Mapping Software Prior To Garmin Base Camp

MapSource is the software your looking for which was replaced by Basecamp. It's still available from:

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

but no longer supported by Garmin

Yes, I think that's what it was called. It was easier to use than BaseCamp.

Bobcat

It's all relative. I've been using BaseCamp for a long time now. Occasionally I fire up Mapsource and boy do I find it difficult

Thank you for all of the information. Here is what I want to do. And, maybe Google Maps will be better in this situation. I am an ATV enthusiast. A group of us will be going on a ride in about a week and a half. I want to show the route on a map, which will be on some county roads, some forest roads, and some ATV trails.

Does Google Maps allow a route like that in which I can select what roads it uses?

Update: I was able to create a route in Google Maps. They do have a limit when adding multiple destinations, though. I think it might be ten.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Wild+Waters+Sports+Bar+%26+Restaurant,+7516+Main+St+E,+Danbury,+WI+54830/Gandy+Dancer+Trail,+Danbury,+WI+54830/@46.3590826,-92.4509313,11.25z/data=!4m59!4m58!1m50!1m1!1s0x52adefc6dce03845:0x8b282b21e6972aaf!2m2!1d-92.369442!2d46.007214!3m4!1m2!1d-92.3664441!2d46.0102651!3s0x52adefc0a5bb53c1:0x99ffc6fdea33b11a!3m4!1m2!1d-92.3495687!2d46.0442778!3s0x52ade5b200824119:0x36bc5522e11d7a02!3m4!1m2!1d-92.3137053!2d46.2582147!3s0x52ae0bf74fe4ba79:0xabb380d8ee167de4!3m4!1m2!1d-92.3473829!2d46.2581588!3s0x52ae0953c42bfa39:0x29ecd8260d78bc78!3m4!1m2!1d-92.4282169!2d46.2997297!3s0x52ae050a7acc5777:0x7f68b635cb2f673!3m4!1m2!1d-92.5334628!2d46.3311779!3s0x52ae032c6bdd53db:0xc70fd02d8526d15d!3m4!1m2!1d-92.5946853!2d46.3706471!3s0x52b1e28812d794cb:0x46176df27721f870!3m4!1m2!1d-92.5092219!2d46.401819!3s0x52ae1c0f72fab2bb:0x8b038d67b8f298fb!3m4!1m2!1d-92.3231861!2d46.1419438!3s0x52ade22c85d44b3d:0xfedbbc8c46f2fdb0!1m5!1m1!1s0x52adefc0a5bb53c1:0x99ffc6fdea33b11a!2m2!1d-92.3670442!2d46.0087486!3e2

No such limitations using Furkot.com or Tyre to Travel (http://www.tyretotravel.com/). Both the Furkot website and Tyre software easily allow you to create GPX files that download to your Garmin GPS as Trips/Routes.

In addition both of these alternatives are much easier to use than Basecamp or Mapsource IMHO.

That is great to know. Thank you for the information.

I still find MapSource much easier to use. I am dabbling with BaseCamp but I don't find it that easy.

One thing I see with BaseCamp is it seems to store your last used GPX file.

In Mapsource you have to point it to the GPX files location.

I found a great website that allows you to create routes that uses google maps on the site and allows you to export that route to either garmin or tom tom gps. when you first open the maps it shows the uk, but just scroll the map to the US and you are good to go.

www.motogoloco.com

Great to know, Thanks for the information

has changed their approach due to the fees for the Google Maps API

I actually miss mapsource. it was simple and efficient.

Don't have to miss MapSource. It still works. I rarely use BC. MS is quick and accurate. I still find MS as easy to using as a fine pencil and BC to using a crayon.

Caution to using other map products. They are not the same maps as Garmin maps in your GPS and may lead to bad routing when they are recalculated or even used.

I never made the switch to Basecamp. MapSource worked so I never saw a need to change. I still use the old Garmin Map Updater as well.

You can still download MS and install it on your computer.

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

But MapSource won't install unless you have a qualifying map on your PC, so you may have to download BaseCamp first then MapSource as it accepts the BaseCamp base map.

Supported or not, I still use it for transferring the portion of a map update that won't fit on the unit itself to the units SD card.

Is what your using Mapsource or MapInstall?

Mapsource, highlight what parts of the map I want and transfer to the card, need to do this on my Zumo 450 & 550 as well as my 2 Nuvi 2460's. Have been doing it this way since they first couldn't hold an entire update, choose device and computer when downloading an update.

You can do this with BaseCamp too but for the newer devices you will lose some of the extras as whether you do it through BC or MS that simply installs the map, not stuff like junction view etc.

I just started adding the portion of 2019.2 that doesn't fit onto my Zumo 450 and remember why I prefer MapSource over MapInstall.

I use a 23 inch monitor and MapSource will let me make it full screen whereas for MapInstall the full screen button is grayed out and I can't 'snap' it or drag it to full screen.

So much easier to make sure I'll getting all of the maps I want, some of the cities are small in area but large in info and have their own map that could easily be missed without lots of 'panning' around the small interface of MapInstall.

I started using MS well over a decade ago. It still does the jobs well and I continue to use it regularly. I find I'm more productive with it than BC as far as creating routes. Keyboard shortcuts don't always work in certain screens in BC.

I like to generate a print out that includes way point name, mileage, time, and gps coordinates. This is easily generated from the mapsource direction screen. It takes a slight bit of manual manipulation but the end result is very handy. Copy and paste the contents of this into excel, then delete the rows not containing way points. Adjust mileage to be numbers only, then edit the length leg to be the difference between the distance and distance on the row above. It's easy to see distances/times between points this way when on a trip.

I organize the routes by date/destination with meaningful file names. Most times I don't need access to all my route data. I imagine if I was using BC all the time, the database would be huge.

You can do the same in BaseCamp. As for the database it's only huge if you have a lot in it, bit like most databases