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National
Geographic Streets
and 3-D Views, expansion pack
Long Term Report
October 30, 2005 |
| Biographical Information |
| Name |
Jennifer Pope |
| Age |
24 |
| Gender |
Female |
| Height |
5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) |
| Weight |
140 lb (64 kg) |
| My Computer
Specifications |
Sony Vaio desktop, Windows XP, 2.8
GHz, 512 MB RAM, lots of storage space |
| State Series Used |
California |
| Email address |
Jennifer dot Pope at gmail dot
com |
| Location |
Los Angeles, CA |
Backpacking
Background
Newbie. I've been a car-camper as long as I can remember and started backpacking
in Northern California when I was 16. I'm just getting back into backpacking after a hiatus during
college. I backpack in Sierras as well as other National Forests closer to Los Angeles. I also spend
time in the California deserts and the mountains and coast of Northern California. I'm a tent camper
leaning towards lightweight; but I am a fan of gadgets and I like being comfortable. I also do a mix
of short and long day hikes in and around Los Angeles. |
| Product Information (back to top) |
| Manufacturer |
National Geographic |
| Manufacturer
URL |
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ |
| Year of
Manufacture |
2005 |
| Minimum System
Requirements |
Windows 98, 2000, ME, & XP;
DirectX version 9 (included); 8MB+ video card that is Direct X9 compatible
is required for 3-D views |
| Software
Requirements |
National Geographic TOPO! State
Series PC product, version 2.6.0 or higher |
| MSRP |
$19.95 US |
| Product Description
(from website) |
It adds 3-D views, updated streets,
and Live Map Update to TOPO! State Series
software. |
This software is an expansion pack for the NGS State
Series TOPO! programs. One of the State Series software packages is needed in
order to use this program. Basically this expansion pack adds more
streets to the maps as well as the option to see a 3-D view of a route.
I've discussed each of the new features in my Field
and Initial Reports so those details will not
be rehashed here. Instead I will discuss how the software has continued to compliment my hiking experiences.
Honestly, I didn’t even notice this function for the majority of the test period. The icon in the toolbar looks like a find option,
not an update option. Anyway, eventually I found it. I guess I had assumed the program checked for updates automatically. I guess
I didn’t read the instructions - which I often don’t; surely I’m not the only one. Anyway, to search for updates I had to create a
MapXchange account. A little pop-up box took me through that process and it didn’t take more than two minutes or so. Once created
that was created I could tell the program to remember my password so hopefully I won’t have to enter it again.
Once that was taken care of I could search for updates. In a pop-up box I have a view of my map with a box that I can move around
the map. Wherever I place the box is where it will search for updates. I made the box as large as possible (100 x 100 mi – 161 x
161 km) and started searching areas that I frequently go to. Every square I searched had updates. It looks like many updates were
made on 11/16/04 (which was only about six months before I got the software). The updates appear to be mainly towns and points of
interest. I’m not really sure what they add. For example, one update was for “Escondido” which is a town near where my in-laws
live in San Diego. I could see that Escondido was already on the original map below and now there was a new point for it in a
slightly different place.
The downloads were also pretty large in size, usually around 15 MB. But the time it took to download seemed too fast for that size
even considering my cable internet connection. I was able to systematically search for updates within the southern half of California
in about 15 minutes. The area with the most updates was in the Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks area. Here there
where many updates totaling 54 MB and the downloads took a mere four minutes.
Screen shot of the Live Map Updates Pop-up box
I often have a difficult time using the software in this capacity. When I’m going on trips where I didn’t request a permit months
ahead of time I have to pull into a backcountry ranger office and pick from what’s available. Often this means I can’t get my first
choice. For example on the trip I’m going to detail below I had two trailheads in mind and a couple trails per trailhead. I didn’t
know which option I’d get until I was pretty much at the trailhead.
Also when I’m day hiking away from home (say in the Sierras) while car camping I often stop into Ranger Stations to get advice about
trails to take. Since I’ve only been hiking in this area for about two years I don’t know the best trails to take yet and I like
getting advice. Both of these reasons keep me from using the software from my home. However, I often take my laptop with me on car
camping trips so this allows me to use the software in my campsite. My 5 year-old laptop is too old to run the 3-D views, but the other features
of the program work fine.
One of the trips I used this software on was on an overnight backpack in Sequoia National Park. I didn’t have a backcountry permit
ahead of time, so I had to go into the trip not knowing where I’d be hiking. I didn’t get a chance to use the software before I did
the hike. Once home after the hike I was able to review the hike using the 3D flyover function. Post hike I was able to confirm that
indeed the trail was uphill the whole way (even though it was a mere 5 mi/8 km) with 2500 ft (760 m) of elevation gain. I was also
able to notice some cool features that we saw along the way, including walking along the edge of a very deep, very steep gorge. It
was fun to relive the hike after I was recovered and back home again. It also gives me an idea of my limits and what I can expect
on future hikes.
I’ve highlighted a couple “views” from this trip and matched them with shots of the 3D views from the software. The first shows the
prominent “Watchtower” on the left shooting up and the deep, steep gorge. The second picture shows our destination, Emerald Lake, a
cool alpine lake surround by steep cliffs.
Shots of the Watchtower from my hike and the 3D view back home
Shots of Emerald Lake from my hike and the 3D view back home
During the long term test period the software was used when planning day trips near sea level in the chapparal-covered hills of Southern California. It was also
used to find out more information before a summit of Mount Lassen in Northern California (10,457 ft/3,187 m). I used the software
for the backpacking trip mentioned above which almost reached 10,000 ft (3050 m) as well as several other day hikes in the mountains
of the Southern Sierra and Southern California.
I find the added road information to be a necessary and helpful add-on. I think this information on its own is well worth the
reasonable $20 price tag. The 3D views are more of a novelty to me. It’s fun and useful on occasion, but the street information
is really necessary. I will use the expansion pack add-ons every time I use my TOPO! State Series software.
I want to thank BackpackGearTest.org and National Geographic for giving me the opportunity to test this item.
Read more reviews of National Geographic gear
Read more gear reviews by Jennifer Pope
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