Computerized Topo Maps
How Good Are They?

Part III: Actively Tracking from your GPS

By Dr. Brad DeLong
Author of 4-Wheel Freedom: The Art of Off-Road Driving

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All these programs allow you to lay down a track on the map that’s up on your computer screen as you drive along with your GPS connected to the computer.

Actively tracking in the DeLorme programs. Connect the GPS to the computer, and turn it on. If it’s a Garmin, set the "Interface" screen to "GRMN/GRMN, HOST." Bring up 3-D TopoQuads. Click on the "GPS" tab. Select "Display Position, On." Click on the "Start GPS" button, which them becomes the "Stop GPS" button.

Your current position will show up as a green dot on the map (yellow arrow).

Start driving. Your track will show up as a succession of green arrows.

You can preserve the track in the map by using the "GPS Log" function discussed below, or by selecting the "Navigate" tab, and clicking a series of waypoints along the route of the green arrows.

The GPS Log function. We’ll use DeLorme’s Topo USA 2.0 for this demonstration. Click the "Status" button, and check the position of the GPS on the map.

Click the "GPS Log" button.

A panel of controls like a CD player appears. Click the "New" button. Type in a name for the log file. Click the "Record" button. Recording of the track begins.

As the green arrows trace your track, their position is recorded. When you’ve reached your destination, click the "Stop" button.

To play the track back, click the "Settings" button. Click the "Stop GPS" button to turn off the GPS.

Click the "GPS Log" button again. Select the GPS Log file you want to play back. Click the "Playback" button.

The playback button turns green, and the track plays back. A series of green arrows appears.

To track actively in Topo! click on the GPS tool and select "Setup automatic GPS tracking."

Select the parameters you want to use for automatic tracking.

Start driving. The waypoints are laid down along the track.

The waypoints are listed at the bottom of the screen.

You can draw a route line connecting the waypoints. If you don’t want the waypoints to show on the route line, delete them. See the Second Installment of this series for more information on drawing route lines in Topo! and Topo!GPS.

All Topo Maps

Connect your GPS to your computer and turn it on. Set the Interface screen to "GRMN/GRMN, HOST" if you have a Garmin. Otherwise follow the instructions in your GPS manual. Open All Topo Maps and bring up the section of the map which shows the area in which you’ll be tracking. Bring up the All Topo Maps GPS, and click on "GPS Setup." Set up the parameters, and test the GPS link.

Click the "NMEA and Tracking Setup" tab. Check the boxes in "Real Time GPS Tracking" to show the GPS on the map and center the map on the GPS as you drive.

Click on the map. The GPS position is shown as a blue "X." As you drive, the blue "X" moves. When you drive off the edge of the quad map, All Topo Maps automatically loads the next quad map you need. If the quad map is on another CD, the program prompts you for that CD.

To create a permanent track, download the track the GPS has been accumulating as it actively tracks on the map. Maximize All Topo GPS, click on "Load Coordinates From GPS Receiver."

Select "Track" and click "OK."

The waypoints load into All Topo Maps GPS.

Right click over the selected list of waypoints, and copy them to the clipboard.

Click on the map and open a blank Waypoint Editor by pressing F8. Select "Edit" and paste the waypoints from the clipboard.

Type in the metacode for the route line "<L ON RED 4>" or "<l on red 4>" and click "Reannotate."

Fugawi

Connect the GPS to the computer and turn it on. If you have a Garmin, select "GRMN/GRMN, HOST" in the Interface screen. Bring up Fugawi, and click the GPS button to "ON." The GPS position will be shown as a crosshair and target. This is the San Francisco North quad map from ChartTiff.

Select the "Track" menu. Select "Show" and "Record."

As you drive, the cursor moves along and a blue track is created behind it .

You can make the route permanent on the map by clicking along the track line and creating waypoints. Then create a route line in the usual way, as described in the Second Installment in this Series.

If you drive off the map in Fugawi, you have to "Find" the adjacent map. These are the Orofino East and Orofino West quad maps from Micropath, and the cursor is off the map on the active track.

Right click the mouse off the map. Select "Find" from the menu.

The "Load" screen will come up. The top part of the screen contains the names of maps that contain the current GPS position. The bottom part lists the maps in the current library. If you have the adjacent quad map in your library, load it. Otherwise you’ll have to locate it on one of the CDs and import it first. In this case, we have loaded the Orofino East quad to continue tracking.

Next

Computerized Topo Maps Home Page
Part I: Introduction | Basic GPS w/ Terms | Interfacing with GPS | Contour Interval & Scale | Detail & Quality
Part II: Introduction | Installation and Technical Support | Ease of Use | Entering Waypoints and Routes
Part III: Introduction | Downloading Tracks from your GPS | Actively Tracking from your GPS | Printing Maps
General Comparison of the Programs

Product and Ordering Information from 4X4BOOKS.com
Topo USA 2.0 | 3-D TopoQuads | Wildflower TOPO! and TOPO! GPS | TrailSmart | ALL TOPO MAPS | Fugawi

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