Is there any way to use the excellent map files from this site on an Android device?
I would really like to use the Arizona topo on my android tablet. I do have a Garmin GPS, but the screen is so small that it is easy to lose context. I have found many android map apps and some are quite good but they won't use the Garmin format maps. Yes, they have many nice maps, but none compare to the topo maps from this site.
Some suggest Oryxmaps, but it seems that no one can actually get that to work and even the developer claims that he has no idea how to view Garmin maps.
I would think that whoever created these Garmin maps could create another format that could be read by more apps.
Thanks for considering this and many thanks for the great maps on this site.
I looked into this a couple years ago because I make my own maps and was hoping for a large screen device with better features than the Nuvi series. I was ready to buy an Android tablet if I could find decent software but I couldn't, so I gave up on the idea.
There are two basic types of maps - raster and vector. Garmin uses the vector format: it is just a database that contains coordinates and instructions about how to connect them. Raster based maps are actually pictures that are shown the screen. I could not find any Android software to support my vector maps, even in formats other than Garmin. I started a thread on the topic here and nobody had any suggestions.
But that was a couple years ago. This post from BobT says Orux can read .img files, so maybe he can help? http://forums.gpsfiledepot.com/index.php?topic=3806.msg21667#msg21667
Just looked at the Orux manual and page 16 says it can use unlocked .img files but there are no details: http://www.oruxmaps.com/oruxmapsmanual_en.pdf
Orux and Locus have some support for Garmin maps in img format. I think it is only presentation of a map and not a good one. I haven't tried recently, maybe support is improved.
For road map you can try Garmin viago. With some limitation it can use free maps.
For generic vector maps I suggest OsmAnd. It has tools to create maps from OSM data, it shouldn't be difficult to convert mp source to OSM, but I haven't seen tools yet.
It is worth checking Seven Ways: http://en.navikey.org/
As I understand, there are tools to compile Garmin mp maps to native 7-ways format. I haven't used this program nor tried its tools.
Last time I tried, Orus was all I saw. It works, but not on all maps and is not very well designed.
Well, I tried Orux on the Arizona topo. The results were terrible. I did get it to display but the map is so coarse that it is hard to even recognize familiar areas. And the trails are not even placed correctly. An inaccurate maps is worse than no map at all.
I use the Alpinequest app mostly for hiking. It has many maps available but none that are as good as the Arizona topo map on this site. If you do try Alpinequest, try the USAtopo and the OSM maps with contours. Those are the best maps I have found for hiking.
Again, I would hope that the mapmakers would provide these excellent maps in a more open format.
I imagine they work fine on the Montarra Android device.
You could go to the map page here and in the "Search By Map Features" section, place a check next to "Garmin Custom (Imagery)"
http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/maps/
These maps are just .kmz files - Google's standard for raster imagery. They can contain satellite photos, scanned paper maps, USGS maps, etc. I posted a number of them here myself a few years ago. Since most of the Android apps use raster imagery, I suspect they can be imported directly.
If not, then it should be relatively straightforward to convert. They are just a bunch of .jpg files plus location information in a zip archive. If you change the file extension from .kmz to .zip you can examine the contents.
EDIT: Just to be clear, this is the kind of map I'm talking about:
http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/maps/view/245/
Quote from: Indrid Cold on December 10, 2014, 01:10:41 PM
imagine they work fine on the Montarra Android device.
Too bad Garmin doesn't offer their Android app for other hardware, like the streetpilot and ViaGo apps that mimic the Nuvi. :D
To my knowledge Orux is the only App that will display Garmin map files and utilize the .typ file. I make ATV trail maps and they look great on Orux and my 8" tablet. I have tried a Topo and there was too much clutter.
Below is a link to download my files and instructions on how to install my maps on Orux. This download also included an "onlinemapsources.xml" file that gives you access to all of the Google and Bing maps that you can cache. In Orux's settings menu their is a "Global Settings\Maps\Garmin Map Settings" where you can tweak the Garmin settings.
http://www.mediafire.com/download/gl3xhsm9kaqms96/OruxMap_ATV_Trails_and_Instructions.zip (http://www.mediafire.com/download/gl3xhsm9kaqms96/OruxMap_ATV_Trails_and_Instructions.zip)
There is another great App called BackCountry Navigator that a LOT of people in the ATV hobby are using. It does not display Garmin map images but it does display tracks like I make extremely well.
Boyd - Thanks this might be useful for some things. But my primary goal here is to get the Arizona topo from this site on my Android and that map is not available as KMZ.
BobT - Thanks, I did find your directions and that is how I got Orux to display the Arizona topo. Yes, it did have many labels that were annoying, but it also did a poor job at rendering and some trails were so far off that they showed up on the wrong side of the roads. The same map looks great in Basecamp.