Mapsource track points

I have a new Garmin 400t, and the MapSource software. My question is
really about using MapSource--please send me to the right forum if
this isn't it.

I recorded a track on my GPS and uploaded it to MapSource on my PC. I
can look at the track on the map, and I can get a list of the track
legs (MapSource calls this list the "Track Properties"); each leg is
associated with an "index" (sequential number). Given a leg on the
list, I can find it on the map by clicking on it, and the two points
marking the beginning and end of the leg on the map turn blue. And
using the "selection tool", you can double-click on a point on the map
and bring up the track properties with the leg starting at that point
selected.

From the "Track Properties" dialog box, I can also click on a "Show
Profile" button to get a vertical profile of the track. By further
clicking on the "Show Track Points" in this second dialog box, I can
get the track points to appear on the vertical profile. However, as
far as I can tell there is absolutely no way to tell which point on
the vertical profile corresponds to which legs on the Track Properties
or which point on the map! The information associated with a point on
the Vertical Profile is the number of miles along the track (which
does not appear in the Track Properties dialog or on the map), plus
the altitude (which does appear on the track properties, but of course
is generally ambiguous--there may have been many points with a given
altitude). You can kind of guess by guesstimating how far through the
track a given point is, but it's frustrating not to be able to
accurately associate a point on the vertical profile with a point on
the map.

Or am I missing something?

McSwell wrote:


What you say is 98% correct.....

Run the profile data on a Topo Map..... having a few hills/grades
and the info can be pegged a little more accurately....

The Profile/route function works wonders with a straignt line between
two

selected points (not track points but route pts) on a Topo map where
1 point is

your house & 2nd is the Digital TV Tower.... with hills between.....

a Digital TV Tower..... Assume the Tower is 1000' tall.

Den Mayer from GBay

McSwell wrote:


Maybe. I still using MapSource 6.13.7 because of the issues with the
6.14 and up versions. I can make the correlation of trackpoints seen in
the track on the map to the list of trackpoints in the properties list
with the Select Tool (the white arrow).

With the track properties menu not open, by double clicking on any given
trackpoint or track segment, it will open the properties menu and the
track point I clicked on will be low lighted (in gray, not blue). If I
click on the low lighted trackpoint in the properties menu becomes
highlighted or blue. And when I do that the track segment that high or
low lighted in the list becomes cyan on the map.

Another way to do that is to right click on a track or trackpoint on the
map and choose Properties to bring up the menu.

Once I have a track point highlighted in the list I can scroll up and
down the list and the corresponding track segment will change to cyan.

There are limits on how much the Track Properties menu can be resized
but I can usually move it off to one side so that I see the menu and the
track itself at the same time. And you can click the Center map on
selected item(s) box to keep the map centered current selected track
segment.

MapSource seems to be far from perfect and has always been that way.
But I've used a number of navigation programs and utilities and none of
them was clearly better at everything. Each one seems to have it
limitations and annoying traits. Save the tracks in *.gpx files and
look at various third party utilities, you may find one you like better.
I use GPS Utility http://www.gpsu.co.uk/ also and like it very much.
There are many others listed here:

http://gpsinformation.net/#3rdparty

Jack


From that point

Thanks! Wish I had known about those before I plopped down my $60 for
Garmin MapSource...

Mike

McSwell wrote:

Wow! You bought MapSource? I don't think I ever heard of anyone doing

Please don't take that as an insult, there is a bit of a learning curve
on Garmin's software and hardware. But MapSource can be acquired at no
cost by a sort of circuitous route. That would not normally have any
mapping with it or might have a coarse world map depending on how you
get it but it will talk to your GPS receiver and do all the other things
we are talking about as far as viewing and editing tracks and other data.

There are a few things that are simply easier to under MapSource with
Garmin mapping then they are with the third party applications.

Jack