Mapsource update

[frankly frankie]

Garmin publish free updates to Mapsource on their website.  Usually of course they're very worthwhile.
This is just a note to say the latest/current one, v6.14, is a bit problematic.  Basically, its prettier, but its a lot slower.  Update at your peril.

Please see my notes at
http://www.aukweb.net/services/lwg_3.htm#updater
for further information including workaraounds.

[edit] screenshots before/after applying 6.14 - from here it looks all good, however its very slow in use unless maybe you've got some quad-cored liquid-cooled behemoth of a computer ...
before

after

nb also on the post-update version the horizontal scale is slightly stretched

[cc93]

Not too bad on my work laptop, which is no Deep Thought, but is fairly new.

Contours V2 doesn't work though and has to be removed from the registry before Mapsource will start.

Metrogold does work (with MG Euro9 and North America)

Other maps, like France Topo with, how can I put this, less rigorous provenance, do not work, but they didn't offer much more than MG Euro so no great loss.

Much nicer screens so it gets my vote

EDIT: Also works fine on the netbook (Advent 4211)

[Sergeant Pluck]

I've downloaded the update.

Is it intended that you then transfer these new maps to the device?

[Wendy]

I've downloaded the update.

Is it intended that you then transfer these new maps to the device?

It's not maps that you're updating, but the map display and editing software.

[Maladict]

New maps?  Isn't this just an improvement in the on-screen rendering on the PC?

*edit* beaten to it 

[Sergeant Pluck]

Thought so.

Like the OP, I am not sure that I like the update. I'll try it for a bit but may revert.

[harvey]

If you were to revert would you have to delete all of mapsource?  Then reload from your CD and reload your maps too?

[frankly frankie]

No I believe you can apply 6.13 over 6.14 and revert that way.  Assuming you have the old 6.13 update file of course.  NB I haven't tried this myself (I just copied my existing Mapsource.exe before updating, and then copied it back over the updated version when I knew I didn't want the update).

I think 6.13 can be downloaded here: http://www.gpsinformation.org/perry/msource/MapSource_6137.exe

[Sergeant Pluck]

I used system restore to revert, as I had completely ignored FF's advice. Now that I have done it his way, I have both versions available. While the new version is a little slower, I am starting to prefer it.

[frankly frankie]

There is just this as well ...


both red circles should be, well, circular.

The smaller one is the Mapsource 'crosshair', the larger is a waypoint with a proximity setting -
just to illustrate that the horizontal scale is a teeny bit off.

Just a curiosity that's all - no big deal.

[Manotea]

I was running V6.11 so I thought I'd give it a go.

I can confirm that on my 4 year old lptop with a big external monitor, 6.14 runs like a crippled crab through custard with mapsource metroguide data (even worse than 6.11 with topo data).  So as I write I'm downloading 6.13 using Frankies link.

All done. I like the minimap feature on 6.13 which is new to me.

[Sergeant Pluck]

That Metrogold has been excellent. I see it survives these updates and does not even need to be re-applied.

To be honest I had not even bothered to update to 6.13 until this recent flurry of activity.

[The Mechanic]

Which Mapsource product are we talking about.  Is is City Navigator, Metroguide or what.  Sorry for this question but I can not find anything remotely V6.13 or 6.14.

[Sergeant Pluck]

The update was fine on my Metroguide Europe v9.

If you download and run Garmin Updater it will find and load the updates.

[frankly frankie]

Which Mapsource product are we talking about.  Is is City Navigator, Metroguide or what.

Any.  If you go to 'Help' and 'About Mapsource' that dialog will display your Mapsource version number.  (Provided its 6.13 or lower **)  You'll  probably have 6.xxx or maybe even 5.xxx.  6.137 was the last-but-one version available as a downloadable update, probably never incorporated in a DVD release.  Regardless of whether or not 6.14 is felt to be 'better', 6.13 is certainly worth having.

From that dialog 'Product Info' will show the version numbers of the maps you have installed - Metroguide, City or whatever, which will be different again.  I have Metroguide v8, Worldmap v4, Trip&Waypoint v2, and Contours v1.3 (nb Contours is not compatible with 6.14)

** in 6.14 that 'About Mapsource' dialog has become dumbed-down and far less informative, for some reason.

[The Mechanic]

Thanks Frankie.  I will give it a go tonight.

OK, done it.  It is slow.  I reckon you need a superfast graphics card for it to scroll fast.  However, I prefer it to the original so I will keep it for now.

[Richard T]

Hi there!
I'm only an infrequent cyclist, I got here via a Google link to this thread.

I use both Quest 1 and Quest 2, with Mapsource on both my home PC & work laptop.

I recently upgraded to 6.14, and thought at first it looked great. Until I tried to use it seriously when I found the following:

1) The map view isn't a 'birdseye view' any more, it's more like an equatorial satellite view. Hence the horizontal and vertical scales are different, especially towards the northern edge of the coverage area, where the vertical scale is very squashed. This is similar to the BBC1 weather forecast maps. OK for illustration to numpties who can't read a map, but totally useless for judging the layout of a land area, or for comparing route distances!
2) Zooming in and out on a view is very slow.
3) Route calculation has gone haywire! A simple route along a main road will frequently divert off into the hills then back again for no reason at all (nothing to do with routing preferences). This would be repairable, except:
4) The facility to edit a route by 'click and drag' with the mouse no longer works reliably. I spent nearly all afternoon trying to edit a route by this method, tried long clicks, short clicks, various zoom levels, etc., and all sorts but it only works about 10% of the time. This was one of the most useful and user-friendly features of the previous version, what on earth have they done?

I've tried emailing Garmin with these complaints, but all I got back was smug platitudes.   

I've now reverted to 6.13 using the link provided in one of the posts above - thanks for that!   

[frankly frankie]

Resurrecting this old thread ...

The problem with the SMC Contours not working with Mapsource versions newer than 6.13, has been resolved (probably quite a long time ago, but I've only just noticed it).

Its a simple registry edit using Regedit, or the SMC's registry patch download now includes the fix.

If you drill down to find a 'folder' called
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Garmin\MapSource\Products\Contours V2

just rename it to 132 instead of Contours V2 - so -
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Garmin\MapSource\Products\132

this now works with both old and new versions of Mapsource.
Although I find 6.14 too slow on my behind-the-trailing-edge computer, it is handy to have it available as an option - for printing out sketch maps of town centres for example.  I've seen a whisper that v6.15 is imminent - maybe that will fix the bug with the mismatched scales (though then again I'm not holding my breath).

[edit] I think its normal to issue warnings about backing up the registry first ...

[harvey]

When I added the new city navigator 2009 it didn't like the 6.13 version and auto loaded the 6.14 version.  I tried to get it to work with 6.13 but gave up - I'm a bit of a numpty with these things.  I couldn't get on with 6.14 so just went back to the 6.13 and CN 2008.

[scottlington]

Just loaded 6.14 and agree wholeheartedly with earlier posts. It certainly looks pretty but, by GOD, is it slow!

I now find myself thinking the wrong way round - instead of reverting back to 6.13x, I'll get a new PC! SCHTOP!

[RW]

I downloaded the upgrade, but had I seen the thread I wouldn't have.  My laptop's three years old and it just ground to a halt.  I agree the new maps look pretty in a way, but every thing looks too chunky, and when you view it on a two inch screen, it's spindly little lines you want.  I got round the problem by uninstalling everything and re-loading it from the disks.

[frankly frankie]

The scary thing is that any new adopters buying into their first Mapsource product - this is what they will get.

What a turn-off!

[Von Broad]

I now find myself thinking the wrong way round - instead of reverting back to 6.13x, I'll get a new PC! SCHTOP!

I'm pretty new to all this stuff, but did download the update and well, blimey.....I can only reiterate.

I do agree with Wellard that the interface is much better, it has more of a google maps feel to it, but on my machine, which is only a modest athlon 2ghz, 1gig or ram thingie, there is a massive price to pay, almost to the point of the program barely running at all!!
I'm very firmly of the opinion that I will only replace a PC when I can't run the software anymore. Luckily I'm not into games [until I got a GPS that is  ], so for the most part this way of doing things doesn't cause too many headaches, but I draw the line at this one. That core2duo will have to wait a while longer. 6.13 it will have to be.

[RW]

The scary thing is that any new adopters buying into their first Mapsource product - this is what they will get.

What a turn-off!

They've probably been listening to what people in focus groups say!  And the first thing you think when confronted with the City Navigator map is that it's not a "proper" map. 

[Martin]

(Moved from the Legend thread as it's specifically about mapsource) Thanks; what about bridleway / cyclepath cut throughs (2 quite big ones over river and harbour in Shoreham on El S's 200 already with lengthy diversions on road; can you just fly over from one road to another and restart?

and what if you plot a waypoint and it decides to take you the long way round to get there; can you delete the errant number of waypoints rather than the whole route?