Magellan GPS - Update --> Re: Directroute questions, Magellan response (or lack

Author

Update --> Re: Directroute questions, Magellan response (or lack

David Shaffer

2007-10-02, 10:33 pm

OK, I've had the new v3 maps on the receiver for a month or so and
really appreciated the newer data on the maps themselves compared to v2.

Little did I know I had another problem lurking. Or maybe I haven't done
some installation step correctly -- not sure.

Anyway, had the opportunity to drive into New York City last week, a
great test for the GPS unit and directroute.

Now always before with the older version, each step in a route created
by the software would show up on the bottom of the screen with a text
description, an arrow indicating any turn direction, and a distance to
that variation in the course ... as well as a total distance remaining
to the destination.

Not last week. Often the screen looked the same, but he text description
was gone. Vanished. Nothing there at all. Normally, it would have said
something like "I-80 exit 133 to SR 53" and there would be an arrow
showing the exit turn direction and an indicator how far to the exit.

But all I had on the screen -- often, maybe half the time -- was the
turn arrow and distance. No indication of the name of the exit or street
at all.

I should that was not particularly helpful traveling in New York City.

Anybody know anything about this? To the best of my knowledge, all other
settings had been just as they always were before when I got better
information on the route screens.

Would sure like to have that back...

- Dave

David Shaffer wrote:[color=darkred
]
> Here's the latest....
>
> I tried the Magellan website again on Thursday and ... it WORKED. No
> problem in unlocking the program, and that works too. I have yet to have
> enough time to explore how v3 may differ from v2. But I am finally now
> able to run the software.
>
> This saves me, for the moment, from throwing the whole mess in a box and
> starting over! ;-)
>
> Side comment -- I had moved to this version for newer maps. Last week, a
> technician told me on the phone the maps in v2 and v3 were exactly the
> same. Now that I can run the program myself, I can clearly see -- she
> was wrong. I picked three nearby locations that had changed and were all
> outdated on my v2 maps. Two of the three are up-to-date on the new version.
>
> Sigh.
>
>
> Noweldrecumbent2 wrote:
>

David Shaffer

2007-10-07, 10:33 am

Here's the advice I received this morning from Magellan on this matter:

> Thank you for contacting Magellan. This email is in response to your query
> about the GPS unit.
>
> Our Sincere apologies for the delay in responding your email.
>
> We understand from your mail that the unit doesn't indicate any turn
> direction's and the dustance variation while routing with the unit.
>
> We would request you to select map screen, choose menu button and click on
> show map information and select customize map information. Also, we request
> you to reset the unit and do a clear memory step. Incase if the issue still
> persist, we would request you to contact our technical support (VOICE) at the
> below mntioned number for further assistance to solve your issue.
>
> If you have further queries, please get back to us.

- Dave

David Shaffer wrote:[color=darkred
]
> OK, I've had the new v3 maps on the receiver for a month or so and
> really appreciated the newer data on the maps themselves compared to v2.
>
> Little did I know I had another problem lurking. Or maybe I haven't done
> some installation step correctly -- not sure.
>
> Anyway, had the opportunity to drive into New York City last week, a
> great test for the GPS unit and directroute.
>
> Now always before with the older version, each step in a route created
> by the software would show up on the bottom of the screen with a text
> description, an arrow indicating any turn direction, and a distance to
> that variation in the course ... as well as a total distance remaining
> to the destination.
>
> Not last week. Often the screen looked the same, but he text description
> was gone. Vanished. Nothing there at all. Normally, it would have said
> something like "I-80 exit 133 to SR 53" and there would be an arrow
> showing the exit turn direction and an indicator how far to the exit.
>
> But all I had on the screen -- often, maybe half the time -- was the
> turn arrow and distance. No indication of the name of the exit or street
> at all.
>
> I should that was not particularly helpful traveling in New York City.
>
> Anybody know anything about this? To the best of my knowledge, all other
> settings had been just as they always were before when I got better
> information on the route screens.
>
> Would sure like to have that back...
>
> - Dave
>
>
> David Shaffer wrote:
>

Jack Erbes

2007-10-07, 12:33 pm

David Shaffer wrote:[color=darkred
]
> Here's the advice I received this morning from Magellan on this matter:
>

It that the information you were missing? The user configurable, on
screen, display or data boxes? I just fired up my Meridian Color to
remind myself how that worked (I have V3 too).

I see one line of data at the bottom and can use the Menu button to
choose what I see there. The choices are Current maneuver, Two Data
Fields, Street Info, Horiz. Profile, or Terrain Project.

The info that you described as missing before would be the Current
Maneuver choice and the numbers in those are current distance (to next
maneuver) and total distance (to destination).

As you go through the succeeding Nav screens there are a total of 15 or
so data boxes and each can be configured to display one of the various
data types. As I recall it, I used to use the Nav and Esc buttons to
move forward and back through the various Nav screens and see the
various data I fields.

The email from Magellan is telling you to look at that, I guess they
assume you don't have that one or are not using it to see what you want
to see.

<snip>[color=darkred]

I chose a distant city and told it to go to it. I chose to display the
Current Maneuver and got a small icon showing the type of turn and next
to that was the distance to the turn and the distance to the destination.

I didn't go far, just walked to the first maneuver, and that line
counted the distance down until I got there, then advanced to show the
same things for the next turn.

If I press Menu, choose Select Map Info and press Enter, I can choose
Street Info and then the turn icon and distance and time go away and it
displays the name of the road I am approaching. And that display pops
up other things like the name of the upcoming road as I proceed.

So maybe playing with that will get you back to what you expected to see.

Jack

David Shaffer

2007-10-07, 10:33 pm

Jack Erbes wrote:
> David Shaffer wrote:
>
>
>
> It that the information you were missing? The user configurable, on
> screen, display or data boxes?

No, not actually. Or I guess I should say ... partly true.

I'm missing the on-screen text displayed specifically when using
directroute. I always get the graphic, and I have the distances on the
screen as well, but often, no text that says "turn right at exit 17",
that sort of thing. Sometimes I can see that text, other times that
field is just blank. It isn't consistent.

>I just fired up my Meridian Color to
> remind myself how that worked (I have V3 too).
>
> I see one line of data at the bottom and can use the Menu button to
> choose what I see there. The choices are Current maneuver, Two Data
> Fields, Street Info, Horiz. Profile, or Terrain Project.
>
> The info that you described as missing before would be the Current
> Maneuver choice and the numbers in those are current distance (to next
> maneuver) and total distance (to destination).

In DR, I am missing the current maneuver text description. Not always,
but often. The graphic and the distances are fine, but I can't tell what
it is I am supposed to do next, exactly. I can guess to a certain extent
.... turn right somewhere in about 6 miles, and watch for a right turn as
I approach that spot ... but if there are three successive exits (17A, B
and C) there's not way to know what it means!

When DR is running, you can preview upcoming maneuvers as well by
hitting the nav button. It will show your current maneuver and the
others in your route. The boxes look just like the ones that appear at
the bottom of the screen. And in mine, many of them lack a text
description of the maneuver, again, just as they do when they appear at
the bottom of the screen. That is ... not helpful.

In fact, this is a major failure. Without that information on the
screen, it defeats the whole point of having DR on the GPS. The more
frustrating factor is that it did seem to work correctly in V2. So
apparently, unless there is yet some hardware/software fix I can employ
to get the data to appear consistently, I get to choose between V3 with
the newer maps and guess about exit numbers -- or V2 with more dated map
data, but better directions. What lousy options.

I think the advice from Magellan missed my point, or I missed their's,
or both. The meridian is displaying the right screen fields, it just
isn't populating the fields consistently. Sometimes it looks fine, but
half the time, the necessary data isn't presented.

I have one more comment to insert here below...

> As you go through the succeeding Nav screens there are a total of 15 or
> so data boxes and each can be configured to display one of the various
> data types. As I recall it, I used to use the Nav and Esc buttons to
> move forward and back through the various Nav screens and see the
> various data I fields.
>
> The email from Magellan is telling you to look at that, I guess they
> assume you don't have that one or are not using it to see what you want
> to see.
>
>
> <snip>
>
>
>
> I chose a distant city and told it to go to it. I chose to display the
> Current Maneuver and got a small icon showing the type of turn and next
> to that was the distance to the turn and the distance to the destination.
>
> I didn't go far, just walked to the first maneuver, and that line
> counted the distance down until I got there, then advanced to show the
> same things for the next turn.
>
> If I press Menu, choose Select Map Info and press Enter, I can choose
> Street Info and then the turn icon and distance and time go away and it
> displays the name of the road I am approaching. And that display pops
> up other things like the name of the upcoming road as I proceed.
>
> So maybe playing with that will get you back to what you expected to see.
>
> Jack

So to be sure I understand, you were running V3 on a Meridian and using
directroute to provide a route to your destination.

And when displaying current maneuver information, which is what you
would normally want to see as you were progressing along your route, you
could see a graphic indicating what to do and the distance to get there
as well as the total distance to travel. Right?

Was there any text to the right of the graphic? That's what I always had
present in V2 and is now lacking -- sometimes -- in routes set by V3.

Perhaps I could get that info by toggling among screen displays, but I
can't figure out why it provided that 100% of the time in the older
sofware and now only presents is ... sometimes.

This tends to redefine the terminology "software upgrade" doesn't it? ;-)

- Dave

David Shaffer

2007-10-08, 10:33 pm

I ran a partial test this morning. Part way to work, I used directroute
with a V3 map to set a course for a regional landmark, the Nittany Lion
shrine on the Penn State campus. DR laid out seven maneuvers to get me
there. All seven had graphics for turns on the left side of the display
box and distances on the bottom. The first two had specific text for
directions, the next three didn't, and the last two did again.

So tonight, I reloaded the same map from my older software, V2, and
tomorrow I'll test it again. But I'm already pretty sure what I'll find.
My prediction is that with V2, I'll get text in all seven of the current
maneuver boxes...

- Dave

David Shaffer wrote:
> Jack Erbes wrote:
>
>
>
> No, not actually. Or I guess I should say ... partly true.
>
> I'm missing the on-screen text displayed specifically when using
> directroute. I always get the graphic, and I have the distances on the
> screen as well, but often, no text that says "turn right at exit 17",
> that sort of thing. Sometimes I can see that text, other times that
> field is just blank. It isn't consistent.
>
>
>
>
>
> In DR, I am missing the current maneuver text description. Not always,
> but often. The graphic and the distances are fine, but I can't tell what
> it is I am supposed to do next, exactly. I can guess to a certain extent
> ... turn right somewhere in about 6 miles, and watch for a right turn as
> I approach that spot ... but if there are three successive exits (17A, B
> and C) there's not way to know what it means!
>
> When DR is running, you can preview upcoming maneuvers as well by
> hitting the nav button. It will show your current maneuver and the
> others in your route. The boxes look just like the ones that appear at
> the bottom of the screen. And in mine, many of them lack a text
> description of the maneuver, again, just as they do when they appear at
> the bottom of the screen. That is ... not helpful.
>
> In fact, this is a major failure. Without that information on the
> screen, it defeats the whole point of having DR on the GPS. The more
> frustrating factor is that it did seem to work correctly in V2. So
> apparently, unless there is yet some hardware/software fix I can employ
> to get the data to appear consistently, I get to choose between V3 with
> the newer maps and guess about exit numbers -- or V2 with more dated map
> data, but better directions. What lousy options.
>
> I think the advice from Magellan missed my point, or I missed their's,
> or both. The meridian is displaying the right screen fields, it just
> isn't populating the fields consistently. Sometimes it looks fine, but
> half the time, the necessary data isn't presented.
>
> I have one more comment to insert here below...
>
>
>
>
> So to be sure I understand, you were running V3 on a Meridian and using
> directroute to provide a route to your destination.
>
> And when displaying current maneuver information, which is what you
> would normally want to see as you were progressing along your route, you
> could see a graphic indicating what to do and the distance to get there
> as well as the total distance to travel. Right?
>
> Was there any text to the right of the graphic? That's what I always had
> present in V2 and is now lacking -- sometimes -- in routes set by V3.
>
> Perhaps I could get that info by toggling among screen displays, but I
> can't figure out why it provided that 100% of the time in the older
> sofware and now only presents is ... sometimes.
>
> This tends to redefine the terminology "software upgrade" doesn't it? ;-)
>
> - Dave

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