Topo SW and GPS units

[rockclimber_tx]

Question: do any of the GPS units actually show the map relief downloaded from Topo SW?

I can't determine which ones do and which ones don't (if any). I'm currently shopping for mapping GPS units and also Topo SW.

 

Thanks, Mike

[+Alan2]

GPS's only download mapping programs from the manufacturer of the GPS.

 

What's Topo SW?

 

alan

[+shegget]

sw == software

[+dwiener]

I have an Garmin E-Trex Vista, and it can only use Garmins Mapsource Maps. The detail available in their topo maps is not very good. The best software topo maps I have found are the topo maps sold by National Geographic, and while you can transfer waypoints and tracks to and from a GPS using their software, you can't display their map on the gps.

[+embra]

Magellan sells MapSend Topo, which can upload topo detail maps to Meridian and SporTrack GPSrs. I find it to be not too bad, although people complain about accuracy in some parts of the country.

 

Max

Often wrong but seldom in doubt

[+Alan2]

Garmin now has 24K maps based on the NGS quad series for major parks throughout the west but not including Texas yet.

 

See here

 

Good luck.

 

Alan

[+Marky]

quote:

---

Originally posted by embra:

Magellan sells MapSend Topo, which can upload topo detail maps to Meridian and SporTrack GPSrs. I find it to be not too bad, although people complain about accuracy in some parts of the country.

---

In Northern California, the MapSend Topo seems be pretty good. I have very few complains.

 

--Marky

...Be nice to your fellow geocachers, they might be Hemlock...

[+Touchstone]

I'd have to agree that Natl Geog software is the most awesome I've seen. I print maps out for hiking trips from that software for the details and use the GPS for cross-refernce (eMap w/128mb and Mapsource)

 

Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them. The rest go geocaching.

[Bobthearch]

If you buy a Garmin unit, the only maps you can load onto the unit are Garmin MapSource. While the maps don't have great topo line detail, they do have roads, drainages, mines, and many other features.

 

Same thing with the Magellans. The only maps you can actually upload to the GPS are the ones from Magellan.

 

Happy shopping,

Bob

[rockclimber_tx]

Ok, based on what everyone has said, you need to stick with the vendor specific topo software to get elevation details, etc... loaded onto your GPS.

I did notice that Magellan now has a model called "Sportrak Topo"....supposedly has 108mb of topo maps (whole US) preloaded into memory.....is that right? 108mb + 16mb (for other maps). Whoa. I'm not interested in it, but I thought it sounded cool.

 

Thanks, Mike

[+DougsBrat]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Bobthearch:

If you buy a Garmin unit, the only maps you can load onto the unit are Garmin MapSource.

While the maps don't have great topo line detail, they do have roads, drainages, mines, and many other features

---

 

This is not true, for a while now garmin custom maps are being created all over the world to show what ever we want them to.

 

See here and here and here

and lots more discussion in this forum. {search for garmin custom}

 

I have made many for myself and sent them to my vista, emap, and map76s without using a maprource product to do it

 

quote:

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.

 

Same thing with the Magellans. The only maps you can actually upload to the GPS are the ones from Magellan.

 

Happy shopping,

Bob

---

 

Again not true, while I don't use a Magellan I have friends that are finally able to create maps using 2 methods. This is a fairly new development, which is discussed extensivly on a yahoo group called "mapsend_format"

 

With technology evolving so rapidly, never say "never"

 

More rules = Less fun!

[/url]

[+Clffhngr]

A crude line drawing is not a topo map!! And most of those packages will allow you to draw a trail or the outline of "something". You might even be ahead of Lewis and Clark, but to say that you can load Topo maps! NOT ! And from what I read you may need three different software applications, and a great deal of time. I welcome any information that would allow me to load topo maps other then Garmins Topo. Yes if I wanted to plot a trail and load that plot these will work. Draw the outline of a lake, these will work. Load a Topo Map? Please someone tell me how it is done.

 

"It's a dull mind that spells a word one way"

[+Alan2]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Touchstone:

I'd have to agree that Natl Geog software is the most awesome I've seen. I print maps out for hiking trips from that software for the details and use the GPS for cross-refernce (eMap w/128mb and Mapsource)

 

---

 

Check out NG Map X Change to download tracks of trails others have hikes and tracked with their GPS. You then download the track, convert o a route, overlay the waypoints of caches and then print it out. Also, load up your GPS with both the routes and cache waypoints and you can route your way to the cache using others who hikes the trails before. Very neat!

 

Alan

[+DougsBrat]

quote:

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Originally posted by Clffhngr:

A crude line drawing is not a topo map!!

---

Agreed! it takes alot more than lines.

 

quote:

---

And most of those packages will allow you to draw a trail or the outline of "something".

---

Agreed! but there are more ways and combinations than are listed to create the data from different sources. that was what made it hard to learn to make the maps.

everyone making them had thier own approch and choice of tool combinations.

 

quote:

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You might even be ahead of Lewis and Clark,

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way ahead

quote:

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but to say that you can load Topo maps! NOT !

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I never said I can load a topo maps? but I have used them for som detail.

what was said by others was..

quote:

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While the maps don't have great topo line detail

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I get mine from DEM data and convert with one of 3 GIS software to shp files then imported to my maps as elevation contours.

I get SHP files from Gvt water resources which gives me rivers, streams, lakes, county names and shapes, city names and shapes.

POI's are waypoint data that can be found in alot of places.

It makes for a huge amount of data and detail for a map.

 

quote:

---

And from what I read you may need three different software applications, and a great deal of time. I welcome any information that would allow me to load topo maps other then Garmins Topo. Yes if I wanted to plot a trail and load that plot these will work. Draw the outline of a lake, these will work. Load a Topo Map? Please someone tell me how it is done.

 

"It's a dull mind that spells a word one way"

---

another good way is here

 

Technically it is possable!, even if you don't like the result or amount of work it takes ( one leads to the other),

Else GPSr don't work if it is not within 3 cm accurate and drives you there.

 

seriously if you want to learn how, I can give you more links and such, email me.

 

More rules = Less fun!

[/url]

[+Clffhngr]

Rockclimber_tx's orignal post was...

"do any of the GPS units actually show the map relief downloaded from Topo SW? I can't determine which ones do and which ones don't (if any). I'm currently shopping for mapping GPS units and also Topo SW."

 

The answer is yes they do. I have a Gramin Rino 120 and I use Garmin Topo map software to "download map relief" data and the 120 displays its. A friend of mine has a Magellan Meridian and uses the Magellan software to transfer data to her GPSr. It allso displays the map relief. So far she is unaware of any software other than Magellans that will work with her GPSr. I agree with others that have said that the NG topo software is the best. But the maps "can not be transfered" to my Garmin.

 

I have been offroading for a decade. I started with a Garmin 45. We found the best topo paper maps for trails were published by Trails Illustrated. NG now publishes those maps on paper and CD along with their other topo series. While I think they are the best they can not be "directly" loaded into a GPSr.

 

As for Dougsbrats offer to share more links and stuff; Well now that I know he nows about this stuff he may be sorry he shared his email address. Thanks I'll add you to my resource book!

 

"It's a dull mind that spells a word one way"