Best Navigation Software 2011 ?

[dacust]

Originally Posted by JRM

With the huge number of surplus Toughbooks and Toughbook displays floating about the intarweb, there's no reason to drop that kind of coin on a screen. You can grab a 12" Panasonic ruggedized, sunlight viewable, touchscreen for $40. I have two, although I can't vouch for the water resistance, and they run native on the 12V system.

JRM

From what I see on a quick Google, Panasonic's idea of a sunlight viewable display is 1000 nits. The industry standard is (from memory) 1500-1800 for sunlight viewable. Again, from memory, 1000 qualifies for the bottom end of daylight viewable. Daylight screens come at about 2/3 the price of sunlight ones in the same brand. But there are some brands that don't have sunlight screens, but have daylight ones at about half the price of the big brand sunlight ones.

But for the price, I'll have to pick up a Toughbook for evaluation before buying a real screen.

-dan

[Down2TheC]

Originally Posted by dacust

What I plan to do is get 2 15" screens, and then build 3-4 computers. Screens for about $1,500-$2,000 each, and about $1,000 for 3 computers. So for about $4k-5k I get much larger screens, free charts for many places, and two independent computers plus another backup. Just need a coupla puck-style USB GPSs. If you buy the computers ready-made, they are something around $1k +/- a few hundred.

Dan, I like your thinking. To save a little coin and be more portable, I'd make the backup to the backup be a low power netbook. Self contained and easily usable anywhere. Handy for in port, and if it really hits the fan and you don't have power for those sweet monitors, you have 10 hours on the netbook and puck GPS. (especially if, god forbid, your boat has a sudden freeboard reduction) I'm running OpenCPN on a year old netbook (2 Atom chips ago) and I ran it and the GPS with screen closed for 11 hours on battery. So sweet.

[nigel1]

Originally Posted by JRM

With the huge number of surplus Toughbooks and Toughbook displays floating about the intarweb, there's no reason to drop that kind of coin on a screen. You can grab a 12" Panasonic ruggedized, sunlight viewable, touchscreen for $40. I have two, although I can't vouch for the water resistance, and they run native on the 12V system.

JRM

With a Panasonic touchscreen, could I output the display from a chart plotter to the screen via VGA port on the touchscreen??

[dacust]

Originally Posted by nigel1

With a Panasonic touchscreen, could I output the display from a chart plotter to the screen via VGA port on the touchscreen??

The chartplotter would have to support touchscreen, probably with a USB port. AND it would have to have the right drivers for that touchscreen. Myself, I'd be a little surprised of you could get the touchscreen to work. But you should definitely be able to get the display working with the VGA port.

So you might end up where you could see it, but have no controls.

I'd check the manual for the chartplotter or call their support.

-dan

[nigel1]

Thanks Dan, the Plotter is a Raymarine E80 with one VGA output. The manual states its OK for connection to a PC or remote flatscreen monitor.
But, thinking about it, I'd be better of loading up CPN on to the toughbook with charts, and have the toughbook at the helm

[dacust]

Originally Posted by nigel1

Thanks Dan, the Plotter is a Raymarine E80 with one VGA output. The manual states its OK for connection to a PC or remote flatscreen monitor.
But, thinking about it, I'd be better of loading up CPN on to the toughbook with charts, and have the toughbook at the helm

With the toughbook, you could definitely use an external touchscreen. You'd run the VGA cable and a USB cable to it.

Or, as you say, you could just have the toughbook at the helm.

-dan

[JRM]

Originally Posted by dacust

With the toughbook, you could definitely use an external touchscreen. You'd run the VGA cable and a USB cable to it.

Or, as you say, you could just have the toughbook at the helm.

-dan

The toughbook screens that I have use RS232 serial for the touch interface, so it requires an adapter to USB. I haven't got that working yet, although in all honesty I haven't even tried. It's on the list :-)

JRM

[roger-jo]

Originally Posted by JRM

With the huge number of surplus Toughbooks and Toughbook displays floating about the intarweb, there's no reason to drop that kind of coin on a screen. You can grab a 12" Panasonic ruggedized, sunlight viewable, touchscreen for $40. I have two, although I can't vouch for the water resistance, and they run native on the 12V system.
JRM

These was cheap, what cost a 17 ", you have the address and do you know if they ship to Norway.


In 1998, there were not many applications and they were very expensive.
Get over SeaClear that year and then it was to create / scan and calibrate maps on your home computer and it worked.
Log house to 6.4 knots and the flight was 1.3 nm for it turned and came back home, so it was before GPS `n was liberated.
1999 I bought a COMPAQ Armada 7400 366MHz, 64MB, 10GB, and a Micro Logic 150 Bacup this is now.

Then came .tiki-navigator. / a very good program, tests opencpn.org. looks like a good program, I run all three at once and switch between them.
But the case, got a used Fujitsu/Siemens 4 years ago converted to 2 monitors outputs and 4 additional UBS and a little more RAM, the two used 17 "monitors to it. All of glory came at the 250 U.S. it need not be expensive. Internet dekling in Norway, Sweden and Dammark with ICE.
My experience is that when something breaks it's H-drive. Therefore, I cloned the two h-drives Bacup, replace the h-drives takes ca.10 min. so is the PC `s up and running again. The same with the COMPAQ Armada incredible machine matte screen seems "too"in the sunlight if necessary.,

sorry for my english

[dacust]

Originally Posted by roger-jo

These was cheap, what cost a 17 ", you have the address and do you know if they ship to Norway.


In 1998, there were not many applications and they were very expensive.
Get over SeaClear that year and then it was to create / scan and calibrate maps on your home computer and it worked.
Log house to 6.4 knots and the flight was 1.3 nm for it turned and came back home, so it was before GPS `n was liberated.
1999 I bought a COMPAQ Armada 7400 366MHz, 64MB, 10GB, and a Micro Logic 150 Bacup this is now.

Then came .tiki-navigator. / a very good program, tests opencpn.org. looks like a good program, I run all three at once and switch between them.
But the case, got a used Fujitsu/Siemens 4 years ago converted to 2 monitors outputs and 4 additional UBS and a little more RAM, the two used 17 "monitors to it. All of glory came at the 250 U.S. it need not be expensive. Internet dekling in Norway, Sweden and Dammark with ICE.
My experience is that when something breaks it's H-drive. Therefore, I cloned the two h-drives Bacup, replace the h-drives takes ca.10 min. so is the PC `s up and running again. The same with the COMPAQ Armada incredible machine matte screen seems "too"in the sunlight if necessary.,

sorry for my english

Hey, your english is good enough for me to get the idea.

Your setup is an excellent example of how you can do it cheap. The main thing is you have thought of your backup plan. And when doing it cheap, you can afford multiple backups. Well done.

-dan

[roger-jo]

Originally Posted by dacust

Hey, . The main thing is you have thought of your backup plan. -dan

Forgot the most important backup , paper maps and is trained to use them. Always check the route agaist the paper map.
There were too many boats that struck underwater rocks in the last year.
Had they been able to read the map they had seen that they were not where they should go along.
One must be able to read maps and do not blindly rely on electronics.

Here's a sample bit of our lovely coastline.

[Jenia]

I like Navpak the best. It cheap, super fast on all chart formats and NEVER crashes. Also since it was the first to offer scan your own calibration back in 1993, there are loads of free charts floating around.