to mapopolis users

[lancelot]

i just read the thread below about different mapping apps.

i was planning to get one as well. there seems to be mapopolis fans aplenty here. so i'd like to make a few observations and get some responses to them........

i had a problem initially with navigating the map. the thing i didn't like about mapopolis is that when i opened it(los angeles), it took a while to zero in on an AREA.

basically, i couldn't find where i wanted to be. i was presented with complex network of streets with no way of determining where was where. so i had to zoom in until i could see the street names. this was a problem in itself because mapopolis didn't start out identifying major streets like wishire, santa monica, sunset, or vermont to guide me. in other words, mapopolis didn't prioritize the street names. the big streets popped up with all the small ones, so i even had a hard time finding the big streets. once i did find a familiar street, i had to drag through the map, and follow the street until i came to the area i was looking for.

also,, i would have like to see the major streets in a different color. i would have also liked to have seen mapopolis identify large areas,,,,,like west hollywood,,,echo park,,,westwood,,,,belair,,,etc etc. that also would have made it easier to navigate through all the major areas.

anyway,,,that was my experience, and i found it very user unfriendlyand tiresome.

i should mention that i was navigating the demo map of LA. and maybe the demo map is nothing like the advanced maps.

any thoughts? thanks

[MikeD]

First of all, I would email those very suggestions to mapopolis (go to contact us link). Your points are very valid. Second, I'd bet it would help too if you had GPS. I'm thinking about getting mapopolis with the GPS option for my NR70V.

Mike

[sebring]

I am demoing Mapopolis, and in mine, the major streets are a different color plus I can change the colors most things in the settings section, including major, minor streets etc. I am also using basic maps, since othet that their Fredicksburg, VA demo that is all that seems to be available to demo. I have demoed map software off and on for about a year and until I got my NR, I found them all frustrating to use on the smaller screen. I'm debating whether to get the enhanced map subscription or the first level of Platinum (or Premium, what ever they call it). It seems like the only thing their Platinum+GPS adds to the Enhanced is more memory usage (twice as much), door to door directions and the ability to pay another $25 for their Place Guides. Twenty dollars seems like a lot to pay for those differences.

I also considered the CD with the entire US and Canada, but that does not include the option to download if you happen to be somewhere without your CD.

lancelot, I re-read your post and it seems to me all the things you requested are there, at least in my demo. There are dots for landmarks (just tap on them and the description pops up). Major streets start appearing on the map long before the zoom level reaches full screen. Are you using the latest viewer software v5.15. The one thing I do find strange is that it indicates small private airports, but not the large commercial ones.

I'm not looking at LA area maps (actually I am Lower Alabama), so maybe the density of data affects the presentation.

[Flash-57]

Also, notice that the time you spent zooming in on where you are is not time wasted. The next time you open that map, you'll already start out right where you left off. In other words, you won't need to do all that zooming again.

[byte2be]

Don't quite know when you used Mapopolis, but the latest viewer version (version 5.15) now allows the ability to select colors for major/other primary roads, minor/other primary roads, etc. It looks great and I'm even using the original Tiger maps when they were free!

I too use the LA county map on a N610, and to me, the refresh doesn't seem slow. There is also an option to view less street detail (the minus sign at the bottom menu) for faster refresh. And as Flash-57 said, the app remembers the last map view as well.

I haven't tried the newer maps from NavTech (Platinum series), but I'm sure they're great.

[foghead]

Try it on an NX. Even zooming in and out is instantaneous.

[jbarr]

Mapopolis, in my opinion, is THE BEST map software out there on the Palm OS platform. I tried (and purchased) HandMap and a few maps, and while it was great, on my NX70V, Mapopolis CANNOT be beat. It's fast, fast, fast. As fast as I can scroll, it zooms in and out. The rendering is excellent, and the HiRes+ support is stellar.

One HUGE feature that I LOVE is the optional ability to access "contiguous" maps. What this means is that if you purchase two or more "adjacent" maps, they appear as one large, seamless map. You are only limited by your available RAM. For example, I live in the Chicago area, but I live right on the border of Lake and Cook counties. HandMap, and others, sell maps for both counties, but you have to load them independently to view them--very inconvenient if you cross count boarders a lot! With Mapopolis, I have loaded the "Cook NW IL", Cook NE IL", and "Lake IL" maps (that pretty much covers where I roam) and Mapopolis just displays all three as one map. I would never even know that there were three map files being manipulated.

As for your complaints about streets, etc. it is pretty customizable as described above. Try it out and see if you can get it to do what you are asking.

As for the specific "map types", I chose the "Platinum". The directions are pretty cool, and quite accurate. Just note that Mapopolis does NOT display EXACT address locations. It calculates addresses based on end-points of street segments. For example, say my address is "130 Main St.", and I am the second house from the corner, and the first house from the corner is "110 Main St.". When I tap on the street, Mapopolis might return an address of "110 Main St." and if I slide down farther, it might return the address "130 Main St.", and if I tap somewhere in the middle of the two, it might return the address "120 Main St." even though that address doesn't exist in reality.. This is definatly not a problem unless you require EXACT address information. Suffice it to say, Mapopolis can at least get you to within the "block" that you need to be. Their customer support said that they are investigating sources for more accurate mapping data.

One other note: Memory: I found with the three maps that I keep loaded as well as the other apps I have loaded, if I want to find "directions", I need at LEAST 1.5 to 2MB of free RAM else it crashes. If you don't need to do directions, then you can get away with significantly less free RAM.

[jomoco5]

Originally posted by MikeD
First of all, I would email those very suggestions to mapopolis (go to contact us link). Your points are very valid. Second, I'd bet it would help too if you had GPS. I'm thinking about getting mapopolis with the GPS option for my NR70V.Mike

Have you seen the new Garmin PDA with built in GPS? It's SWEET! Has 32 meg of ram, too! Why Sony couldn't . . . oh wait...wrong thread for THAT rant!

[lancelot]

thanks all. i knew i'd get a good response.:):):):):)

hmmmm. i'm gonna go to the site and see if i can download their latest, and try this whole thing again.

btw,,,,to get maps with points like restaurants and banks, i would have to get the with that info only, or as an addition to, say, the enhanced?

also,,,does mapopolis cover the WHOLE usa? i'm thinking of getting the cd. because i suspect all the streets i will ever need are already there. does mapopolis update their cd every year, and when , if anyone knows?

also,,,,other than mapping directions, how is mapopolis better than RM streetfinder.

thanks everyone.

[andrewcoffin]

I didn't read through all of the answers above, but I have three quick comments:

1- I live in Santa Barbara, and have used Mapopolis maps all over the country. Because LA is such a complex web of roads, and spread out over such a large area, it is one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult Mapopolis maps to use. It's still very useful, I think, but it's probably not the best way to judge the Mapopolis application, unless, of course, you would only be using it for LA.

2- You can easily orient yourself with any map simply by choosing a starting point. Mapopolis very easily and accurately lets you select a street address, city, road, or other landmark through it's find feature. Doing this with a known landmark immediately after loading a new map is an easy way to get your bearings. (If you find a city, for instance, Mapopolis will outline the boundaries of that area for you.)

3- As others have said, make sure that you are using the latest version (5.15).

There are quite a few more tips that could help answer your questions, but the most important thing, I think, is to keep experimenting with Mapopolis. I gave up on it the first time I tried it because I only spent 5 minutes playing around it, and its full capabilities were not immediately apparent. Now, I love it!

[sebring]

Originally posted by lancelot
thanks all. i knew i'd get a good response.:):):):):)

hmmmm. i'm gonna go to the site and see if i can download their latest, and try this whole thing again.

btw,,,,to get maps with points like restaurants and banks, i would have to get the with that info only, or as an addition to, say, the enhanced?

also,,,does mapopolis cover the WHOLE usa? i'm thinking of getting the cd. because i suspect all the streets i will ever need are already there. does mapopolis update their cd every year, and when , if anyone knows?

also,,,,other than mapping directions, how is mapopolis better than RM streetfinder.

thanks everyone.

To get banks, restaurants etc. requires a separate subscription to the Place Guide, which only work with the Platinum series of maps. Place Guide costs another 24.95US. The CD coveres all their Platinum +GPS maps for the US and Canada. The down side of the CD is you have to carry it with you when you travel or load all your maps ahead of time, because it does not come with download priviledges (a big negative to me). They claim Platinum maps are updated quarterly (not all maps, but some maps each quarter). The Enhanced and Basic are suposedly updated approximately annually.

RM Streetfinder does not support hires+ and doesn't even look hires to me. Mapopolis maps seem much more detailed. I have only seen the Streetfinder demo map. DanT, who posts on this web site uses Streetfinder and seems happy with it.

[bucalo9]

Anyone have comments on GPS mapopolis bundle? What does the GPS offer over downloading from a CD? I understand the GPS will allow you to locate yourself, but it sound like you still have to store allot on your stick.

[lancelot]

well, i've been playing around with the LA demo. a little odd at first. when i wanted to find an intersection, i found that i could type in both streets, but mapop seaches for the first, i then hilite the proper result, then mapop seaches for the second street. a bit round-about, as i was hoping that mapop just quick searches for the two streets i entered.anyway, i guess i can't expect everything from a pda :):):)

[stever]

Other things you CAN't see just using the freebie maps, is the good job it does locating an exact address that you enter, and then going there. ALSO ... if you have properly filled address fields in your address book, you can search for, say, Bob Smith's house, pulling in the address from the address book, and then going there.

Also, ..... Yes, it has ALL streets, even like farm driveways in the countryside, etc.

[MikeD]

When using the GPS, I was wondering if it would automatically load the next county/state general map if you were to move off of the map that you're currently on. Hopefully, I can try this sometime in the near future when I receive my unit...