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Topo maps in Basecamp
Author Last Post
11/4/2016 10:58 AM
Version 3.x of Topo is very old. I bought it a couple of years ago and it's "TOPO U.S. 100K v5.01" It installs automatically on the C: drive, not good if you like to back up your C: drive completely. The map files take up a lot of room (~ 3 GB for TOPO and the same for City Navigator). I contacted tech support to see if I could get them installed on my data drive (E: in my case) instead. The bottom line is that you can move them over and then put a link (shortcut) back to their original location on C:. Here are the details...
 

Thank you for contacting Garmin International.

 I will be happy to help.  During the install process there is a browse option for install location.   The instructions below are instructions to relocated the already installed maps.

 

Installing maps to the computer will allow them to be viewed in BaseCamp and other applications. In some circumstances it is beneficial to relocate the map data to save space on the system drive.

To move the map files to an alternate location1:

Windows Vista and higher:

  1. Press the Windows key+R
  2. Type %programdata% and press Enter
  3. Open the Garmin folder
  4. Open the Maps folder
  5. Right-click the desired map to move
  6. Click Cut
  7. Browse to the desired alternate location
  8. Right-click a blank area in the directory
  9. Click Paste
  10. Browse back to the Maps folder on the C: drive (%programdata%\Garmin\Maps)
  11. Right-click a blank area in the directory
  12. Select New
  13. Select Shortcut
  14. Click Browse and browse to the location of the relocated map
  15. Click Next
  16. Click Finish

Start BaseCamp or MapSource to view the maps. The maps will be loaded from the alternate location.

NOTE: If the maps are uninstalled from the computer, any maps moved to an alternate location must be deleted manually. They will not be removed automatically as part of the Windows uninstall process.

 
BTW, regarding the completeness of the maps, City Navigator has most of the dirt roads, if not all, shown on TOPO, but it allows routing, which TOPO does not. To find a route between two places, I start with the TOPO map displayed and set the start and end of the route I want. The program shows a straight line between the start and end. Then I flip over to display the City Navigator and tell it to recalculate the route, which it does following the dirt roads. Then I copy the route to a track and flip back to displaying TOPO. Bingo, you have the route displayed with the TOPO map. Copy the track to your Garmin GPS and you can follow it.
 
It's a little convoluted, but it works and isn't too difficult once you do it a couple of times.
 
- Steve
11/3/2016 4:50 PM
Here's what I found on the internet, I haven't tried it yet.......
 

Support

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I install US TOPO v.3.00, v.3.01, or v.3.02 to the hard drive on my computer?

07/15/2015

By design, US TOPO v.3.00, v.3.01, and v.3.02 require the original CDs to be in the disc drive to function. This is because the map image files are not copied to the hard drive during installation. If necessary, the maps may be installed to the hard drive using an unsupported alternative method. This alternate method is provided as a possible workaround and is not supported by Garmin.

Note: BaseCamp will not display these TOPO maps unless the alternate install has been performed.

Before performing this installation, uninstall the appropiate version of US TOPO from the computer.

  1. Press Windows key + R
  2. In the text box, type appwiz.cpl
  3. Click OK
  4. Right-click on the version of US TOPO to be uninstalled
  5. Click Uninstall

Once the data is uninstalled, create a folder to save the map data from the discs:

  1. Press Windows key + E
  2. Open the C: drive
  3. Open the Garmin folder1
  4. Press CTRL + SHIFT + N on the keyboard to create a new folder
  5. Change the name of the New Folder to US TOPO

1 Create a Garmin folder if it does not exist in this location.

After creating the US TOPO folder, transfer the data from the discs to the new folder:

  1. Insert Disc 1 in the drive
    • If an autorun window appears, close the window
  2. Press Windows key + E
  3. Right-click on the disc drive
  4. Click Open
  5. Press Ctrl + A on the keyboard to select all the files and folders
  6. Press Ctrl + C on the keyboard to copy all the files and folders
  7. Open the newly created US TOPO folder  (This location needs to be where any other Garmin map products are, probably C:\Program files (x86)\garmin)
  8. Press Ctrl + V to paste the files
  9. Repeat these steps for Discs 2 and 3

After the data from all three discs have been completely copied to the US TOPO folder, run the installer:

  1. Remove any US TOPO discs from the disc drive
  2. Open the US TOPO folder
  3. Run Setup.exe
  4. Follow the prompts to complete the installation

When the installation begins, the installer may display a prompt about connecting to the internet to update the GPS device. If this occurs, select NO. When asked to confirm, select YES.

After the installation is complete, ensure that MapSource is up to date. The latest version of MapSource may be obtained at http://www.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=209

Now that US TOPO has been successfully installed to the hard drive, the map images will display on BaseCamp and MapSource without the discs inserted in the computer.

Note: If the US TOPO folder is moved or deleted, the maps will no longer function.

 
 
Ride with the wind and keep the rubber side down, the Webmaster.
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