Google maps as a GPS software navigator on laptop?

Cool, thanks.

hey anybody figure this out yet?

There were quite a few issues discussed in this thread. What was your specific question?

...ken...

This post has been dead for a while-- back when the discussion was still relatively active, I attempted to use the various "solutions" to using google maps/GoogleEarth as a method of GPS navigation. I found that the solutions explained above were very "klunky" and generally not productive.

I'm wondering if there is any latest/greatest way of using satellite imagery with overlaid street maps available in any of the newest offerings by the various manufacturers of GPS navigation software. If there is not, that's my wish list!!! My problem is I don't have the time, or patience, to download imagery at the resolutions I want to use to make up an easy, convenient, coherent, and reliable map database for everywhere I go. Hence my "wish."

Nowadays, data storage is less and less of an issue; megabytes can be had for pennies, and even SSD's are getting cheaper and cheaper. I have 256 gb of SSD space in my car and an additional 128 gb (2 64 gb sticks) of thumbnail flash to play with. At the end of the day there's terabytes of space on my home data server. That's not the norm and I'm thinking that all that satellite imagery would get storage-space intensive but so what? The data could be distributed via a flash drive, SSD, or even plain old spinning disk. Many software distributors are already doing just that, with the cost of flash rivaling or in some cases beating out the cost of CDR/DVDR's.


Does anybody have any newer solutions? Just think how awesome it would be to have satellite pictures of your destination and its surrounding area on your dash, especially if you've never been there....that, to me, is the biggest disconnect between GPS navigation and the real world. Looking out for street signs, or blindly following turn-by-turn software guidance, is a sure way to get lost sooner or later. Having recent images of real-time buildings, trees, traffic lights, etc (in addition to what is available in a software package such as iGuidance) would be extremely helpful.

Check out this thread. Don't be fooled by the title. It's relevant.

Streets and Trips 2008 to 2010 upgrade

It's still a tad clunky but with Google Earth GPS front ends like GooPS and Earthbridge and the availability of 2GB of disk cache in the free version of GE, you can cover a lot of territory.

You will see from the last post in the thread that even for detailed sat imagery 2GB will cover a large area. It took me about half an hour last night to stuff the cace with the route I described in that last post. I could have done it far faster but I was having too much fun looking at a lot of the stuff as I was browsing it into the cache .. lots of zooming and "side-trips" as I went along.

I didn't mention it but in GE you can turn on the "Roads" layer so the road maps will overlay the sat imagery. But you probably already knew that.

I believe there might be utility programs out there that will let you specify an area and they will load the cache with it for you so you don't have to browse it yourself.

Part of the thing that took me so long is that I manually zoomed tight on areas where I wanted to be sure I had lots of detail. I don't know if that is necessary or if panning over a large area at a higher "altitude" will do the trick. If I knew the minimum view altitude you need to be at to get the max detail loaded, that would make it a bunch faster.

It might be time for you to take another look. Clunky or not, as far as I know there are no other similar solutions.

...ken...

The imagery data on the online mapping services take up thousands of terabytes of space. Even back in 2006, Google Earth took up 70 TB, and that was before we got Street View (Google) or Bird's Eye View (Microsoft). These days, Microsoft routinely releases monthly updates that are 70 TB in size.

Even if your restrict yourself to the US, and only fetch the overhead (near-perpendicular) views, that's still tens of terabytes.

Maybe in ten years. Or maybe by then we'll all have broadband wireless connections with no dead spots, and streaming the imagery data will be just fine.

Tao,

If you look at the link in my previous post you will see that the most detailed level for a trip that will probably be over 2000km only took 616MB. That's not bad for detailed sat imagery.

...ken...

I did not know that about space requirements- ehh, it'd still be fun if it was offered to the general public as a single purchase (update-able of course). I'm not really serious about that.


I think your last comment is most poignant; it's coming. I'm working as fast as I can dammit. Another 10-15 years and what you're asking for will be as common as the computer you're reading this on. Honestly I can't really believe carputing hasn't taken off more than it has yet; the distraction issue is the achilles heel. We already have most higher-end vehicles with in-dash nav; to me that is just a pisser, I want access to the layer beneath the nav too!!!

I will.

After entering the starting corner, enter the distance to the left of your starting point you want to go. Try 50 km. Then enter how many km down. Try 50 km. Then how wide you want to step that is the actual distance you can see horizonaly on the screen at the zoom level you chose. Likewise set the step down. Just read the help, you will be able to figure it out better than my explanation.

Indeed it is NOT vapor ware. I've used it many times on Windows XP, just read the help file and setup Google Earth as per instructions, specially the speed and refresh. The cunk size should be the distance that you can see in your screen at the zoom level you are using. If you use grater distance you will miss parts of the map and if shorter you ar waseting your time.
Oh Google Earth free version has cache up to 2gb and you can use a GPS to navagate with it .

When I read your heading. My thought was 'No way'
But if you just need satellite imagery with overlaid street map, S&T 2010 is for you as I can use MSN earth to do what you would need indeed. Once I have the co ordinate locked on, I can click msn earth with internet connection to see the overlaid street map. Very cool feature but not google earth though

Ken provided the answer above as well.

Daniel