Home › Microsoft Streets and Trips › Wish List for Microsoft Streets and Trips › GPX details and wish list of fixes for 2011
Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010 now has GPX capabilities. It will take the Start, Stops and End of a planned trip, be it local or long distance, and produce a GPX file that looks like the following:
This form of GPX file has the route points by latitude, longitude and name of the point.
If you use Streets and Trips to track your actual driving with a GPS receiver, and save the path on your map, at the end you can export the GPX file that is created and you will get a file that looks like the following:
I’ve actually stripped this down to the one track segment to keep it short.
Note that this file has latitude, longitude, time [incorrect], elevation and the number of satellites in view to the GPS recorder.
If you take this second type of GPX file as an Import into Streets and Trips, however, it does NOT import the time portion of the route, nor care about the number of satellites. So you cannot then save again and use the file for geocoding photos, etc. You CAN geocode photos with the above file, but you need to adjust the time as, if you look at the above, you see the time is showing -05:00 when it is -04:00 as Daylight Savings Time applies at present. [However Time in GPX files is really expected to be Z time [Zulu or GMT, the time in Greenwich, England.]
EDIT to clarify: <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time> should be <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07Z</time> as the time IS GMT or Zulu time and that -05:00 is the only wrong detail. However it can mislead a program that uses the time to geocode or produce a list of when you were somewhere.
I also found that if you import a GPX file Streets and Trips alters the Latitude and Longitude slightly in the process. I imported GPX files created by my ASUS R300, which runs IGO8, and by the I-gotU GT-150, and in both cases Streets and Trips altered the Lat and Long slightly. That is a NO-NO!
You will also see the copyright claim made by Microsoft. They do indeed hold the copyright to Streets and Trips, but the second claim seems to be to the GPX file itself, and they do NOT have a valid claim to that file at all, nor can they license GPX to you – it is not theirs to license.
As a wish list for next year:
I would like to see the TIME issue resolved in Streets and Trips 2011, as the time needs to be correctly recorded, and being out by an hour is not really acceptable. CHANGE <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time> to <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07Z</time> to meet the standard.
I would also like to see the time information retained when the second type of GPX file is imported.
I would like to be able to mouse over each recorded point in the track and see the location, time and speed data, similar to what I can do when I import a GPX file into Street Atlas by Delorme.
I would like to see better formatting when I view the GPX file. Addition of either a LF or CR-LF in the GPX files so that they can be read more easily would be nice. If there is a complaint that it makes the file larger, there is another way to make the file smaller, which is the next item on my wish list. [In the meantime, feel free to read the GPX file into Route Converter and then export it immediately. It is now much more readable in WordPad.
Microsoft can reduce the number of decimal places used for the Latitude and Longitude, as 13 decimal places is downright silly. The current values are misleading! 43.7627432199425 is 43° 45’ 45.875591793”. One second of Latitude is about 100 feet, so .87 is enough to get us to the nearest foot! .8755 gets us closer than then nearest inch. 43.76274166, using 8 decimal places, is enough accuracy! It would produce 43° 45’ 45.87” and be within a foot in accuracy. Remember that the GPS readings themselves are not even claimed to be accurate to the nearest meter!
NOTE: I suggest that you NAME your GPX export of a route you’ve driven with a standard name format. I use yyyy mm dd hhmm.gpx as my name for a file, where hhmm is the starting time for the file for the time zone I am in at the time the file was started. I can always compare that to what shows up in RouteConverter to see if I need to adjust when I use the file for geocoding photos, as long as I’ve kept the camera set correctly re time.
So GPX has been added, and it works. It is generally quite good, BUT still needs a little work. Use it, and if you need to strip out 'X' movement points, or want to drag a point over, or selectively remove points and insert points, or change the time, use programs such as Route Converter and GPicSync and PhotoME and EXIF Date Changer, as is most appropriate.
Incidentally, another use is to select ONE point on the map where you know you took a photograph, SAVE that GPX file, look at the EXIF information in the photo and EDIT the GPX time information to match that in the photo, then use GPicSync to geocode the photograph. You can do this with a number of photos if you want to, in one file, but first get acquainted with the technique. Since Streets and Trips actually has a world map, you can even geocode photos taken in Panama that way <grin> but with less accuracy, since you cannot zoom in as close as you can for the Canada, Mexico or the U.S.
Added via an edit... The default for a GPS receiver needs to be a range of baud speeds. 4800 baud is almost useless with some of today's devices. I have one that will NOT work at 4800 baud. It expects at least 9600 baud. It works fine in Street Atlas, but NOT in Streets and Trips, at 9600 baud. Incidentally, there is no mention of 4800 baud until you try a unit set to a higher speed, and it does not work. 4800 baud is NOT one of the requirements until then.
Quote:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<gpx xmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1" creator="Microsoft Streets & Trips" version="1.1" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd"><metadata><name>Trip to Ogden.gpx</name><desc>Data exported from Microsoft Streets & Trips</desc><copyright author="Microsoft Streets & Trips"><license>http://www.microsoft.com/streets</license></copyright><time>2009-09-04T20:18:18</time><keywords>Trip to Ogden.gpx, Microsoft Streets & Trips</keywords></metadata><rte><rtept lat="43.7627439200878" lon="-79.4132605846971"><name>33 Elmhurst Ave, Toronto ON</name></rtept><rtept lat="40.4194635897875" lon="-80.0298695918173"><name>Days Inn-Pittsburgh</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.7965828236192" lon="-86.0395950917155"><name>Days Inn-East-Indianapolis</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.6343302763999" lon="-90.1856614183635"><name>Econo Lodge-St Louis-River Front</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.0479231346399" lon="-94.4166971929371"><name>Super 8 Motel-Independence</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.9384679682553" lon="-97.2137325815856"><name>Super 8 Motel-Abilene</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.370274618268" lon="-101.056434363127"><name>Super 8 Motel-Colby</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8441336713731" lon="-104.821383515373"><name>Econo Lodge-Downtown</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8406970910728" lon="-105.043472768739"><name>Pikes Peak 14,110 ft</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8456801325083" lon="-106.134845763445"><name>Super 8 Motel-Buena Vista</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.1157097648829" lon="-106.538816196844"><name>Brumley</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.4115995801985" lon="-107.21728364937"><name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.5569212213159" lon="-109.54101559706"><name>Sleep Inn-Moab</name></rtept><rtept lat="40.6430993042886" lon="-111.49394011125"><name>Park City</name></rtept><rtept lat="41.257044961676" lon="-111.964923860505"><name>571 Douglas St, Ogden, UT 84404</name></rtept></rte></gpx>
<gpx xmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1" creator="Microsoft Streets & Trips" version="1.1" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd"><metadata><name>Trip to Ogden.gpx</name><desc>Data exported from Microsoft Streets & Trips</desc><copyright author="Microsoft Streets & Trips"><license>http://www.microsoft.com/streets</license></copyright><time>2009-09-04T20:18:18</time><keywords>Trip to Ogden.gpx, Microsoft Streets & Trips</keywords></metadata><rte><rtept lat="43.7627439200878" lon="-79.4132605846971"><name>33 Elmhurst Ave, Toronto ON</name></rtept><rtept lat="40.4194635897875" lon="-80.0298695918173"><name>Days Inn-Pittsburgh</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.7965828236192" lon="-86.0395950917155"><name>Days Inn-East-Indianapolis</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.6343302763999" lon="-90.1856614183635"><name>Econo Lodge-St Louis-River Front</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.0479231346399" lon="-94.4166971929371"><name>Super 8 Motel-Independence</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.9384679682553" lon="-97.2137325815856"><name>Super 8 Motel-Abilene</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.370274618268" lon="-101.056434363127"><name>Super 8 Motel-Colby</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8441336713731" lon="-104.821383515373"><name>Econo Lodge-Downtown</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8406970910728" lon="-105.043472768739"><name>Pikes Peak 14,110 ft</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.8456801325083" lon="-106.134845763445"><name>Super 8 Motel-Buena Vista</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.1157097648829" lon="-106.538816196844"><name>Brumley</name></rtept><rtept lat="39.4115995801985" lon="-107.21728364937"><name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name></rtept><rtept lat="38.5569212213159" lon="-109.54101559706"><name>Sleep Inn-Moab</name></rtept><rtept lat="40.6430993042886" lon="-111.49394011125"><name>Park City</name></rtept><rtept lat="41.257044961676" lon="-111.964923860505"><name>571 Douglas St, Ogden, UT 84404</name></rtept></rte></gpx>
This form of GPX file has the route points by latitude, longitude and name of the point.
If you use Streets and Trips to track your actual driving with a GPS receiver, and save the path on your map, at the end you can export the GPX file that is created and you will get a file that looks like the following:
Quote:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<gpx xmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1" creator="Microsoft Streets & Trips" version="1.1" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd"><metadata><name>Testing GPX.gpx</name><desc>Data exported from Microsoft Streets & Trips</desc><copyright author="Microsoft Streets & Trips"><license>http://www.microsoft.com/streets</license></copyright><time>2009-09-03T20:37:05</time><keywords>Testing GPX.gpx, Microsoft Streets & Trips</keywords></metadata><trk><trkseg><trkpt lat="43.7624461067136" lon="-79.412792649419"><time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time><ele>205.9000</ele><sat>3</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.762780785983" lon="-79.4126833663923"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:35-05:00</time><ele>193.7000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627910312667" lon="-79.4126833663923"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:36-05:00</time><ele>193.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628012765505" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:37-05:00</time><ele>193.9000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628149369288" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:38-05:00</time><ele>193.9000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.762821767118" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:39-05:00</time><ele>194.0000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628081067397" lon="-79.4126901965815"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:40-05:00</time><ele>195.7000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627910312667" lon="-79.4127038569598"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:41-05:00</time><ele>197.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627705406992" lon="-79.4127243475273"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:41-05:00</time><ele>197.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627568803209" lon="-79.4127311777165"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:43-05:00</time><ele>201.3000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627432199425" lon="-79.4127380079057"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:44-05:00</time><ele>202.4000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt></trkseg></trk></gpx>
<gpx xmlns="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1" creator="Microsoft Streets & Trips" version="1.1" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1 http://www.topografix.com/GPX/1/1/gpx.xsd"><metadata><name>Testing GPX.gpx</name><desc>Data exported from Microsoft Streets & Trips</desc><copyright author="Microsoft Streets & Trips"><license>http://www.microsoft.com/streets</license></copyright><time>2009-09-03T20:37:05</time><keywords>Testing GPX.gpx, Microsoft Streets & Trips</keywords></metadata><trk><trkseg><trkpt lat="43.7624461067136" lon="-79.412792649419"><time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time><ele>205.9000</ele><sat>3</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.762780785983" lon="-79.4126833663923"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:35-05:00</time><ele>193.7000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627910312667" lon="-79.4126833663923"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:36-05:00</time><ele>193.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628012765505" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:37-05:00</time><ele>193.9000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628149369288" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:38-05:00</time><ele>193.9000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.762821767118" lon="-79.4126765362031"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:39-05:00</time><ele>194.0000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7628081067397" lon="-79.4126901965815"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:40-05:00</time><ele>195.7000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627910312667" lon="-79.4127038569598"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:41-05:00</time><ele>197.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627705406992" lon="-79.4127243475273"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:41-05:00</time><ele>197.8000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627568803209" lon="-79.4127311777165"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:43-05:00</time><ele>201.3000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt><trkpt lat="43.7627432199425" lon="-79.4127380079057"><time>2009-09-03T22:06:44-05:00</time><ele>202.4000</ele><sat>4</sat></trkpt></trkseg></trk></gpx>
I’ve actually stripped this down to the one track segment to keep it short.
Note that this file has latitude, longitude, time [incorrect], elevation and the number of satellites in view to the GPS recorder.
If you take this second type of GPX file as an Import into Streets and Trips, however, it does NOT import the time portion of the route, nor care about the number of satellites. So you cannot then save again and use the file for geocoding photos, etc. You CAN geocode photos with the above file, but you need to adjust the time as, if you look at the above, you see the time is showing -05:00 when it is -04:00 as Daylight Savings Time applies at present. [However Time in GPX files is really expected to be Z time [Zulu or GMT, the time in Greenwich, England.]
EDIT to clarify: <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time> should be <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07Z</time> as the time IS GMT or Zulu time and that -05:00 is the only wrong detail. However it can mislead a program that uses the time to geocode or produce a list of when you were somewhere.
I also found that if you import a GPX file Streets and Trips alters the Latitude and Longitude slightly in the process. I imported GPX files created by my ASUS R300, which runs IGO8, and by the I-gotU GT-150, and in both cases Streets and Trips altered the Lat and Long slightly. That is a NO-NO!
You will also see the copyright claim made by Microsoft. They do indeed hold the copyright to Streets and Trips, but the second claim seems to be to the GPX file itself, and they do NOT have a valid claim to that file at all, nor can they license GPX to you – it is not theirs to license.
As a wish list for next year:
I would like to see the TIME issue resolved in Streets and Trips 2011, as the time needs to be correctly recorded, and being out by an hour is not really acceptable. CHANGE <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07-05:00</time> to <time>2009-09-03T22:00:07Z</time> to meet the standard.
I would also like to see the time information retained when the second type of GPX file is imported.
I would like to be able to mouse over each recorded point in the track and see the location, time and speed data, similar to what I can do when I import a GPX file into Street Atlas by Delorme.
I would like to see better formatting when I view the GPX file. Addition of either a LF or CR-LF in the GPX files so that they can be read more easily would be nice. If there is a complaint that it makes the file larger, there is another way to make the file smaller, which is the next item on my wish list. [In the meantime, feel free to read the GPX file into Route Converter and then export it immediately. It is now much more readable in WordPad.
Microsoft can reduce the number of decimal places used for the Latitude and Longitude, as 13 decimal places is downright silly. The current values are misleading! 43.7627432199425 is 43° 45’ 45.875591793”. One second of Latitude is about 100 feet, so .87 is enough to get us to the nearest foot! .8755 gets us closer than then nearest inch. 43.76274166, using 8 decimal places, is enough accuracy! It would produce 43° 45’ 45.87” and be within a foot in accuracy. Remember that the GPS readings themselves are not even claimed to be accurate to the nearest meter!
NOTE: I suggest that you NAME your GPX export of a route you’ve driven with a standard name format. I use yyyy mm dd hhmm.gpx as my name for a file, where hhmm is the starting time for the file for the time zone I am in at the time the file was started. I can always compare that to what shows up in RouteConverter to see if I need to adjust when I use the file for geocoding photos, as long as I’ve kept the camera set correctly re time.
So GPX has been added, and it works. It is generally quite good, BUT still needs a little work. Use it, and if you need to strip out 'X' movement points, or want to drag a point over, or selectively remove points and insert points, or change the time, use programs such as Route Converter and GPicSync and PhotoME and EXIF Date Changer, as is most appropriate.
Incidentally, another use is to select ONE point on the map where you know you took a photograph, SAVE that GPX file, look at the EXIF information in the photo and EDIT the GPX time information to match that in the photo, then use GPicSync to geocode the photograph. You can do this with a number of photos if you want to, in one file, but first get acquainted with the technique. Since Streets and Trips actually has a world map, you can even geocode photos taken in Panama that way <grin> but with less accuracy, since you cannot zoom in as close as you can for the Canada, Mexico or the U.S.
Added via an edit... The default for a GPS receiver needs to be a range of baud speeds. 4800 baud is almost useless with some of today's devices. I have one that will NOT work at 4800 baud. It expects at least 9600 baud. It works fine in Street Atlas, but NOT in Streets and Trips, at 9600 baud. Incidentally, there is no mention of 4800 baud until you try a unit set to a higher speed, and it does not work. 4800 baud is NOT one of the requirements until then.
If you import the GPX file produced by S&T2010 into RouteConverter version 1.29.17 or later, and then save the result as GPX version 1.1, you will overwrite the original file with the SAME data but with formatting added and the time correctly annotated as being Zulu time. Instead of 19:01:02-05.00 it will be 19:01:02.000Z. That is the way the standard for GPX wants the time shown... as Zulu or GMT. The time IS correct in the original file, but it is NOT -05:00 time, it is Z time. The formatting also makes the file easier to read, and it reads back into Streets and Trips just fine.
As for the other type of GPX file, which covers the start, stops and end of a trip, opening with Route Converter, checking each stop at maximum zoom in for that location, moving the stop to be more 'correct' and then exporting MAY result in Streets and Trips changing the route slightly. It has NO idea how to handle:
<wpt lon="-78.91968714229" lat="42.9078289320996">
<name>Peace Bridge Duty Free, Fort Erie ON L2A</name>
<type>Pushpin.gpx</type>
</wpt>
because the road to and from this Duty Free shop is not in their maps. Use this precise location and the route is crazy at that point of a trip across the bridge from Canada to the U.S. with a stop at the Duty Free. For that matter, the Canadian side duty free shops are not 'found' if you do a search for this type of business, but the U.S. side duty free IS found. [Another example of the data discriminating against Canadians?]
In any event, if you plan to export to a Garmin and want better precision, use Route Converter and make your corrections, then import back into Streets and Trips and export to Garmin or create a Garmin file right in Route Converter and export to Garmin that way.
An example of a factual data error from whomever supplies the original data:
<rtept lon="-107.22050607204437" lat="39.4129959852504">
<name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name>
</rtept>
is the accurate location for the Days Inn, in Carbondale, Colorado. Check in S&T2010 and it is found at
<rtept lon="-107.21728364937" lat="39.4115995801985">
<name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name>
</rtept>
which is about a third of a kilometer out of place <grin> so you might just want to make these sorts of correction <or not>.
In any case, I hope that the format supplied to the GPX file by Route Converter is followed by Microsoft for the Streets and Trips 2011 version of their GPX exports.
As for the other type of GPX file, which covers the start, stops and end of a trip, opening with Route Converter, checking each stop at maximum zoom in for that location, moving the stop to be more 'correct' and then exporting MAY result in Streets and Trips changing the route slightly. It has NO idea how to handle:
<wpt lon="-78.91968714229" lat="42.9078289320996">
<name>Peace Bridge Duty Free, Fort Erie ON L2A</name>
<type>Pushpin.gpx</type>
</wpt>
because the road to and from this Duty Free shop is not in their maps. Use this precise location and the route is crazy at that point of a trip across the bridge from Canada to the U.S. with a stop at the Duty Free. For that matter, the Canadian side duty free shops are not 'found' if you do a search for this type of business, but the U.S. side duty free IS found. [Another example of the data discriminating against Canadians?]
In any event, if you plan to export to a Garmin and want better precision, use Route Converter and make your corrections, then import back into Streets and Trips and export to Garmin or create a Garmin file right in Route Converter and export to Garmin that way.
An example of a factual data error from whomever supplies the original data:
<rtept lon="-107.22050607204437" lat="39.4129959852504">
<name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name>
</rtept>
is the accurate location for the Days Inn, in Carbondale, Colorado. Check in S&T2010 and it is found at
<rtept lon="-107.21728364937" lat="39.4115995801985">
<name>Days Inn-Carbondale</name>
</rtept>
which is about a third of a kilometer out of place <grin> so you might just want to make these sorts of correction <or not>.
In any case, I hope that the format supplied to the GPX file by Route Converter is followed by Microsoft for the Streets and Trips 2011 version of their GPX exports.