How to install custom POI icons to just some of your GPS units

 
Speed2's picture

Let’s talk about clutter. Some like it; some don't. I'm the latter.

I have several Garmin GPS models, and I want to install custom POIs on all of them. But the map display on some models looks cluttered when I load POIs with custom icons.

For example, on my older Garmin units the map screen isn't cluttered with icons; but on my new DriveSmart 61 and 65 units all you see is icons all over the place.

Here's what I do with my POI files so I can load them with icons for some of my GPS units and without icons for others.

For my older units, I keep all of the POI files and icons together in a folder on my computer. This is the usual way to handle things when you're using custom icons with your POI files.

When I want to load custom POIs without icons (for my newer DriveSmart 61 and 65), here's what I do:

  1. I copy my original folder to a different directory on my computer. (keeping the original folder as the "master")
  2. Search for BMPs in the new directory. Highlight them all and delete them.
  3. Fire up POI Loader and point it at the new directory. Let it do its stuff. Done.
  4. Finally, I remove the new folder from my computer (and resume using the original "master" folder for any future changes).

My DriveSmart 61 and 65 look a lot less cluttered without the 48x48 custom POI icons. Unfortunately, now the map has the ugly green icons that show by default.

So there you have it. The drawback to this could be that you no longer see an icon on the screen when you decide to use one of your poi’s.

In the end you can test it and see if it works for you. You can always go back to the original state. You still have all the icons. Hope someone finds this useful.