Quote:
Originally Posted by jkleins
Are you saying your software actually has a feature that allows you to turn off seeing the lights? Or the rocks? This seems to me to be a software problem not a chart type problem. I have three programs that have the ability to view the government data and none can I get to give me that type of incomplete view. Certainly none came that way by default. The data is clearly there. The fact that poor developers may release software that hides some of it is not a problem with the data. We just have to demand higher quality software.
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So, the examples I gave are somewhat contrived, and perhaps reveal more about the difference between behavior and expectations of professional vs. recreational software. The
ENC charts are intended for use with ECDIS displays and assume an element of interactivity, balancing between removing extraneous detail and emphasizing elements critical to
navigation. There are various levels of presentation allowed for this, all of which is defined by standards such as IHO's S-52.
Thus, text labels will be large and always placed in the same position relative to their object; one is expected to zoom the display until any overlap is resolved. Similarly, values for
depth contours must also be user supplied, e.g. setting the
safety depth and contour to be the sum of vessel
draft with
safety margin, allowance for quality of the chart soundings, allowance for squat, and finally subtracting the height of tide. The chart will then indicate which waters are "safe" for navigating, and dangers in shallow waters potentially omitted unless explicitly enabled.
In contrast, recreational users are more likely to expect a chart to be a static thing, such as might be printed on paper where anything potentially relevant is shown and could be used on any vessel. This is where NOAA's beta comes in, or tools like
Navionics, to present views closer to what the recreational user might expect as well as being "safe for printing". (At least, that's my take on it, someone with more formal
training or experience may be able to describe it better.)