Review: Microsoft Streets and Trips

Martin, I've learned a lot of things from your posts but what are we talking here. Let's talk about what you consider improvements:
I already mentioned that 2007 was the best S&T version. And Windows live search is just a useless gadget. I do have Internet in my truck and if I have to find something (anything) I will never use Windows Live Search because is money and time spent for nothing. There are engines and way to search a thing way better than WLS. And BTW where is this feature on 2010?????
2008
- perspective map view.....c'mon is hilarious. That thing is useless. Actually to be more specific that thing they should be ashame of.
- automatic rerouting....Martin u're joking. Aren't you!?! That is the reason I've returned the product to the store. I've skipped to buy that version and now I'm proud of that. That was a big mistake. A thing that nobody there check it before launching on the market.
- Connected Services (this optional feature was later discontinued) so if was discontinued is this still an improvement? In my humble oppinion an improvement is something that stays there because IS AN IMPROVEMENT.
2009
- Street-level map of Mexico. I have nothing to say about this because I will never go to Mexico. And please let me know how many users from Mexico posted messages on this forum. What is the relevance for USA and Canada? From Microsoft point of view may be an improvement but not for us.
- Voice direction prompts that include street names. This may be an improvement but not how it is now. They will have to work a lot to make that voice understandable. But, I repeat: it may be considered an improvement(the ideea on the paper not the real result).
- Pan & Select w/out the need to press a menu button. Ok let's consider it one improvement. OK, let it be.
- On/Off switch for automatic rerouting. Martin, that I call "washing the shame". That feature should be there from the previous version. If was like that I would agree: it is an improvement. But the way that was presented that mistake and then repared one year later I just consider it normality. In any case this could not be considered an improvement. That is a repair.
2010:
- Import/export GPX files. Yes this is a real improvement.
- Global switch to open/close pushpin balloons and Global show/hide pushpins. OK! Where is the deal here. Are we kids to open and close laughing a pan with simbols? They should let the pushpins there how was before and not removing it. They seems to like learning "the hard way". They broke something that was great how was, then one year later they gave us back the same thing...but not adimiting like a fix, they presented to us like an improvement. No way S&T Team. No way. Please do not offend my intelligence. I am a just a truck driver but I'm not dumb and I cannot be bought with cheap gifts wrapped shiny.

So let's count again all togehter the improvements from all these years. What we will remain with? I'm telling you what with: money spent every year, time spent here squeezing brains what to invent to make the S&T work and bottom line if I will install now my 2007 version and I will throw on top Truck Stop Plus I will get exactly the same thing u guys get for 2010 version.
How many of you worked hard to improve things on S&T and to make all kind of shortcuts and usefull stuff??? (I kindly thanks every single one of you for the help, because some of them I use it a lot).
So why I should agree with the ideea of a new glorious brilliant version of S&T when from the demmo version is AGAIN bugged? And next year they will fix it and present it to us .... like an improvement(but don't forget that we will have to pay again...)
I will not start my own list with every year with the things that they broke and all the buggs. This is not my purpose.
My purpose is to debate and to find out if the product worth it or not the money every year. I like the things very simple and straight. I don't like complications and I hate to be tricked to buy two times (or more) the same thing.

Respect

A discussion is fine but there's really nothing to debate. It's a personal decision. Each of us will make that decision based on our own personal priorities. Each of us has different priorities. You can't debate whether your priorities are more important than mine. They are only more important to you. You've made it extremely clear what you think. Others will have different opinions.

Some folks think buying a new version is worth it simply to get the new maps. At the price it's a bargain just for the maps. And in the bargain you usually get at least a few improvements over the previous year.

Compare that with Garmin's charge of around 90 bucks for the same (Navteq) map updates ... just the maps alone.

Microsoft lets you download Streets for a free 60-day trial period so you can check out the maps and the program to see if there are enough improvements in either or both to be worth it for you to pay for the upgrade. Nobody else does that.

It really doesn't get much better than that, in my view.

I'm not saying there aren't lots and lots of things that could be done to improve Streets&Trips so please don't go off on me with another long detailed list of all the things you think are wrong with it. Streets isn't even my favorite program. I don't much like it, myself, for many of the reasons you've already listed and more. So I use something else (that's the great thing about having choices). But there's nothing else like Streets&Trips for the price and nobody else lets you check it out with no restrictions before deciding to buy or not.

His name is Marvin.

...ken...

Fair enough what you say Ken.
1000 excuses Marvin for baptizing you "Martin" but I was so tired.

Finally, exactly one month from the launch of S&T2010, the version w/GPS is coming to a store near you .
I just saw it sold here, and likely other stores will follow soon.

Thanks Jim M, Having MP-3 jack installed. Dutch Treat

Tom, yes, the new import/export functionality opens up new posibilities.

I added the above quote to the review on page 1. This is very helpful!

(Marvin, if Tom agrees, perhaps you could split this thread and use Tom's tip to start a new one so it's easier for folks to find later?)

Hi Tom,

Wow, that's a powerful capability for travellers. Thanks for the tip.

The GPX file format is capable of storing the symbol information (<sym>purple flag</sym>). Unfortunately Microsoft has chosen not to support that particular argument on export or import.

The good news is that Streets simply ignores all the GPX arguments it won't use and does use the ones it understands. That means you can import GPX files that have all sorts of other information in them without Streets choking on arguments it can't use. That means you can use the GPX files that are nearly always available on the many POI sites directly in Streets without having to go through any conversion programs first.

Now we just need everyone to send email to Microsoft recommending they expand the GPX argument list to include symbols and complete route data.

Here's a more complete waypoint entry exported from Garmin's Mapsource program:

Mostly it's pretty obvious. It would be nice if Streets could use the "time", and "sym" arguments.

The WaypointExtension argument is kind of neat. It defines a new argument on the fly which tells any programmer that they can find out how to do the extension at the link specified. In this case the extension is simply telling the map program to display both the symbol and the name when it displays the waypoint. (Well, it's neat to left-brain techies like me. Apologies to those whose eyes have glazed over.)

Oh yeah, I guess I should mention that I exported a GPX file from Garmin's Mapsource program with a bunch of waypoints described exactly as above and Streets handled it smoothly. It created a pushpin set with all the names and placed them in the right places on the map with the default pushpin symbol.

...ken...

Ken / Marvin,

No problem using anything I say - this is a sharing group, and I've gotten more than I have given. Maybe someday I'll catch up.

Tom

Tom, again thanks for the tip, and Ken thanks for the idea of copying Tom's post to its own topic.

Here's the new thread: http://www.laptopgpsworld.com/micros...ets-trips.html

Hello All,
I signed up a couple of weeks ago and have learned a bunch and have really gotten some useful information from this group. Thank YOU.
I use Delorme SA, but I recently bought ST2010 because of the ease of viewing any given area with an aireal photo. I love that feature.
I was reading in this group a couple of weeks ago that the Microsoft license only extended to two PC's. (Street Atlas will let you load multiple PC's)
Anyway, I want to report that after activating my 2 pc's with ST2010,
one of my computers (my laptop) became unstable and I was getting blue screens. Since I have 2 operating systems on that laptop, I switched from xp pro to vista and loaded ST2010 on my vista platform and was ready to do battle with Microsoft about activating it.
I thought I'd try to activate over the internet before calling the number, and to my surprise it activated with my first try!
Since I have a net book also, I thought I'd try again and sure enough it let me activate my netbook also!
That is 4 activations on 3 different computers.
I don't know if I just lucked out or if Microsoft heard our pain.
Just wanted to share this experience.
Ron

Shush! MSFT reads this blog, too!

My bad ??

Ron, that's interesting. I'm not surprised that the activation on the dual-boot system worked, as you were activating the software on the same hardware, but I'm surprised the subsequent activation on the other netbook worked.

Just kidding ...

Just bought S&T 2010 looks good, but can't find how to enter or retrieve favorites . Addresses used many times