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Mapsource and Terrain Navigator questions.

Started by kendall, April 24, 2013, 10:20:23 PM

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kendall

Hi folks, new to the forums but have been a GPSFileDepot customer for a number of years.
I have been running a Dell PC with Vista OS for about 5 years. I recently upgraded it to 32 bit Windows 8. Before doing the upgrade I attempted a "file backup" to a remote hard drive. Now I'm not smart enough to get the backed up files back onto my PC, but I will get that figured out.
My Terrain Navigator and Mapsource  (vers. 6.16.3) programs were not lost, but all of the TN/GPSfiledepot/Mapsource maps were.

In the meantime, I have lost the original cards that came with my TN state disk sets that had the authentication codes on them. Mytopo tells me that my state disks are too old for support and they want me to buy new sets of their Pro series at $100 for the first state, and $60 for each subsequent set. I think this is BS, I had registered the state sets with TN years ago, and they should send me codes so that I can reload the disks onto my hard drive again. Any thoughts from the forum membership?

Now on to Mapsource. Apparently Garmin has quit supporting it. I own an Etrex Vista, a 60C, and a Street Pilot 2720. I use the two handhelds for hiking, hunting, etc. and the Street Pilot is on a motorcycle. I love the 2720 and want to update the maps on it. Am I correct in understanding that I can buy the current City Navigator North America on disk or SD, load it to my PC, and use my current version of Mapsource to pare it down to fit on my 2720's limited storage space?

I plan on buying the GPSfiledepot topo sets once again for several states.

In a nutshell, Do I want to keep Mapsource for my Street Pilot 2720, and my handheld units? Garmin's webpage says there are no more updates for it. What should I do about Terrain Navigator? I have always loved the program for its ability to print custom maps. Should iIbag it and just use the GPSfiledepot mapsets with mapsource for my GPS and mapping needs?

Kendall

Boyd

#1
I have never heard of Terrain Navigator, sorry. If you have a dispute with a company that you purchased maps from, that's something you need to resolve directly with them.

Mapsource is discontinued and not supported in the sense that they are not going to fix any bugs. But it's still available and will continue to be so. This is because Basecamp (Garmin's new program) doesn't support older devices with serial interfaces and Garmin continued selling these until about a year ago.

If you want to use City Navigator in Mapsource, you must purchase the DVD version. The download and card version are not compatible, although they can be viewed in Basecamp when the card is connected to your computer. Before purchasing City Navigator though, check to see if your old units are compatible with the new "NT" format. Many of the old models are not.

If your units don't have card slots, you must buy the DVD version - one DVD for each unit, because it can only be installed on a single GPS.

The download version can also only be used on one GPS device. And you will just get one file that cannot be split up into smaller pieces. So it's all or nothing - if your unit doesn't have a card slot and the memory is too small to hold the full map, then it won't work for you.

The card version requires a GPS that has a card slot. The files on the card cannot be moved to another card or internal memory. However the card can be used in any GPS and is not locked to a single unit.

Actually, I believe your 2720 is sort of a special case. It should be compatible with the new NT format maps. Since it has pre-installed City Navigator, you should be able to purchase a map update for it instead of a new map. https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/maps/map-updates/numaps-onetime/numaps-onetime-city-navigator-north-america-nt-2013/prod113416.html To further confuse things, this kind of map update can actually be installed on your computer and used in Mapsource, even though it's a download.

For moving your old Mapsource maps to a new computer, use GMTK: http://www.javawa.nl/gmtk_en.html

Indrid Cold

Quote from: Boyd on April 25, 2013, 05:11:17 AM
I have never heard of Terrain Navigator, sorry. If you have a dispute with a company that you purchased maps from, that's something you need to resolve directly with them.

http://www.mytopo.com/index.cfm
http://www.mytopo.com/map-software.cfm

MSRP$399.00/state, ouch

Seldom

For that price you could  get Global Mapper and access USGS and Tiger data for free.  Of course, you'd have to learn how to run GM, and the roads data on TN might be more accurate.

Boyd

With the newer handhelds you can get BirdsEye satellite for $30 and BirdsEye Topo for $30 so that takes care of aerial imagery and scanned USGS 24k topos. I would think those plus a variety of other free or cheap tools are all most people need.

kendall

Boyd, thanks for the link to the JAVAWA, i will look into it.
Yes my 2720 is NT compatible, at least this is what i've read in other forums. I can buy the DVD CN and use Mapsource to pick mapsets out of it, thereby making it small enough to fit on the 2720's internal memory. I'm re-thinking the wisdom of spending more money on the old unit when newer units are so full featured and inexpensive.

I'll date myself, I used to buy 7 1/2' topos direct from Denver USGS for $.50. I'm a compass and paper guy, and use GPS for one purpose in the field, and that is getting a location, it is then powered down. A good software program for printing maps is very important to me. TN was the original and for many years the best software for printing USGS maps at home. I may have to start out on a new learning curve with new software.
Thanks for your help.

maps4gps

QuoteI'll date myself, I used to buy 7 1/2' topos direct from Denver USGS for $.50.
They were only 10 cents when I got my first ones while in high-school - and those wonderful 15' topos were being produced.

kendall

I do miss the 15' maps. And that includes the planimetric ones that were so useful for looking at drainages.

elecuyer

Hi Kendall (and all)

I am the product manager for MyTopo's Terrain Navigator Pro - the current incarnation of what was once Terrain Navigator.

MyTopo purchased the Terrain Navigator product line from the now defunct Maptech company when they went out of business in 2008. Because of the plethora of free and low cost options for USGS topographic maps now available, the "standard edition" of Terrain Navigator was discontinued over a year ago. (Note that we offer our own low-cost options through our MapPass and Trimble Outdoors Elite web services.) Instead, we are focusing our attention on the "light" GIS market, in conjunction with our new ownership, Trimble Navigation, LLC.

As a service to those customers abandoned by the defunct Maptech company, we are offering an incredible offer to upgrade to our current software package: Terrain Navigator Pro at far less than retail cost. We feel that this is quite fair and hundreds of standard edition customers have taken advantage of this generous upgrade.

To the heart of your question, there is no way that any ten+ year old software product is going to run reliably in Windows 8 - even if you get it to install. Depending on what you have for installation discs, and if you have the 32 bit or 64 bit edition of Windows 8, you *might* be able to install the discontinued version of Terrain Navigator.

Kendall, I did a bit of digging through the old Maptech records and found your original Product ID: MA2G-S9B1. You are welcome to try to use it to install Terrain Navigator, or call us at 877-587-9004 to upgrade to Terrain Navigator Pro.

QuoteI have always loved the program for its ability to print custom maps.
You would really love the printing and publishing possible in Terrain Navigator Pro 9.21. It basically has a full desktop publishing engine now, so that you can really create fantastic map pages.

Quotethe roads data on TN might be more accurate.
We currently use the TomTom street data set, Jan 2013 release. We update to TomTom's latest data set whenever a new "Installer" disc is mastered. New installer discs are sent out each year to our current subscribers. This makes the Terrain Navigator Pro street overlay (coupled with the also-included NAIP Aerial photos) more up-to-date than the current USGS "US Map" products currently available.

I hope this helps clarify the situation for all members of this forum. Anyone is welcome to contact me at 877-587-9004 or tnp(at)mytopo.com if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Ed Lecuyer
Product Manager, Terrain Navigator Pro
MyTopo, A Trimble Company

Yenalom

I was a very happy user of Maptech's Terrain Navigator and was upset when support was discontinued.

I see that Trimble/Mytopo says that reasonably priced upgrades to Terrain Navigator Pro are available. Where can I find out the cost of the upgrade?

Bob M