April 24, 2008 16:06
<vent> Well, to answer my own question, no. MapManager uploads PC format maps. For some reason Garmin's data is not portable. Maybe it seemed like a good idea at the time.
This being April 2008, I've done a semi-exhaustive search for a mapping handheld with Macintosh support and come up empty. Garmin is the closest. Maybe MOAGU (Mother Of All GPS Utilities) will run under WINE. Maybe not.
It's funny. Originally I wanted to convert NOAA ENC maps and download them for free. You'd need Global Mapper ($300), cGPSMapper, .... and a lot of time. Finally I realized I was being foolish and decided that Garmin deserves its coin. $100 for Bluecharts is less than $300 and my time.
I thought please Garmin, take my money. Well, they'd happily do that and send me a DVD, except that even then I wouldn't be able to load it onto my 60csx without Windows, a path which I'll probably end up taking for map installation. Garmin seems to be the only game in town for Macintosh GPS mapping handhelds. Sigh.</vent>
The great hope now is BobCat (2.0.3 beta) which is a nice native-OSX app. Looks nice, feels nice, sounds nice. It still relies on PC maps, but it is several steps in the right direction. Map installation is something I'll do once or rarely. And I just updated my 60csx with their native-OSX WebUpdater. These are good things.
If I can get BlueCharts into my 60csx then I'll have a tool which I can use and that's what I really want. So while Garmin has been slow, they are at least supporting the Mac market and that is a good thing.
This being April 2008, I've done a semi-exhaustive search for a mapping handheld with Macintosh support and come up empty. Garmin is the closest. Maybe MOAGU (Mother Of All GPS Utilities) will run under WINE. Maybe not.
It's funny. Originally I wanted to convert NOAA ENC maps and download them for free. You'd need Global Mapper ($300), cGPSMapper, .... and a lot of time. Finally I realized I was being foolish and decided that Garmin deserves its coin. $100 for Bluecharts is less than $300 and my time.
I thought please Garmin, take my money. Well, they'd happily do that and send me a DVD, except that even then I wouldn't be able to load it onto my 60csx without Windows, a path which I'll probably end up taking for map installation. Garmin seems to be the only game in town for Macintosh GPS mapping handhelds. Sigh.</vent>
The great hope now is BobCat (2.0.3 beta) which is a nice native-OSX app. Looks nice, feels nice, sounds nice. It still relies on PC maps, but it is several steps in the right direction. Map installation is something I'll do once or rarely. And I just updated my 60csx with their native-OSX WebUpdater. These are good things.
If I can get BlueCharts into my 60csx then I'll have a tool which I can use and that's what I really want. So while Garmin has been slow, they are at least supporting the Mac market and that is a good thing.