I've downloaded Utah topo maps into mapsource and from there sent them to my nuvi550 but they do'nt show up on the screen. I've checked in the settings and they're in the unit and the box has a green check mark in it, but still no topo map. Help please....
Did you uncheck the city navigator maps?
Yes. However, I've not placed it in the truck and actually driven anywhere, I'll try thay on my way to work this am. Sitting at my desk there are no signs of topo.
I'm wondering if the maps are actually loading into the unit. When I loaded them into my Colorado 400t it seemed like it took a lot longer.
Could be the difference in the USB interface. Many of Garmin's models have slow USB 1.0 interfaces. Newer ones had USB 1.5 but only the newest models have USB 2.0.
But you said you saw the name of the map displayed in the menu and were able to turn it on and off. It's possible that you only sent a small portion of the map to the GPS. There should be a file named gmapsupp.img in the /garmin directory on the unit. Check the modification date of the file to see if it matches when you sent it. And check the file size. If it's very small, then you may have only sent a little piece of the map.
There are some contour lines and they have some elevation listed. The gmapsupp.img shows 156,208kb however when I place the cursor on it it shows 152mb. I'm thinking they are in there, but I was expecting the screen to look like the 400t. I think the difference might be how the two units zoom in???
The map rendering style of the nuvi series is very different from the style of the Colorado/Dakota/Oregon. That might be the issue...
I'll be going on a Geocaching trip this weekend and will be in an area where there are more elevation changes than between here and work. I'll give the two units a better comparison then. Thnk you for your help and insight.