setting visible zoom levels

[sroof]

Using the great tutorials provided at this site, I successfully uploaded a custom map I made using GPSMapEdit to both my Garmin 76CS and my new Montana 600 using Basecamp.  The map works perfectly on the 76CS, but on the Montana, my map only shows up when I'm zoomed waay in, only after the scale bar is 500 ft or less.  When I zoom out more than this (i.e. scale bar is 700 ft or larger), my map is not shown.  I'd like my map to show at zoom levels of 3 miles and closer on the Montana (my map shows up at all zoom levels on the 76CS).  So how how do I make this change?  Do I need to do it in GPSMapEdit (perhaps in the Map properties settings?) or can I set the visible zoom range in Basecamp?  Or do I set this in the Montana?

BTW, my custom map is for the Kapp Linné area of Svalbard (Spitsbergen), where I run an research/educational program.  I'm happy to share it once I get it working right.

Thanks.

[Boyd]

Are you sure that all the map menu items are set comparably on both devices?  Specifically, is the detail level set to the max on your Montana?

[sroof]

aah - yes. 
Increasing the Detail in Advanced Map Setup to "Most" helped some - I could then see my map when zoomed out to 0.5 mile on the scale bar.  I played around, turning on and off the Auto Zoom and changing the various Zoom Levels, but changing these didn't make any difference.

But disabling the "Worldwide DEM Basemap NR" did the trick - now I can see my map at all zoom levels. Perfect!  Except it would be nice to have both map available at the same time.
Does anybody know a way to set a custom map so it's compatible with the Worldwide basemap?  Perhaps changing the zoom levels in GPSMapEdit?
(I'll try to experiment with these settings, or perhaps even RTFM tomorrow).

[eaparks]

Does the Worldwide DEM basemap on the Montana look like satellite imagery when you are zoomed way out?

I ask this because this problem sounds identical to the problem the original Oregon 400c with the marine Blue Charts had.  It had satellite imagery in it's basemap and would prevent custom vector maps from displaying until you were zoomed in like you are describing with the Montana with the DEM Basemap turned on.

I had documented the problem with the Oregon 400c fairly extensive here in some old posts.

[Boyd]

No satellite imagery. It is just very low resolution DEM (digital elevation model) shaded terrain plus a few major roads, waterbodies and boundaries. This is the same map used on most of the new handhelds I think. I turned it off on my Montana the day I got it and have never even looked at it.

[Seldom]

Does anybody know a way to set a custom map so it's compatible with the Worldwide basemap?  Perhaps changing the zoom levels in GPSMapEdit?

sroof, to draw on top of the base map your Drawpriority needs to be higher than the basemap's Drawpriority.  Default cgpsmapper Drawpriority is 25, if you don't set any.  Do you know what Drawpriority your map has?  I don't think changing zoom levels should matter, but if Drawpriority was the issue, then your map shouldn't show up at any zoom.  I don't own a Montana, so hopefully somebody who owns one can tell you what drawpriority you need it set at.

One other thing, on my 62s I have an option to turn off the shaded relief separately from the basemap which has roads, etc.  You might want to try that.  The basemap is normally used for zooms farther out than normal map extent, like continent wide.

[Boyd]

Just looked at gmapbmap.img from my Montana 600. It is the Worldwide Autoroute DEM Basemap, NR. Draw Priority is 0. I think all basemaps have a priority of 0, don't they?

Here's an old post of mine from 2008 with screenshots when I first got my Nuvi 5000. Garmin has just started using this basemap back then. On the Nuvi you could only see the shaded terrain when you zoomed way out but handhelds don't have this restriction. It was fun for a bit of "armchair exploring" but that's about it. http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=113310

On a handheld, if you zoom in to "normal" levels, like .2 miles maybe, you will see that the resolution of the roads is very poor and they don't line up with roads on a "real" map very well.

[popej]

What levels are you using in your map?
It could be something like that:

Code Select Expand

Levels=7
Level0=24
Level1=23
Level2=22
Level3=21
Level4=20
Level5=19
Level6=18
Zoom0=0
Zoom1=1
Zoom2=2
Zoom3=3
Zoom4=4
Zoom5=5
Zoom6=6

Then you have to extend visibility of map objects up to required level. With above definitions level 5 should be visible at about 5km scale with normal settings in gps.

[sroof]

sroof, to draw on top of the base map your Drawpriority needs to be higher than the basemap's Drawpriority.  Default cgpsmapper Drawpriority is 25, if you don't set any.  Do you know what Drawpriority your map has? 

Seldom - thanks.  I don't what the Drawpriority level is for my map.  Where do I set it?  I'm using GPSMapedit to create the map (in MP format), then use the GPSMapedit Export function which sends it to cgpsmapper and creates the IMG file.  This process doesn't give me the opportunity to interact directly with cgpsmapper.

[sroof]

popej - here's are all the lines of the Map Properties / Levels settings in GPSMapedit.  It's quite a while since I created this map and I've forgotten exactly how these settings work.  I do remember adjusting them to get my map to work right on my 76CS.  Any suggestions for improving these settings?

Level      Bits      Latgrid      GPS zoom      MapSourcezoom
Level0=    22      9.5 m      500 m            Zoom0=2 (3 – 8 km)
Level1=   21      19.1 m      800 m – 1.2 km   Zoom=3 (8 – 12 km)

[Boyd]

I don't what the Drawpriority level is for my map.  Where do I set it?

As Seldom said above, it will default to 25. But it has nothing to do with your issue. As I said, the basemap has a priority of 0. This means that all "normal" maps will cover it up.

FWIW, one way to set draw priority would be Popej's gmaptool utility. When I want to do this however I use MapSetToolkit, since I use it to install the map in Basecamp/Mapsource. See this: http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/tutorials/how-to-load-.img-files-into-mapsource-with-mapsettoolkit/

[sroof]

Great - thanks for all you help.  My wife says there are real chores to do and I need to stop obsessing over this map!  But at least I've learned more about my Montana gps unit.

[Boyd]

Glad I could help. Sounds like you need to have a serious talk with your wife to straighten out her priorities. 

[Indrid Cold]

BTW, my custom map is for the Kapp Linné area of Svalbard (Spitsbergen), where I run an research/educational program.  I'm happy to share it once I get it working right.

Thanks.

Forskning fuglene, ja? Problemet høres ut som å sette på MONTANA GPS, ikke lage kart. Det fungerer på GPSMAP 76CS, ja?

[sroof]

Nei, forske på geologien i Linnédalen. Har du besøkt det?
Ja, problemet med å få kartet til å dukke opp på optimale zoomnivåer på Montana. Deaktivering av den globale basekartet løst problemet. Nå kan jeg scooter til Kapp Linné i en snøstorm!

(No, researching the geology in Linnédalen.  Have you visited there?
Yes, the problem was getting the map to show up at optimal zoom levels on the Montana. Disabling the the global basemap solved the problem. Now I can scooter to Kapp Linné in a blizzard!).