Convert RoutePoint to WayPoint

[ECS]

I have many routes with named route points but the waypoint list is empty. How do I convert route points to waypoints?

[Antipole]

@ECS When you create a routepoint, it exists only in the route (or routes as it is possible to share a routepoint between several routes). When the last route using the routepoint is deleted, the routepoint disappears. Routepoints do not appear in the list of waypoints.

If you first create a waypoint, you can then include it in one or more routes. Such a waypoint exists in the waypoint list as well as in the route.

So you have routes with routepoints you have renamed. Are you wanting to convert these to be free-standing waypoints as well as being used in the routes. This is quite possible using a script in the JavaScript plugin. That is not difficult. But you need to work out what you want to achieve.

Is it just particular routepoints you want to become waypoints? Are their names unique?
Or do you want convert named routepoints in a particular route or all routes into waypoints? All of them? Or just some? Is there a clear distinction in the names of your named routepoints and the automatic names 001, 002, 003, NM001, etc created by OpenCPN? And are any of these routepoints shared between different routes? Might the converted waypoint be shared by more than one route?

So you need to establish what you actually want to achieve. The scripting then becomes more straight forward.

[CaptTom]

I've found it's easiest to work with GPX files. From the early days of GPS, I've always had multiple GPS receivers and wanted to share waypoints and routes between them. OpenCPN is just another tool which allows me to view, modify and create GPX files full of routes and waypoints. The raw data is the GPX file, not whatever software I happen to be using it with at the moment.

So, export to GPX and fire up your favorite text editor. Preferably one which allows you to run scripts, macros or at least a robust "replace all" function. Edit each route, waypoint and route point to your heart's content. Once you've got a library of GPX files you can import them into whatever device or app you want to use.

One thing I've found very useful is a little macro I set up in my text editor to prune out all the extraneous data that OpenCPN adds to the GPX file. All I really want in there is the name, lat/long, description and, for route points, the type.

For OpenCPN, the type can be "WPRL" or "WPT." I think you can just change the type to WPT and import. But it's been a while, you should probably look it up to verify.

Once you've learned to manipulate the GPX files, you'll find a thousand ways to streamline your route planning.