pbhall

Just received a Vista HCx for Christmas and would like to take advantage of the auto routing feature without purchasing the City Navigator map set...

I have the metro guide v7 map set from my old gps and a freeware program named Metrowizzz says it allows auto routing but it does not seem to work for me.

Has anyone had any experience getting Metrowizzz to work? if not familiar see following link.
GEODUDE.NL

If it does work it would be a less expensive alternative.

Any thoughts?


Thanks!

Andy

I've never seen this before. I looks interesting.

Later...

I just tried it, using Metroguide V6. I copied only about 4 sections of map data onto my 76CSx using Metrowizzz. Sure enough I told it to route to a waypoint and it was giving directions on local streets. Just to make sure, I reloaded the same map sections straight from Mapsource without Metrowizzz, told it to route to the same waypoint. This time the route only appeared on the basemap, no local streets. So basically it works.

What problem are you having with it?

TOphotog

I've used it, but I actually doled out the $6 for the MetroGold programme (less complicated than Metrowizz) and it does work! It makes all the MetroGuide programmes autoroutable inside the GPSr.

pbhall

I have not played with it a lot but a when the route that was selected a route to a near by interstate highway as the 1st part of the route even if going to that interstate was out of the way. I did try setting the route selection profile to a pedestrian and avoid highway and there was no change.

It also would exit the interstate highway were there were no exits and not follow a road (when set to follow road).

Admittedly I have not played with it a lot but these experiences were disappointing...

Andy

I only tried simulating some routes on it so I don't really know what's up with it. The routing information it gathers and adds to the mapdata is from the Metroguide product. I don't think it's from the Metrowizzz program. Metrowizz just seems to attach the already available routing data to the mapdata prior to sending to a GPS. Some versions of Metroguide do auto-routing inside Mapsource. Older versions like v2, do not. Try creating the route in Mapsource and see how it looks. Then see if the route is similar in the device. They won't always be the same, even when using City Nav. My 76CSx doesn't always route the same as the way Mapsouce does. Even with the route preferences set the same.

pbhall

Andy,

I made a mistake using the metrowizzz the 1st time. When the instructions were followed it works very well. The mistake was not turning mapsource off after metrowizz transferred the data to the gps and then sending the data to the gps a 2nd time again using mapsource!

It is working fine now. Putting in this post & your reply made me go back and give it another shot. Thanks!

Andy

Glad you got it working. I think the Metroguide maps are from a different supplier than what City Nav is supplied from. The map data and POIs are slightly different. Both are about the same size though. There use to be an old version of Metroguide that included the routing data when transfered to a device. I think it was version 4. Maybe Garmin's contract with their supplier changed. They don't seem to be developing the Metroguide line of software anymore.

This software you found though seems to work fine if you don't already own City Nav.

TOphotog

For information purposes....

Garmin's Metroguide is autoroutable. Garmin adds a coding that tells the software to leave out the autorouting capability when transferring the maps to the GPSr. Metrowizz/Metrogold tells that piece of coding to shut up and sit still, like a good doggie. This is how it then allows your GPSr to do autorouting with the Metroguide. I think Garmin is phasing out Metroguide only because it's not locked/lockable. I don't think we'll be seeing Metroguide updates in our lifetime.

I've now switched to City Nav North America and I find it a lot slower in my unit. When I'm driving along the highway, and pass from one map segment to the other, I've got a blank screen for quite a while. I think there's more data that it's pulling up, hence the hesitation. Overall, I like the CityNav mapping software. The updated POI's help too.

pbhall

I have been looking at the City Nav but the price is prohibitive for several months.

Do you know if there is a difference between the City Nav and City Nav NT in performance on the gps unit...does the difference in the way the data is compressed effect the speed of the map rendering?