Magellan Explorist Questions

[+dino_hunters]

I'm thinking of gettgin an explorist 600 , and have some questions. I hope someone can help. I've read the manual, but still have some questions.

 

I know the internal memory can only hold 500 waypoints. If I have a poi file on an sd card, can it have more than 500 pois in it?

 

What are the file extensions used by the magellan explorist? GSAK outputs a poi file with a .UDT, while expertgps puts one out with a .WPT They seem to have the same ascii text structure, but just different file name extensions. which is the right one?

 

Is there a limit to how many geocaches can fit in a geocache file?

 

Is it possible to copy a poi or route file from the internal memory to the sd card, and back, without using a computer?

 

thanks

[+embra]

I know the internal memory can only hold 500 waypoints. If I have a poi file on an sd card, can it have more than 500 pois in it?

500 is the limit per POI file, but you can have as many files as you want. You can only have one POI file active at a time.

 

What are the file extensions used by the magellan explorist? GSAK outputs a poi file with a .UDT, while expertgps puts one out with a .WPT They seem to have the same ascii text structure, but just different file name extensions. which is the right one?

The regular POI files have a .upt ending, while the Geocache POI files have .gs as an ending. I'm a little rusty in my ExpertGPS conventions; it may be that .wpt is the ending for the MapSend waypoints (a different format than the .upt files). However, if the ascii does match up then it is more likely that ExpertGPS slaps the .wpt ending for the Magellan SD card format, which is identical in format structure (just different file name endings).

 

Is there a limit to how many geocaches can fit in a geocache file?

Yes, only 200 per file. Again, as many files on SD card as you want, but only one file active at a time. You can have 1 .gs file and 1 .upt file active at the same time.

 

Is it possible to copy a poi or route file from the internal memory to the sd card, and back, without using a computer?

I am 95% sure you can do this, but I haven't actually done it myself and I can't easily find how to access the process. I've stumbled across it several times, I think. I'll poke around a little more, but maybe someone else can confirm this.

[+EScout]

Embra covered everything here. In regard to moving or copying files, yes, you can do this from the SD card to the internal memory, or from internal memory to SD card. This means that in the field, you can hand your friend your SD card, he can put it in his eXplorist, copy the file to his internal memory, and use the file. This applies to waypoint (POI) files, geocache files, track files and route files (route files are separate on the explorist, not combined wtih waypoints like in the Meridians.)

 

There is plenty of room in the internal memory to hold hundreds of these files (assuming you keep your map files on the SD card.)

 

Another neat thing, is that in the field, if you create a waypoint, you can save it in any waypoint (POI) file on your SD card or internal memory. You can then copy this waypoint to other files.

 

At any one time you activate one waypoint (POI) file and one geocache file. This means that all the points from these files show on the map. When you do a waypoint search or save, it defaults to these files. However, you can search for a waypoint or geocache point in any file (not just the active ones), and set a goto to that point.

 

You can create new folders on both the SD card and internal memory. You can store your files by category under folders you name.

[+dino_hunters]

what about file extensions for route files or track files? again expertgps is giving routes a .wpt and tracks a .trk is this right.

 

And, fyi, I checked the ascii, and its matching up, I just think expertgps is giving different file extensions.

 

Also, is there any advantage to having geocaches in separate files from POIs?

thanks

[+mikeatnight]

I like having my POI's seperate because on my other GPS's when I uploaded a new file the old one would be lost. I lost several poi's that I had marked because I would sync my GPS and it woud overwrite them. Now when I upload my geocaching files they are seperate from my POI's