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Software For 3d View Of Tracks?


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Does anyone know of some good software for viewing recorded tracks in 3 dimensions? Or maybe software that allows you to display the profile view along with the top view of a track? I've been playing around with my new 60CS and I've got several saved tracks that I would like to play with.

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DeLorme's Topo USA (currently at version 5, but v3 or 4 may work for this, too) will do a profile view of any line you make, or road, etc. It will also display a 3D view of an area, allowing you to rotate in space always looking at your chosen point, or view from your point outwards.

 

The map info isn't USGS; it's based on the USGS quads, as well as updated info from a variety of sources. So the maps it generates don't look quite like the standard USGS topo maps, if that's important to you. They have another product (3-D Topo Quads) that IS scanned-in USGS maps. The interface for 3-D Topo Quads is old, but the data itself it completely compatible with Topo USA, so you can use Topo's features with the USGS maps (this is how I do it).

 

Now, DeLorme's software has almost NO provision for managing waypoint or track data. You can add, move & remove anything on the map, but it doesn't generate a list of points to edit, etc. Other apps do this much better. Despite this, I'm a fan of DeLorme products and consider these apps to be a valuable part of my GPS toolkit. Of course, it doesn't help that I'm a map nut/nerd, either, and being able to generate my own maps really kicks you know what.

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I'm a big fan of OziExplorer and its 3D add-on, OziExplorer3D. Ozi can use any map that you can scan in, including USGS DRGs (widely available from many sources, including free download from some sites). It also gives you a lot of control over manipulation of your tracks and waypoints.

 

You can see some examples of the maps I've created with Ozi at this site. Click on the "3D View" downloads to specifically see 3D maps created with Ozi3D.

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Topofusion has some pretty nifty software for viewing and analyzing tracks. You can easily figure out the average grade, do a track playback where you can see the speed you were traveling along with an elevation profile. It downloads topo and aerial photo maps from terraserver. You can check out a trial version at www.topofusion.com I think it's well worth checking out if you like playing with and reviewing your tracks after a hike or ride.....

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Searching ut, I have a quick question regarding Topofusion. I downloaded the trial version, but can't get it to load any topo or photo maps. It tries for a while and then tells me that it is having trouble contacting Terraserver and downloading is discontinued. Am I doing something wrong, or should I try downloading/installing it again? The program looks really neat, and I'd like to use it for a viewing my track after a 12mi hike I have planned in two weeks, going from 8500ft elevation to 10,800ft and then back down to 6500ft.

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