Nuvi 200 and maps on SD

I haven't tried it, but this is my understanding:
The map disk or download knows what unit it is downloading to. The 200 is not supposed to have Canada maps, so the download of those won't be allowed. The fact that you have the 2008 Canada maps puzzles me. Let us know if you figure out how you got those.

Maybe there is a difference between the disk and the on-line download. I think, but am not sure, that you get Mapsource with the disk.

You can get mapsource from Garmin at

http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=209

That thought has crossed my mind. I bought the GPS and then Garmin sent me a free update to the 2008 maps so I have that disc. I don't see MapSource on it, though.
If it turns out that the download is specifically tailored to your unit, I will remember the next time and buy a DVD instead of downloading.

That site is for an update to MapSource. It says on the page, "WARNING: This software will not work unless you already own a MapSource product." Since I don't, it won't work.

http://www.gpsreview.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=43464

This describes a way to install the Mapsource update after installing a free software application from Garmin.

The 200 doesn't come with the Canada maps only because it doesn't have enough memory. I installed Canada on my SD card as a supplemental map file after getting the 2008 NA disk. I installed all of NA on my computer and then can install any area I want on the SD card. I don't know why 2009 would work any differently.

The difference is that the 2009 Update for the Nuvi 200 does not include Canada and Alaska. The full (non-update) version of the 2009 maps should be just as installable to SD as the 2008 edition.

If I buy the 2009 NA update to my 2008 NA DVD, it should include all of NA. I'm not paying any less for the DVD than someone with a 260. When I got the 2008 NA update for my 200 it included all of NA.

I also got Canada with my 2008 NA DVD. It may come as well on the purchased version or the DVD for 2009. (An email to Garmin would settle the question.) However, the free download 2009 update version for for the Nuvi 200 only updates the maps that originally shipped with the unit, which is why my Canadian maps are still at 2008. (I don't think there is a 2009 update for Mexico yet.)

I have a 200 bought in the Lower 48, and I started a post with a similar topic a few months ago.
Bottom line, through use of the key or serial number, the installing software that comes with the download will not allow you to put Canada on your unit (when installing 2009 NT), whether its internal memory or the SD card. I had no luck withMapInstaller either. Believe me, I tried. Its about product line. Garmin wants to offer many choices, and the 200 sold in the Lower 48 is only licensed for the Lower 48.
Several people offered me suggestions (and I thank them), but there was not getting around it. If I want Canada, my option is to fork over $70 to get the Garmin OEM Canada SD add-on.

It can be done. I don't know why some people have problems. The inconsistency troubles me. I'd be upseet if I bought a newer version of the North America map DVD and lost Canada.

I agree that it can be done because I, too, have the Canadian maps on my SD card. When you buy the DVD, you get a gereric copy of the maps that will work with any unit. The DVD has to work with everything from a Nuvi 200 to an 800 series. When I downloaded the 2009 maps, it tailored it specifically to my Nuvi 200 so I don't have Canada to add.

Thanks. That's the piece of the puzzle I was missing.

That means I will not download the update. I will get the DVD so I get the full product.

In the past the mapsource software was bundled with the actual map product. Nowadays the mapsource software is separate download and it will install. What they meant above is that it will not run if you do not have at least one map product installed to the PC (it will auto close the window if it does not detect any mapsource software). It is always a good idea to request Mapsource DVD than download an IMG file because you can create your own custom map IMG in mapsource and it can be loaded to any device (even SD card) provided that you have unlock code for it at the time of the built.

Jeff

jwillum...what's the total size of the files on your SD card? Do you know if you sent those files to me, would it work on my Nuvi by just copying them onto an SD card? I'm traveling to Toronto this weekend and would like to have the Canada maps, even if they're 2008. If I would have known the CD might have allowed me to install the Canada Maps, I would have ordered it instead of doing the download. Let me know.

Not only will it not work (the maps are locked to a single GPS unit), but it is also a violation of the software license (EULA).

Now, having said that, the maps in the downloaded update are exactly the same as the ones on the DVD.

Do a search on the forum, and you will find information on loading the maps on the card. You might have to search for the .msi file on your computer and run it manually.