Garmin Etrex Legend HCx help

[JeffRome]

Hi! I just got this unit for Christmas. Basically, I want it mostly to know where I am (and where take out is, and to mark fishing spots) when I canoe and fish rivers--such as the New River in NC. Also to know where I am hiking in parks or national forests. Is the map that comes with it sufficient for this or do I need to download others?

I see the capacity is 24MB. Does that mean I need to actually have a microSD card attached to my GPS when using it if I get other maps?? Thanks!

[Seldom]

Garmin Base Maps (that come with a handheld) are pretty limited.  I suggest you download topo's from this site (assuming "takeout" is for boats, not burgers) and  either buy a copy of City Navigator or download routable maps from http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/ with the caveat that the quality is better for City Navigator.

MicroSD cards are pretty inexpensive, and you won't get much storage out of 24MB, so I'd suggest a 4GB MicroSD for your Etrex.  City Navigator is about 1.1 GB for the entire product (US and Canada) and that will leave room for some topos.  If you buy City Navigator, I suggest buying it on a DVD, the downside of the DVD is that CN will be locked to your Etrex.  DON'T BUY City Navigator ON A CARD!  If you do that you will be able to use the card in all your GPSrs, but you won't be able to add any topos to it.  I'm pretty sure that buying City Navigator as a download locks the maps to a GPSr.  I'm not sure if you can install it on your PC so you can use it for trip planning.

View this to see the differences in Garmin map purchase options.
http://iqc.garmin.com/eCustomer/KODSelfService/request.do?create=kb:garmin&view%28%29=c{16315fb0-39b2-11de-5dd5-000000000000}

[maps4gps]

The world  base map that comes with the unit is very general - usually just used to zoom way out, pan to a distant area, then zoom back in to more detailed data.

Most of the mapsets here comsist of small quadrangles/segments of data in .img files.
You can send 1, or more quads, or an entire mapset(State) (or more) to the built-in memory or an SD memory card.  All of NC would likely take around 170 to 200MB.  4Gb SD cards go for under $10 when on sale.

Take a look at some of the tutorial here on using BaseCamp and sending data to the GPSr.
If you are using Windows 7 on a 64-bit machine, let us know.   

[JeffRome]

I am using a Win 7 64 bit machine--does that make a difference?
The unit came with MapSource--how does that differ from BaseCamp? Do I need both?
Is City Navigator only needed for travelling by car? Or do I need it to overly topos over it? Thanks!

[Seldom]

BaseCamp and MapSource do similar functions.  BaseCamp is newer and supports some features on new devices that old ones don't have.

City Navigator is primarily used for automobile transportation, but if you were in a city and wanted turn by turn pedestrian directions you could use it for that too.  You can overlay transparent topos over CN if somebody's made them for your area.

Win7-64 is fine.  If you have problems viewing the maps download a copy of http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/maps/view/53 and install it.  Be sure to have your viewing software closed when you install a map.  See http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/tutorials/how-to-open-maps-in-mapsource/  for full instructions.

[JeffRome]

I already installed  the MapSource Trip and Waypoint Manager Version 5.00 I got with the unit. Can I install Basecamp over it if I chose to use it instead of MapSource? Or do I have to figuer out how to delete it from the unit first? Thanks!

[Indrid Cold]

V5 is pretty outdated, you should at least download and install the update. You can also download and install BaseCamp for free and use either of both. I find little use for the MapSource software with BaseCamp doing so much more.

[Boyd]

Many of us around here have used Mapsource for years, so we are very familiar and comfortable with it. However, for a new user that hasn't used Mapsouce before you should really just forget it. Download and install Basecamp and learn to use it. It's more like modern software and has many new features. Mapsource is no longer being developed by Garmin, while Basecamp continues to improve. Older versions had a number of issues but it's finally maturing into a very nice program.

To answer your question, yes, Mapsource and Basecamp can coexist and share the same map data.

[JeffRome]

Pardon the really ignorant question, but are Mapsource and Basecamp installed only on my PC or are they installed onto the Garmin unit itself as well? If so, how do I delete Mapsource from the unit?

[Indrid Cold]

It's a good question. Both are computer softwares that are only on your computer.

[Seldom]

If so, how do I delete Mapsource from the unit?

It's listed in Uninstall programs.

[Indrid Cold]

If so, how do I delete Mapsource from the unit?

It's listed in Uninstall programs.

I believe he means the GPS...

[Seldom]

If so, how do I delete Mapsource from the unit?

It's listed in Uninstall programs.

I believe he means the GPS...

He couldn't get much of MapSource on the unit with 24MB.  He'd need to connect the GPSr to his computer with the USB cable.  Then (assuming the key sequence is like my 60CSX) Menu|Menu|Setup|Interface|Mass Storage.  When I do that, my removable drive shows up on the PC. (The 60CSX doesn't have any internal memory.)  The question is, what does he do with what he sees there?  If there's nothing, or just a Garmin folder, he's probably OK.  If there's a bunch of other stuff he should probably ask Garmin.

[Boyd]

I think he just didn't understand that Mapsource and Basecamp are computer programs, and was therefore confused as to whether Mapsource itself had been installed on his GPS and whether he needed to remove it if he's going to use Basecamp.

[Seldom]

I just figured if he thought he had put something on his GPSr (since he asked how to remove it), he'd like a way to put his mind at rest.