Microsoft AutoRoute 2004 / 2007, Latitude / Longitude question

I have Autoroute 2004 which I have been generally pleased with. I have recently started trying to use co-ordinates but find to my horror references appear incorrect. For example I recently visited the Exeter racecourse using the correct co-ordinates of 50deg 38mins 3859sec North x 3 deg 33mins 224 sec West, when entered in Autoroute I end up in the English Channel. If I use the Autoroute locator for the point I am aiming for it shows as 50.6418N x 3.55887E which I cannot get my head around. I assume the 50 is degs and therefore the 64 is secs which cannot be as 60 secs is one deg.
Using my Garmin GPS attached to the computer the Auroroute shows my position correctly with it's marker but the Longtiude and Latitude shown on the screen does not match my GPS position. Can anyone enlighten me before I purchase the later version of Autoroute? I am planning a trip abroad soon and do not want misleading information from my maps. I understand Latitude and Longitude very well but need accurate readings.

These are decimal degrees, as indicated by the decimal point. For example,

50.6418
= 50° + (0.6418 * 60)' = 50° 38.508'
= 50° 38' + (0.508 *60)" = 50° 38' 30.48"

Notice that the latitude position is correct to the minute of latitude, i.e. it falls within one nautical mile.

You say you have "correct co-ordinates" with "3859sec North" and "224 sec West." This can't be correct because seconds, like minutes, are also less than 60. So there's something wrong with the coordinates you are expecting.

Many thanks for that, I was unaware co-ordinates where written in two different ways it just means I now have to carry out calculations everytime I need a co-ordinate from the map. All European co-ordinates are in straight forward degrees and minutes as we use at sea it is obviously an American use of position.
At least I have learned something - I am grateful.

There are online "calculators" that will convert latitude and longitude between various formats. It may be handy to place a desktop icon to one, if you need it often. Or make your own, for example in MS Excel.

Thanks, from how I see it it is simply multiply or divide by 60 the minutes depending on which way you need to translate.

Tony

According to the S&T help file, you don't need to do any calculations. The find box understands degrees, minutes, seconds:

DMS coordinates can be entered in any of the following ways, where D is a single letter that indicates direction (N for north, S for south, E for east, or W for west):
dd.mm.ss.sD
dd:mm:ss.sD
dd mm ss.sD
dd°mm'ss.s"D

Again, this is Streets and Trips. I don't know if Autoroute is different.

Also, in Streets and Trips you can go to Tools -> Options -> Settings and change the display from DMS to decimal degrees.

Rick

I cannot thank you and all who have assisted. Because I have not used Autoroute for co-ordinates before I was unaware of the format that it uses. I am now fully aware now and understand the basics, to this end I have also found that I can change my GPS to the Autoroute Long & Lat format which solves my problem. I am now all together and can cope with a newer version of Autoroute which I have just ordered.

Many thanks again for your time and all those who have bothered to help this is certainly a good site to get this type of assistance.

kind regards to all

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Autoroute has been discontinued. That new copy of Autoroute you've just bought is the last version you'll ever be able to buy.

...unless you really really want it badly. If you do, you are always welcome to buy AutoRoute's bigger brother, Microsoft MapPoint Europe, which gives you the same user interface and functionality you are used to in AutoRoute. But the price of MapPoint is much higher, because the product is targeted for businesses (and it contains some data and features AutoRoute doesn't have).

Microsoft MapPoint 2009 Europe is expected in stores by the end of 2008.