Installed CN2009 with PreProgrammed Card - routing

[+SAPD]

I have City Navigator NT 2009 installed on my computer; it came with my Nuvi 200. I also have a Vista HCx that I would like to put CN on. If I buy a CN preprogrammed card for the Vista can I create routes on the computer since I already have CN and then download them to the Vista?

[roybassist]

I have City Navigator NT 2009 installed on my computer; it came with my Nuvi 200. I also have a Vista HCx that I would like to put CN on. If I buy a CN preprogrammed card for the Vista can I create routes on the computer since I already have CN and then download them to the Vista?

Yes, but the route you get on the unit may not match exactly the one that you got on the computer. This has nothing to do with using the DVD on your computer and the pre-programmed card in your unit.

 

The way Garmin has designed its handheld units, the only thing that gets transferred when you send a route from MapSource to a handheld is the waypoints and map vias in the route. (More about map vias below.) No other information about the route (as in: what streets it used) is transferred to the unit. When the unit gets the route, it does its own calculation of the route from scratch, using the end points and via points and whatever autorouting data is in the unit. The algorithm that calculates routes in the unit isn’t exactly the same as the one MapSource uses, so sometimes you get slightly different routes. In addition, MapSource has some settings that don’t have a corresponding one on the unit (such as preference for highways).

 

This has long been a sore spot for a lot of users, but that’s how it works. Some automotive units which support saved routes do maintain the integrity of routes created in MapSource. These are design decisions by Garmin, for their own reasons.

 

The workaround to get a route on the unit to follow exactly the path you want is to add more waypoints and vias at strategic locations and check the result on the unit by simulating navigation before you actually use it.

 

About map vias: Map vias are similar to waypoints, but are created in MapSource by clicking on a route with the Selection tool. This will cause the route to “rubber band”. You can then drag the route to a location where you want to insert a via (a road you want to take), and click. A map via will be added to the route and the route will recalculate to go through the new via.

 

Map vias have the advantage that they don’t take up waypoint memory, and if you delete the route, they are deleted with it.

[+SAPD]

Awesome response, very informative. I plan to use the Vista on my bike so I can place the vias at specific intersection, allowing me to use the "Dist to Next Waypoint" option. Thanks again.

[gallet]

You can also build the route using maps.google and send it straight to your gps using http://www.takitwithme.com/ click the "Demo Video" link. Could work out well on a bike because you can route it up lane ways or where ever you like.

Edited August 5, 2008 by gallet