Reviews > Software > Topographic Mapping > National Geographic Back Roads Explorer > David Sowards-Emmerd > Initial Report

Initial Report - National Geographic Backroads Explorer
August 19, 2004

Name: David Sowards-Emmerd
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 8'' (1.73 m)
Weight: 150 lb (70 kg)
Email Address: drunken_marmotATyahooDOTcom
Los Altos, California, USA
Date: August 19, 2004

Backpacking Background:

I began backpacking semi-frequently about four years ago, soon after moving to California. I generally take weekend (1 night) trips, and occasionally take 3-4 day trips. Most of my backpacking experience is at moderate altitude, 6,000'-12,000' (1,800-3,650 m), in conditions ranging from dry desert to hail/heavy snow in the mountains. In winter and spring I split time between Southern California (SoCal) deserts and snowshoeing/skiing/snowcamping in the Sierra/Cascades. Summer and fall I tend to stick to the high country. I have reduced my packweight down to less than 50 lb (23 kg) over the past year - including food/water and a bear barrel. I'm trying to include more mountaineering, climbing and bouldering in my trips.

The product was received on August 6, 2004.

Product Description:

Manufacturer's description:
''Seamless TOPO! maps with up-to-date road data for
all 50 states- helps you get to your destination and
back again!
Scroll four levels of map detail, customize and print
photo-quality maps and add current road and street
information to your maps''

What was included in the box:
2 x cardboard book style 8-cd holder
1 cd sleeve
17 CDs
and a 1/2 page info sheet
(2-3 DVDs would have been preferable here,
but my laptop doesn't have a DVD player anyways.)

Installation:

CD 1 contained topo v3.4.0. The current version, which is a free download from the manufacturer's website, is 3.4.3.

The software and base maps install quickly (few minutes) and DOES NOT require a reboot or a windows restart. In addition to the base maps I transfered all the data CDs directly to the hard drive, totaling 10.3 GB, and it took about 3 hours time. Next I linked the map folders so the software read the HD instead of prompting me to insert the correct CD each time I want to view a different area. This is accomplished by simply adding the location of the CD data to the list of 'Map Folders' under the preferences menu.

After copying the data from each CD, I put them in a CD carrying case, instead of the cardboard they came in.

The computers I installed Backroads Explorer on are:
Desktop: 1.8GHz P4, 512Mb Ram, 200+ GB HD, Windows XP Home
Laptop: 300MHz P2, 128Mb Ram, 10 GB HD, Windows 2000 Professional

Initial impressions and basic functionality:

On startup a splash screen, that can be disabled, allows me to choose a state to start with, resume where I left off last session, upgrade to the current version, BUY other National Geographic mapping software, or choose from a handful of other options. On the first startup, it begins on the level 1 maps (see below) with a very simple interface.

Map Levels:
Level 1 = NG Reference Map (1 screen covers California to Colorado @1280x1024)
Level 2 = NG Reference Map (1 screen covers width of California)
Level 3 = 1:500k
Level 4 = 1:100k
Level 5 = 1:24k (State Series resolution - sold separately)
From here on out, I'll write 1:100k scale as 100k.

Interface:

The general layout of the software is as follows:

• The central window contains the actual map.
• Pull-down menus and a well chosen toolbar are displayed at the top of the page.
• A collapseable sidebar on the left displays notes (and possibly photos/links).
• A collapseable sidebar on the bottom displays waypoint information/lists and elevation profiles.
• A collapesable sidebar on the right displays 'postage stamp' maps zoomed out two different levels , and can also display a 'hotspot' magnifier (basically a magnifying glass view of where the cursor is). I can click on these maps to quickly move to a different area of the US.
• Finally, the bottom right status bar displays the position and elevation of the cursor on the map.

Several cursors can be selected, ranging from a simple traveling arrow to a pencil to draw out routes to a tool to add text to a map.

Both metric and English units can be selected, and Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) and Latitude/Longitude are the coordinate system options.

Road Data:

Lines overlaid on the maps represent more accurate positions of roads (courtesy of Geographic Data Technology) than the older USGS topographical maps. These roads are only displayed on the 100k and 24k maps. Zooming in to 24k maps displays more roads, including some labeled as '4WD', but only magnifies the level 4 topo maps (read: there's no new information this map level except roads - it's as though I took a magnifying glass to the 100k maps). This level of detail is necessary to make sense of any downtown area and most suburbs.

Also, I realized quickly that the level 4 (100k) maps were not included for Alaska (Hawaii either) - 250k is most detailed scale for these states. There is a footnote at the bottom of the manufacturer's page stating this.

I will cover GPS connectivity in the Field report.

Questions I can already answer:

• Road names are generally given, although quite a few are listed as 'unknown road'). However, no information regarding addresses is given (e.g. block numbers).
• Drive times are not available through the software, but accurate distances can be determined. I'm sure an algorithm could be written to estimate drive times based on how curvy and/or steep the road is (based on a traced route).
• Accuracy of the maps: 1 pixel translates to approximately 17 m (56') /pixel at 100k and 5 m (16') at 24k (determined by reading off the change in UTM coordinates). When the GDT roads are displayed on the maps, they differ from the actual roads shown on the USGS maps, usually by just a few pixels (@100k).
• The software doesn't list roads as seasonal closures - since this is a 'backroads' program, it would be very useful to include this information for trip planning in a future release of the software.
• There doesn't appear to be an differentiation between dirt/gravel roads and paved roads.
• I've attempted to combine the 'roads' with the State Series (California) maps, to overlay roads on the 24k maps, with little success. I will discuss this issue more in my Field and Long Term Reports.

Side note: the Level 3/4 maps appear to be cleaned up a bit compared to the Level 3/4 maps in the State Series.

Test Plan:

Testing Locations:

As I'm writing this report, I'm packed up for a 5 day road trip from Phoenix, AZ to Las Vegas, NV via the Grand Canyon. I will be carrying my laptop with Backroads Explorer installed instead of the usual AAA maps and will try out the 'live tracking' feature.

Additionally I'll have several backpacking and bouldering trips in CA during the testing period, and possibly do a little exploring locally in the Santa Cruz mountains (SF Bay area) based on the maps - both by bike and car.

Backpacking with a laptop: The battery life on my current (5+ year old) laptop isn't long enough to justify carrying it into the backcountry, but I'm in the market for a new PC/Mac in the near future. However, I'll need toupload trails to the laptop for this to be useful at the 100k scale for a weekend trip.

Realtime shortcut finding: Backups occasionally occur on our way home from Lassen/Shasta, Yosemite, and Tahoe area (California). With this software installed on a laptop, can I find detours in real time (or my wife) this will be tricky (not sure if it's allowed in testing) since it's now illegal to use a laptop in the front seats of a vehicle in California.

Finally, I'll just sit in front of the computer looking up random places (well random interesting places) for a while.

General questions about the software:

• Is this software compatible with the State Series sets - namely can I display the 1:24k maps with roads overlaid?
• Can the roads be converted to routes easily, or do I still need to trace out the road on the map to create a route?
• Is there a method to the color scheme of the roads? Roads appear as yellow, maroon, and dashed maroon - what does this signify?
• What are the roads classified as '4wd road'? I will investigate a few roads labeled this way and see if there's a reason for this label. Conversely, I will check a few 'known' 4wd roads and see how they're labeled on the maps.
• Has the contrast issue that existed on the State Series maps been fixed in this product? I've had maps that were fine in one area and DARK, DARK green in another (read: completely unuseable when printed).
• Accuracy: if I upload a tracklog, is it 'on' the road I expect it to be on, or just close to it?
• Are road updates available (free, or on a pay basis) each year?
• Are river crossing clearly marked as bridged or cross-at-own-risk?
• Are freeway exits labeled in any way (#'s would be ideal, but in CA we still like to screw with the out-of-towners and haven't put all the numbers up yet...)
• Might be interesting to see how the gas mileage varies with twisting roads and inclines. Should be doable with this software if I fill up at ideally located gas stations.
• Are maps useful loaded on my cell phone (the software suggests PDAs)?
• Any chance my newer gps will ever be supported (Brunton/Silva MNS)?
• I will upgrade to the current version of the software and note any relevant differences - namely things in this report that have been fixed/improved in the current version of the software.
• I will contact National Geographic about combining the State Series maps with the Backroads Explorer roads and document the reply (and fix if any).
• I'll check that my odometer is working properly, or at least try to (I'll need a good trace of the roads).

Reviews > Software > Topographic Mapping > National Geographic Back Roads Explorer > David Sowards-Emmerd > Initial Report