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Loaded Topo map (.img) on Garmin 255w, now what?

Started by dart451, January 27, 2010, 10:25:32 AM

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dart451

Hello all,

     I pretty new...no... I'm a noobie!  I've followed the directions on how to load an .img file into my Garmin gps...downloaded programs and installed.  Everything appeared to function properly when loading the topo onto my 255w but I can't seem to locate the map on the unit!?  How do you locate extra maps you might have loaded onto your unit and use them?  Thanks.

Boyd

Did you install with Mapsource? Depends on the map, but typically you can't just drag .img files there.

Press Menu > Tools > Settings > Map > Map Info. You will see a list of all installed maps. Uncheck the box next to City Navigator and check your new map. If you don't see the new map listed then you did not install properly.

dart451

Ok, I think I've got it now!  I did install it with Mapsource and once I unchecked the city map, the map came into view...I just had to un-zoom the map so I could tell for sure!  Cool!  I assume, I could probably plot hikes with this now once I know where all the nearby trails are!?  Thank you for the information...it was a great help!

trapperrick


   I'm glad to see you were able to get your topo working. You mentioned about finding nearby trails to plot, I was able to find some trails that had downloadable tracks and the was able to send them to my nuvi. Just google downloadable GPS trail maps and you would be amazed what's out there!

Boyd

Quote from: trapperrick on January 27, 2010, 04:24:34 PMI was able to find some trails that had downloadable tracks and the was able to send them to my nuvi.

You were able to download tracks and send them to your Nuvi? What model do you have? None of the Nuvi's I've seen can do this. Tracks can be received from the Nuvi but not sent to it. Well, actually you can send them, but they just vanish and are not displayed.

trapperrick


  I sent them to my nuvi 500, I did'nt try it to the 200 but I only use city navigator on that one. I found gpx. files on pahikes.com and they had a trail listed for the state forest close to where I live. I sent that overlay to the PA planimetric topo on BaseCamp then sent that file to the micro SD and there it was.

Boyd

That is interesting, but I'm not exactly clear on what you did since I've been avoiding basecamp. If you actually sent a track file (.gpx file) and the Nuvi displayed it, then the 500 is different from other models. It is a common complaint that the Nuvi can't do this.

trapperrick

   They say that the nuvi 500 is a crossover. ( can be used like a handheld unit and use it in the car because it comes with city nav. and US topo ) I bought it for use on my ATV for this reason. BTW the nuvi 500 is now part of a package on all new Can Am Outlander LTD ATV's. They originally came with the Garmin Quest 2.

alpine

Tracks sent to the Nuvi 500 disappear. You can send a route to the 500 but the 2xx series don't do routes created in Mapsource.

You may need to see what you sent to the 500. Was it a gdb file or a gpx? There is a difference. Tracks are saved as a gdb. gdb doesn't route. You can alter a track to a route with GPSBabelGUI.
A very nice utility, since Mapsource will crash every time you try to save a track as a route.

Let us know how this turn out.

Boyd

I think .gdb files are just "Garmin Database" files that contain a mixture of routes, tracks and waypoints. A .gpx file can contain the same things. I don't believe the gps itself "understands" .gdb files. I think it's just a Mapsource (and maybe basecamp?) thing.

But your observation about tracks matches what I have read about the 500 series before, and my personal experience with several other Nuvi's. Guessing that trapper sent a route instead of a track.

trapperrick



    Boyd and Alpine,
 
       You guys may be right. The trail that was sent to the 500 may be a route or some sort of waypoint instead of tracks. BTW, on BaseCamp the trail shows up as as a pink line with dots and on the nuvi it shows up as black flags. Would that be a symbol for waypoints?

Boyd

A bunch of points with flags (or other icons) would be waypoints. If there's a pink line connecting them, it is a route. A track is a continuous blue line on the Nuvi without any icons.

You need to "import" routes on the Nuvi, did you do that? Go to Menu > Tools > My Data > Import Route. Does it find anything? If you import it, you could activate it with Menu > Where To > Routes. If you can choose a new route, then you may find that the flags will become points along a pink line.

trapperrick


    Boyd,

   I tried exactly what you said. The trail was listed in the nuvi but not checked. When I checked it and selected import it said, Cannot import selected route. The route has too many via points, so how do I change that?

Boyd

You would need to go back to Mapsource or Basecamp and delete some of the via's (which are probably called waypoints on the computer). I'm not sure what the limit it - possibly as few as 50. I don't think it's any more than 100.

So it sounds to me like you somehow converted a track to a route... or maybe basecamp just does that automatically?

trapperrick


So it sounds to me like you somehow converted a track to a route... or maybe basecamp just does that automatically?
[/quote]

     I'm not sure, just sent the gpx. file to basecamp thent sent it to the nuvi. Unfortunately my laptop with basecamp loaded was infected with a virus and cannot try it out there. Maybe I'll try it on mapsource on my pc.