etrex downloading .LOC & .GPX files

[cmarchant]

Does anyone know if you can download .LOC or .GPX files to a Garmin etrex? I do have the cable

[+SpongeRob]

You can't directly download them into the etrex but you can convert them with a few different software packages.

 

I prefer (because I wrote it) the GPI utility. It allows you to simply open the LOC or GPX and import it into mapsource.

 

GPSBabel is another utility that will allow you to do this as well. It has considerably more options to convert.

 

Both programs are freeware. You can download through links found here http://www.keenpeople.com/index.php?option=com_downloads&Itemid=50

 

There are a few others out there I'm sure somone else will pipe up.

 

--

SpongeRob

rwmech@keenpeople.com

www.keenpeople.com

WPWU826

Geocaching Stats

[+quakemap]

Check out this thread in "Getting Started" forums: http://ubbx.Groundspeak.com/6/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=5726007311&f=2016058331&m=55760908

 

QuakeMap will do it for you, as well as many other programs (EasyGPS, GPSBabel, ExpertGPS).

 

http://www.quakemap.com - redefining Easy...

 

[This message was edited by quakemap.com on September 25, 2003 at 09:22 AM.]

[robertlipe]

quote:

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Originally posted by SpongeRob:

You can't directly download them into the etrex but you can convert them with a few different software packages.

---

 

You mention GPSBabel; it may be a manner of semantics, but it CAN do this by itself. It can "convert" a file from .LOC or .GPX to garmin serial protocol, so you don't have to pitstop it in Mapsource or EasyGPS or whatever if you don't want to.

 

Select the output format as "Garmin" and the output files as /dev/tty1a or com1: or whatever your OS calls your serial port, and you're good to go.

[+gnbrotz]

quote:

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Originally posted by SpongeRob:

You can't directly download them into the etrex but you can convert them with a few different software packages.

 

--

Sponge_Rob_

rwmech@keenpeople.com)

http://www.keenpeople.com/

WPWU826

http://www.keenpeople.com/stats/

 

This statement is ABSOLUTELY INCORRECT. You can download either format into the etrex through EasyGPS, which is a free program. No format conversion is necessary.

 

Greg

N 39 54.705'

W 77 33.137'

[+SpongeRob]

quote:

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This statement is ABSOLUTELY INCORRECT. You can download either format into the etrex through EasyGPS, which is a free program. No format conversion is necessary.

---

 

Ok, perhaps I need to clarify here what I said. You can't directly take a LOC and feed it into your Garmin GPS. Easy GPS does the conversion. Based on the original post it seemed clear to me that the requester was trying to do this with mapsource not with EasyGPS. Hense my approach of conversion rather than Using Easy GPS.

 

Ease up buddy.

 

--

SpongeRob

rwmech@keenpeople.com

www.keenpeople.com

WPWU826

[+elmo-fried]

quote:

---

Originally posted by SpongeRob:

quote:

---

This statement is ABSOLUTELY INCORRECT. You can download either format into the etrex through EasyGPS, which is a free program. No format conversion is necessary.

---

 

Ok, perhaps I need to clarify here what I said. You can't directly take a LOC and feed it into your Garmin GPS. Easy GPS does the conversion. Based on the original post it seemed clear to me that the requester was trying to do this with mapsource not with EasyGPS. Hense my approach of conversion rather than Using Easy GPS.

 

Ease up buddy.

 

--

Sponge_Rob_

rwmech@keenpeople.com)

http://www.keenpeople.com/

WPWU826

http://www.keenpeople.com/stats/

 

Not to get to nitpicky, but he just asked if he can get a .LOC or .GPX into his eTrex. Didn't specify the application. It was robertlipe who first mentioned Mapsource. The original poster may not even have Mapsource.

 

For click-n-point ease of use, I'd recommend EasyGPS. For the more "advanced" user, I'd recommend gpxspinner first, then gpsbabel to upload (I have a batch file I use to automate the extraction, gpxspinning, and gpsbabel conversion/uploading of the file).

 

But speaking of Mapsource, I also use gpsbabel to convert to GPX files so I can graphically view them in Mapsource.

 

Jason Roysdon

jason.roysdon.net

[+kd7edh]

I was reading this thread an noticed that you say you can use GPSBabel to convert a .LOC or .GPX to a Mapsource compatible format. I took an .LOC and converted it out into as many different formats as I could get GPSBabel to convert, and Mapsource didn't seem to recognise any of them. Any suggesiton of what I might be doing wrong?

[+JamesJM]

quote:

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Originally posted by kd7edh:

I was reading this thread an noticed that you say you can use GPSBabel to convert a .LOC or .GPX to a Mapsource compatible format. I took an .LOC and converted it out into as many different formats as I could get GPSBabel to convert, and Mapsource didn't seem to recognise any of them. Any suggesiton of what I might be doing wrong?

---

 

Similar things happened to me this evening, only I was trying to convert a .gpx file....it shouldn't matter.

 

I used Babel, (creating a mapsource file), and it created the file but gave it no extension. I renamed the file with a .mps extension and it loaded right up into Mapsource. Good luck.

 

Oh, one other thing, you need the latest version of Babel. - JamesJM

[+Clffhngr]

hi, kd7edh, I use GPSBabel to convert to LOCs and GPX to Mapsource all the time. The first time I had problems was when I forgot to put the .mps on the file name. At first I assumed GPSBabel would add the file extension, but it doesn't (and for good reason).

Since then I have tried editing and adding information to the loc and gpx file before processing and that caused some problems. It could be a bit picky about format. If this doens't help, email me your loc file and I'll try loading it into MapSource and I'll let you know if I have any problems.

 

OOPs just reread JamesJM's post and he said the same thing !!

 

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

[+kd7edh]

Yeah, JamesJM emailed me and we discussed it and found the solution is in the GPSBabel beta version. I was using v1.1.0 and the beta is v1.1.1, but it is the beta version that has the Mapsource capabilities. Once I downloaded the beta version it worked fine.