Hi,

I'm running Garmin Mobile PC and nRoute with GPSgate all at the same time. With nRoute, it takes only a split second to calculate the route, but with Garmin Mobile PC, it seems to be taking forever. What could be some of the possible reasons why this is happening?

I tried a test route of about 200 miles with both Mobile PC and nRoute running using GPS Gate as you suggested. nRoute was marginally faster than Mobile PC. This was only from here to there though. Are you using multiple waypoints? How long is the route? Are both programs using the same map data?

Terry

Attached Images

GPS Route test.jpg (215.8 KB)

Yes, both are using the same map. It's just a short 3km route. Not sure why its taking so long.

Not sure why, but NRoute is still very much quicker then Garmin Mobile PC. GMPC is taking about average 2-5mins before it starts navigating while nRoute takes only a split second.

This appears to be a different question than the first one. Do you mean Mobile PC takes a long time to find the GPS. What version of Mobile PC are you using? Does your computer have Bluetooth?

Terry

For computers equipped with Bluetooth, Mobile PC 5.00.60 will scan Bluetooth every second start up even if you have set it up to look at a particular COM port (eg one GPS Gate has provided). This can slow down its ability to find the GPS Gate COM port considerably. I think the same applies to .40 and .50 as well (anything older won't see GPS Gate ports).

5.00.70 has resolved this issue. Not only will it let you select a COM port and actually pay attention to your selection, it will remember that port on subsequent start ups even if you have Bluetooth active. Unfortunately others have noted serious crash issues with 5.00.70 which makes it hard to recommend.

One simple solution for using Mobile PC on Bluetooth equipped computers:
Mobile PC will see the COM port you set up every second time it is started. So set up GPS Gate and let Mobile PC go through its long winded searching procedure. Shut down Mobile PC. The next time you start Mobile PC, if it shows a question mark in the top right corner indicating no GPS, shut it down. Wait a few seconds for the shut down to complete fully and restart Mobile PC. The likelihood is it will connect to the COM port set up in GPS Gate immediately.

Terry

Attached Images

no satellite.jpg (139.4 KB)

no satellite-2.jpg (139.7 KB)

I'm using the latest version of Garmin Mobile PC. So I guess the shutting down portion does not apply to this version? It is really taking a long time to calculate the route. About 1 minute and it gets really frustrating when I go off route and it has to take such a long time to recalculate the route. Anyone? Help!

I have used Mobile PC 5.00.60 and 5.00.70 on a really slow computer and found its ability to recalculate a route when I got off course to be really quick. You will have to provide more details. Is the satellite locked before you start? How many via points are on your route?

Terry

Its a short route, so there isn't many via points. How do I check if the satellite is locked? If i have both nRoute and Garmin Mobile PC running at the same time, nRoute recalculates the route very quickly, but I'll have to wait more than a minute before I get it re-calculated.

Mobile PC will show a flashing question mark at the pointer if the satellite signal is not locked. Are you using the same map product and date in both applications? Are the routing and navigation options set the same or similar in both products (e.g faster time, recalculate without voice alert,etc.)?

Terry

Yes, everything is the same.

I just tried uninstalling and reinstalling. The weird thing is that it does not let me choose which drive I want to install in. It always installs in D: and does not let me choose C: even when the option says I can choose using browse. But browse is in grey and not clickable.

Does this happen only when nRoute and Mobile PC are both running at the same time? What happens if nRoute is not running? Perhaps nRoute is using a lot of cpu capacity, so it is able to calculate faster.

Nah, its the same. I've uninstalled all Garmin products and deleted all Garmin folders in my laptop. Freshly install Garmin Mobile PC and maps. Its still the same.

I've noticed that when the installation asks me to choose the location of the installation, its D: by default. My root drive is C: and I can't seem to choose the drive which I want to install on. The browse button is grey and not clickable. Maybe that might be the reason. Also my maps are installed in C:. I'm pretty sure its this problem. As nRoute was installed on C:. Any solutions to make it install in C:?

Nah, I used to have Mobile PC in some folder on the E: drive and finally moved it to the Garmin folder on the D: drive. It doesn't make any difference. The only maps Mobile PC uses are the ones in its own folder; GMAPPROM.IMG, GMAPBMAP.IMG, and sometimes GMAPSUPP.IMG and GMAPSUP2.IMG.

Terry

Have you created a number of different routes that end at different places and is the route calculation always slow for all of them? Or is it just one particular route that is slow in calculating and recalculating?

...ken...