Wissenbach Map3D User's Manual

Features

This program, WM3D, helps you to plan or record adventures such as hikes or mountain bike rides. With WM3D you can:

• View an area of terrain as a topographic map or aerial photo.
• Draw a proposed route over the map.
• Print a paper map with UTM grid lines.
• Print a multipage high-resolution map.
• Create a 3D scene and virtually fly over the terrain.
• Send a proposed route to your GPS receiver for guidance.
• Download an actual route from your GPS receiver.
• Share your trail data with users of other GPS Exchange (.gpx) compatible programs such as Garmin MapSource, Topografix Expert GPS, or TopoFusion.
• Create your own trail maps.
• Export trail maps for web publishing in Scalable Vector Format.
• Link photographs, websites, or other web content to locations on your map.

Getting Started - Installation

To install Wissenbach Map, run the setup program SetupWM3D-version.exe. The latest version of WM3D is always available at

Run the installer, setup program by clicking on the link. Internet Explorer will pop up a dialog to ask you whether you really want to trust a program that you downloaded off of the internet. Save the setup file to your computer and run the installer. The installer will place the program, the help file, and necessary DLL's in the install directory, usually C:\Program Files\Wissenbach Map\. The installer will also download a sample map, MoresMountain.gpx, and a corresponding Digital Elevation Model for 3D viewing of the sample map.

The installer will take you through several screens, including the license agreement which you must accept in order to install the program.

Getting Started - View the Mores Mountain.gpx sample map

Run Wissenbach Map3D, if the program is not already running.

Open the sample map, MoresMountain.gpx On the top menu bar, click on File to pop up the file selection menu, and choose MoresMountain.gpx which the installer placed on your recently accessed file list. You will be presented with the Map Description Dialog, which allows you to view metadata such as author information, author web page, copyright, open the author's home page, etc. Dismiss the dialog by clicking CANCEL or modify and update the map description by clicking OK

After a brief delay while the program downloads topographic map tiles from terraserver-usa.com, you should see a topographic map of Mores Mountain with a loop trail overlay. Use the View, Zoom Out menu item or the corresponding toolbar button to view more of the terrain.

Switch to an aerial photo view. On the View menu, select JPG Photo Basemap. WM3D will download aerial photos and you should see an aerial view More's Mountain.

Now for the tricky part. (Successful 3D viewing depends upon the capability of your computer and graphics card, so this doesn't always work.) Select the 3DMap item on the menu bar. The Scene Properties dialog will pop up. Click OK to dismiss the Scene Properties dialog and wait while WM3D prepares the 3D view. Bring the 3D window into the foreground by clicking on MoresMountain.gpx:2. You should see the side of More's Mountain, with the nature trails drawn on top.

Experiment with changing the viewpoint. Use the Viewpoint menu to view More's Mountain from the North, South, East, West, etc.

Fly over the mountain. Center the mouse in the screen, and then press and hold the 'e' or 'i' keys. Use left or right mouse movement to steer, and up or down mouse movement to gain or lose altitude. Use 'E' to move faster. Then use the Viewpoint menu to return to a known point. Now slide around the mountain. Recenter the mouse pointer in the screen and then use the 's' or 'f' keys to slide left or right. Use the arrow keys or the 't' and 'b' keys to look up or down.

When you are finished flying in your virtual scene, close the 3D view by clicking the X (close window) button at the top right corner of the 3D view.

Getting Started - Connect your PC to your Garmin GPS Receiver

Compatibility - WM3D has been tested with the Garmin GPS 12, Etrex Summit, Legend, and Vista C receivers, but has been reported to function correctly with other Garmin receivers of the same vintage such as the Garmin Forerunner and Garmin Vista.

Connect your GPS Receiver to your computer using a Garmin Serial Port cable for Garmin 12, eTrex, Summit, Legend, or Vista, or with the Garmin USB cable for the eTrex Legend C or Vista C or Garmin 60 C series. There are several possible cases listed below:

You have a Garmin 12, eTrex, eTrex Legend, eTrex Summit, or eTrex Vista with an RS232 serial port and are connecting to a home PC, or to an older notebook computer or one of the rare newer notebook computers that actually has a RS232 serial port.

Simply connect the GPS receiver to your computer serial port with the Garmin Serial Port Cable or equivalent. (This cable is included with serial-port mapping units such as the Garmin Legend and Garmin Vista). Open WM3D and select menu GPS, item Configure to bring up the GPS configure dialog. Enter COM1 or COM2 in the space provided, and then press the OK button.

You are the lucky owner of a newer Garmin GPS receiver with USB interface such as the Garmin 60 C or Garmin eTrex Legend C or Garmin eTrex Vista C and are connecting to a laptop or home PC with a USB cable.

You must first install the Garmin USB driver if you are using a USB-interface Garmin. First follow the instructions that came with your Garmin GPS and software installation CD. You will also want to install the Garmin MapSource Trip and Waypoint manager program which came with your GPS unit, because you can update to Garmin MapSource 6.5.0 Beta release (or later version) from the Garmin Support Updates and Downloads and then export GPX Exchange (.gpx) data compatible with this program from your Garmin software.

Once you have the Garmin USB driver installed connect your GPS receiver to the computer with the USB mini cable provided by Garmin. (Actually, I'm using the cable that came with my Sony Digital camera with good results.) Open WM3D and select menu GPS, item Configure to bring up the GPS configure dialog. Enter USB in the space provided, and then press the OK button.

You have a Garmin eTrex, eTrex Legend, eTrex Summit, or eTrext Vista with an RS232 serial port and a laptop computer with USB that does not have a serial port. Many new laptop computers don't have an RS232 serial port.

You must purchase and install an adapter which converts one of your USB ports to a serial port such as the Garmin USB to RS232 Converter Cable or equivalent unit, in addition to the RS232 serial port. (Because these two cables are a significant fraction of the cost of a GPS receiver, choose your GPS receiver wisely and consider whether the RS232 cable comes bundled with the receiver, and whether the cost of the two cables plus a GPS receiver wouldn't be better spent on one of the new color receivers with USB connection!)

The USB to RS232 adapters creates a virtual serial port on your computer such as COM1, COM2, COM3, or COM4. Connect the adapater or converter cable between your laptop and the Garmin Serial port connector. Refer to the users manual of the adapter or converter cable for installation instructions, and for instructions on finding which virtual COM port is created. Open WM3D and select menu GPS, item Configure to bring up the GPS configure dialog. Enter COM1 COM2 COM3 COM4 in the space provided, NOT USB!!!, and then press the OK button.

Getting Started - Reading Data From your GPS Receiver

Notes:

• Many new users of GPS attempt to store many track logs on their data before trying a program such as this one. Follow the instructions carefully to preserve this GPS data -- you should write and save your data file in GPS Exchange (.gpx) format before you use your GPS receiver to delete any of this precious data! (The GPS Exchange (.gpx) format is used by many other programs, so you will be able to retrieve the data even if you choose not to continue using this particular program.)
• Wissenbach Map3D will work for locations outside of the USA -- you just won't be able to display basemap data from the Terraserver. If your are using WM3D outside the USA use the View menu item Never View Topo to disable attempts to download map data from terraserver-usa.com.
• WM3D reads and writes user data such as tracklogs, routes and waypoints to and from Garmin GPS receivers. WM3D does not read or write any Garmin-specific basemap data.
• Garmin receivers come preloaded at the factory with test data which consists of Garmin factory and headquarters. When this data is downloaded to WM3D, the program temporarily switches to a worldwide coordinate system for which the United States Geological Survey data is not valid. A future version of WM3D will include worldwide line data, but with Garmin's default factory waypoints loaded you will see a mostly blank map until you zoom in on a location within the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii. Unless you have a reason to visit Garmin's European Headquarters, Cayman Islands Corporate location, etc, you should delete these extraneous waypoints from your receiver.

Take a hike! Turn on your Garmin Receiver, wait for the receiver to lock on satellites, and then go outside for a walk. The receiver will automatically track your progress. Pause at the entrance of your home to create a waypoint. (On an eTrex with the Thumb Stick, press and hold the stick down to mark a waypoint. Press the thumstick a second time for OK). Note the number/name of the new waypoint.

Connect your Garmin Receiver to your computer as described previously. Use the GPS menu item Read (from GPS)to download your data. You will see a GPS transfer progress bar and then, depending on the extent of the GPS data, messages that the program is downloading data from the Terraserver. Then you will see an aerial photo or topographic map view of your locale with your walk displayed. (If the map scale is too large because your data includes worldwide waypoints or tracks, use the View menu Move and Zoom In item or the corresponding toolbar button to repeatedly zoom in on your location.

Getting Started - Writing Data to your GPS Receiver

First configure the program. Use the GPS->Configure menu to set the saved track log length for your GPS Receiver. (This doesn't apply to older GPS Receivers such as the Garmin 12, because this program will only download routes to GPS receivers which support only one main track log.)

Use the GPS menu item Write (to GPS) to upload your data to the GPS. Carefully check each route, track and waypoint on which you will depend to ensure that the upload proceeded correctly.

You may get an error message that track uploads are not supported (by this program) on an older GPS receiver. That's because the older receivers implemented saved track logs and track back features as routes, and are therefore route-centric as opposed to track-centric. (At least that's my opinion, and I got to write the program.) If you have one of these fine old Garmins (which work just as well as the new ones), work around this limitation by saving your data and then temporarily converting tracks to routes. Do this for each trail using the the Track Information dialog by setting the number of points to 30 or 50, depending on route length supported by the GPS, checking the route box, setting a unique route number and comment for each route, and then clicking OK. Warning -- this process irreversibly converts the trails to shortened routes!!! Only the most important track points will become route points and be saved. (Most important points are those which deviate the most from a straight line and are far from other points.)