new nuvi (3597) and Garmin Express -- observations and questions

Thanks for posting the link for teardown. Will probably come in handy down the road

The file would go into the .system folder (that's DOT system) which can only be seen by Windows if the Folder View Options are altered so that all file and folders are visible including any hidden system files and folders.

It should be copied to .system folder.

Isn't that what I said?

Don't get mad. I did not see your post. It showed after my post and I realized it went to second page.

Got it copied to the .system folder..thanks for the info.

After the second last firmware update, I have noticed that traffic pop-up is working more consistently now. They have fixed traffic pop-up now. Now if I change my route slightly before the traffic area, traffic pop-up shows up again. Before if you change your route a bit, traffic pop-up will not appear anymore.

same issue with the DEM file being deleted while updating to the current maps - - this was using Garmin MapUpdater. I then repeated the process with Garmin Express and the DEM file re-appeared

Cords: I read the instruction manual last night and picked up on something I had not noticed previously. It suggests the cord needs to be fully un-coiled to maximize reception. I tend to keep my cords coiled up and neat. Is this really a concern? Have I been missing something?

Thanks.

It is a legitimate concern if you want the best traffic reception. The antenna for the traffic receiver is in the cord. For regular satellite GPS reception, it doesn't matter. I live in an area that doesn't have traffic coverage, so for me, the cable positioning makes no difference.

thanks, Alan. Would you say that's the case for all Garmin's equipped with a traffic receiver in the cord or just this 3597?

I ask because the diagram shown in the Owner's Manual looks a bit different compared to other units I own. I'd better double-check that...

AFAIK, all Garmin automotive GPS devices that support traffic have the traffic receiver antenna in the power cable. Some nuvi models have a built in traffic receiver (instead of being integrated into the power adapter), but it is my understanding that even these models use the power cord as an antenna. Some of the older nuvi's had a jack (on the cradle I think) for an external traffic antenna, but I don't think any of the current models have that.

at the manuals for my earlier devices and the cable diagrams are all mostly the same. I guess they want you to have the cord fully extended, not neatly coiled up. They suggest laying the cord across the dashboard...

I have found an issue using the magnetic mount on my 3598LMT-D Sat-Nav. the issue is that the magnetic mount on the back of the sat nav is stronger then the coupling to the suction cup mount. Meaning that removing the sat-nav frequently on long journies (parking/services areas etc). the coupling becomes lose ending with the sat-nav sagging on the coupling (the mount on the sat-nav plus the sat-nav are quite heavy. finally the sat-nav plus mag mount fall off. due to this I am know on my 4th magnetic mount in just under a year of in frequent use. I informed Garmin and they have sent me a free replacement. so my intention is to modify this. drill small holes top and bottom of the mount coupling area. then once in place screw in small, 2mm or about) self tapping screws through the mount and into the ball of the coupling.

Your problem with the mount is why many of us use the bean bag mount. We just move the entire assembly.

but I'm just noticing my DEM functionality and map seems to be missing again!

I'd swear I used to three different map choices in "myMaps". Now I only see CN North America 2017.10. It must be the buildings map and the DEM both got ejected with last week's update??

Explorer says the 3597 is about half full and the microSD has nothing on it.

The loss of the 3D terrain (DEM) map when doing a map update with GarminMapUpdater is a known issue:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/44415

I've not heard of problems losing the 3D buildings as well but that could be related.

If you updated your map with Garmin Express, I can't think of a cause.

If you have a full backup of your 3597 on a hard drive, you could copy the two missing map files back to your 3597. These two maps don't change with City Navigator map updates. One or both missing maps may also still be on your 3597 but disguised as a D*** file (see the link above for more info).

If you lost the two maps when you did a map update with GarminMapUpdater, you may also be able to restore them by using Garmin Express, then choose Reinstall Map.

as always, thanks for your expertise and guidance.

I'll tinker with this when I get home. I cannot recall if I did a full back up when it was new. If so, I'll just put the files back on the device.

Do you agree that I should see three maps when I'm viewing myMaps? I'm only seeing the main CN map today.

Three, yes.

And if you look at the files in the nuvi, you should see five .img file "maps" total because of the Basemap and TimeZone map that don't show in myMaps. A well-functioning 3597 will not have any D*******.img maps but a D map may well be your "missing" DEM or 3D buildings map.

I guess "luck" was on my side today. I did have comprehensive backups and I re-installed the map (Garmin Express) in a calculated 18 minutes and the two missing maps re-appeared. All seems well!

The only thing that was strange was the two files on my backup were zipped files and I could not open them. Would I have placed them back on the 3597 as zip files and the device can open them??

Thanks again !!

Do not think the device would know what to do with zipped files.

What I hope you will think through is how you have a backup that includes .zip files.

No clever idea on that, John. I assume it has something to do with the way I burned the discs when I created the backup. Maybe something to do with Garmin protecting their files so they can't be distributed...

I am confident that Garmin had nothing to do with your having .zip files within your backup.

A major reason for my interest is that I am such a big proponent of backups that I would like to understand what members actually do so that we can do a better job of instructing members how to do effective backups. Anything that you learn can possibly be beneficial to others.

Just a thought. Could they be program files that the GPS opens and uses on the fly?

and I "think" I know what the issue is.

I have two different WIN7 computers that I run Basecamp on. My non-work computer has Basecamp and Garmin Express and that stuff on it. This non-work computer has no optical drive.

My work computer has an optical drive and that where's I created the back up discs a year ago. All the map files on my backup discs showed they were zipped and I could not access them. I use this work computer for burning discs.

When the 3597 is connected to the non-work computer, all the map files appear as they should and are not zipped. When the 3597 is connected to the work computer, all the map files appear to be zipped.

I believe that when I use Garmin Express on my non-work computer and say "install to computer and device", that somehow unlocks the 5 map files and they do not appear to be zipped and I can copy them. I see this in Basecamp, too, on the non-work computer. It's something I never noticed before this evening. I can run Basecamp now with its full capabilities without the nuvi being connected to the computer. I've never been able to do that before.

On the work computer, I must have the nuvi connected to get full functionality from Basecamp. Otherwise, all the detail is missing from the maps.

Sorry this sounds so convoluted, but it's the Garmin way !

I'm going to look at my other backups for the 1450s and see if they suffer the same.

backups and they all have the same problem. I'll have to re-do them.

Don't know if this is related to your problem with backups, maps and .zip files, but sometimes a .img file extension gets intercepted by compression programs such as Winzip or 7Zip because of Windows file associations. I know I sometimes get a Winzip warning if I accidentally click on a Garmin .img map file in Windows Explorer.

along the same lines if that could be part of the issue. The work computer has WinZip Pro, the other computer has 7Zip.

Later today I'm going to plug the 3597 into another WIN7 computer that's never seen a Garmin device or software and see what the result is.

machine I was hoping to check this problem on is now WIN10 and I cannot view the .System file for whatever reason. The other files show up as expected.

I putzed around with it for a few minutes, but my experience with WIN10 is very limited at this point.

To see system files in Windows 10 see http://pages.citebite.com/j4p9t9o4l1dbx

I could not see my .system file until I unchecked all the boxes that Charles sent in the link above.
Just checking show hidden files in Windows 10 doesn't work alone. By default the three files were checked. Un-checking them gave me back my .system file in Garmin.

Thanks, guys, I'll have another go at it.

thanks. That did the trick and it looks like the same menu as in WIN7...I just could not find it.

Upon inspection of the .System file, none of the map file images are locked and I believe I could do backups from this WIN10 machine since it has an optical drive. There must be something else going on with my "work" computer that is preventing me from doing a routine back up.

Aren't the map files "locked" to a specific device?

Right maps downloaded from Garmin will only work for that device.

Info from Garmin express.
SD Card: Pre-programmed SD cards are ready to use immediately out of the box. Simply unpack the card and insert into your compatible GPSr device. These maps do not need to be unlocked to your device which allows you to move the card between multiple units as desired. BaseCamp can be used to view mapping detail on your computer from compatible pre-programmed SD cards. Mapping data from the
SD card cannot be copied.

DVD/CD ROM: Maps purchased in this format will require a computer to use. The installation process will install the maps and BaseCamp application to your computer. BaseCamp can then be used to send maps to either your device or
SD card. Please note that most mapping products in this format are unlocked to a single device and they are non-transferable.

Download: Maps purchased in this format can be downloaded directly from the Garmin website. Downloaded maps can be sent to either your GPSr unit or SD card. All maps in this format are unlocked to a specific device and they can only be used on the device that they were unlocked to. BaseCamp can be used to view downloaded mapping detail on your computer.

Internal error processing ISO image

WinZip includes support to read and extract from ISO files and similar, disc image IMG files. Please note that many programs use the IMG file extension for what they would term "image data". The "image" may be a graphic or it may be an image of a disc (or diskette). You will find additional information about various IMG formats in Wikipedia or in FILExt's File Extension IMG page.

If you attempt to open an IMG file with WinZip and it is not in the expected format, WinZip will display an error. In such a case, you should consult the person or company from whom you obtained the file in order to determine the correct application that should be used.

The supported ISO file systems in WinZip include ISO 9660 and UDF from 1.02 to 2.6 (subset of ISO 13346). Usually, CD images use ISO 9660, DVD images use UDF1.02/ISO9660 bridge, and Blu-ray Disc images use UDF 2.5.

(I'll have to create my backups on another system to over-come whatever this issue is.)