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Pdf map

Started by Shawnster88, August 20, 2016, 08:15:43 PM

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Shawnster88

I got a Garmin 64st and trying to put a map of some recreational property on it. It's a large piece of property at several hundred thousand acres. The map is pdf format and I don't know how to convert it or how to get it to work on my Garmin. I'm not computer savvy at all. Just know the basics. How can I go about doing this? Thanks for any help.

Boyd

Garmin has a tutorial for making simple maps such as this, it isn't too technical: http://www.garmin.com/us/products/onthetrail/custommaps

I think you will need to convert the .pdf to a .jpg file however. This can easily be done with Photoshop. If you are using a Mac, it can be done with Preview (open the file then choose Save and pick JPEG from the dropdown menu. There is also an open source program called GIMP that can do it, altough I have not used it for many years.

This kind of map has a lot of limitations unfortunately. When you convert the image to .jpg, you will want to make sure it isn't any larger than 1024x1024 pixels. It's possible to use multiple images for larger maps, but that gets more complicated. One program for dealing with larger maps is called g-raster: http://moagu.com/?page_id=155

jolly47roger

The Garmin Custom Map format allows up to 100 map pieces ("tiles") each 1024x 1024 pixels.

There are tools like OKMap and MAPC2MAPC that will convert maps to that format. If the PDF is Georeferenced them MAPC2MAPC (with GDAL installed) will convert it with only a few clicks.

Boyd

Quote from: jolly47roger on August 26, 2016, 12:11:38 PM
The Garmin Custom Map format allows up to 100 map pieces ("tiles") each 1024x 1024 pixels

That was once the case, but now it's device dependent. Certain models, such as my Montana, can access 500 tiles. For more info, see this Garmin support FAQ: https://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?caseId=%7B0b02f820-03db-11e0-e050-000000000000%7D

aliaanderson

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Pooneil

Quote from: Shawnster88 on August 20, 2016, 08:15:43 PM
I got a Garmin 64st and trying to put a map of some recreational property on it. It's a large piece of property at several hundred thousand acres. The map is pdf format and I don't know how to convert it or how to get it to work on my Garmin. I'm not computer savvy at all. Just know the basics. How can I go about doing this? Thanks for any help.

The PDF needs to be converted into an image, tif or JPG.

You will need to georeference the image file to make it work on your Garmin.  This can be done in Google Earth.  Or with special georeferencing functions of map making programs like QGIS. 

In Google Earth, it is called an image overlay.  After you get the overlay right save it as a KMZ file.  The program, g-raster, Boyd mentioned can take the one large image in the KML and divide it into small images our GPS can handle.  G-raster can convert a large tif to jpg tiles too.

Its a bit of trouble to learn but is quite possible to do.