Archive for the ‘OSM’ Category.
In keeping with our commitments to regular free updates, we’ve released new updates to all 3 of our Garmin Maps, covering the original UK Garmin OSM Map, the UK Garmin OSM Cycle Map, and the new UK Garmin OSM Canal Map which we launched only last week.
Head off to the download page to pick up the latest versions…
It’s a while since we’ve heard anything from SatMap, but, according to Pocket GPS World, they’ve just released a new update (v1.3) for their device. The Changelog states this update includes:
Map Features
User Interface
Functions
Settings
Routes
This update is available from here, with a warning that you must be running v1.16 or higher else you risk corrupting the device; story courtesy of Pocket GPS World. [Via UK Gadgeteer]
With the New Year brings new ideas, and today we would like to announce we are launching our OSM Canal Map for Garmin GPS units. As with all our maps this is initially UK based only, although we are looking to expand and offer more countries during 2009 (if you have any particular requests, please create an account in the forums and ask for your country).
The Canal Map is a little experimental at the moment, and we would welcome feedback good and bad in our forums. We started with a similar profile as our UK OSM Cycle Map for Garmin, and de-emphasised the cycle routes (although they still appear on the Canal Map to show our Canal Map users easy routes into town centres), and added a number of very specific canal / river POIs (Points of Interest) as well.
Most of the additional POIs are self-explanatory, using the standard Garmin symbols for Marinas, Boatyards etc. but we discovered Garmin did not have a symbol for locks, so we have used the White Navaid symbol for this. If any Canal Map users can find us a more appropriate symbol, we’ll happily change over. Also, as OSM maps each individual lock gate, we often find at least 2 occurrences of the lock name in close proximity, which can make the name look blurred. We’re looking into whether there is anything we can do to improve this, but do let us know whether it’s a real issue or not.
Of course, if you zoom in sufficiently far, you can actually see the individual lock gates…
We believe this is the first UK Canal Map for GPS devices created using OSM data, and hope it proves popular.
As always, this is available for download alongside our other OSM Maps for Garmin here.
route-me is a slippy map library for the iPhone. Allowing application developers to include slippy maps withing iPhone applications.
Currently OpenStreetMap Microsoft Virtual Earth and Cloudmade are supported as map sources.
Head over to their website for a more information. [Via UK Gadgeteer].
The Times online, is reporting that the treasury is looking to sell off state assests including the Met Office, mapmaker Ordnance Survey and the Forestry Commission, are being prepared for sale by the government in the next two years to raise cash for the stretched public purse.
More details here
OSM2Go is an editor for openstreetmap.org map data. OSM2Go is designed for simplicity and user friendlyness and not for maximim feature count. It is meant for simple mapping on the road.
Take your n810 out and mark your favorite restaurant on OpenStreetMap, enter your childrens playground to the database, map your entire neighbourhood or just correct this OneWay that recently changed direction.
Screenshots from different versions:
We’ve now completed our first hardware review.
This review is of the Garmin Colorado 300. We make some comparisons to the GPSMap60Csx.
We’ll take a look at using the Colorado 300 to go caching. Including some screen shots to wet you appetite.
Follow the link to get to the Full Review
As we mentioned just less than 3 months ago, our plan was to release updates to our Free UK Garmin OSM Maps on a regular basis, and this is the first such update.
Just like last time, we have released both the standard UK Garmin OSM Maps, and also the UK Garmin OSM Cycle Map (which highlights cycle routes more than normal roads).
Although it’s not easy to comment on what’s changed between the two maps, as that is a natural result of what the OpenStreetMap users have updated, we do know that there have been lots of mini mapping parties in and around London over the Summer improving the quality of the mapping. One of the key things they were doing was reducing the number of unnamed roads in the city, so if nothing else, Londoners will see more road names within the data. We also have seen a lot more POIs (Point of Interest) added to the main OSM database across the whole of the map, many of which are reflected in these new files.
Head over to our download page for more information, and the latest updates…
Although we’ve seen OS maps on other devices, such as the SatMap Active 10 before, and in software, such as the ViewRanger software for Symbian phones, Garmin are shortly to release UK OS Maps for their Garmin Colorado and Garmin Oregon GPS devices.
The OS Maps will come on a microSD card that you can slot straight into the units (although knowing Garmin you will not be able to transfer the maps to another memory card, as they use the “Secure” bit of the SD card standard to store the license to use the maps). This should not be a major problem for these devices, as they have some internal memory for storing additional POIs, and they support multiple map files on the internal memory too.
What’s different about these Garmin maps though is that as well as featuring the full visual OS maps, all the data has been included to allow you to navigate via the maps too, and POI information is included as well.
At some point, Garmin will also sell the units and maps together, but in the meantime the OS Maps will be available from November priced at £129.99.
For those who want better mapping on their GPS units, but don’t want to pay at all, then we offer the Garmin UK OSM maps (using the OpenStreetMap maps) free of charge! OpenStreetMap is still a “Work in Progress”, so not every road or footpath is covered, but the data will still enhance your GPS if you only have a very rough basemap (or no map at all), and best of all, you can help improve the map by uploading your GPS traces, and adding the missing roads and footpaths yourself.
If you are a cyclists, don’t forget we also have the OSM Cycle Map available in Garmin format.
Both downloads are available here.
Story and picture courtesy of OUTDOORSmagic.com [Via UK Gadgeteer].
Although it won’t appear for a few more days whilst the app goes through Apple’s review, the team behind Geocaching.com have written their own iPhone client. The cost of the application is $9.99 (UK price to be confirmed) and has the functionality you need to look up and seek out caches using the networking and location-based features of the iPhone 3G. It also works with the iPod Touch and first gen iPhone though you will need WiFi for the Touch and the compass won’t work.
The first release will not have the feature to log caches or filter hides and finds, but it will be included as a free upgrade as we add that functionality – hopefully over the next month. We wanted to get the application out as soon as possible since the demand was so high for it.
Some non-obvious features:
Some more screenshots:
Pictures courtesy of Geocaching.com [Via UK Gadgeteer]
