Trailer Life Navigator CD problems - solved - Montana Owners Club

Rocky2 · 04-01-2006, 05:57 AM

Hi All,
To everyone who is using the TL Navigator 2006 CD. I discovered if while in the program (and online) you click Online Support you can get a Service Pack 1 download that solves a lot of the problems we all have been having with it. There is 3 pieces to the download just follow the instructions.

Also has FAQ's and that helped me with the one big problem I was having - how to make it stop where you wanted to stop at the end of the day.

Have a great day wherever you may be!

Laura

sreigle · 04-02-2006, 07:20 AM

Rocky (and everyone else using the TL Navigator CD), I'm always interested in "better solutions." I use the hardcopy TL CG directory and sometimes online. For planning and route tracking I use a laptop with GPS with Streets and Trips 2006, and sometimes Street Atlas.

I'm sure there are some advantages to the Navigator CD but would appreciate thoughts from those who have used it. In what way would using that CD improve my procedures?

Thanks.

Parrothead · 04-02-2006, 07:40 AM

Steve
In answer to your question, I think I posted this a while back. I have the 2005 version of TL. It was far more expensive than it was worth. The directions were almost always off. I can compare it to Delorme and also to a software I received free with my desktop - Rand McNally Tripmaker. So the only reason I use it now is to look up campgrounds. I had the previous version that was just a campground listing and wish they would offer that again. I will not buy another TL Directory CD.
Happy trails......................

Rocky2 · 04-02-2006, 07:57 AM

Steve,
We like it for trip planning and looking up addresses etc.
However I think it is whatever you decide you like -
I find this easier because I don't have to know the name of the town I can just look at the map and zoom in and out as I need.
In the book you have to know what the name of the town is before you can even try to look up a campground and when you are traveling long distance you don't always know the names of all the towns along the way & some campgrounds are not always listed in the town you think they are in.

Laura (aka Rocky2)

dsprik · 04-02-2006, 07:59 AM

Hope I'm not hi jacking this thread (like that has stopped me in the past), but I need some help from someone with a new version of SA. My old version (2004, I think) would NOT route me off from, or onto, exit 270 of I-75 in Mich. Whenever, I go downstate, or out of state, that is my main entry point 95% of the time. My old version did not recognize it as as an exit ramp, even though it shows as one - as it should. It would either route me up to exit 279 (Gaylord), or down to exit 264 (Frederick).

This was quite annoying as I had to do TWO routes - one right up to the exit 270 ramp, then a second one from JUST on I-75, to wherever I was traveling from there. This was a pain, and if they haven't fixed this, I would be more than willing to go through the learning curve with the Microsoft mapping option, instead of Delorme.

Clould someone please check for me to see if the newer versions of SA now recognize this exit? It would be GREATLY appreciated!

Thanks!

Parrothead · 04-02-2006, 08:09 AM

Dave
As said before most of the maps come from the government. What is on one is usually on the other. I have an onramp that is about 15 years old that we use all the time and it is not on any of the mapping programs I have.
Happy trails.........................

CountryGuy · 04-02-2006, 08:38 AM

Dave, you can tell Microsoft Streets and Trips to use exit 270 as a stop and force the issue. I believe.

Steve R showed me some tricks that I am still trying to perfect, but, I think that would work.

Parrothead · 04-02-2006, 10:00 AM

Yes, Carol and you can also do a "by way of" type thing. It is just kind of annoying to have to do that extra step. I've started doing our trips from a point past where we know what we are doing sand then just mentally add the hour or so it takes us to get there.
Happy trails.......................

CountryGuy · 04-02-2006, 10:21 AM

Sue,

What was annoying was the route that S & T had me doing when I tried to force it to specific roads!

I would say, take me by way of Ft Wayne (just a name to use in the example), and then on to Indianapolis. Dang, it would take me DOWNTOWN Ft Wayne and then a "U"ey back out to the direct route and then on to Indianapolis. I tried it on the way down, you don't want to know what a mess I had! You could do a comedy of errors piece on it! HAHA.

Anyway, it is a challenge to learn the software, and I am still challenged!

Oh, and I still have paper maps in the truck!

**Carl n Susan** · 04-02-2006, 10:30 AM

dsrik wrote:

Quote:

quote:Hope I'm not hi jacking this thread (like that has stopped me in the past), but I need some help from someone with a new version of SA. My old version (2004, I think) would NOT route me off from, or onto, exit 270 of I-75 in Mich. Whenever, I go downstate, or out of state, that is my main entry point 95% of the time. My old version did not recognize it as as an exit ramp, even though it shows as one - as it should. It would either route me up to exit 279 (Gaylord), or down to exit 264 (Frederick).

Short answer = Yes

Using MS S&T 2006, I set a starting point about 4 miles East of I-75 at the intersection of Fascination Drive and Marlette Road. I set an end point near Maple Valley. The routing used Exit 270 as the access point to I-75 South. Here is a link to the map http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=svt8xt

and the generated directions are:

9:00 AM 0.0 Depart Fascination Dr, Frederic, MI 49733 on Fascination Dr (West) 0.3 mi

9:00 AM 0.3 Bear LEFT (West) onto Marlette Rd 3.8 mi

9:08 AM 4.0 Take Ramp (LEFT) onto I-75 31.0 mi I-75

Not knowing where you are in MI, I guessed at a starting place. If you are interested in a more specific location, I can plot it.

dsprik · 04-02-2006, 01:51 PM

OK, Carl, that's what I was looking for. S&T 2006 WILL access exit 270. Thanks (I go the opposite way, BTW, up out of Waters on Passenheim, past the National Weather Service complex, and to C38, then west).

I would like to use SA if possible, as I am very familiar with all the in's and out's of that program. The old version, when I forced a "stop" at Waters, would go to Waters, then (if I was heading south on I-75 from there, it would then take me NORTH on Old 27 to the 279 exit, then route me south from there on I-75. So even a "stop" could not force it onto I-75 @ the 270 exit. It would take right ONTO the on ramp, then turn around and go back.

sreigle · 04-02-2006, 03:08 PM

Dave, both SA and S&T have some of those anomalies. One thing you can do with your SA that you cannot do with S&T is to draw in roads and make them routable. In my 2005 version there are some restrictions, though, about connecting those drawn roads to limited access roads like interstates. You can usually connect them to an onramp, however.

So, what you could do is to draw a road parallel to that interstate from just prior to exit 270 and connect the new road to the onramp at the next exit down. Your route then should take that "new road." You will be slightly off route until you reach that next exit but at least you'd have a single route and it would track your actual path, eventually connecting to your route and deciding you are once again on route. It's a workaround. Frustrating, but that's the choice other than doing as you are with two routes.

I'd recommend you build that road and test it, then save that map and make it read only. Then use that as your template. Fire it up, do whatever you want. Then when you save it it will ask for a new name because it is read only. That will protect your template. When you save a map with drawn roads in it I always found it somewhat flaky. Sometimes my drawn road wasn't there next time I fired it up. So test it out. There's an option there somewhere to display drawn roads.

Another thing in Street Atlas a lot of people don't realize is that you can change things like make a road one way north or east. Or one way south or west. Or make it two way when it is marked one way already. In other words, you can change that on any road in the map, even those you did not draw. I wish S&T would let me do this and the drawn roads.

While I have switched to Streets and Trips simply because I like it's easier routing, there are times I go back to SA because it is the more powerful of the two. But S&T is far easier to learn and it also has some things I wish SA had.

Good luck. There are a number of people here familiar with both packages so anyone post questions and someone will try to help.

nkwist · 04-02-2006, 03:47 PM

Rocky2, thanks for the info. I downloaded the patch last night and it made a big difference in some of the camground locations that I know were wrong before.

Steve and Vicky, hope you're enjoying Moab. Isn't it beautiful? What I like about the Trailer Life CG software is I can look at about a 100 mile radius around a location and it will show icons where the facilities are. As was said (as opposed to the hard copy) I don't have to know the name of the towns. All I have to do then is move the mouse over the icon and it will show most of the info I need, i.e., size of sites, W E S, phone #, prices, etc. I have S&T and SA also, so I compare routes with those programs and don't really trust any one to do a better job than the other.

Parrothead · 04-02-2006, 07:02 PM

Norm
I agree I like the camp finder in TL and use it all the time. I just don't like the directions. In 2004 TL was just the campground finder and it was great and was only $19.95. I want it again!!!
Happy trails...................

sreigle · 04-03-2006, 05:29 AM

Thanks, all. Norm, yes, the Moab area is truly a beautiful area. We've been here for three weeks this Wednesday and leave a week later. Still so much to see and do... we'll have to come back sometime. One of the many places on our list to return to.

I like the idea of the CG finder. How much does this CD cost?

GordonR · 04-03-2006, 07:29 AM

Dave - I'm using SA 2006. I just did a quick route from Mancelona to Lovells. It routed me on to 75 at exit 270 and off at exit 264. Gordon

dsprik · 04-03-2006, 09:38 AM

Thanks, Gordon. That's great. So both SA and S&T now recognize that exit, so I'm all set.

nkwist · 04-03-2006, 06:01 PM

Steve, I just googled up Trailer Life Campground Navigator CD and it shows Camping World is now selling it for less than $25, and IIRC it has a one year satisfaction gurantee. It may be far from perfect, but to me it's worth the $$$.

Norm

padredw · 04-04-2006, 03:06 AM

I think I have used every version of the TL "campground finder/navigator". While I am not always happy with the "improvements", overall the latest version has become my primary planning aid. I have found 2 or 3 instances of misplaced locations on the map, but generally these locations are very dependable. My version has the "service pack" installed so all these location problems have not been resolved.

On the other hand, the "directions" given in the "Information" tab are correct. The three locations I recall are: Morino Road RV in Bryan Texas, map shows miles away to the west; A campground in Clarksville, GA which is again shown miles away; and, just discovered, the Fredericksburg RV campgound which we located physically last evening as we drove by it on Highway Street in F.

Didn't set out to do all these 'corrections', but maybe that is a good idea. Bottom line: I think this CD is a great value.

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