PC mapping software help

[+user13371]

Would you please confirm that Survey description for my copy of Topo8?

Sorry, I don't have the VM with my copy of Topo 8 loaded on my Mac today. I'd have to pull it off of the backup. But you could open that KML snippet I posted in Google Earth (free), or translate the KML file to GPX using GPSBabel (free). Topo 8 is able to import GPX.

 

Or... you could just plug each of the coordinate pairs in my code snippet into your copy of Topo 8. I was just playing, but would you like to see how close I got to parameters seldom_sn decribed?

Edited June 14, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+user13371]

...you disdain the photo imagery?

I'm not disdaining it -- Grasscatcher and I are just both pointing out that while useful, it's not an essential element for the original inquiry.

 

As for using aerial views for "wow" factor to help make a sale -- I wouldn't use DeLorme's library for that. Yes, it's cool that you can get imagery to display on your PN-40 for most places. But you're limited to what's in their library, and you have to download it "blind" first before you can even look at what you got, and them it might not be useful for sales/presentation work. For a salesman's purposes, for almost any place in the world (including RI) there's a huge amount of aerial imagery available that can be seen and down-loaded faster and more easily than from DeLorme's subscription servers, from a variety of online sources.

 

And if you're gonna flip back to saying the PN is best for this job because it can load aerial imagery onto the GPS, so can many of Garmin's current models -- using EITHER their Birdseye subscription service OR that wealth of other imagery available online. You can use alternate imagery source with the PN-series with the optional purchase of XMap, but with Garmin you just need the previously mentioned (free) Google Earth.

 

And finally, you're assuming Bud's a big time realtor with a huge budget to make big deals, so package price (one of the PN-40's most attractive feature to me) becomes a lot less important. If he's trying to impress clients, there are flashier models he could buy. Maybe an (expensive!) Oregon 550 -- which can display imagery and take geotagged photos on the spot, too

 

Look, I'm more interested in solving puzzles like the OP's "how can I do this?" question. You seem more interested in using this thread (or any discussion) to promote your favorite GPS. I just don't think the original inquiry - or your efforts - make a compelling case for one brand over the other. Garmin and DeLorme both make products that would do the job.

Edited June 14, 2010 by lee_rimar

[39_Steps]

Would you please confirm that Survey description for my copy of Topo8?

Sorry, I don't have the VM with my copy of Topo 8 loaded on my Mac today. I'd have to pull it off of the backup. But you could open that KML snippet I posted in Google Earth (free), or translate the KML file to GPX using GPSBabel (free). Topo 8 is able to import GPX.

 

Or... you could just plug each of the coordinate pairs in my code snippet into your copy of Topo 8. I was just playing, but would you like to see how close I got to parameters seldom_sn decribed?

No problem. I guess I must have confused East and South in trying to apply your written description of the closing vector last night. Topo8 worked just fine in projection, but the polygon did not close to the starting point. Probably an error on my part.

 

Edit: Seldom_sn's original coordinate points, which I thought had been generated by Lee,

did no close the polygon, at least as I perceived the direction of the last vector to be.

 

Lee's coordinate points derived from the original description by seldom-sn and arbitrarily placed, showed up in Antarctica in a Delorme Topo import. Perhaps it is better if someone hires a surveyor as suggested by the OP.

Edited June 14, 2010 by 39_Steps

[+myotis]

I have not read all the posts on this thread, but one time I did something simular to what the OP asks about. A friend wanted the boundaries of her property on her Colorado GPS. She had the plat maps which had sections. So I was able to figure boundaries by sections. So I used ExpertGPS to draw the boundaroes by following section lines (the USGS maps had the section lines). I then used freeware to make a Garmin map and transfered it to her GPS. It worked great. The boundaroes would generally show within 50 feet of a fence line.

[+user13371]

... the polygon did not close to the starting point. Probably an error on my part.

Or mine . I wasn't sure I did it right to begin with.

[+coggins]

What are the limitations on a free/unregistered copy of Global Mapper? I've not been able to get it to work under CrossOver on my Mac.

When you demo the Global Mapper software you get evaluation registration that allows full usage for a limited time (maybe two weeks, depends on how well they like you?), after that I'm not sure. Registering on their forum will get you a discount on a license purchase. Can't comment on CrossOver, I have a dual boot system and have Microsoft Windows 7 installed on a dual Xeon Mac Pro and it works quite well.

 

REQUIRED FTC DISCLAIMER: Windows 7 software provided free of charge by Microsoft.

[+coggins]

I was just playing, but would you like to see how close I got to parameters seldom_sn decribed?

Here's your .kml example with Global Mapper @ 2.5K:

 

GM opens the .kml file, loaded some public domain imagery for the composite image. Exported the raster data to a geotiff, the vector data to a shapefile and all can be loaded into xMap Professional or even exported as a composite .kmz for use on a compatible Garmin or with BaseCamp.

Edited June 14, 2010 by coggins

[+user13371]

That's what mine looked like in Googe Earth, thanks. I'd like to see how DeLorme's & Garmins's subscription imagery compares to Google Earth and the public domain imagery for the same exercise.

[Grasscatcher]

... the polygon did not close to the starting point. Probably an error on my part.

Or mine . I wasn't sure I did it right to begin with.

 

Lee,

Download the free trial of ExpertGPS (if you don't already have it) and do that exercise.

 

Go to the starting point and create a waypoint, right click on it an choose "project waypoint", plug in bearing and distance and also and "move to point". It creates a waypoint at each corner and lists it with exact coordinates. (for the exact distance and bearing specified)

It "closes" perfectly, no hand drawing of a "polygon" with drawing errors, no guesswork. The coordinates are absolutely correct.

 

Display it over Topo map or aerial photos, save it as gpx file for transfer to-----

 

Picking points off of Google earth or APs the coordinates are as likely to be wrong as they are to be correct due to georeferencing errors which vary area to area and amount.

[+coggins]

That's what mine looked like in Googe Earth, thanks. I'd like to see how DeLorme's & Garmins's subscription imagery compares to Google Earth and the public domain imagery for the same exercise.

I also use Google Earth quite a bit, it's a good tool. Of course with Global Mapper and others, you can load any imagery you might have at hand. I've thrown some DEM into the picture and generated some contours @10' to be able to assess flood risks for the parcel:

 

Or zoom out for a 2M view and use imagery from this morning:

 

Or adding current radar:

Edited June 14, 2010 by coggins

[+user13371]

...Download the free trial of ExpertGPS (if you don't already have it) and do that exercise.

"Sorry, ExpertGPS is not supported on Mac OSX..." I'll try it this evening and see if it runs in CrossOver.

 

Picking points off of Google earth or APs the coordinates are as likely to be wrong as they are to be correct due to georeferencing errors which vary area to area and amount.

I think this is a yes and no?

 

Absolutely right: If the aerial photo from Google or any other source isn't georeference correctly, my points and lines aren't going to overlay on the right parts of the image.

 

But -- if I establish one GOOD starting point by coordinate (independent of the photo, from notes in the deed or elsewhere), and draw lines by hand in Google Earth -- the coordinate points I come up with for each corner drawn by hand are likely to be good enough for loading into a hand-held GPS.

 

I'll run the exercise in ExpertGPS as you described -- and see how closely letting the program calculate it comes to my free hand drawing. Unless coggins or someone beats me to it and posts their own results.

Edited June 14, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+user13371]

Veering only slightly off-topic: The closest I've had to come lately to doing this kind of exercise in real life is in an ongoing discussion with Portland's urban renewal program. I live one on of our city's quaint "unimproved roadways." There's money available within the next few years to pave some but not all of them -- and they're trying to select which ones.

 

The biggest question on our street is if paving would require widening the city's right-of-way. As laid out now, it's 45 feet -- but if they want sidewalks and planting strips on each side, the city says they need 60 feet.

 

EVERY discussion, in person or email, with the folks running this thing includes the phrase "...without the benefit of survey..." and as they try to tell us which trees we may or may not lose to this project.

 

Without the benefit of survey, it's more properly called "guessing." Which is what anyone is doing with ExpertGPS, Google Earth, or a handheld GPS. Until someone plants (or recovers) the benchmarks, everything is an approximation.

[Grasscatcher]

Sometimes "project Gurus" speak "without benefit of brain...."

 

Contact a local surveyor or the city/county GIS office and find out where the closest survey control point to your area is. Either get the accurate coordinates from them or physically visit the site and record your own.

I'm sure the city will have an official plat that you can get a copy of to work from.

[+user13371]

...I'm sure the city will have an official plat that you can get a copy of to work from.

The official plats are available online here. By my reckoning, the current right of way stops (not surprisingly) within inches of where the concrete pad of my driveway meets the gravel of our unimproved roadway. I don't need the benefit of survey to know that taking enough off of this side of the road for sidewalks and a planting strip will lose a nice tree from our lot. And my neighbors lose most of theirs, too. Not to mention moving some utility poles back from the (new) right of way, closer in to folks' yards.

 

I kinda like our unimproved roadway, though I admit it would keep the dust down if they paved it. I just don't think we need a sidewalk on both sides of the road. The other side of the street there's plenty of room for one without taking out trees or moving poles. But that's drifting even further off topic

[+coggins]

Unless coggins or someone beats me to it and posts their own results.

Unlikely me with ExpertGPS, as a rule I tend to avoid any software with "Professional" or "Expert" in the title and "ExpertGPS Pro" pretty much has both. I've added some images above.

[Bigbudman]

Bud,

 

I have no idea what kind of info comes from the deeds you mention, but I was able to do what you are attempting. Well, at least for my county in Alabama.

 

Lucked up and found this local GIS info site: http://webgis.stclairco.com/flexview/

 

That view has a property line overlay on top of aerials, but the viewer gives coordinates in a X/Y format. Had no idea how to use that format with the Delorme Topo. It was either here or at the Delorme forums but someone showed me that the Delorme software could be set to accept this specific coordinate data.

 

I thought that was pretty wild that Topo 8 would have such a specific coordinate option (Eastern Alabam type), but it did. To check the accuracy I got the XY coords for my property corners from that GIS data site (written down on paper) and set up Topo 8 for that format and set waypoints at those coordinates. Then I transfered those WP's to my PN-20. Took it out and checked how close I could get to two of my known property cormers. Both were less than 30' off the actual cormer stakes (steel rods I set after our orignal land survey).

 

That was as far as I took it, but I was impressed.

LOL,

I've created a monster! Thats very cool, I have a local GIS site online> I think doing the test run at home makes good sense. Thanks for the info.

Bud

[Bigbudman]

All of the resultant data can be intuitively transferred to a DeLorme PN-40, as one might expect.

What, you don't need a cable and software? This must be the new model

 

If I understand what the OP is trying to do -- get precise locations from old records that don't handily (intuitively?) convert into present-day coords, and put those onto a mapping handheld GPS -- it seems like some of the suggested options may be a bit over-complicated and expensive. I'd want a little more info before I tossed out suggestions.

 

For starters: How old are some of these town records, and where are they?

 

Hi,

the records are plat maps of recorded lots of record. Property lines, but without coordinates. In a urban cul de cas, not a problem. My land tends to be in the middle of other huge tracts of land. I have some great suggestions so far. The deed records sound like this" A line starting a the southern most part of the stonewall commonly know as Toms farm, to a point....." Not exactly high tech back then.

Thanks again for taking the time to look at all this.

Bud

[Bigbudman]

Hi,

I have a Etrex H, but I think its going back to trade up for the Delorme.

 

Consequently, it Bbm follows up with the upgrade to a DeLorme PN-XX, also in the box is a certificate to download a sample of the aerial photo imagery.

With the photo imagery and Topo USA 8.0, I've prepared an example of something that he might want to do:

http://mapshare.delorme.com/Consumer/V.aspx?p=spnyhzy4

Being very intuititive to use, it took me less than 5 minutes after the application booted up.

Within my PN-40 connected, it would take less than two minutes of keystoking and clicking to transfer.

This would be after a preceeding two minutes of similar to create a "Draw Layer" with the waypoints and periphery to transfer.

 

Note:

1. Being local, I have the foreknowledge that it is a single property; therefore, the borders are obvious as they follow city streets on three sides and a single family housing tract to the north.

2. The red pushpin waypoints are independent of the orange border (polygon tool) which is the basis of the Topo 8.0's area calculation of 10.88 acres.

3. Walking the property, another set of waypoints can be recorded on the PN-40 and easily transferred back to Topo 8 and popped back on the map.

 

Outside of that, it's been a real struggle.....

 

Wow,

Looks very nice.

Thank you for taking the time to help me with this.

Bud

[Bigbudman]

But you didn't describe the starting point, right? The drawing part is easy. I thought Bud's original problem was finding the starting points that were hard to reach on foot.

 

Re: Survey - wouldn't that be required to confirm the boundaries regardless, prior to any sale?

 

 

You are correct.

[+Team CowboyPapa]

 

Outside of that, it's been a real struggle.....

 

Wow,

Looks very nice.

Thank you for taking the time to help me with this.

Bud

You, are quite welocme, Bud, and I appreciate the appreciation.

 

If you make that aquistion, there is a forum here with helpful, knowledgeable participants:

http://forum.delorme.com/

 

And some Wiki sources:

http://pn-series.wiki.delorme.com/

http://delormepn40.wikispaces.com/

http://pn-series.wiki.delorme.com/Getting+Started

[+user13371]

Download the free trial of ExpertGPS (if you don't already have it) and do that exercise.

Wow, when the TopoGrafix folks say "not supported on the Mac," they really mean it. Couldn't run it ExpertGPS or even EasyGPS under Crossover

 

But I'll concede the point that ANY software that lets you project waypoints should ultimately be faster than drawing by hand as I did. The example seldom_sn gave was easy - but if I had to do more lines over a larger area I can see how it would get very tedious.

 

Been years since I looked at MacGPSPro, maybe I should re-visit...

Edited June 15, 2010 by lee_rimar

[Bigbudman]

"what ELSE do you want to do with it, and what's your budget? " THAT is the big question! (But you still don't need no stinkin' maps or aerial photos...Ha !)

Actually, what has been overlooked is from the first post:

I'm a realtor that sells big tracts of land.

 

Got it now?

He is a big time realtor and all his gizmos like the Caddies and Benzes that realtors drive are tax deductible.

The budget of a PN-40 is squat and just a little chunklet of what he will eventually pay the professional surveyor, which are also tax deductible. 10-4?

So, go back and look at that multimillion dollar piece of commercial property that I outlined on my DeLorme provided aerial photo imagery, all 10.88 acres. Now he is going to worry about the cost of a PN-40 as he works on a sales contract? Sheesh! It's like a flyspeck on the offer sheet.

 

And you disdain the photo imagery? Anybody seen a real estate ad, brochure, anything without a photo?

Wanna' double check me? Gotta' Sunday paper with a real estate section still handy? Any photos there? Sheesh?

Real estate marketing without photos? How absurd!

 

So, we all get mired down in the minutiae and lose track of the BIG PICTURE, yes the BIG PICTURE.

And that is the WOW factor of showing the big time property investors the aerial photo imagery as a sales tool.

 

OK, folks, enough of the BIG TIME REAL ESTATE REALITY of REALTORS and back to muddle and wallow in the minutiae.

 

LOL,

you were close. 2005 F150, only buy american. Land is 1.2 million. Sits next to Fidelity Investments Campus.

Here is the physical location to google. 60 Hanton City Rd, Smithfield RI

The road was abandoned 50 years ago, the trail you see in the google photo is a horse trail. I made it half way with the F150 and it got too narrow. I will hike in this week once I figure out at least one corner. You are correct about images, I do Google maps of all my city commercial properties already. Of course those are simple to find. I will scan a copy of the plat map i'm using if that will help.

Again thank you all very much!

Bud

[+Team CowboyPapa]

LOL,

you were close. 2005 F150, only buy american. Land is 1.2 million. Sits next to Fidelity Investments Campus.

Here is the physical location to google. 60 Hanton City Rd, Smithfield RI

The road was abandoned 50 years ago, the trail you see in the google photo is a horse trail. I made it half way with the F150 and it got too narrow. I will hike in this week once I figure out at least one corner. You are correct about images, I do Google maps of all my city commercial properties already. Of course those are simple to find. I will scan a copy of the plat map i'm using if that will help.

Again thank you all very much!

Bud

Roger that....American rides, abandoned roads and horse trails.

Going to Kelly Point, an overlook on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River:

http://forum.delorme.com/viewtopic.php?f=1...85&start=15

[Bigbudman]

http://www.smithfieldri.com/gis.htm

 

Ok, im getting closer.

[Bigbudman]

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/49.pdf

 

Ok, here is the plat map lot 95 in one of the lots.

[Bigbudman]

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/48.pdf

 

Lot 2, connects to first lot.

Edited June 15, 2010 by Bigbudman

[+user13371]

http://www.smithfieldri.com/gis.htm

Their viewer app is pretty slick.

 

Lazy sort that I am, I'd hit the contact link on their page and ask if the data sets you're after (lot boundaries and such) are downloadable in any additional formats besides PDF plat maps. Would save you time, especially if you need more than just those two lots. I've done that before: Asked our county parks & rec department if they had any of the country's hiking trails available online -- within an hour someone from their GIS dept emailed me the whole trail network as a KMZ file.

Edited June 15, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+coggins]

I do Google maps of all my city commercial properties already. Of course those are simple to find. I will scan a copy of the plat map i'm using if that will help.

Do you use Google Earth at all?. You can add a plat map as an image overlay. Mark corners and load those to your current GPS. If you feel the need to have the map in a GPS, the overlay can be saved as a .kmz file and sent as a Garmin Custom Map to many of their mapping handheld GPS units like their Colorado, Oregon, Dakota, GPSMAP78 or GPSMAP62 series, or to clients and sales associates to be displayed in Google Earth.

 

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/49.pdf

 

Ok, here is the plat map lot 95 in one of the lots.

 

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/48.pdf

 

Lot 2, connects to first lot.

They do not appear to be abutters.

 

Here's a quicky example that was thrown together that could stand to be aligned/registered better, but you should be able to find the properties in any case:

[Bigbudman]

I do Google maps of all my city commercial properties already. Of course those are simple to find. I will scan a copy of the plat map i'm using if that will help.

Do you use Google Earth at all?. You can add a plat map as an image overlay. Mark corners and load those to your current GPS. If you feel the need to have the map in a GPS, the overlay can be saved as a .kmz file and sent as a Garmin Custom Map to many of their mapping handheld GPS units like their Colorado, Oregon, Dakota, GPSMAP78 or GPSMAP62 series, or to clients and sales associates to be displayed in Google Earth.

 

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/49.pdf

 

Ok, here is the plat map lot 95 in one of the lots.

 

http://www.smithfieldri.com/platmaps/48.pdf

 

Lot 2, connects to first lot.

They do not appear to be abutters.

 

Here's a quicky example that was thrown together that could stand to be aligned/registered better, but you should be able to find the properties in any case:

 

Hey, thats very cool.

Thanks

[+myotis]

Actually, what you want is pretty simple with ExpertGPS. You could do it in about 10 minutes if all you want is the boundaries on your Etrex as a track:

 

Save pdf as a jpg.

 

Open Jpg in ExpertGPS

 

To line up the map you need the lat and long of 3 points on the map. The easiest way to get this is open City Navigator in MapSource. Find three intersections on the map and get their lat and long from mapSource.

 

Once you align the plat map in ExpertGPS with the 3 lat and longs, use the track tool to draw a track around the boundaries.

 

Send the track to the GPS.

 

You can also do it with GoogleEarth-but it is harder.

 

EDIT: First thing you need to do is make sure the photo set is alligned properly-find an intersection in mapsource and cat and past the lat and long into GE. Use the history function to find photos where the intersection is in the right place.

 

First align the plat map in GE as an overlay. (I have always had lots of trouble getting maps to align in GE).

 

Once it is aligned, trace the track, save it as a KML file

 

Use GPSbable to covert it to mapsource and then send the track to your GPS from mapsource.

 

Another option is if you can get the plat maps from the city as shapefiles (they surely have them that way since it is the GIS department) you can use freeware to convert the shapefiles into a vector map. This would be FAR superior to the custom maps someone pointed out above and it would work on your etrex. For someone who knows what they are doing, it would be pretty simple and take about an hour to get the whole town on your GPS. However, if you do not know what you are doing, it could take days to figure it out.

Edited June 16, 2010 by myotis

[+coggins]

Gosh Jim, somebody mentioned getting the shapefiles back in post#77. You're really missing the point. This guy isn't looking to be a cartographer, he's looking to move real estate. I don't think a vector map is going to do him much good with his eTrex H as you are implying with your post, and not many eTrex H owners are likely to have City Navigator. Not to mention that the quality of the data isn't going to be

all that

for a plat map, vector or raster. It's not survey quality data.

The whole point was to be able to find the lot in the field, not to spend weeks, months or years learning the fine art of

Cartography

. Look, I only spent 3 minutes clipping that graphic from the GIS site and placing it in Goggle Earth. I could have spent a few more minutes to align it a little better but the plat isn't very accurate. I could have been in the JEEP and off to show the lot faster that you could get a response from the GIS dept. were I in the area. In fact I don't need to be in the area, that's what cooperating brokers are for. I could just email the .kmz file to them and let then take it from there. Could probably close escrow faster than someone without any experience getting and learning the software you are recommending. In the real world time is money.

Having a "FAR superior" vector map made from inaccurate data in a format that is of no use to anyone except one's self is just a joke.

[+user13371]

Gosh Jim, somebody mentioned getting the shapefiles back in post#77.

And just to be clear - I was looking for the LAZY solution.

 

LAZY: Find the easiest approach. Even the quick rough draft coggins did -- starting with a bitmapped graphic and then spending much more time to nudge, stretch and skew it into an almost correct alignment? Too much fiddly work for me. The more precise, detailed but time-intensive method the mouse-eared bat suggests? Nah.

 

IF you can get the data in a format that EASILY and directly can be converted to trackpoints you can drop into the GPS - that's my way to go. That happened in the example I mentioned, when Portland's GIS department sent me all of their trails network as a KMZ file. I would NOT have wanted to align the available PDF maps. Bud might be able to get that kind of help from Smithfield's GIS department, or he might not. If he can't, and as coggin's suggests he doesn't want to learn too much about cartography, best he's gonna come up with is a "good enough" map on his GPS for hiking purposes.

 

And that IS what he said he wanted to do: ... transfer routes and coordinates to the gps for the on foot portion of my search ... would love to combine my work with hiking..... A completely different exercise from creating a perfect map, or sales materials, or closing documents.

Edited June 16, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+coggins]

Gosh Jim, somebody mentioned getting the shapefiles back in post#77.

And just to be clear - I was looking for the LAZY solution.

And to be clear, I would rather have those to work with even though their accuracy and resolution would be questionable.

[Bigbudman]

I would like to thank all that replied to my request. I'm heading up to the lot this weekend to see what I can come up with. The GIS data was helpful, the aerial photos coupled with all the other data will give me a solid area to work with. I have learned a great deal form all that have posted.

Have a great week!

Bud

[+myotis]

The ExpertGPS and GE solutions are pretty quick and simple.

 

However, the shapefile solutions (if available would be the best thing for an Etrex)

 

If they have polygon shapefiles for the parcels all that is basically required is;

 

1) Drop the shapefile into gpsmapedit and do not have a label field.

 

2) Select all, convert to polyline (gives you the boundaries)

 

3) Drop the shapefile into gpsmap edit again and slect the parcel number as the label.

 

5) Compile the img file.

 

6) Use mapset toolkit to install in mapsource.

 

7) Use mapsource to send map to Etrex.

 

Then he has the entire town on his GPS. And he does not have to buy anything and he always has what he needs.

 

Here is a screenshot of what I did with some Tiger Census data:

 

 

I made and had this map on my GPS in less than 15 minutes. The black lines are the boundaries and the number is the track-block. If you did this with parcel shapefiles you would have black lines as the borders and the parcel number inside FOR THE ENTIRE TOWN.

 

Gosh Jim, somebody mentioned getting the shapefiles back in post#77. You're really missing the point. This guy isn't looking to be a cartographer, he's looking to move real estate. I don't think a vector map is going to do him much good with his eTrex H as you are implying with your post, and not many eTrex H owners are likely to have City Navigator. Not to mention that the quality of the data isn't going to be

all that

for a plat map, vector or raster. It's not survey quality data.

The whole point was to be able to find the lot in the field, not to spend weeks, months or years learning the fine art of

Cartography

. Look, I only spent 3 minutes clipping that graphic from the GIS site and placing it in Goggle Earth. I could have spent a few more minutes to align it a little better but the plat isn't very accurate. I could have been in the JEEP and off to show the lot faster that you could get a response from the GIS dept. were I in the area. In fact I don't need to be in the area, that's what cooperating brokers are for. I could just email the .kmz file to them and let then take it from there. Could probably close escrow faster than someone without any experience getting and learning the software you are recommending. In the real world time is money.

Having a "FAR superior" vector map made from inaccurate data in a format that is of no use to anyone except one's self is just a joke.

[39_Steps]

I would like to thank all that replied to my request. I'm heading up to the lot this weekend to see what I can come up with. The GIS data was helpful, the aerial photos coupled with all the other data will give me a solid area to work with. I have learned a great deal form all that have posted.

Have a great week!

Bud

Give our regards to the Smithfield, RI, High School valedictorian who gave such a great speech today that ABC evening news wrapped up the time slot with it. (Definitely on topic.)

[+coggins]

Here is a screenshot of what I did with some Tiger Census data:

 

 

I made and had this map on my GPS in less than 15 minutes.

Hate to sound like a critic but I'm not seeing either lot on this map. Can you pan over to Rhode Island and show us the lots in question?

[+myotis]

No I cannot, this is Tiger Census data. The entire country is broken down into blocks. You can download the census blocks as shapefile polygons. I don't have the shapefiles for the plots in RI. So I showed a map of census blocks to demostrate what you were saying about what could be done with the shapefiles was wrong. I posted it to demostrate what could be done if he could get the plots in shapefiles. If I had shapefiles with the plots I could have all the plots in the entire town on a map in about 15 minutes. They would have a black line at the boundaries and the plot numbers in the center of the plot (it would look like the screen shot I posted). IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING, it is real simple to do this and it can be done with freeware. The maps will work on any garmin that can display a map.

[+coggins]

So I showed a map of census blocks to demostrate what you were saying about what could be done with the shapefiles was wrong. I posted it to demostrate what could be done if he could get the plots in shapefiles. If I had shapefiles with the plots I could have all the plots in the entire town on a map in about 15 minutes.

That's a lot of "If"s. As more that 15 minutes has passed, you're saying that you don't have the data, and therefore can't make a vector map of the parcels, and figured you would just toss something else up in it's place? You seem to be making my point for me.

[+myotis]

coggins

 

I seem to be missing your point-what is it?

 

I've told him 3 ways he can get the data he needs on his GPS (including one which will result in him always having what he needs on his GPS for any future plot). Your solution requires him to get a new GPS (which will take longer than 15 minutes).

[+user13371]

Your solution requires him to get a new GPS (which will take longer than 15 minutes).

Myotis, the OP said he IS planning to get a new GPS, regardless. The fact that there are many ways to create waypoints and tracks to load on his eTrex H - or just about any Garmin or DeLorme model he might buy to replace it - was discussed many, many posts back.

 

It WOULD be interesting to see if you can find/convert shapefiles for the plats he wants; whether it takes 15 minutes or more.

Edited June 18, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+myotis]

lee rimar,

 

I agree. That is why I fail to understand the point coggins is trying to make.

 

I'm not going to track down and see if I can get the shapefile, but if the OP wants to (being local they are likely to be more responsive to him), I would take the 15 minutes and make the map for him. And to be clear, this would get the plots for the entire town - not just the ones he needs now. He would have every plot he needs in the future already on the map. With the Garmin Custom Map/Google Earth method, he has to create a map and load it on the GPS every time he needs a new plat. That is why I indicated this would be the best solution if they have polygon shapefiles.

 

Am I correct that the DeLormes cannot do what I did with the census shapefiles (i.e., convert a polygon shapefile into a transparent overlay that shows the boundaries of the polygons and identifies the ID of the polygone)? There is likely not much demand for doing something like this with plat maps, but this process works quite well for landownership maps.

[+user13371]

Myotis, I think you must have skimmed this thread pretty lightly before posting. Every thing you're suggesting and asking about (getting data in various formats, using ExpertGPS vs Google Earth vs DeLorme, etc...) has been talked out before you came in.

[+TotemLake]

lee rimar,

 

I agree. That is why I fail to understand the point coggins is trying to make.

 

I'm not going to track down and see if I can get the shapefile, but if the OP wants to (being local they are likely to be more responsive to him), I would take the 15 minutes and make the map for him. And to be clear, this would get the plots for the entire town - not just the ones he needs now. He would have every plot he needs in the future already on the map. With the Garmin Custom Map/Google Earth method, he has to create a map and load it on the GPS every time he needs a new plat. That is why I indicated this would be the best solution if they have polygon shapefiles.

 

Am I correct that the DeLormes cannot do what I did with the census shapefiles (i.e., convert a polygon shapefile into a transparent overlay that shows the boundaries of the polygons and identifies the ID of the polygone)? There is likely not much demand for doing something like this with plat maps, but this process works quite well for landownership maps.

It can be done with DeLorme although imagery overlays will need to be accomplished with XMap. If it's a shape file in TXT or GPX format, then it can be imported into Topo.

[+user13371]

Even without XMap, couldn't you just take a set of tracks and copy them to the draw layer? It may not be a "proper" map, but if all one wants is the plat lines it'd be good enough.

[+Team CowboyPapa]

Even without XMap, couldn't you just take a set of tracks and copy them to the draw layer? It may not be a "proper" map, but if all one wants is the plat lines it'd be good enough.

10-4, did I not show essentially that back around post #25 of this thread?

http://mapshare.delorme.com/Consumer/V.aspx?p=spnyhzy4

Yes, I understand that when such a simple, succinct solution does not meet one's prior, preconceived prejudices, that it can be overlooked in the intervening 70 posts.

 

Well, it just goes to show you, what comes around, goes around.

[+TotemLake]

Even without XMap, couldn't you just take a set of tracks and copy them to the draw layer? It may not be a "proper" map, but if all one wants is the plat lines it'd be good enough.

Yes, but I was responding to the image overlays question. Simply put, the Topo/XMap software is pretty flexible at what you want to do. There is a learning curve to gain some influence over the more advanced featues (heck I'm still learning), but once you get it figured out with the amazing help you can gain from the DeLorme Community forums, you're limited by your imagination. I haven't had to touch a secondary map program since using Topo and downloaded imagery with the PN-40. It just isn't needed. With the Magellan, I was flipping between MapSend, Google Earth, and Topo.

[+user13371]

... did I not show essentially that back around post #25 ...?

Yep! We're already into reruns on this thread. Courtesy of one mouse-eared bat who came in around post 80 and feeling a need to "explain" things we had already beaten to death days earlier.

 

At the risk of treading new ground that might veer away from Bud's original intent: If you're using Mac OS or Linux and don't want to go to the effort/expense/overhead of installing Windows in an emulator, using Topo or XMap isn't really an option. The tiny, insignificant, and and perhaps deluded minority who refuse to join the Wintel hegemony are not able to fully partake in the joy of using DeLorme products.

Edited June 19, 2010 by lee_rimar

[+TotemLake]

... did I not show essentially that back around post #25 ...?

Yep! We're already into reruns on this thread. Courtesy of one mouse-eared bat who came in around post 80 and feeling a need to "explain" things we had already beaten to death days earlier.

 

At the risk of treading new ground that might veer away from Bud's original intent: If you're using Mac OS or Linux and don't want to go to the effort/expense/overhead of installing Windows in an emulator, using Topo or XMap isn't really an option. The tiny, insignificant, and and perhaps deluded minority who refuse to join the Wintel hegemony are not able to fully partake in the joy of using DeLorme products.

Well, these are choices people make which then limits them to decisions they need to make and the same is true regardless of the technology you choose be it PC, MAC, DeLorme, Garmin, Lowrance, Magellan, etc.

[+user13371]

For the subject at hand, I'd say choosing a DeLorme imposes more limitations than choosing an operating system.

 

Choose DeLorme? Use DeLorme's software, DeLorme's maps, and maps you can make yourself** with DeLorme software. And if that's all you need, these are great GPS & software packages for the money.

 

Choose Garmin? Use Garmin's software and maps -- or choose from a wide array of 3rd party tools and maps others have created. If you do choose to roll your own, they're easy to share -- as evidence by the number of open-source, crowd-sourced map repositories available.

 

Somewhere else, I mentioned that I'm a Mac user in the USA who also happens to travel outside North America regularly. While I can't expect every company to cater to such a tiny demographic* -- Garmin does and DeLorme doesn't.

 

Still off topic though; should split this off into another thread. Does a realtor in Rhode Island really require routing in Rangoon? Nah....

 

---

* I'd estimate this is at best 2% of the total USA consumer market for GPS; probably less. Most optimistic estimate is a 10% market share for Mac, and only 22% of US citizens even have passports. But not every Mac user or international traveler is a potential Garmin or DeLorme customer.

 

** Maps you make with DeLorme's software are licensed for your own use only, and are keyed only to GPSRs you connect to your own computer when creating/transfering the maps. That's why you don't see DeLorme compatible maps on gpsfiledepot or other online sources.