FAQ Index

Explorist 600

Is the Explorist compatible with DiscoverAus?
Can the Explorist 600 communicate to a PC in real time via NMEA?
How can I reboot my Explorist without taking out the battery?
My Explorist slows down when I have saved lots of tracks - can this be fixed?

Navman iCN 510

How can I get 2D maps to track the direction I am travelling?
How to cancel a route that has been set?
How do I get the demo mode to work?
How do I access the log file of my journey?
How do I convert the log file of my journey into a useful format?

General GPS FAQ

Where can I buy a GPS device?

Explorist 600 FAQ

Is the Explorist compatible with DiscoverAus?

Yes and no. DiscoverAus and Mapsend were produced before the Explorist was made. Magellan seem to have made a lot of changes to the Explorist software compared with other models such as the Meridian. As a result some of the menu items that relate to serial data transfers in DiscoverAus such as uploading map regions directly to the GPS do not work. There is a work around to get NMEA working as described in Can the Explorist 600 communicate to a PC in real time via NMEA? below.

Can the Explorist 600 communicate to a PC in real time via NMEA?

Yes it can, however I had a lot of problems with this to start with. When you installed the Explorist software, it should have installed a USB serial driver that makes the PC think the Explorist is a Modem. Here are my tips on getting real time comms to your PC from the Explorist.

Plug in your Explorist into a USB port on your PC (following the recommended safe proceedure to do so)
Switch on your Explorist
Select NMEA Data Comm\V2.1GSA from the Explorist menu
Put your Explorist into simulation mode Menu\Adv Preferences\Simulate\Auto. This will cause the Explorist to transmit NMEA data to the PC while you are inside.
Open device manager on your PC (accessed via control panel\system\) and look in the modem section. If your Explorist has been installed correctly, it will appear in the list here.
Right click then select Properties\Modem. At the top of the page, note the com port number. Mine is installed on Com 7. If you can't see it there, then it hasn't been installed properly. You will need to reinstall the Magellan with the USB Serial Driver - it is on the CD that came with the Explorist. Plug in the Explorist, open the USB folder, right click on the inf file and click install.
Open DiscoverAus and go to Options\GPS Settings. Select your Com port and then click Test. It should say 'found explorist'
Still in DiscoverAus, go to GPS Log\Start and you should see the real time data (from the simulation) appearing on the screen.

Return to top

How can I reboot my Explorist without taking out the battery?

Yes, press and hold the Nav and Menu keys at the same time, then press the power button.
Return to top

My Explorist slows down when I have saved lots of tracks - can this be fixed?

If you save lots of track logs to the internal memory of the Explorist, it slows down when you try to access or save further track logs. I have found that this problem is solved if you save all you track logs to the SD card and not the internal memory.
Return to top

Navman iCN 510 FAQ

How can I get 2D maps to track the direction I am travelling?

The 2D map feature always points north. There is a work around however. Select 3D maps and then change the 3D aspect to be 2D by either using the stylus on the screen or using the up/down button on the Navman or the remote.
Return to top

How to cancel a route that has been set?

Click on the home button
Select Route information
Select the bottom option clear route

Return to top

How do I get the demo mode to work?

The quick start way to see how the demo mode works is:

Press Home\Preferences\Routing then jump forward 2 pages (Enter\Enter) and select Demonstrate Route.
Press Home\Map and use the stylus to click somewhere on the map. A cross hair will appear on the map. Select the centre of the cross hair to reveal the pop up menu. Select 'set as start location'.
Pan to a different area of the map and select a place to travel to. Once again select the centre of the cross hair and select 'navigate to' from the menu.

Return to top

How do I access the log file of my journey?

You can turn on route logging by selecting Preferences\Routing and on the 3rd screen select Track Recording. When logging is switched on, a log file of your travel is saved to the SD card with the name LOG0001.log by default. You can access this file by putting your SD card into a card reader and copying it across to your PC.
Return to top

How do I convert the log file of my journey into a useful format?

Converting the log file into something more useful takes a few steps but it will work if you do the following:

Rename the file with a *.GPS extension
Open the file using log converter
Convert the file to CSV format
You can manipulate the data in Excel to be able to import it into various mapping software packages. I import the data into DiscoverAus by doing the following:
Delete all columns apart from Lat, Lon, Alt, Date, Time. Full instructions are in the DiscoverAus help files under "Data Format Requirements for MS Excel Import Files"
Remove the leading and lagging spaces from the heading titles left by log converter
Import the track into DiscoverAus

Return to top

General GPS FAQ

Where can I buy a GPS device?

There are a lot more retailers starting to sell GPS devices, particularly in the in-car navigation end of the market. The usual suspects being Harvey Norman, Dick Smith, Domain, Strathfield, Autobarn to name a few. The supply market for Magellan is a bit more limited with many retailers saying they will get them in for an order, but don't stock a range. I found that Dick Smith Powerhouse had stock of the Explorist 200 which meant I could have a look and hold. I ended up buying mine on eBay from a guy in Northen WA - great service, great price and I have had no problems. I have also learnt a lot from www.gpsoz.com.au and that is well worth a look as they seem to have a solid on-line offer.
Return to top