How can I do this with a gps??

I'd like to take some old map images I have from 1800-1900s, and overlay
them on a pc program that I can use a gps puck with. I want to be able to
search for locations of old canal stuff shown on the maps but no longer
indicated on new maps. What software, if any, out there will let me do
something like this??

My father and I have started trying to trace back some of the old canals
here in Pennsylvania but most of the original canal beds/berms/locks are
gone so actually trying to follow the canal routes is very difficult. I
figured if I can use some of the older maps we could get a better handle on
where the canals were in relationship to the current surroundings.

I saw some stuff relating to some hand held gps like garmins and such but
I'd like to do it with a pc mounted in the car. Mainly because the old man
is a bit on the blind side and I need the bigger screen so he can see it.

Bill

Hi,

there are some moving maps software like

- GPSTrackMaker (gpstm.com)
- TTQV (ttqv.com)
- CompeGPS (compegps.com)
- Fugawi (fugawi.com)


hth
Anton

This one's simple.

Use OziExplorer - www.oziexplorer.com

The old maps can be scanned into a graphic file format and that file can be
"resistered" in OziExplorer so that it knows where the corner pints (and
maybe more) are on the face of the earth. That being done, you can then use
OziExplorer in "moving map" mode to display your current position on that
image of the old map. I think that's what you want to do. You can see some
of my GPS history at www.plitch.com.


This is not quite as simple as I make it to be. There's alway the question
of which datum to use, etc. However, one simple way to register the map
is to find a landmark near each corner, go to those landmarks, and then use
the GPS (and a long waiting period for a good average) to record a position
at each site. Then you can just set Ozi to use the same datum as the GPS
that recorded the points. If the map has an accurate grid and a known
datum, you can just use points at the grid intersections to register the
map.

I have done this many times with USGS quads. Years ago I scanned them in.
Now I just use digital versions. In either case, I can use Ozi with almost
any GPS in moving map mode to display current position. If you are looking
for a new GPS, my advice would be to try to find one that still has a "real"
serial port. Many folks (judging from the questions posted here) are
challenged by trying to get a PC to "see" a virtual serial port on the PC
attached to a real USB port on the GPS. While a USB port is great and very
fast for file transfers, the "moving map" mode of Ozi requires a serial NMEA
input from the GPS using any serial port designated in the Ozi user
configuration file. Virtual serial ports can be somewhat challenging to set
up, but it is possible.

Hope this is useful.

Maybe Google earth can be used. If you make a scan or a picture of the map,
you can overlay this with Google earth, you need some landmarks on the map
which are also visible on google earth, but then you can register the map
onto Google earth and use the pins and routes of Google earth to mark the
canals.

A very likely problem will be that the maps do not register perfectly. If
it's a map of a small area, where everything is properly scaled, the mapping
will be good enough to be usefull. If it's a larger area or the scaling is
not correct this is more difficult.

Google earth is a good start, because it's cheap to start with and it is
fairly simple to use a map as overlay. (You make it a bit transparent and
then try to register a few now landmarks, by shifting and enlarging the
overlay).

Good luck, keep us posted how you are managing.

ben

to
but
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map,
mapping

Google/Flash Earth may be better than actually driving it. I live in the
area of the Miami-Erie Canal(OH). Piqua has a bike bath that runs parallel
to the canal for a very short way. But much of the canal isn't visible from
the road. Where it might be possible to see it erosion may have taken it or
it may be covered with growth to where it isn't recognizable. On a new bike
path south of Troy I was looking at some ruins fro several minutes before
realizing it was the remains of a shallow lock.

Kind of neat to look at the big old locks and think about how they worked
with water from a couple of nearby small lakes.

Several months ago some idiot drove down the bike path and went down the
embankment of one of the locks dry side. My riding buddy and I used Flash
Earth to see which one it was from the description in the paper. We live 25
miles away. The locks don't show up on maps but are very visible from
satellite.