What do people recommend? Good points and bad points please.
Tracklogs - covers the whole country at 1:25000 scale - good point
Tracklogs - £ 25 per OS map - bad point.
Relatively easy to use and their online support isn't too bad.
I have Tracklogs
Memory Map - generally more popular good / bad point?
Memory Map - also fairly easy to use.
Memory Map - only covers key areas at 1:25000 - bad point
Memory Map - only covers key areas at 1:25000 - bad point
Nope, I have all of GB at 1:25K in MM. I have also tried TL and ended up with MM as I found TL more expensive and messier onscreen. I've also tried Anquet which I preferred over both but I can't recall why exactly. MM tends to be the default choice.
I find MM a lot easier than TL, having tried both. TL certainly has some fans but I find it counter-intuitive. Never tried Anquet.
Memory Map is certainly more user friendly than either Tracklogs or Anquet. Having said that, it is still a bit clunky to regular users of Microsfoft products, but is probably the best out there.
Tracklogs has become awfully complicated. Used to like it cos it was easy and simplistic. There just seems to be so many features now and I really wonder how many people actually use them.
There just seems to be so many features now and I really wonder how many people actually use them.
That's a fair point, I don't use half of what you can do in terms of recording trail surfaces and adding pictures etc. Even the 3d mapping isn't that useful, bit of wow factor the first time you use it but not that useful in the long run.
HeathenWoods
I stand corrected, maybe it's changed since I made my choice. One of the main reasons I went with Tracklogs was because I thought Memory Map didn't cover the whole UK in 1:25000. Might have made a different choice now although Tracklogs does what I want it to do and I'm fairly used to it now.
Mapyx Quo - cheaper than both for OS tiles, and simple to use.
You can download the demo free.
Anquet
Best route handling (by far).
Best database system for storing routes and tracks.
Download only the areas of mapping you want (you control what area you get).
Great support through email.
There's an independent review [url= http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/news/article/mps/uan/6041 ]here[/url]
But I think they all have downloadable demos. Try them all out as you'll find you just "click" with one.
I like MM, especially as I can use it for my Garmin Edge and my mobile phone.
I think that being able to run MM on a windows phone is a nice feature.
Solo.
Neither, GPSU is my map software of choice.
Have both MM & Tracklogs, tried the newest Tracklogs but still running V2.8 as I thought V3 was over the top.
Find the way Tracklogs works while plotting a route slightly easier as it auto scrolls the map for you & the finished route can be set translucent so you can see the map detail.
Funnily enough I found Tracklogs more intuitive?
But as I have the whole of the UK & most of France on MM I tend to use that a bit more now
But as I have a fully paid for version of GPSU its no sweat to convert formats.
I downloaded MM, TL & Anquet demos but found MM did exactly what I wanted so went with it - that was three years ago & I'm still happily using it.
MM for Windows Mobile was definitely the clincher for me, although now I've got an iPhone I'm back to square one on that count.
I personally think MM has got worse since the most recent update, having to re-register my phone to be able to use maps I already own was a right PITA.
I think they all do the same job but each have their own quirks. I used Anquet for a while and later switched to Tracklogs which I do prefer but theres not a huge difference.
Tracklogs focus on, you guessed it, Tracklogs rather than routes is good but Anquet was very strong on stitching together different sections of track into a single route.