DeLorme is the software my office mates are all using, including my boss. I'll probably go with this software myself since I'll have support right here in-house. But, I didn't want to pull the trigger without asking the Experts first.
I'm getting it for my Axim x50, but will eventually buy the Laptop version when I need to.
Delorme is ok for off-road use, especially with their Topo-Quads (sold seperately). I use topo maps cut from X-Map 4.5 on SA 2005HH for work. These are raster maps and are very accurate with the Blue Logger GPS but they are outdated by 10 years in many parts of the USA.
This is a walking application for my Axim X50 where the detail on 10-300 acres of land is most important and viewed at a zoom level of 13-15 on SAHH. I cut maps at Zoom level 14 and turn off unecessary vector info. to make saved county level topo map files as small as possible (40-80 MB). At this file size, refresh rates scrolling county raster maps can take 4-6 seconds. This is not ideal, but I like to have the county level database on hand in case I don't know the exact location of a piece of property ahead of time. So in other words, Delorme works better off-road (and probably on-road) with smaller file size cut maps. This software was not really designed with the idea of having huge databases stored on a flash card to be quickly accessed.
One final note, PDAs like the Axim are pretty worthless in bright outdoor conditions. Maps, and especially aerial photos, and not easily visible on the screen. A paper map or photo is still much more practical in many walking applications.
the iblue is pretty damn good, small, lightweight and a helluva battery
i'm still in the market for some good gps software, but for now i'm using delorme streets and trips for pocket pc. its basically just an overhead map with an arrow marking where you are. it seems to be fairly accurate. i really havent tried it as a primary route planning tool yet, havent had a chance to aimlessly drive in a while
Delorme for the Pocket PC is absolutely worthless at any price, and very dangerous to use while driving because of how bad it is. If I can dissuade you from buying a piece of software, this is the one.
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"I'm a perfectionist, but not very good at it yet."
I used Delorme Street & trips 2005 on my laptop before I got my Axim, It was So-So What sucked is if you got lost or made a wrong turn, took too long to re-route.
And if you think rerouting is bad on the laptop wait until you try it on a PocketPC. Heck for that matter, you better head to the car well ahead of the time you need to leave just to give enough time for it to plan the route. Oh and take a pillow for the short nap you can take waiting.
yeah..dont plan on using it for routing. however as an overhead "you are here" program with basic tracking and coordinate information its not bad. it is definitely difficult to see in bright sun, but the axim itself is tough to see, so i dont see that being a problem with the software.
And if you think rerouting is bad on the laptop wait until you try it on a PocketPC. Heck for that matter, you better head to the car well ahead of the time you need to leave just to give enough time for it to plan the route. Oh and take a pillow for the short nap you can take waiting.
Glad you enjoyed that lawman. It is unfortunate they do not have a better product. I liked the idea of having topographic and street navigation packages in one program. I did not even mention how bad their map data was. I saw complaints about the old map data in their forums which is the reason I started looking for better products. What really torqued me was the answer I got when I complained about the product. They said I did not understand how hard it was to program for a PocketPC and that I should use the laptop version instead. Funny all these other navigation programs have no problem with the PocketPC enviorment.
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