Mapsource
Fri, 01/04/2008 - 10:52am
 16 years
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I am a fairly new owner of a Garmin 760 I received for Christmas. This forum has been great for me to learn how to add POI files and help me utilize my GPSr more effectively.
I keep hearing about Mapsource. What exactly is it? How do you use it, etc. I think I understand you can use it to plot trips and more, but how do you get to it on your computer, how do you use it effectively, and how do you input the info back onto your GPSr?
Thanks, and hope I don't sound like too much of a dummy. Someone needs to write a book "GPS for Dummies"
They Did!
Someone needs to write a book "GPS for Dummies"
http://www.amazon.com/GPS-Dummies-Joel-McNamara/dp/076456933...
America Moves By Truck --- Streetpilot 7200 & OOIDA --- www.accutracking.com userid= poifactory password= guest; "Don't gamble; take all your savings and buy some good stock and hold it till it goes up, then sell it. If it don't go up, don't buy it."
How do you get it, use it
I am a fairly new owner of a Garmin 760 I received for Christmas. This forum has been great for me to learn how to add POI files and help me utilize my GPSr more effectively.
I keep hearing about Mapsource. What exactly is it? How do you use it, etc. I think I understand you can use it to plot trips and more, but how do you get to it on your computer, how do you use it effectively, and how do you input the info back onto your GPSr?
Thanks, and hope I don't sound like too much of a dummy. Someone needs to write a book "GPS for Dummies"
You need to call Garmin and ask them to send it to you. When I called, they never even asked for my serial number. If they say you must pay, call again. It seems if you get the right person, you can get it for free. I received the disk and installed it.
Now, what do I use it for. Mainly creating POI's since I have a 680 and can't download stuff to it from Mapsource (I believe you can for your 760). Mapsource can give you the exact long/lat of many places. Even though I don't have multiple routing on my 680, I use it to see what route I want to take sometimes and I put in where I want to go into my 680, it picks the route, I drive the way I want, and it re-computes.
Larry - Nuvi 680, Nuvi 1690, Nuvi 2797LMT
GPS for Dummies
Ask and you shall receive!!!
Thanks
I will give them a call today. Thanks
Mapsource
I keep hearing about Mapsource. What exactly is it? How do you use it, etc. I think I understand you can use it to plot trips and more, but how do you get to it on your computer, how do you use it effectively, and how do you input the info back onto your GPSr?
Mapsource is a handy program, and can do a lot more than just manage POI’s, IF you have a copy of the Metroguide or City Navigator maps on your computer. For those of us who only have a GPS that came pre-loaded with the maps, it does not appear to be possible to transfer the pre-loaded maps to your computer. In my case, because of having a handheld Etrex Venture, I have a copy of the City Navigator map on the computer. With this, and Mapsource, I can view the map (including the built-in waypoints or POIs), set up routes to transfer to the Etrex (but not to the Nuvi I have), locate points by address, get the coordinates of any point on the map, etc. etc. Creating a route is as simple as clicking on the map at the origin, end, and any in-between points. Once a route is created, I can see the length, estimated time of travel, view (and print) turn-by-turn directions (which also give the coordinates of every place at which a turn is made). Clicking on “View In Google Earth” shows me the route superimposed over Google Earth’s aerial views. In short, I can do just about anything with Mapsource (and a map) that I do with Microsoft Streets and Trips.
"Recalculating... drive 0.2 miles, then abandon vehicle." ------------- [ETrex Venture CX; Nüvi 40; Drive 52]
More stuff
Additionally, with MapSource you can see how your GPS will map a route to a destination. In the case of my Nuvi, then I create addtional waypoints to force a different route if I don't like what the software chooses. So I can still use it do fairly decent trip planning, even though I can't upload the routes to the Nuvi.
Chuck - Nuvi 200, Nuvi 255W