BackCountry Navigator

Mobile Outdoor Maps

Enter Keywords:
Wednesday, 07 January 2009
Main arrow Forum arrow The Softwarearrow Future Featuresarrow Full Screen Map, Track Up Mode, Specify Datum
News
SMF - Just Installed!
Home Help Search Register
BackCountry Navigator Forum  |  The Software  |  Future Features  |  Full Screen Map, Track Up Mode, Specify Datum « previous next »
Pages: [1] Print
Author Topic: Full Screen Map, Track Up Mode, Specify Datum  (Read 700 times)
subterran
Newbie
*
Posts: 2


View Profile
« on: December 10, 2007, 10:16:46 PM »

This software has a bit of a learning curve, but that's only because it is feature-rich! Thanks so much for it!

Now - here are some suggestions for features I'd like to see..

1. Full Screen Map - maybe under view > full screen (full screen has a tiny icon to return to regular mode)

2. Track Up Mode - where GPS icon stays pointing up, and map moves. This would be useful when zoomed in close...

3. Specify Datum. What datum does this use, anyhow? I am going to guess WGS84. I have a million waypoints in NAD27, and I would sure appreciate being able to choose it.

In any case, I am happy. Thanks again for this great software.
Logged
JWay
Newbie
*
Posts: 29


View Profile
« Reply #1 on: December 12, 2007, 11:51:26 AM »

1. Full Screen Map - maybe under view > full screen (full screen has a tiny icon to return to regular mode)
I like this idea.

2. Track Up Mode - where GPS icon stays pointing up, and map moves. This would be useful when zoomed in close...
Good idea, but this has already been addressed by Nathan.  The processor on most PPC's would not be able to handle constantly re-drawing the maps/pictures at different angles, especially if you're sitting still and the GPSr thinks you're turning in circles because of satelite error.

3. Specify Datum. What datum does this use, anyhow? I am going to guess WGS84. I have a million waypoints in NAD27, and I would sure appreciate being able to choose it.
I would like this option, but I don't think it's very easy to convert from NAD27 to WGS84.  What I would love to have is the ability to display coordinates in UTM (northing and easting) instead of Degrees.

And I agree, it's the best software available for PPC by a long shot.
« Last Edit: December 12, 2007, 11:53:15 AM by JWay » Logged
Disposable
Newbie
*
Posts: 1


View Profile
« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2008, 04:02:58 PM »

I'd like to add my vote to these requests, and to a few others.

The full screen option would be great for me, too.  I got a Tilt, and one of the main reasons I went for the more expensive Pocket PC over a smartphone was this software, and having them together is a load of fun, but it sure does have a little screen, and the more of it used for the map the better.

I'm also all for UTM coords.  I know how far an arc second is, but it sure would be easier figuring a distance using linear units rather than angular ones.

Another thing I'd like to see, and I saw a mention of it in an earlier post, is the ability to draw lines or set points by direction and distance rather than purely graphically.  Bearings or azimuths either one would be fine.  What I'm picturing is being able to plot a property description as a path.  I believe the earlier post called this an offset waypoint.

Something else I'd like to see, perhaps as a user-adjustable setting because it may not be needed on a VGA screen, is to change the zoom level at which the map resolution changes.  My screen shows the 1:24000 scale maps, the 4 meter resolution ones, out to the screen with the 0.25 mile scale bar; and shows the 1:100,000 scale maps, with 16 meter resolution, out to the 1 mile scale.  My little QVGA screen would be better suited by having the 4 meter maps out to the 0.5 mile scale, and the 16 meter maps out to the 2 mile scale.

Lastly, as an alternative to the Track Up mode mentioned earlier, I'd like to see the map screen updated more often.  It seems that the GPS cursor gets about 3/4 across the screen before an update is triggered, and at highway speeds that leaves little visible map ahead of me to see where I'm going.  Redraws at 5/8 across or even less, and thus quicker recentering of the cursor, would increase the amount of map visible ahead, tho admittedly at the expense of constant redraws.  It might be a lot harder to do, but updating so the cursor appears at 1/4 across the screen in the last direction of travel rather than at the center would also give more map ahead than behind.  Intead of Track Up, it would be more of a Track Ahead.  I'm picturing the cursor moving across the screen toward the center, from whatever direction, rather than away from it.

Thanks for considering these, and I'm enjoying the software whether you change it anymore or not.
Logged
bilojax
Newbie
*
Posts: 22


View Profile
« Reply #3 on: February 22, 2008, 02:38:50 PM »

Another thing I'd like to see, and I saw a mention of it in an earlier post, is the ability to draw lines or set points by direction and distance rather than purely graphically.  Bearings or azimuths either one would be fine.  What I'm picturing is being able to plot a property description as a path.  I believe the earlier post called this an offset waypoint.

You may already know this, but I think you can achieve this now with a little extra work on your home PC. If you take any pre-recorded .GPX file and open it with notepad or other text editor, you will see how the coordinates are displayed. Then take that section of the text and copy it out to an Excel (or other worksheet) file. Use the math functions to progress the GPS coordinates as you wish, and add columns for the text that repeats from line to line, and then in the final column put together each line. When you're done, copy the final column back into the text file, and you'll have a .GPX file that describes your property borders or whatever.

Logged
Pages: [1] Print 
« previous next »
Jump to:  

Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Made for Mozilla (Firefox) Made for Internet Explorer

Main Menu
Main
Software Tour
Forum
Trouble Logging In?
CB Login
CB Workflows
© 2009 BackCountry Navigator
Joomla! is Free Software released under the GNU/GPL License.