The tutorial explains how to work with the GNIS data using the GPSFileDepot program. However, after I processed it using that tool, I ended up with very few points. Today I manually downloaded the GNIS data for the state of Washington and holy macaroli, it shows a whole lotta more points in GM. So, I take it that the processing cut out some points. I was wondering what is the manual process of conversion for the GNIS points, so I can recreate the WA map with the proper GNIS points?
Where most points are lost is because I think the files it downloads have less points in general than downloading them all individually.
This is the points I keep:
Case "airport"
gnistype = "0x2F04"
Case "arch"
gnistype = "0x6601"
Case "area"
gnistype = "0x6602"
Case "arroyo"
gnistype = "0x6501"
Case "bar"
gnistype = "0x6502"
Case "basin"
gnistype = "0x6603"
Case "bay"
gnistype = "0x6503"
Case "bench"
gnistype = "0x6605"
Case "bridge"
gnistype = "0x6401"
Case "canal"
gnistype = "0x6505"
Case "cape"
gnistype = "0x6606"
Case "cemetery"
gnistype = "0x6403"
Case "church"
gnistype = "0x6404"
Case "cliff"
gnistype = "0x6607"
Case "crossing"
gnistype = "0x6406"
Case "damn"
gnistype = "0x5500"
Case "falls"
gnistype = "0x6508"
Case "gap"
gnistype = "0x660B"
Case "hospital"
gnistype = "0x3002"
Case "island"
gnistype = "0x650C"
Case "lava"
gnistype = "0x660E"
Case "locale"
gnistype = "0x640A"
Case "mine"
gnistype = "0x640C"
Case "park"
gnistype = "0x640E"
Case "plain"
gnistype = "0x6610"
Case "populated place"
gnistype = "0x0D00"
Case "range"
gnistype = "0x6611"
Case "rapids"
gnistype = "0x650E"
Case "reservoir"
gnistype = "0x650F"
Case "ridge"
gnistype = "0x6613"
Case "school"
gnistype = "0x2C05"
Case "slope"
gnistype = "0x6615"
Case "spring"
gnistype = "0x6511"
Case "summit"
gnistype = "0x6616"
Case "swamp"
gnistype = "0x6513"
Case "tower"
gnistype = "0x6411"
Case "trail"
gnistype = "0x6412"
Case "tunnel"
gnistype = "0x6413"
Case "valley"
gnistype = "0x6617"
Case "well"
gnistype = "0x6414"
If the type equals whats after the case then I assign it that MP_TYPE.
If there is something specific you want to keep let me know and I'll add it to the processing.
I am not sure what I did wrong because this is the gnis file I found online (ftp://www.ecy.wa.gov/gis_a/geonames/gnis.zip) which contains a lot of detail. When I open the zip file and open the gnis.shp file in GM, It shows tons of GNIS points all over the state. However, when I used the tool to generate the GNIS points using the gpsfiledepot tool, it gave considerably less POIs. See the attached images. The gnis_detailed.png is not yet processed and hence does not show the names etc. The gnis_low_detail is the one which I used earlier.
There are about 66 feature types in the GNIS. Some of them are not very useful. None of them are a complete (nor up to date) inventory of the feature.
I'll download that file after I run errands but as maps4gps pointed out a lot of the gnis points serve no real purpose on a topo map. So I don't include them because they're not on Garmin's maps and don't appear that often on 24k paper topos.
I dunno if this will help you at all. If you go to http://geonames.usgs.gov/domestic/download_data.htm you can select your state and download a file with all POI data in that state. Or I think it is all the data, not sure. But most of the poi data at any rate. So I made a program for myself that converts that file into a format that the gnis2gpx converter on this site can process. You can download the util here:
http://www.shadowsprite.com/files/utils/gnisPrep.7z
You will need 7-zip to unpack it. Also, it includes the source code and a readme with instructions. I dunno if this helps you at all, but there you go.
Edit: You can also use a program called GPXtoPOI to convert it to GPX once it has been processed by my util.
Edit Again: Never mind that about GPXtoPOI, it was a terrible lie. It expects a slightly different format.
Quote from: krellor on February 05, 2009, 01:55:50 PM
I dunno if this will help you at all. If you go to http://geonames.usgs.gov/domestic/download_data.htm you can select your state and download a file with all POI data in that state. Or I think it is all the data, not sure. But most of the poi data at any rate. So I made a program for myself that converts that file into a format that the gnis2gpx converter on this site can process. You can download the util here:
http://www.shadowsprite.com/files/utils/gnisPrep.7z
You will need 7-zip to unpack it. Also, it includes the source code and a readme with instructions. I dunno if this helps you at all, but there you go.
Edit: You can also use a program called GPXtoPOI to convert it to GPX once it has been processed by my util.
Edit Again: Never mind that about GPXtoPOI, it was a terrible lie. It expects a slightly different format.
That is the file my program grabs. Although I'll have to update the program again because I see they changed the date again.
This means that if you want those other points they're being dropped because they don't meet my criteria so we have to change the criteria.