Garmin Oregon, Dakota, Colorado -- Custom Raster Map support!

[JDiablo]

Fortunately, there are dozens of screenshots of that very benefit shown (even though many are likely TOU violations) and described in this very thread.

I have added the source to the public domain images I posted above. Hope that clears things up.

How are you guys getting those nice looking color aerial imagery, all I can find are black and white.

Link added to data source in previous post. Edited October 10, 2009 by JDiablo

[seldom_sn]

Remember these maps are NOT routable and it will not make a tracklog.

 

Why? I would have thought you could save a tracklog with NO maps loaded. But I only own a 60CSX, and thus only use vector maps.

[+embra]

How are you guys getting those nice looking color aerial imagery, all I can find are black and white.

 

The real challenge in using a tool like this is finding good sources of data...there's lots out there, but it can be elusive.

 

For Minnesota, try here: http://www.lmic.state.mn.us/chouse/airphoto/index.html

[seldom_sn]

How are you guys getting those nice looking color aerial imagery, all I can find are black and white.

 

The real challenge in using a tool like this is finding good sources of data...there's lots out there, but it can be elusive.

 

For Minnesota, try here: http://www.lmic.state.mn.us/chouse/airphoto/index.html

 

Would be nice if somebody would place a pinned list where folks could post their data sources.

[+fegan]

@ RR

 

As long as the roads on the picture 'connects' to the rest of the tiles it works, as does a layout of for example disneyworld or a busmap.

Basically a tile is a picture.

 

Remember these maps are NOT routable and it will not make a tracklog.

 

These new raster maps are not be routable...but you CAN make a tracklog.

 

Tracks have nothing to do with routable maps. I created a tracklog the first time I used my Colorado 400t, before I got my City Navigator maps.

Edited October 10, 2009 by fegan

[+Red90]

These new raster maps are not be routable...but you CAN make a tracklog.

 

Tracks have nothing to do with routable maps. I created a tracklog the first time I used my Colorado 400t, before I got my City Navigator maps.

 

Let's clarify.... NO raster maps, anywhere, can be routeable. You need vector maps to do that. Using these maps on a Garmin do not affect the routing. If you have routable maps, they still work and still show up with teh raster.

[+Rockin Roddy]

These new raster maps are not be routable...but you CAN make a tracklog.

 

Tracks have nothing to do with routable maps. I created a tracklog the first time I used my Colorado 400t, before I got my City Navigator maps.

 

Let's clarify.... NO raster maps, anywhere, can be routeable. You need vector maps to do that. Using these maps on a Garmin do not affect the routing. If you have routable maps, they still work and still show up with teh raster.

 

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

[JDiablo]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

Must be the steep learning curve I keep reading about.

[Ken in Regina]

Fortunately, there are dozens of screenshots of that very benefit shown (even though many are likely TOU violations) and described in this very thread.

You raise a good point about terms of use, Robert. It's probably worth clarifying.

 

1. Using Google Earth and Google Maps images is almost certainly a violation of Google's terms of use and the map providers' copyrights. Scanning images from commercial maps (paper or onscreen) might be a violation of copyright (check the fine print). Posting screenshots here which contain those images is almost certainly a violation of Geocaching.com's terms of use.

 

2. Using images that have been made publicly and freely available and using Google's calibration function to calibrate them for use in your handheld is fine. Posting screenshots of those efforts here is also okay.

 

Is that about right?

 

...ken...

Edited October 10, 2009 by Ken in Regina

[robertlipe]

Obligatory IANAL reminder, but my read is pretty close to that of Ken in Regina's.

 

It's not just "Google Earth" and "Google Maps", but any provider of licensed data where you have to be careful of respecting that license - and that's true whether it's online or paper. If the terms allow reuse, great! In the U.S., most of the government-collected data is available for use under very liberal terms. (This is why, for example, a U.S. Explorist with a Tiger-derived basemap costs a LOT less than an Aussie Explorist that contains a licensed basemap that has to be purchased at a high cose.)

 

I'd say that screenshots of the "see what I did" or educational/tutorial nature are probably "fair use", much like quoting from a book while reviewing it fine. It's not like you're going to capture one of the above files from the forum here and actually find it useful for navigation.

 

Publishing a KMZ of freely available data is great. Publishing a KMZ that's of data you don't have perission to redistribute? That would clearly a derived work (converting from Geotiff to JPG is a mechanical transformation - just like selling VHS copies of a Hollywood DVD) and that would be bad.

 

So between "great" and "bad" there are predictable shades of grey.

[+JetSkier]

Here's a question for everyone ... If the imagery in GE is copyright material and re-using is illegal, why does GE have a "Save Image" command built into the program? Wouldn't using that "built-in" command be in violation of the license agreement?

 

JetSkier

[ZeMartelo]

The other and its major is that putting the cursor on a waypoint (like a geocache) does not popup a tooltip box with the cache name.

 

Am I the only that has this problem?

Just checking.

[+fegan]

The other and its major is that putting the cursor on a waypoint (like a geocache) does not popup a tooltip box with the cache name.

Am I the only that has this problem?

Just checking.

No, you're not...I had the same problem. Just one more reason I removed the 3.02 beta.

[Ken in Regina]

Here's a question for everyone ... If the imagery in GE is copyright material and re-using is illegal, why does GE have a "Save Image" command built into the program? Wouldn't using that "built-in" command be in violation of the license agreement?

 

JetSkier

You would have to read Google's terms of use for that product to answer your own question.

 

Without using a lot of imagination it's not hard to think of a variety of things you could do with "save image" that would fit "fair use" in any reasonable Terms Of Use. Only a read of Google's terms of use for Google Earth will tell you specifically about that product.

 

As an example, given that you can look at that image via Google Earth any time you please, it's not unreasonable to assume the terms of use might allow you to save an image to look at offline or perhaps combine with some text and print out in, say, a trip planning document, for your own personal use only.

 

...ken...

[robertlipe]

Here's a question for everyone ... If the imagery in GE is copyright material and re-using is illegal, why does GE have a "Save Image" command built into the program? Wouldn't using that "built-in" command be in violation of the license agreement?

 

JetSkier

I was actually going to cover that specific case and offer examples, but I got tempted by a yummy dinner and cut it short. If we get past the generic and delve into the specific case of Google Earth, we have specirfic words we can look at.

 

The pertinent license text seems to be "The geographical information made available for display using the Software is provided under a nonexclusive, non-transferable license for printing and use only by you. Any animations, movies, prints or screen outputs generated with the Software are for your use only. You may not use the Google Software in any manner that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair Google's services (e.g., you may not use the Google Software in an automated manner), nor may you use Software in any manner that could interfere with any other party's use and enjoyment of Google's services. " and "[ thou shalt not ... ] , (iii) use the Software to access, copy, transfer, transcode or retransmit content in violation of any law or third party rights, or (iv) remove, obscure, or alter Google's copyright notices, trademarks, or other proprietary rights notices affixed to or contained within or accessed in conjunction with or through the Software. "

 

'Save as' by a human user is fine; it's controlled by the software itself and the software can throttle and/or pay royalties as needed. Once you have that image, the above says using it for your own use is probably fine. I'd have to chase through the "third party" rights clause to be sure.

 

Fulfilling Red90's request in post #31 would be bad. Redistributing KMZs that have such imagery would be bad.

 

Mine isn't the final word on this. But if you grab your local park and copy it to your GPS I don't expect black suburbans to be dispatched to your home. (Key words: "personal use".) If you write a tool that pulls all of CA or captures the Appalachian Trail and then put a KMZ of that on the web for your hiking site, you shouldn't be surprised if you receive some extra attention.

[dug-it]

Must be the steep learning curve I keep reading about.

If it's too steep, make sure you have a GPS with an altimeter.

[+Red90]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

 

Normally when you load maps, they are all turned on at the same time. If you want specific ones one, you go into the map setup. Different model do this in different ways.

[+1bertoc]

Have a Oregon 550 and when I enable or disable the CostumMaps in settings/maps it affects all profiles and not only the one I'm in. Anyone else have this problem too?

[+ryan3295]

How are you guys getting those nice looking color aerial imagery, all I can find are black and white.

 

The real challenge in using a tool like this is finding good sources of data...there's lots out there, but it can be elusive.

 

For Minnesota, try here: http://www.lmic.state.mn.us/chouse/airphoto/index.html

 

Thanks, the aerial imagery is great!!

[+jevgeny]

How can to make automatic this job?

Experienced GE, Global Mapper, SASPlanet, enything cannot make prepare .kmz file and to assemble this.

I had overlayed a 70 tiles *.jpg and created map my city in GE, only the 1 district. This was very sad.

[+Rockin Roddy]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

Must be the steep learning curve I keep reading about.

 

Funny you say this, when I explained this to a group of friends yesterday at an event, I got a lot of "HUH" and "DUH" looks. Then, when watching a friend trying explain to a newb how to use her newly bought OR 400t (simple use processes), my friend (who owns a 550t...and has for a few months) had trouble helping and, since I have owned an OR 300, and asked alot of questions and such, was glad I was there to help. Wanna talk about steep learning, the newb owner AND the friend explaining it BOTH were at a loss, the newb kept saying "well, the manual sure wasn't of any help" and the friend was so surprised at the help I gave...she was very happy and kept "high-fiving" me.

 

Should have seen the looks on the two's faces when I talked them through the wireless transfer....

 

I have serious doubt aerial imagery, scanned maps etc will be used by these two for some time if ever. Made me glad I had the avalability and ease I have with my device, truly. I doubt very much if I could figure out this new map potential...easily at least!

 

So yes, the learning curve of the OR series seemed a bit too steep for a few of us at that time! And to go back to the comment at hand, no, I never did figure out the layer thing and was a bit turned off (OK, a LOT turned off) when I had to keep enabling the routing maps and then switching to eable the topo...some of you may remember this?

[+Rockin Roddy]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

 

Normally when you load maps, they are all turned on at the same time. If you want specific ones one, you go into the map setup. Different model do this in different ways.

 

Am I reading this to say that you must specify which map you want and when? In other words, my having to turn on and off the roting maps when I wanted them instead of the topo maps was the norm?

[+TotemLake]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

Must be the steep learning curve I keep reading about.

You had the other thread locked before I could respond. I think your decision to go the Oregon 550 is a good choice. Particularly now that it supports aerials. Good luck on your mission! Be safe and come back home in one piece.

[+Red90]

http://earth.google.com/support/bin/answer...mp;answer=21422

 

Seems clear to me that I can use the images for my own use on my own GPS.

[+Red90]

Am I reading this to say that you must specify which map you want and when? In other words, my having to turn on and off the roting maps when I wanted them instead of the topo maps was the norm?

 

This thread is about the raster imagery. It does not interfere with the use of the routable maps. If they are turned on at the same time (the default setting), they are visible and the unit will route with the raster visible.

 

Please stay on topic......

[+Rockin Roddy]

Am I reading this to say that you must specify which map you want and when? In other words, my having to turn on and off the roting maps when I wanted them instead of the topo maps was the norm?

 

This thread is about the raster imagery. It does not interfere with the use of the routable maps. If they are turned on at the same time (the default setting), they are visible and the unit will route with the raster visible.

 

Please stay on topic......

 

Sorry if you saw it as off-topic, I sometimes think aloud. Knowing what I went through with map changing, I wondered how it worked here as well, so I would say my mumblings were on topic and THANKS for answering my concern.

 

I believe asking when not knowing the answer is still acceptable?

[JDiablo]

Having never figured out how to "layer" the maps on my OR 300, is this covered anywhere so I can direct my Garmin friend to the right location if she needs help?

Must be the steep learning curve I keep reading about.

You had the other thread locked before I could respond. I think your decision to go the Oregon 550 is a good choice. Particularly now that it supports aerials. Good luck on your mission! Be safe and come back home in one piece.

First off, I have nothing bad to say about the PN-40 or DeLorme, I really wanted it to work for me but it wasn't in the stars at this time. I think for 99.9%+ users it will be just fine. I'll check back when I redeploy and see where they are next spring.

 

Looking forward to seeing where Garmin will go with this after they get some user feedback. Thanks for this thread and everyone's help.

Edited October 11, 2009 by JDiablo

[+JetSkier]

Have a Oregon 550 and when I enable or disable the CostumMaps in settings/maps it affects all profiles and not only the one I'm in. Anyone else have this problem too?

Yup ... just verified that my OR 300 does the same thing.

 

JetSkier

[+Timpat]

Have a Oregon 550 and when I enable or disable the CostumMaps in settings/maps it affects all profiles and not only the one I'm in. Anyone else have this problem too?

Yup ... just verified that my OR 300 does the same thing.

 

JetSkier

I see the same thing with my CO 300. I'll send a note to the beta forum.

[+g-o-cashers]

The custom map enable/disable setting does seem to be global, not profile specific. I've sent it off to Garmin.

[+Maingray]

OK, hopefully the last "this is cool" with images post =)

 

Planning our state's annual "Fall Fling" event in a NC state park, ... how cool is having the local trail / building map of the park on the unit???! Took me about 10 minutes, and free source.

 

 

Sweet.

[+Timpat]

The already mentioned tracklog line... its too big and cumbersome, keep it thin and black.

The other and its major is that putting the cursor on a waypoint (like a geocache) does not popup a tooltip box with the cache name.

I also noticed when putting the cursor over a waypoint, cache, OR feature like roadway, the popup ID ability is gone with 3.02 beta on my CO 300. This and the thick purple tracklog line are issues to be addressed.

Edited October 12, 2009 by Timpat

[Tomas4x4]

The already mentioned tracklog line... its too big and cumbersome, keep it thin and black.

The other and its major is that putting the cursor on a waypoint (like a geocache) does not popup a tooltip box with the cache name.

I also noticed when putting the cursor over a waypoint, cache, OR feature like roadway, the popup ID ability is gone with 3.02 beta on my CO 300. This and the thick purple tracklog line are issues to be addressed.

 

I have also noticed that contour lines are painted rather differently in 3.02: they used to be thin dark red/brown lines intermixed with thin black lines for every 100ft. In 3.02 they are thick black lines only.

 

I liked the original ones way more, the bold ones are overpowering. I guess they work fine when you are in Kansas City but not so well in the mountains with 24k map. Map countours should not be THAT prominent. I have even went back to 3.0 because of this (and purple tracklog line). I hope they will either go back to how it used to be or introduce a choice for this (not holding my breath though ).

[azzieg]

Guys,

 

You may want to try my free on-line GeoTIFF -> Garmin KMZ converter:

 

http://mizar.astronet.pl/~azzie/tif2kmz/

 

It's pretty rough and experimental at the moment, but it works for me :-)

 

Also the future of the tool is unclear as further development will depend on users interest. But at least I'll try to keep it on-line for some time so people can say whether it helps them or not.

 

And do you think it would make sense to develop a desktop version of the tool?

[+bikercr]

I've been dieing to get this one out. Garmin releases a beta to support custom raster maps on newer Garmin models.

 

Details are here:

 

http://www.gpsfix.net/custom-raster-maps-g...akota-colorado/

 

Beta links

 

* Oregon 300/400 (can't find this one yet!)

* Oregon 550/550t (beta 2.51) http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4671

* Dakota 10/20 (beta 2.2) http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4669

* Colorado 300/400 (beta 3.02) http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4667

 

Release notes for all are the same:

 

* Added support for Garmin Custom Maps. See our blog post about this new feature at

http://garmin.blogs.com/softwareupdates/trail-tech/.

* Report problems with this beta to TrailTech@garmin.com

Have you been able to get this to work on a Colo 300? The update was successful (according to "Software Version") on mine but changed nothing. No option to enable custom maps and no way to view kmz file. I've tried to overwrite/reinstall but no go.

Edited October 12, 2009 by bikercr

[+Red90]

Have you been able to get this to work on a Colo 300? The update was successful (according to "Software Version") on mine but changed nothing. No option to enable custom maps and no way to view kmz file. I've tried to overwrite/reinstall but no go.

 

Yes, works fine. Are you following Garmin's instructions?

[pratzert]

OK, hopefully the last "this is cool" with images post =)

 

Planning our state's annual "Fall Fling" event in a NC state park, ... how cool is having the local trail / building map of the park on the unit???! Took me about 10 minutes, and free source.

 

 

Sweet.

 

Well I'll certainly admit that "That Is Cool ! "

 

Care to make a little step by step on how you did it for those of us who are a little slower ?

[+fegan]

Care to make a little step by step on how you did it for those of us who are a little slower ?

Garmin has already provided one:

http://garmin.blogs.com/softwareupdates/2009/10/index.html

[+bikercr]

Have you been able to get this to work on a Colo 300? The update was successful (according to "Software Version") on mine but changed nothing. No option to enable custom maps and no way to view kmz file. I've tried to overwrite/reinstall but no go.

 

Yes, works fine. Are you following Garmin's instructions?

I followed the instructions precisely. I even did a hard reset and started over. There's no option listed under setup-->maps to enable or disable custom maps. When I reinstall the update, nothing happens--probably because the install programs see the upgrade already in there.

[+JetSkier]

Have you created the "CustomMaps" folder on your GPS and added your KMZ files?

 

JetSkier

[+fegan]

I followed the instructions precisely. I even did a hard reset and started over. There's no option listed under setup-->maps to enable or disable custom maps. When I reinstall the update, nothing happens--probably because the install programs see the upgrade already in there.

There won't be an option under Setup>Maps for custom maps.

 

While you're viewing the Map, press the Left button for Options, highlight Select Map, hit Enter (the Center button on the R'n'R wheel) and you'll see a list of available maps...check the ones you want to use, uncheck the ones you don't want to use.

[+splashy]

Is it only me, on the 550 the track is not shown as a track on a custommap, only as a straight line?

[+bikercr]

I followed the instructions precisely. I even did a hard reset and started over. There's no option listed under setup-->maps to enable or disable custom maps. When I reinstall the update, nothing happens--probably because the install programs see the upgrade already in there.

There won't be an option under Setup>Maps for custom maps.

 

While you're viewing the Map, press the Left button for Options, highlight Select Map, hit Enter (the Center button on the R'n'R wheel) and you'll see a list of available maps...check the ones you want to use, uncheck the ones you don't want to use.

I may have misunderstood before. Now the kmz map I created and installed doesn't show up. I have it in \garmin\CustomMaps on the SD card. I had to create that directory. It wasn't created by the install. If I put the map in the main memory, still doesn't show.

 

From Garmin website:

Once saved to the device, the Garmin Custom Map will appear as part of the map. By default, Garmin Custom Maps are enabled on the device, but can be disabled under the Map Setup menu (select Map Information).

Edited October 12, 2009 by bikercr

[+Dog Knows]

I may have misunderstood before. Now the kmz map I created and installed doesn't show up. I have it in \garmin\CustomMaps on the SD card. I had to create that directory. It wasn't created by the install. If I put the map in the main memory, still doesn't show.

 

From Garmin website:

Once saved to the device, the Garmin Custom Map will appear as part of the map. By default, Garmin Custom Maps are enabled on the device, but can be disabled under the Map Setup menu (select Map Information).

 

I have a Colorado 300. After installing the update and following the directions I have a similar situation to yours. I have noticed the following: If I combine jpegs into one .kmz file, nothing shows on my unit. If I put each jpeg as a separate .kmz into the CustomMaps folder, they will show up. However, in the Select Maps window on the GPSr, they aren't labeled as Custom Maps, but as a second Basemap. The images can be turned on or off by selecting or deselecting the second Basemap entry.

 

As for the new look of the track, I actually prefer it to the thin black line. Without reading glasses, I have great difficulty differentiating the black line from contour lines and other map features. Most often, I am not in a situation where I want to dig out my reading glasses.

[+splashy]

Did you georeference these jpg's in Google Earth?

Combining tiles, even with designs or pictures works.

Edited October 12, 2009 by splashy

[+g-o-cashers]

Is it only me, on the 550 the track is not shown as a track on a custommap, only as a straight line?

 

This is a bug on the Oregons (I haven't tried on the DK or CO). For me it only happens if I have a lot of active custom maps but I can reproduce it like this:

 

1) Enable custom maps and goto the map page

2) Select a map point that falls on the custom map (not a waypoint) and start to navigate to this point

3) Zoom in or out

4) The tracks and waypoints will disappear on the map page although the tracklog starts to come out as a straight line

 

Canceling navigation gets the unit back on its feet. With certain maps loaded this is 100% repeatable (and I've sent it to Garmin).

[savant9]

I have had a similar problem as others on my CO 300. After building a .kmz and placing it in a CustomMap folder on the sd card, I was not able to get it to show up in the automotive profile, after switching to a different profile it was suddenly there. Trying to toggle it on off, it was not listed, but there are 2 instances of WW DEM Basemap NR listed. Toggling the last entry of the basemap seemed to turn it off and on. I decided to try it again this morning, and the custom map would not show at all under any profile. After selecting clear current track, the map showed up yet again. I still cannot get it to show on my automotive profile if the display is set to automotive mode, but if set "Track Up" it will display. I guess it doesn't know how to skew the image.

[+Dog Knows]

I still cannot get it to show on my automotive profile if the display is set to automotive mode, but if set "Track Up" it will display. I guess it doesn't know how to skew the image.

It won't show up in automotive mode on my Colorado 300 either. I assumed the same as you, that it can't create a perspective view using the custom image.

[+g-o-cashers]

I still cannot get it to show on my automotive profile if the display is set to automotive mode, but if set "Track Up" it will display. I guess it doesn't know how to skew the image.

It won't show up in automotive mode on my Colorado 300 either. I assumed the same as you, that it can't create a perspective view using the custom image.

 

The Oregon and Dakota behave the same way in automotive map orientation. You don't see the custom map unless you are in track up or north up orientation.

[+bikercr]

Despite an apparently successful install, my kmz file in \garmin\CustomMaps in either main or card, or in \garmin alone, won't show up anywhere--on the map or in the select maps list. Also, there's no setup>maps>map information.

 

Reinstalls haven't done anything (including hard reset, redownloads, etc.). Any solutions? What do you think, g-o-cashers?

 

One more thing--although I downloaded the 3.02 beta update off the Colorado page, when I start the install program it says: "Welcome to the Dakota software update. This program will guide you through updating your Oregon software." Yet, the program box state: "This update contains Colorado System Software update 3.02 beta".

 

Is this just a typo, or is the download completely screwy?

Edited October 12, 2009 by bikercr