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Map Source


Guest Ross

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I just purchased a Garmin etrex Legend.

 

How are Map Source Topo Maps. Do they show contour lines, terrain features, grid designators. Can you print hard copies out?

 

I like the idea of having the maps in the Garmin put I would like to have a hard copy to back it up. I have a bit of experience using a compass and topo maps and would like to have them available for a back up.

 

Thanks,

Ross

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Guest Hawk-eye

Mapsource Topo is better than nothing so to speak ... they are not based on the USGS maps ... and are larger scaled ... 1:100,000 vs 1:24,000 .... roads are not always there ... but for getting terrain details on the GPS ... it does the job ... of course you can print them ... but I've found using the Maptech series (USGS maps)much better ... can't load the maps but you can use to manage the waypoints. Much more expensive as well.

 

Hope this helps ...

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quote:
Originally posted by Hawk-eye:

Mapsource Topo is better than nothing so to speak ... they are not based on the USGS maps ...


 

Why do you say they are not based on USGS? They appear to be derived directly from the metric USGS 1:100,000 series of maps.

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Guest Hawk-eye

quote:
Originally posted by peter:

Why do you say they are not based on USGS? They appear to be derived directly from the metric USGS 1:100,000 series of maps.


 

Nope ... they, like a lot of other mapping software are licensed from the US Tiger maps which were compiled by having local communities get the data and send it in. I've seen this posted elsewhere and did a bit more investigation ... because of the costs involved in licensing from USGS ... they went with this cheaper ... way less accurate data ... Garmin even admits it. I haven't checked out Delorme's new version of topo maps ... but their 2.0 sucked just a little less than Mapsource ... If you look close enough you can see some really screwy mistakes ... west of my location in NC ... there is a place or two where the topo lines don't even come close to matching up to the section beside it. Roads that have been in place for over 15 years don't exist on these maps ... some roads that are on USGS maps ... 30 plus years ago aren't on the Tiger series ... and the road actually exists. They really are useful ... but use them for reference ... or you could get in trouble.... besides they by design are the only thing you upload to Garmin. Whatever I'm doing cache hunting ... back packing ... I load the Mapsource maps in my GPS ... but I print out the USGS maps I need with Maptech ... 1:24,000 .... I use Delorme's Street Atlas for route planning on roads ... by the way 8.0 is really a dog ... their new version is suppose to be better ... after trying 8.0 I switched back to 7.0 ... there seems to be a serious bug in the routing function. I'll wait to upgrade until I hear from someone who's tried it .... not getting burned again.

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Guest gstrong1

Ross. Have had the Mapsource Topo & Roads & Recreation software in use for the last 4 months.It will do the job. There's better stuff out there for less money, but this is the only software out there that you can use to load maps into the Garmin as far as I know.I've downloaded tracks from my III Plus,MAP76 & Vista onto the maps & have not seen any huge errors.If you want perfect, you won't find it.I've e-mailed you a rough scanned shot of a printout off one of the Topo maps so you can get an idea of the features.Hope it helps. -Gimpy-

 

------------------

Gary "Gimpy" Strong

Rochester,NY

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i have both garmin topo maps and roads and rec , i like the topo maps up in the mountains, but they burn power, because of detail, and i prefer roads and rec for urban caching, street detail is better.

Just my opinion, your opinion may vary.

Elwood

p.s. its unfortunate that you cant load maps from both sets in the gpsr at one time, unfortunately its an either or situation....something i think garmin should address, after all i bought both sets of maps, should be able to load both in the gpsr if i want to....GARMIN, got anything to say for yourself?

 

[This message has been edited by Elwood (edited 03 September 2001).]

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quote:
Originally posted by Hawk-eye:

Nope ... they, like a lot of other mapping software are licensed from the US Tiger maps which were compiled by having local communities get the data and send it in. I've seen this posted elsewhere and did a bit more investigation ... because of the costs involved in licensing from USGS ... they went with this cheaper ... way less accurate data ... Garmin even admits it


 

No matter what you heard from Garmin or other sources, their Topographic maps can't come from the TIGER data for the simple reason that there is no topography in that database. From the www.census.gov FAQ page:

"The TIGER data does not include topography. This information wasn't needed for

Census Bureau operations. While it might be classed as "nice to have", the

cost of integrating it into TIGER would have been be high. TIGER is not structured

in layers as one might see in a typical Geographic Information System data

base. Therefore one could not simply add a layer of topography to the data

set." They then refer people interested in topography to the USGS data sets - which is where Garmin had to go.

 

The Roads & Recreation maps do indeed come from the TIGER data as well as Magellan's road maps and DeLorme's Street Atlas at least up through rel. 7.0.

 

Magellan's topographic maps appear to combine the TIGER road data with USGS topography data, but Garmin's Topo road data is much more dated and appears consistent with that on the underlying USGS 1:100,000 series from which the Garmin Topo maps are derived.

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quote:
Originally posted by Elwood:

i have both garmin topo maps and roads and rec , i like the topo maps up in the mountains ... p.s. its unfortunate that you cant load maps from both sets in the gpsr at one time, unfortunately its an either or situation


 

You can.

 

You need to load all maps in one MapSource operation, but there's no problem loading some R&R maps along with some Topo so you can use the more current R&R road information to drive to the vicinity and then switch to Topo for hiking. Only data from one map can be displayed on the GPSR screen at one time, but you can have maps from multiple sources (R&R, Topo, MG, W&L, etc.) stored in the GPSR memory and choose which to display based on your preference.

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Guest Cache-potato

I personally like the Garmin mapsource topos. I wouldn't dream of going on a hunt without em. The detail is quite sufficient. It shows me elevation change and streams and anything else that I may want to circumnavigate. (shhh -- I'm lazy)

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Guest Hawk-eye

ze="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:


Originally posted by peter:

You can.

 

You need to load all maps in one MapSource operation, but there's no problem loading some R&R maps along with some Topo so you can use the more current R&R road ......


 

OK ... I bite ... how? I've tried but I must not be holding "my jaw" just right ... any particular process?

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I don't have MapSource here at the moment, but as I recall you select all the maps you want from one CDROM, then insert the other CDROM, choose the right set of maps from the little window on the top line left of the zoom in/out keys and then select the specific maps you want to include from that set. Just make sure you're not over the memory limit for your unit or memory card.

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I don't have my GPS with me so I can't check but I'm pretty sure under these situations only one map will actually display.

 

Now you may be able to load two different maps of the same area. If you want the R&R make sure it is checked on the GPS Setup. If you want the Topo make sure it's checked.

 

I will see what happens when i get home.

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quote:
Originally posted by Haps:

...I'm pretty sure under these situations only one map will actually display.

 

Now you may be able to load two different maps of the same area. If you want the R&R make sure it is checked on the GPS Setup. If you want the Topo make sure it's checked.


 

Yes, this is correct. That is the way I use my III+ and my Legend. I also have both in front of me and have confirmed this to be the case on each one. The best you can do is toggle between the two maps instead of displaying them simultaneously.

 

If you have Topo and Road & Rec maps loaded and they OVERLAP, the display will only show Road & Rec map for the area where they overlap. You may see Topo data flash initially (III+) but in the end you only see the Road & Rec map displayed on your GPSR screen. (Maybe this depends on the order they are uploaded to GPSR? Mine has consistently displayed the Road & Rec map for areas that have overlapped source data loaded.)

 

Even the Legend which has "Show Topo", "Show Road & Rec", and "Show All" options will only display one map set for a given area if "Show All" is selected and different Mapsource maps that overlap are loaded to GPSR.

 

I don't see how else they could have done it when you look close and compare certain roads between the two packages. Not all the roads and features overlay exactly. I don't know why but the fact is they do not always match up 100%. That is probably one of many reasons for the "Land data is provided only as a general reference to your surroundings" disclaimer at GPSR power up. icon_smile.gif

 

[This message has been edited by bridaw (edited 06 September 2001).]

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quote:
Originally posted by Haps:

...I'm pretty sure under these situations only one map will actually display.

 

Now you may be able to load two different maps of the same area. If you want the R&R make sure it is checked on the GPS Setup. If you want the Topo make sure it's checked.


 

Yes, this is correct. That is the way I use my III+ and my Legend. I also have both in front of me and have confirmed this to be the case on each one. The best you can do is toggle between the two maps instead of displaying them simultaneously.

 

If you have Topo and Road & Rec maps loaded and they OVERLAP, the display will only show Road & Rec map for the area where they overlap. You may see Topo data flash initially (III+) but in the end you only see the Road & Rec map displayed on your GPSR screen. (Maybe this depends on the order they are uploaded to GPSR? Mine has consistently displayed the Road & Rec map for areas that have overlapped source data loaded.)

 

Even the Legend which has "Show Topo", "Show Road & Rec", and "Show All" options will only display one map set for a given area if "Show All" is selected and different Mapsource maps that overlap are loaded to GPSR.

 

I don't see how else they could have done it when you look close and compare certain roads between the two packages. Not all the roads and features overlay exactly. I don't know why but the fact is they do not always match up 100%. That is probably one of many reasons for the "Land data is provided only as a general reference to your surroundings" disclaimer at GPSR power up. icon_smile.gif

 

[This message has been edited by bridaw (edited 06 September 2001).]

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