mapsource for used gps

[farmerdj96]

Hi all first post yea.
I bought a used farming 60 csx map gps, the problem is mapsource wasn't included so now what?
I found a bunch of mapsources but I not sure which one to get for hiking backpacking and mountainbiking.
If anybody has a idea I would be very happy
Ps. Great site love it

[Malto]

It will depend on where you hike. If it were me (and I have that exact model) I would get the 24k region where you hike.

[10-K]

I get all my maps from gpsfiledepot.com. Get the topos for your area and then get the "My Trails" map - it's a transparent map that overlays trails onto the topos.

Works great....

[karo]

I think you can even get the mapsource software from gpsfiledepot.com. I have several maps downloaded from there and it is highly recommended.

[leaftye]

You shouldn't need Mapsource to put free maps on your gps. The map file gets dropped into a certain location on the gps or memory card.

[lilricky]

What you need to know about installing Mapsource is here, but Mapsource has been discontinued. You can use Garmin's free Basecamp software instead.

[leaftye]

Basecamp doesn't transfer maps to the handheld units. It's much nicer if all you're doing is viewing maps on your computer and printing them out.

[lilricky]

You better let Garmin know to take that ability out of Basecamp then!
"Use BaseCamp to plan your next hiking, biking, motorcycling, driving or off-roading trip. You can view maps, plan routes, and mark waypoints and tracks from your computer and then transfer them to your device."
But once you get Garmin to take that out, with Mapsource being discontinued and non-supported, how are you going to get your maps, topo, etc, on the device?

[The Cleaner]

I get all my maps from gpsfiledepot.com. Get the topos for your area and then get the "My Trails" map - it's a transparent map that overlays trails onto the topos.

Works great....

You should be careful on gpsfiledepot.com...I got a virus from one of the TN topos....

[leaftye]

You better let Garmin know to take that ability out of Basecamp then!
"Use BaseCamp to plan your next hiking, biking, motorcycling, driving or off-roading trip. You can view maps, plan routes, and mark waypoints and tracks from your computer and then transfer them to your device."
But once you get Garmin to take that out, with Mapsource being discontinued and non-supported, how are you going to get your maps, topo, etc, on the device?

Have you done it? If you have, please teach me how. I'm running Basecamp 3.2.2. According to the changelog, the ability to transfer custom maps has existed for quite a while before the version I have. If that's the same as transferring any topo map, then I can't figure out how to do it. In Mapsource it was VERY easy. You just highlight the area you want and click on the toolbar button that uploads it to the device. That button doesn't exist in Basecamp. Basecamp has never shown that it recognized that my gps was plugged in, whereas Mapsource always did.

Actually, I think I figured it out. Basecamp actually does not handle transferring maps. A separate application named MapInstall does. That tool, or a very similar tool, has existed for a very long time, well before Basecamp. I ignored it for years because Mapsource did the same thing, or at least seamlessly integrated those functions.

In any case, when free maps are used on a device that has a lot of memory internally and on memory cards, why not drop the file directly onto one of those instead of fiddling around with an application that takes much longer to transfer a subset of that map? This works great when you're only using one map. I bet the vast majority of trail gps users only have one map on their device. The only advantage I found to using a program is when I wanted to transfer several different types of maps, like my old 100k topo, newer 24k topo, free 24k topo, City Navigator, free street maps, and OpenStreetMaps...all installed at the same time.

[lilricky]

Yep, Mapsource was definitely easier to use than Basecamp, especially when it comes to selecting topo sections. And yes, Mapinstall is the app Basecamp uses. I still use Mapsource from time to time, its a shame they decided to not license the bits of software that Mapsource relied on. Garmin created Basecamp from scratch, using their own code and programmers. So its not as polished as Mapsource is. Not sure why you are having problems getting Basecamp to see your gps. I had some issues using longer usb cables with Mapsource & Basecamp, but fixed it by using shorter cables or the Garmin one with the Ferrite choke(cylinder looking thing with the cable running through it) If it can't see your GPS then it can't see your memory card either. But once you get Basecamp up and running you should be able to right click on the Memory Card under devices and select Install maps on memory card. That will launch Mapinstall and then you can select the usual boxes that Mapsource did. Why they don't have a button like Mapsource had, I don't know. Other than the fact I think they bit off more than they could chew with designing brand new software. I too install several different mapsets on my device, depending on what I want to do. And yep, I agree, being able to simply drop it into a folder would be much easier for me as well. I guess they're looking at trying to make it as seamless as possible, while failing miserably.

[karo]

Do you remember which TN topo? I don't want to make the same mistake.

[SassyWindsor]

Things could be better with Garmin and their mapping SW. I just got an eTrex 20 and I like the unit. The use of "base camp" is new to me and I've learned that Mapsource support is being phased out, if not already so. I've got city nav 2010 that came with a nuvi that is now broken and I would like to use it in my eTrex 20, not going to happen per Garmin, they won't unlock it, ie: transfer unit id's. I'll have to buy another sw to get up to date turn by turn and will have to buy upgrades in the future. Currently I'm running old metroguide(no lock) that gives me turn by turn but the sw is really out of date. Any suggestions/tricks on how not to spend a fortune on mapping sw thats up to date?