TOPO! National Geographic USGS Topographic Maps, Colorado
by National Geographic
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Software Reviews of TOPO! National Geographic USGS Topographic Maps, Colorado
Customer Review: Triton GPS software
Summary: 2 Stars
Works with the triton gps.... maps are ok. They are also not up to date like msn or google maps are. Also it doesn't look as anything like what they want to you to believe. It seems like that only option for triton users....Customer Review: Difficult Program To Install and Use
Summary: 1 Stars
I received this product today for Christmas and spent about 4 hours installing and figuring out how to use the software. Frankly, this is the most difficult installation I have ever experienced:
The installation software doesn't automatically install in Widows XP. One has to type it in the command line in "Run". (Yes, I know this is a minor inconvenience, but it's an indicator of other user unfriendliness.)
The imbedded operating manual is not up to date and must have been written for an earlier version. In some cases the instructions are wrong for the new version. The manual is poorly organized with important installation instructions embedded in FAQ's near the end of the document.
No instructions are given for installing the 5 CDs that contain the topo maps for North and South Carolina. The instructions are buried on page 87 of a 94 page manual! The procedure should been provided in one of the first pages and presented more clearly.
The procedure for saving a simple topo map is confusing and laborious.
The "Notes and Photos Tool" can't be toggled on and off. The procedure for doing so is wrong in the manual. One needs an embedded note or photo to save the exact topo map!
The procedure for importing a GPS tracks and waypoings is confusing and laborious.
The procedure for exporting a map/track to another application is wrong in the manual. The resulting JPG image of the topo map is of poor quality compared to the in-program topo map.
The 3D maps are underwhelming and fuzzy.
I did like the "fly over" feature, which is like a helicoptor ride over a track on the topo map. Cool!
I purchased this software to complement my newly purchased Garmin 60CSx GPS and Mapsource software. For those of you who have been underwhelmed by the 60CSx manual, it's a treat compared to this.
Customer Review: A Good Program
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a good program with many useful features. I use it primarily for hiking and backpacking in the Sierra Nevadas. The excellent quality maps that I can print out are perfect to use in conjunction with my GPS receiver. You can't download the topo maps into the GPSr, but that's okay since the GPSr has such a small screen (and I prefer having a paper map in hand when hiking). The program also lets me plot courses along trails and calculate hiking distances. The elevation profile tool has been very handy and there is an option to include the profile at the bottom of a map print out. My only complaint is that the USGS maps used by the program do not have all of the trails that other paper maps include (but then again, I've found a few trails in this program that aren't on some of my other paper maps). I also save waypoints and courses to a ".gpx" file which I can then import into Google Earth to get a better feel for terrain and vegetation. I give it 4/5 Star because it is not perfect (see above complaint) but it is close. Overall, I highly recommend this program for anyone who enjoys hiking in California's mountains. Customer Review: Buggy and you can get 24K maps for free
Summary: 2 Stars
This program does have some good features - but the interface is awkward and it crashes frequently. Also, the USGS web site provides free downloads of all 1:24,000 quadrangle maps. With a little trim and paste work you can get custom areas and you don't have to spend good money and not good software.Customer Review: You Cannot Load These Maps onto Most GPS Units
Summary: 2 Stars
This software looks great. Lots of amazing features. Includes 3-D and Fly-Thru views. It's more detailed than the Garmin MapSource Topo U.S. 2008 (1:24,000 vs. 1:100,000). It is both PC and Mac compatible. Garmin's is only PC compatible. However, you can only use this product on your computer and not on your GPS unit in the field. This is because Garmin will not allow it. You can transfer waypoints and routes but not the maps. According to reviews I've read, the Garmin Topo software is not detailed and not accurate. So, what to do? According to other reviews I've just read, National Geographic has just completed arrangements with Magellan to allow transfer of their 1:24,000 maps to the new Triton GPS that will become availabe in September or October. These new Magellan units are a lot more user friendly than than their old ones. If Garmin won't allow other software vendors access to their product, then they should at least make decent mapping software themselves. I'm going to return my new Garmin GPS and get one of the new Triton GPS units. At that point, I'll probably give this software 5 stars.