

The other thing I do, every time, is send the map info from the software to the Garmin. Although some, including Garmin, will say this should not be necessary, I have found it should be done every time just to make sure everything is in sync. To do this, on the Mac tool bar, select RoadTrip, Preferences, Transfer and YES in the far right menu section titled 'Send Maps with User Data'. Then hit Close.

From this point on, when you send stuff to the Garmin, MapInstall will also start. Just follow the prompts to let it do its thing. It will take about a minute extra but, at least for me, it eliminates the problem you describe.
 
+1 to Jim's advice!

As a number of folks will attest to, I have tried just about every software package on my Mac and in my Fusion Windows XP VM for downloading routes to my Garmin N??vi 550. The most reliable has been BaseCamp on the Mac side. I didn't have the problems with the maps that Jim has encountered, but I can't remember how I installed BaseCamp.

Definitely give BaseCamp your focus; RoadTrip is slow and very cumbersome to use!
 
First things first, when you installed the software, there should have been a button or menu item during the installation labeled 'advanced'. This needs to be pushed/checked to install not only the software but also the latest maps.

+10,000 on the "send maps" point. I was in Quebec in 2009 and had to bail out of a weekend trip when the GPS ran out of maps and displayed only the position icon on the blank display. The maps were supposed to be preloaded when it shipped from the factory, but they were not.

That also got me in the habit of carrying an extra GPS on any trip to places I don't know.
 
Base Camp

Using Base Camp seems to be the answer. At least it transfers.

Now: How do I find specific addresses and streets? I can't seem to do that.

Also are there instructions for using Base Camp anywhere? And of course there appears to be no instruction manual.

Again, thanks to everyone for all the help.

AGS
 
BaseCamp Help

As with most software today, instruction manuals either do not exist or are so basic they are of no real value. The real 'instructions' are included in the Help section. The Help section of BaseCamp is fairly well put together.


Open BaseCamp.

On the Mac Toolbar, select 'Help

From the drop down menu select 'BaseCamp Help

Select your item of interest


OBTW, since you are new to Macs, everything will work this way, with a common Toolbar at the top of the screen. Have fun with your new toy. Here endith the lesson.
 
A great forum for Zumo users

You should check out zumoforums.com. It is a good place to get tips and advice on using your Zumo. They have a forum specifically for Mac users.
 
The (partial) answer

The answer according to Garmin, and I have confirmed it, is that MAC OS 10.6 and later reads and displays some mapping, i.e. waypoints, incorrectly and labels them with a non unicode label. (Yeah, I don't know what that means either.) However, the real solution is if a waypoint you have created shows not only the address but adds some strange characters like chinese hieroglyphs, the device won't read it and will not transfer the route or way points.

I was able to transfer a route and waypoints, being careful about weird characters, using Roadtrip. I'm still waiting on info from Garmin about Base Camp.

Again, thanks to all who have given me some excellent help.

Regards,

Art
 
Art,

Thanks for the info. This is one I have not yet seen. I did, however, discover an interesting item today. Prior to the latest map update, 2012.1, as soon as I added my Zumo to the list, I had a set of maps for the 765T and the Zumo, both in BaseCamp and RoadTrip. (Two sets of each) It appeared I had one of each for each unit. When I downloaded 2012.1, all reverted back to just one (one each of all previous versions as well as the current version) in each piece of software. Interesting. Also, if I eject either the 765T or the Zumo with the software running, I get an improper eject warning. I think this may be caused by the software still using the GPS units and not wanting to release them. And finally, I no longer have to do the map transfer when I send stuff to either Garmin. The waypoints and routes transfer lickity-split, almost instantaneously and are visible in the GPS units. It now all works just as I would expect it to. There might have been something in the previous maps that was causing a glitch that they fixed.
 
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