Scanned Charts on the computer...

[hellosailor]

Anybody here paid a quarter million for their boat yet? ROFLMAO!

(No offense to the handful who have bought into top class dreams.)

[S/V Elusive]

First - it is doubtful that there are more than one or two that have paid that much for a boat, that are on this forum. Most of us scrimped and saved and still owe the bank on our boats.

Second - the prices charged by commercial enterprises are usually outrageously expensive and it is a matter of principle to try and get the best possible deal (or BEST - free).

Third - and MOST important for you "The Aryan" - we do NOT tolerate those types of baiting and inflamatory remarks on this forum. I will leave the post, as is, for now and hope that you will change your remarks to a more constructive criticism.

Fourth - another MOST important for you "The Aryan" - I do not like the connotations associated with the screen name you have chosen. Please use the description area of your profile to clarify what that names means to you.

[senormechanico]

Good fun and ribbing is one thing, but ridicule and flaming is quite another.

BTW, I paid a little over 1/8 of a million for mine, and as I am quite familiar with my cruising grounds, the charts are usually under the settee cushions.
(It helps to have a trimaran with a centerboard and kickup rudder.)

Steve B.
Dragonfly 1000 # 15

[sealevel02]

I started out from Florida in Jun 2001 and got as far as New Zealand. Trying to have the best of both worlds on board was a challange. I decided on purchasing charts from Bellingham that were the 2/3 size and buying them in portfolios reduced the cost down to @4.00 each. Also having them grouped in portfolios, created a system of organization you have to have to keep from being overwhelmed with the shear numbers of charts it takes to sail long distances. At the time I left I had copies of all the Maptech charts that were available. There were many areas that just weren't covered. For those I scanned the Bellinghams paper charts and geo-referenced them with the Fugawi program. The scanned charts worked out being more accurate than the Maptech when compared for the same area. Then I met another cruiser that sold me Maxsea with the CM-93 vector charts that covered the whole sailing world. These charts were drawn by the Russians and are just about always spot on. I kept but retired all my other elect charts. I might mentioned that the paper charts were always available but were never used for the entire 2 yr. passage.
I'm about ready to start my next big passage on a Durbeck 46 leaving Tortola this May for a complete circumnavigation. This time I will minimise the paper charts and triple up with Maxsea on laptops. Contact me at sealevel02@yahoo.com if you need any help getting setup.
Fairwinds, Ricard

[hellosailor]

"These charts were drawn by the Russians and are just about always spot on."
Russian cartographers were considered among the world's finest in the days of the Czars. Who, after all, had so much terriotory to keep track of. It wasn't until the Soviet Union came to be that "Russian" maps changed. They were considered a valuable intelligence source, and the Soviets *intentionally* degraded everything published for the civilian market, often moving towns and rivers, etc. miles away in order to make sure the maps couldn't be used by an invading military.

Kinda like our own DHS in the US these days, who simply have taken to removing maps from the public domain.

It would be nice to find that Russian cartography is once again in bloom.

[Pblais]

Kinda like our own DHS in the US these days, who simply have taken to removing maps from the public domain.

I think you will need to explain that one. BTW, Garmin Blue Charts were derived from Soviet Imagery.

[hellosailor]

Paul-
At the request of DHS, many maps/charts have been removed from public web sites. For instance, ten years ago you could easily find a "map" of the internet backbone showing the MAEs and other locations. No, they didn't give you a street address but the cities were listed. Also, reservoir systems, etc. were easily obtainable--but the maps have been removed.
The Department of Energy (DOE) used to have a marvelous web page about demolition tools and methods, explaining how to eat through concrete and rebar like butter. Gone, expressly taken down at DHS request. It's just "how to use tools" for anyone who needs to do construction demolition, but for DHS it was too much information that could be used to take down buildings.

Soviet imagery--actual satellite imagery--was AFAIK not tampered with, they found it a valuable way to get foreign hard currency. Maps were a different thing though. And considering the Soviets had good reason to worry about invaders (the territory itself having been invaded many times over the past 100 years by many peoples)...I can't say I blame them for shifting things around. All the Cold Warriors told us the Soviets were paranoid. Well...maybe they were, but we gave them good reason to be.

[Sonny]

Yeah, we did, bought a Jeanneau SO 49, 2004.

[Amgine]

Congratulations Sonny! Of course, now I have to hate you... nah, too much work. ::

Our dream boat is about 400k. We'll see about the loan in about 6 months, when our current lease is up, because that's about the same as an entry level condo here.

[Tnflakbait]

In response to the original question: Oziexplorer is great. It costs about 100$. You can scan charts and calibrate them very easily. Just pick points on the chart and punch in the lat long. I have been impressed with the value of this program. It's a little tricky to find a place with a chart size scanner who will let you scan charts!

[sinbad7]

Hi all.

Has anyone tried the Australian 'OziExplorer' chartplotter?

It is low cost and has full AIS coverage and a lot more.

It also accepts and calibrates scanned charts etc.

You get it from> The Official OziExplorer Web Site - GPS Mapping Software for Magellan, Garmin, Lowrance, Eagle, MLR Receivers

[Tnflakbait]

Yeah I like it!