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GPS Trail Browser - Manual

The GPS Trail Browser helps you to download and view GPS Maps from a website and to transfer data to and from your GPS Receiver.

Visible Program Features

Web Browser

The home page of the Web Browser is a starting page for GPS Exchange (GPX) data. Use the Web Browser to find a gpx file of interest. Then left click on the link. Instead of the gpx file opening in the browser, the program will download the gpx file and show the data on both the Locator Map and Main Map.

The Web Browser is also used to view web links embedded in a gpx file. When the View Links Button is selected, clicking on a blue-highlighted waypoint or trail will bring up the web browser to view the content of the link, which is usually a photo or related web page.

The Web Browser can be returned to the program home page by pushing the View Links Button when the Web Broswer is on top of the map page.

Main Map

The Main Map, which shares space with the web browser, is where you will usually view GPS data. By default, the Main Map has a background of the NASA Blue Marble Earth, but the background can be changed to aerial photographs and/or topographic maps served from terraserver-usa.com by zooming in on a local area and using the Configure Tab to change to a topographic or aerial photo view and then changing the Configure Tab settings.

Locator Map

The Locator Map, at the bottom left, is just another map view of the GPS data, but at a different scale. The locator map can be zoomed in or out independently from the main map. Pressing the control key while using the zoom in, zoom out, recenter, or zoom area tools on the locator map will affect the main map instead of the locator map. Similarly, pressing the control key on the main map while using the zoom tools will affect the locator map.

Size Bars

The narrow dark bars can be dragged to resize the panels. For example, if you are viewing embedded web links with the Web Browser, you might want to make the Locator Map larger in order to keep the Web Browser on top of the Main Map. (This feature is especially useful with a wide screen laptop.)

Trails, Routes, and Waypoints Tabs

Use these tabs to view comments and descriptions, or to select one or more trails, routes, and waypoints, which will then be highlighted on the maps. (For multiple selection or to invert a selection, hold down the control key while using the left mouse button to select.)

Configure Tab

Select Base Map
Use the radio buttons and check boxes on the configure tab to switch the background map between terraserver-usa.com tiles and the NASA Blue Marble images.
GPS Setup
Use the radio buttons to specify the make of your GPS

Graph Panel

The graph panel is used to view an elevation, speed, or gradient profile of the selected routes and tracks. (If no route or track is selected, then a profile of all routes or tracks is displayed)

Fit Maps Button

Zoom out to a wider view which encompasses the entire map.

Zoom In Button

On the next left mouse click, enlarge the scale by a factor of two to show less detail. (If the control key is held down the opposite map will be zoomed instead.)

Zoom Out Button

On the next left mouse click, reduce the scale by a factor of two to show more area. (If the control key is held down the opposite map will be zoomed instead.)

Pick Center Button

On the next left mouse clip, recenter the map at the selected location. (If the control key is held down the opposite map will be recentered instead.)

Zoom Area Button

Select an area for a more detailed view by pressing and holding the left mouse button at the Northwest corner of the area, and then moving the mouse to the Southeast corner of the area. (If the control key is held during this process the opposite map will be recentered instead.)

Select Anything Button

Use the left mouse button to select any object. Hold the control key while selecting an object to invert the selection and/or select another object.

Select Area Button

Select all objects which intersect a given area by pressing and holding the left mouse button at the Northwest corner of the area and then moving the mouse to the Southeast corner of the area.

View Links Button

When the View Links button is down, GPX object which have embedded links are highlighted. Clicking on a link will bring up the corresponding photograph, web page, video, etc. in the browser. (If an object has multiple links then the blue highlight will remain, and a second click will bring up the next link.)

Menus

File Menu

File->Open
Browse your local computer for a local GPS Exchange (.gpx) file.
File->Save
Save the current program data as a GPS Exchange (.gpx) file on your computer.

Edit Menu

Edit->Cut (also Control X)
Deleted the selected item(s), which will also be copied to the Clipboard
Edit->Copy (also Control C)
Copy the selected item(s) to the Windows Clipboard
Edit->Paste (also Control V)
Append the contents of the clipboard to the current map.

View Menu

Not Implemented

GPS Menu

GPS->Read (from GPS)
Append all data read from the GPS receiver to the current map
GPS->Write (to GPS
Send all data from the current map to the GPS receiver
GPS->Write (to GPS
Send only the selected data from the current map to the GPS receiver

Help Menu

Help->About This Software
Opens a web page that will attempt to sell you a better program and/or display advertisements.
Help->View Online Manual
Opens this web page, which provides instructions on using the program and display advertisements.