# Anybody tried SeaClear II free nav software?



## BlowinSouth

Hey,

I was wondering if anyone has used the SeaClear II navigation software? I downloaded it last night and it seems to be pretty darn functional. I was skeptical that free navigation software would be worth dime. But it seems to be pretty good.

You can download raster charts from NOAA for free and use them with the program. I connected my handheld GPS to my laptop and ran a simulation and it seems to be working just fine.

it says it will interface with an autopilot too.

It's a full function chartplotter for free? Can this be true?

SeaClear GPS Navigation Software

I am interested to know if anyone has actually used it on their boat and how well it works.

Thanks! Steve


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## Giulietta

Do you know if they have European charts?


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## TSOJOURNER

Seea Clear II seems as good as my chart View Pro. But Free.. I have had no isues with it. I have a buddy in the Coast Guard Auxillary that uses it also with no problems.


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## TSOJOURNER

Giulietta said:


> Do you know if they have European charts?


Not sure if they do but will check.

From the SEA Clear II site:
GPS:
The GPS must be capable of transmitting NMEA 0183 1.5 or higher messages. Most modern GPS units with PC communication will work. Virtual serial ports, such as USB GPS units with serial drivers, are supported. Optionally other NMEA instruments may be connected. Depth, Compass and Wind is displayed if present. With AIS receiver connected targets are displayed on screen. On units capable of receiving NMEA waypoint and route data, uploading from the PC is supported.

Charts:

SeaClear II uses raster charts and can use most BSB/KAP version 1 - 3 and GEO/NOS commercial charts. Encrypted charts, like BSB/CAP can not be used. Most common projections are supported. Chart datum's are supported. You can add your own charts, scan or capture them, save as PNG, BMP or other common format. Skewed and rotated charts can be calibrated. Chart border can be set to reduce the actual chart area.


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## camaraderie

We've had several threads on this in the past. Consensus seems to be that it is a bit clunkier and less feature laden than some of the commercial programs but that it works well and you can't beat the price. 
There are no Euro free charts...but it does work with a variety of chart formats.


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## sailingdog

SeaClear will work with BSB raster format chart files. AFAIK, there are no sources for free BSB charts outside of the US ones provided by NOAA. The same applies to the newer ENC vector format charts... no free ones outside of the US-based NOAA charts.


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## buddabelly

*Won't find the downloaded charts*

I have downloaded the program and several charts from NOAA. The Seaclear program won't find the charts. I can manually find them and get then to display but they don't show up in the drop-down list for all charts. Anybody else have this issue?

Thanks


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## Guest

You have to use the companion "MapCal II" program to install charts. Put them in a folder somewhere, then run MapCal and use Tools -> Directories to tell it which folder they are in. After that, run Tools -> Autoload Lists -> Scan for New Charts (also in MapCal) and it should find the charts. After this process, they'll show up in SeaClear's chart list. MapCal II is included if you downloaded the "full install" package from their web site.


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## Northeaster

Did you make sure that the path is correct to the folder where you downloaded the files ( look under File, Chart Info, Image File, and be something like C:\Program Files\Seaclear\CHARTS)
Also, did you go under Mapcal (Seaclear Calibration Utility), Tools, Autoload List, Scan for new charts) or Tools, Set Directories, and make sure the path to your charts is there as well.

It has been a while since I loaded my free NOAA charts, but they do work.
In Seaclear, I can go to File, Charts, List all, and pick one.
I can also right click on the currently displayed chart, click charts, and choose Best Chart or smaller scale.

I also imported some screen prints from Garmin's blucharts, and they work, but I am not sure about the projection. I was able to calibrate them, following the Seaclear instructions.


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## xort

for less than $10 I e-bayed a complete set of the charts plus seaclear all on one dvd. seaclear seems to work just fine with the charts being on the dvd. that saves space on the hard drive and gives me every chart NOAA publishes


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## sailingdog

Yes, but both SeaClear II and the NOAA charts for the USA are available FREE on the internet.  And if you have a DVD burner, you can burn them to a DVD anytime you want.


xort said:


> for less than $10 I e-bayed a complete set of the charts plus seaclear all on one dvd. seaclear seems to work just fine with the charts being on the dvd. that saves space on the hard drive and gives me every chart NOAA publishes


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## xort

sailingdog said:


> Yes, but both SeaClear II and the NOAA charts for the USA are available FREE on the internet.  And if you have a DVD burner, you can burn them to a DVD anytime you want.


I pay the little people to do that.


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## TSOJOURNER

Love Seaclear.. You can input your own charts.

I made an entire topo map for Baranoff Island (90 miles long) form microsoft terra server maps, digitized several pages of my Deloreme atlas, and converted a high resolution aerial photograph of Sitka Alaska into SeaClear.. name another piece of software that can do that! for free! 

Also: love the NMEA pass though feature, track log function, and of course the ability to scan in and digitize any chart you want to 
nuff said


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## BarryL

Hello,

I have Seaclear and it works fine. I bought a cheap ($25) USB GPS that I stick on the cabin top. 

The only thing I don't like about it is that I just don't care for a laptop chart plotter. My laptop is not suitable for use at the helm, and that is where I want my chart plotter.

It's great at the nav station as a backup and for working out a trip.

Barry


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## rireefguy

I am a huge fan. I use it all the time, and you just cant beat the price. We used it just yesterday to plan out the club cruise that are doing in Aug.


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## CaptKermie

Northeaster said:


> Did you make sure that the path is correct to the folder where you downloaded the files ( look under File, Chart Info, Image File, and be something like C:\Program Files\Seaclear\CHARTS)
> Also, did you go under Mapcal (Seaclear Calibration Utility), Tools, Autoload List, Scan for new charts) or Tools, Set Directories, and make sure the path to your charts is there as well.
> 
> It has been a while since I loaded my free NOAA charts, but they do work.
> In Seaclear, I can go to File, Charts, List all, and pick one.
> I can also right click on the currently displayed chart, click charts, and choose Best Chart or smaller scale.


I went through that procedure after reading the manual instructions and I still cannot get SeaClear to see the charts. What else do I have to do? I would like to try out the SeaClear.


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## tjaldur

Giulietta said:


> Do you know if they have European charts?


Try this site for european charts:

Morze, mapy

The charts are scanned only, so you will have to calibrate them yourself.


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## Mary51

*Accessing the charts . . .*

CaptKermie:

I had the same problem until I pretended to calibrate the charts. At the time, I just wanted the chart up on the screen and didn't care about using the program as a chart plotter. I recall figuring out how to make the program think I had calibrated the charts, and Voila! they appeared when I accessed the "file" heading on SeaClear.

Now, I have to figure out how to go back and calibrate the charts . . .

Hope this helps.

Mary


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## MiVelero

You need to use MapCal II, this program is part of the Sea Clear package, click on tools. 
Then click on set directories ... the rest is self explanatory.

I have been using this program with a cheap usb gps and has worked flawlessly. As stated before, for the price it is a great tool.


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## badsanta

Does any one know of a good remote daylight monitor that I can connect to the lap top and then put the remote in the helm ??? I found one 8 inch and it was $3500 at that price I will just get a chartplotter. Anythoughts??


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## sailingdog

Badsanta-

Daylight readable LCD panels, particularly the ones that are waterproof, are expensive. IMHO, you'd be much better off getting a Garmin chartplotter for less than $1000.  

Another option, a bit more expensive, but doable is to get a Fujitsu 4000 series tablet computer and the waterproof housing for it, and to connect it to your main computer via VNC over a wifi link, and then you can run all the software remotely via VNC. This would also give you a backup computer.


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## CaptKermie

OK, Got It:
Groups that is;
here's how; once you can list files in SeaClear you know you did the conversion/calibration part right, but now you want to load more than just one chart from that list.
So, goto Tools menu in SeaClear and select Chart Groups; a dialogue box with the name Manage Chart Groups in the blue bar comes up. It has three tabs across the top: Organize Charts (default); Autoload Groups; & Group Setup.
You need to go to Group Setup to name a new Group. Then go back to the organize Charts Tab and select your group name from the Current Groups drop down box, now your Group name is there and so next you need to add Charts from the Available Charts window into the Charts in Group window, but the AvailableCharts window is empty, so just above it is the Directory Filter drop down box, select a directory from the list, highlight it and voila a list of Charts appears in the Available Charts Window. Now highlight the files you want in that window and use the navigation arrows between the two windows to add or delete Charts from your Charts In Group window, once you have all the Charts you want in that group click Ok at the bottom. Now go to the Autoload Groups tab and put a check in the Automatic on groups box for the group you named. Now restart SeaClear right click on world map and select preferred charts and your preferred groups should have your group name in it, select it and here comes your group on screen. You will have to experiment with the Zoom feature to see it in perspective but at least it works to some degree, perhaps not as seamless as Garmin Bluecharts but nevertheless it is workable. Hope this helps.


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## bruceyp

I have an older model Gps (Standard Horizon 150) that takes a C-Maps flash card. C-maps wants to sell me a flash card reader and charts etc for $179. Their card is not shaped like a regular flash card for your camera. I have used the charts and software from Seaclear. Is there a way to plan a trip using SeaClear and transferring the info to the card without having to manually entering it?


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## wlupton

*Seaclear II*

I used it on a delivery from lower Lake Michigan to lower Lake Huron. I also used it on another deleivery from St. Petersberg to St. Augustine via Key West, accurate and had no issues. It works well, is accurate, and for no money you can't beat it. You can get free charts from NOAA as previously mentioned.


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## Dick Pluta

I have been using it for the last two years and, for the US, it's great. We have been up and down the ICW using the NOAA charts. You can't get Bahamas charts because of copyright issues. I don't know about other foreign charts.

I also use a Holux GPS sensor I bought on E-bay. $28. The only issue I have is using the computer as a chartplotter. We keep the keyboard covered with plastic to avoid spray. I already lost one computer on a trip down and don't want to lose another. I'll definitely soon get a for real chartplotter that's designed for the environment. I just need to do some research on chart formats. Garmin gets an arm and a leg for theirs and rather severely limits the areas you can open on one code. I'd like to use the NOAA BSB, KAP format charts.

Dick Pluta
AEGEA
In transit, Nassau to W Florida


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## rickfried

I've used SEACLEAR II for many years. Never had a problem until last week and it was my fault (And this should be a lesson to others; I just couldn't get the charts loaded into my new $299.99 netbook (quite the deal from Amazon) anyway, after dicking around with it for a while, I realized I downloaded the ECN and not the BSB charts from NOAA, after I downloaded the right charts all was right in the world. Some people have asked how accurate it is: It shows the right slip I'm tie3d up in. Never more than 5 feet off!


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## jackdale

Can SeaClear use BSB4 charts with a .cap extension? This is format used by The Canadian Hydrographic Service.

Jack


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## KismetP362

*SeaClear and Feet, (Not Meters)*

Here is a challenge:
 
OK, so does anyone know how to get the damn SeaClear program to display the depth in Feet and not Meters? I would just suck it up but the charts are all in feet and it's a huge pain in the @$$ to try and convert every time I look at the thing.

I've checked the obvious places like the Properties tab and the manual with no luck.

Thoughts?


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## MorganPaul

Click File, then Chart Info



KismetP362 said:


> Here is a challenge:
> 
> OK, so does anyone know how to get the damn SeaClear program to display the depth in Feet and not Meters? I would just suck it up but the charts are all in feet and it's a huge pain in the @$$ to try and convert every time I look at the thing.
> 
> I've checked the obvious places like the Properties tab and the manual with no luck.
> 
> Thoughts?


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## KismetP362

That's too easy.. 

Thanks.

However, do you think it's tied to the charts I have loaded or can it be changed? I'm currently deployed to the middle east and the copy I have on my laptop has no charts loaded. When I do Chart Info, there is nothing that can be changed on that screen. If I had charts loaded, could I then change between metric and feet?

ryan


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## MorganPaul

> If I had charts loaded, could I then change between metric and feet?


No you cannot. Sorry. I just tried it.


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## MorganPaul

All US raster charts should be in feet.


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## KismetP362

That's the thing, my chart has feet on it but when the depth is hooked up and running, (Garmin GSD20 to Garmin 3206) the GPS shows feet and seaclear shows Metric. If you go under Tools>Properties>Instruments you can see the little "m" next to the alarm and trans depth. But no way to change the units. 

So, we are still looking for a way to change it.. thoughts?


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## KismetP362

*SeaClear with Sounder - Units*

Does anyone have SeaClear hooked up to a depth sounder? How do you get it to display Feet and not Meters on the DashBoard on the screen?

The issue is not how to change the charted depth but how to change the dashboard displayed depth from the sounder. It's stuck in Metric. How do I change it to feet? Anyone?


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## partgypsy

I'm sorry if I'm posting to an old thread, but there's a person near me selling off old mil-spac daylight viewable touchpads for <$200. They are 7" and a complete pc. I bought a few for various purposes and they are fine for the price. Check Washington DC Craigslist.


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## newpbs

*Sea Clear*

Does anyone out there know if Sea Clear will operate on Windows 7?

Paul


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## Guest

SeaClear II works fine on Windows 7.


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## tackdriver

*Changing depth units in SeaClear*

The depth units in SeaClear are set in the chart calibration tool. If you have charts that are in feet, but want the depth to show from a connected NMEA device in metres, then you'll have to open the chart and recalibrate it to metres using the MapCal tool.
cheers
JMB


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## QuickMick

Ive got a Navionics HotMaps for my Lowrence... Is it possible to put that into my laptop and import that data to the SeaClear? 

thanks


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## brak

QuickMick said:


> Ive got a Navionics HotMaps for my Lowrence... Is it possible to put that into my laptop and import that data to the SeaClear?
> 
> thanks


Sounds very unlikely.


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## radiodoc

*sealclear nmea pass-through*



sailboy21 said:


> Love Seaclear.. You can input your own charts.
> 
> I made an entire topo map for Baranoff Island (90 miles long) form microsoft terra server maps, digitized several pages of my Deloreme atlas, and converted a high resolution aerial photograph of Sitka Alaska into SeaClear.. name another piece of software that can do that! for free!
> 
> Also: love the NMEA pass though feature, track log function, and of course the ability to scan in and digitize any chart you want to
> nuff said


I am using the Delorme Earthmate LT-20 USB receiver via the Delorme Serial Port Emulator v1.09 to get the GPS signal from the receiver to the Seaclear program on my laptop. That much works pretty good.

Is it possible to get SeaClear II to pass the GPS data OUT (pass-through) to the RS-232 port of a computer so I can tie that port to the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) lines of my radio????


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## sailingdog

I doubt it. It wasn't written for that purpose and probably doesn't have the code necessary to do that. If the only GPS you have on your boat is a DeLorme USB puck, then you need to re-think the instrument setup on your boat. 

Even a small, handheld GPS will often have serial output and could be tied into the DSC function on your VHF. Using a USB-puck GPS for the DSC feed makes the system far less reliable and far more complicated than necessary. It also means that you HAVE TO HAVE THE COMPUTER UP AND RUNNING THE WHOLE TIME, if you want the VHF DSC GPS-related functions available. Most small sailboats don't have the battery power to support running even a small notebook the whole time under sail.



radiodoc said:


> I am using the Delorme Earthmate LT-20 USB receiver via the Delorme Serial Port Emulator v1.09 to get the GPS signal from the receiver to the Seaclear program on my laptop. That much works pretty good.
> 
> Is it possible to get SeaClear II to pass the GPS data OUT (pass-through) to the RS-232 port of a computer so I can tie that port to the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) lines of my radio????


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## rbarkas

radiodoc said:


> I am using the Delorme Earthmate LT-20 USB receiver via the Delorme Serial Port Emulator v1.09 to get the GPS signal from the receiver to the Seaclear program on my laptop. That much works pretty good.
> 
> Is it possible to get SeaClear II to pass the GPS data OUT (pass-through) to the RS-232 port of a computer so I can tie that port to the Digital Selective Calling (DSC) lines of my radio????


GPSGate software will do what you want. It can be configured to receive the GPS data on virtual com port "A" and feed it out to either virtual or hardware serial ports (which can be USB ports with USB->serial adapters). It can easily handle multiple outputs

GpsGate Client - Products - GpsGate.com

Only problem with this is that your PC must be running anytime you want your VHF to receive GPS data for it's DSC functionality. If you have to make a DSC distress call you probably don't want to have to boot your computer up to do it.

GPS pucks are so cheap that is would seem to make more sense to get one and dedicate it to the VHF - may cost the same or less than the GPSGate software to do the same thing.


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## somf77

Loved using Seaclear but had to give it up due to no support of BBS4 charts. I ended up buying Maptech Offshore Navigator, it's a very basic nav program like Seaclear and for only $89us not too hard on the pockets. One problem I have had is: Seaclear worked with my autopilot as installed, but Off Shore Navigator gives me an error stating that my GPS cannot share a port with autopilot and that I need to change the GPS input wiring. I haven't taken the time to mess with this just yet as most of my courses down here in MX are long straight runs so I just set the AP and wait for the next waypoint to manually change course then set the AP again. BUt for anyone using NOAA charts I highly recomend SeaClear, when you dig in you can easily set fuel usage, average speed all kind of cool features.


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## brak

rbarkas said:


> GPS pucks are so cheap that is would seem to make more sense to get one and dedicate it to the VHF - may cost the same or less than the GPSGate software to do the same thing.


unfortunately these things are usually USB devices and won't work as a standalone GPS, so they can't really be connected directly to an NMEA reader such as a DSC radio.

That said, a handheld GPS unit with NMEA output could be bought quite cheaply too, and will work in standalone mode quite happily.


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## whorne

It took me a while to get around to learning all the ends and outs. It seemed awfully clunky at first. Now that I have taken the time to really get to know it I am very well pleased. Some things that will help you get up to speed: understand that the program will automatically find the best chart and load it but...you have to create a directory, copy some, not all, of the charts from the CD to it then use Mapcal to create a database that the program uses to locate the best chart. It is a lot easier than it sounds. Also, I have heard complaints that there is no "go-to-waypoint' capability but...there is something even better. If you open the route editor you simply double click on your boat and double click on where you want to go, close the editor and activate the route and you're off! You can also select a named point that you have created for the route destination instead of dblclicking on it.


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## whorne

Also...I would recommend using the DR, dead reckoning, feature for practice. You set your position,a course and speed and your boat gets underway. You can drive or follow a route that you have created by changing your heading as you go along. Its almost as much fun as sailing


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## ffiill

There is a slightly suspect Eastern European firm that sells Mediterranean Seaclear compatible charts for about $10 a piece.
Also if you are sailing in SW Pacific you can download an almost complete collection of Tiff image charts published for free by NZ government-all you have to do is calibrate them on Mapcal. Only problem arises if dealing with a Chart that covers say a set of Islands on differing scales.
NZ government also publish for free their full range of RNC calibrated charts but encoded such that you need a programme like Endeavor to read it/or you can buy the whole folio including a dedicated Seaclear type programme for under $100 US as I recall(NZ subscribers correct me if I am wrong)
For all of this and more go to
Land Information New Zealand


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## whorne

I have also created charts using Google Earth...works great. Just bring up a view that shows the area you want. Then hover over two easily identifiable landmarks at opposite ends of the image and record the latitude/longitude of each. Use Edit>Capture image to put the image on your clipboard. Bring up Microsoft Paint and "paste as new image". Save to a .bmp file. Then run Mapcal and key in the lat/lon of the landmarks you chose. Convert the image and you are ready to add it to your charts. It aint great, no soundings and poor resolution, but it works well.


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## chuckbauer

You might take a look at OpenCPN which is free, handles a variety of chart types, runs on Windows, Linux, Mac. Multiple languages, NEMA support etc.
Google for opencpn.org.
(Not enough posts to put up link)


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## prroots

I wonder if anyone has tried to use SeaClear in conjunction with the USB-based gps that came with Microsoft Streets & Trips? I already have that gps and would love to make use of it. Thanks
Pete


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## whorne

You can purchase, at a very reasonable cost, a cable/adaptor that allows you to connect a USB device to a serial port. I have looked at Seaclear and it has the capablility of selecting a port to use but USB ports do not show up in the drop down. If you connect to a com port using the adaptor cable and select the proper port number and set the baud rate correctly (probably 4800) Seaclear should be able to communicate with the device. This is only going to work if both devices use the same protocol, probably NEMA. This can also be set in Seaclear. I have not tried this so can't make any promises.


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## sailingdog

*BULLSH!T. There is no adapter that allows you to run USB devices, which operate at 12-480 Mbps on a standard RS-232 Serial port, which maxes out at 115,200 bps or so. *It would really help if you knew what you were talking about.

However, there are many USB-RS-232 converters that allow you to use an RS-232 device on a USB port will show up as logical serial ports. This is usually the simplest way for the driver to allow you to use an RS-232 device on a modern computer that doesn't have any serial ports.



whorne said:


> You can purchase, at a very reasonable cost, a cable/adaptor that allows you to connect a USB device to a serial port. I have looked at Seaclear and it has the capablility of selecting a port to use but USB ports do not show up in the drop down. If you connect to a com port using the adaptor cable and select the proper port number and set the baud rate correctly (probably 4800) Seaclear should be able to communicate with the device. This is only going to work if both devices use the same protocol, probably NEMA. This can also be set in Seaclear. I have not tried this so can't make any promises.


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## sailingdog

If the USB driver has it show up as a serial port and the device driver outputs the GPS data in an NMEA 0183 compatible data stream format, there's no reason it shouldn't work with SeaClear II.



prroots said:


> I wonder if anyone has tried to use SeaClear in conjunction with the USB-based gps that came with Microsoft Streets & Trips? I already have that gps and would love to make use of it. Thanks
> Pete


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## QuickMick

sailingdog said:


> It would really help if you knew what you were talking about.


ahhh succinct as always!


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## justified

Go to OpenCPN a lot easier to use and set up. us with a Delorme Earthmate LT-20 USB receiver. uses the same NOAA charts.

Peter
"Frayed"


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## Ajax_MD

sailingdog said:


> *BULLSH!T. There is no adapter that allows you to run USB devices, which operate at 12-480 Mbps on a standard RS-232 Serial port, which maxes out at 115,200 bps or so. *<snip>
> 
> However, there are many USB-RS-232 converters that allow you to use an RS-232 device on a USB port will show up as logical serial ports. This is usually the simplest way for the driver to allow you to use an RS-232 device on a modern computer that doesn't have any serial ports.


Jebus, Dog-

Was that really necessary? The bold? The caps? The expletive? If I'd done that, I'm certain that I would have been chastised.

Yes Dog, you're absolutely correct, there is no adapter that does what this fellow claimed however, the converter that you describe and recommend, physically resembles an adapter cable. I know, because I own and use it with my old Garmin GPS. Physically, they're nearly indistinguishable from one another. It's just a cable with a very small block in it.

You basically curb-stomped this guy's testicles over the mis-application of one word in his post- "adapter" vs. "converter".

Please relax, go sailing, consume rum. Copious amounts of it.


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## prroots

prroots said:


> I wonder if anyone has tried to use SeaClear in conjunction with the USB-based gps that came with Microsoft Streets & Trips? I already have that gps and would love to make use of it. Thanks
> Pete


I solved my own problem. It was just a matter of selecting port 4! Now I need to figure out how to download some charts for East coast US from NC to FL. Any suggestions for a newbie. Thanks
Pete


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## Ajax_MD

NOAA charts, Atlantic Coast

NOAA charts, Gulf Coast


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## cb32863

There is a "Sticky" in the Cruising/Live Aboard forum to find charts to download. You can get them straight from NOAA too.

Hope those help.

EDIT:BubbleheadMd is too fast for me...


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## Ajax_MD

I download my tracks to OpenCPN after races so I can analyze the decisions I made. It's been very helpful.

I have not yet run the laptop onboard, with the GPS feeding OpenCPN the live track. It's amazing that these tools are out there, for free no less.


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## prroots

BubbleheadMd said:


> NOAA charts, Atlantic Coast
> 
> NOAA charts, Gulf Coast


Thanks. I also found them at: Chart Downloader for NOAA RNCs&#153.
Pete


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## whorne

Holy cow...when you call BS you really call BS. You are right I did not know what I was talking about. I have seen so many USB to RS232 converters for connecting USB ports to RS232 devices that I was confused that you could connect a USB device to a serial port. No excuse for giving bad advice. My apologies. I'm glad that prroots was able to resolve his issue. I hope that my input was more helpful than hurtful.


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## prroots

I got SeaClear II working and now trying out OpenCPN. It has the advantage that it works with both raster (RNC) and vector (ECN) charts from NOAA. I can now display both types of charts, but the ECN chart seem to be missing info such as depths. Probably just a setting somewhere.
Pete


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## donradclife

To get depths on Opencpn, go into the tools/vector charts and check the box for depths.


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## prroots

donradclife said:


> To get depths on Opencpn, go into the tools/vector charts and check the box for depths.


Thanks. I've now installed the Pilot Charts which I found at:Pilot Charts | Official OpenCPN Homepage. I also discovered how to install the Dashboard plug-in on OpenCPN V2.2.1124. So far I'm very pleased with OpenCPN. Quite an impressive program.


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## Argyle38

Hate to revive an old thread, but his one is the closest one that I have seen that is on topic to my question.

Chart Updates: Do any of the charting programs (Maptech, SeaClear, OpenCPN, etc.) have the capability to read the text NTM from the NOAA website, and update your charts accordingly? 

I have an old version of the Chart Navigator (free) from Maptech. Maptech seems like they offer chart updates based on NTM's but only if you subscribe to their service. I haven't found a way to get the software to read the NTM text file that you can get from NOAA.

Can any of the others do this?


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## sailingdog

None of the recreational navigation programs that are free or even low-cost have the ability to read NTMs AFAIK. Even most of the high-end programs don't have this ability. However, you can sometimes download updated charts from NOAA which will reflect the updates.



Argyle38 said:


> Hate to revive an old thread, but his one is the closest one that I have seen that is on topic to my question.
> 
> Chart Updates: Do any of the charting programs (Maptech, SeaClear, OpenCPN, etc.) have the capability to read the text NTM from the NOAA website, and update your charts accordingly?
> 
> I have an old version of the Chart Navigator (free) from Maptech. Maptech seems like they offer chart updates based on NTM's but only if you subscribe to their service. I haven't found a way to get the software to read the NTM text file that you can get from NOAA.
> 
> Can any of the others do this?


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## Argyle38

sailingdog said:


> None of the recreational navigation programs that are free or even low-cost have the ability to read NTMs AFAIK. Even most of the high-end programs don't have this ability. However, you can sometimes download updated charts from NOAA which will reflect the updates.


Eh, I was afraid of that. The updated chart downloads do reflect up to date NTM's, but that just seems like a lot of wasted bandwidth.

Thanks,


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## brak

Argyle38 said:


> Eh, I was afraid of that. The updated chart downloads do reflect up to date NTM's, but that just seems like a lot of wasted bandwidth.
> 
> Thanks,


Vector charts are pretty darn small, and as long as the product you are using will download only what's been updated - that really is a non-issue. You are talking about may be a few kilobytes per download (except when there are so many updates, that NOAA replaces the entire chart - but even that's only a megabyte or two).

Raster charts are a bandwidth hog, of course and do not have incremental updates.


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## Argyle38

I've been using the raster charts with the Maptech software. I print them to PDF and then have them printed out, full scale on a large format printer/plotter that I have at work. (I only do that for the charts that want a paper copy of, which is a small subset of the software charts that I've downloaded.)

The raster charts actually incrementally update with the NTM's. I just downloaded my home chart and the NTM changes show up on the newly downloaded chart. My paper chart was just printed last spring and the last "full" printing of the chart is 12/06. 

But they are BW hogs, that's why I thought there would be an easy way to just get the text updates to update the charts.


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## Orksail

*Seaclear with Windows 7*



twcook said:


> SeaClear II works fine on Windows 7.


I've installed Seaclear with charts of UK waters from visitmyharbour, together with g7towin.
My Garmin GPS72 handheld is communicating OK with g7towin but I cannot get Seaclear to download my old routes. My Positions and routes import OK but the GPS menu in Seaclear remains disabled (greyed out).
Have you any suggestions?
I'm running on Windows 7 - could this be the problem?


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## TakeFive

Orksail said:


> I've installed Seaclear with charts of UK waters from visitmyharbour, together with g7towin.
> My Garmin GPS72 handheld is communicating OK with g7towin but I cannot get Seaclear to download my old routes. My Positions and routes import OK but the GPS menu in Seaclear remains disabled (greyed out).
> Have you any suggestions?
> I'm running on Windows 7 - could this be the problem?


g7towin needs to be in the same folder as the SeaClear executable. On WindowsXP this is C:\Program Files\SeaClear .

g7towin will launch and run fine from a different location, but SeaClear's GPS menu will only enable if g7towin is in the right location.


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## ruosis

I obviously need some help setting up Sea Clear. Could someone give plain English directions on how to download NOAA charts and get SeaClear to read them. Thanks.


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## whorne

These 10 steps worked for me 

1. Download raster charts from NOAA. 
2. Open MapcalII utility. This is a seperate program from Seaclear. You will find it in your Start menu.
3. (IN Mapcal) Tools--Set Directories.
4. (Mapcal) Assign the path to the file you just downloaded.
5. (Mapcal) Click OK.
6. (Mapcal) Tools-->Autoload list-->scan for new charts.
7. (Mapcal) Tools-->Autoload List-->recreate.
8. Close Mapcal.
9. Restart Seaclear (if it was open while using Mapcal).
10. (In Seaclear) File-->chart-->list all.


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## Orksail

RhythmDoctor said:


> g7towin needs to be in the same folder as the SeaClear executable. On WindowsXP this is C:\Program Files\SeaClear .
> 
> g7towin will launch and run fine from a different location, but SeaClear's GPS menu will only enable if g7towin is in the right location.


Many thanks - I'm up and running now! I had the g7t FOLDER in the seaclear folder but that is not sufficient. The g7t file must be expanded and the g7t.exe file dragged in alongside Seaclear. This enables the GPS menu in seaclear.


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## whorne

ruosis said:


> I obviously need some help setting up Sea Clear. Could someone give plain English directions on how to download NOAA charts and get SeaClear to read them. Thanks.


Here is a fleshed-out version of the list in my previous post. I hope I haven't been to effusive here.

1. Download raster charts from NOAA.

You may want to have a temporary folder set up to store the downloaded files in before you go to this link:
Nautical Charts & Pubs

Download the files from the NOAA website to the temporary folder.

Extract the zip file contents to the temporary folder.

Set up a folder to store the charts so that they will be accessed from Seaclear. This can be anywhere on your harddrive but it makes sense to put it under programfiles\seaclear\charts. You will "tell" Seaclear where these files are in a later step. For discussion, lets call this "the working folder".

Use Windows Search to find all the KAP (.kap) files in the temporary folder. Be sure Search is set up to search in subfolders.

In the search results, select all the files or, if you know the chart numbers that you want, just select those.

Move these files to the folder you set up for Seaclear to use, the working folder.

Now you've got the chart files (.kap) where you want them. You need to tell Seaclear where they are. You do this by creating a database file that Seaclear will read to get the chart locations, the coordinates of the borders so that it can select the correct chart and other chart information such as scale. Mapcal is a program that creates this database file for Seaclear. You can specify the chart folder using the tools menu and selecting "Set Directories". Then Mapcal will read the filenames in the folder when you select "Scan for new charts" from the tools--->Autoload list menu". Next I select "update" from the tools--->autolist menu but I'm not sure what this does and may not be necessary. The final step in Mapcal is to select "recreate" from the tools--->autolist menu. This last step writes the database file that Seaclear will use enabling it to select and open chart files. When you open Seaclear, it will open this database and will be able to list and open your charts. The following steps-list summarizes this process. I did not make this list and it does not include the "Update" step I mentioned above. If anyone can tell me what the function of "update" is, thanks in advance.

2. Open MapcalII utility. This is a seperate program from Seaclear. You will find it in your Start menu.
3. (IN Mapcal) Tools--Set Directories. 
4. (Mapcal) Assign the path to the working folder. Hit the button to the right to browse to the folder. Or, you can edit the list by typing in the box.
5. (Mapcal) Click OK.
6. (Mapcal) Tools-->Autoload list-->scan for new charts.
7. (Mapcal) Tools-->Autoload List-->recreate.
8. Close Mapcal.
9. Restart Seaclear (if it was open while using Mapcal).
10. (In Seaclear) File-->chart-->list all.

You may want to delete the temporary folder that you used for the download to free space on your computer.

Note, that to the best of my knowledge, Seaclear only uses files with the extension .kap and .wci. The .bsb and .ptc files that come from NOAA are not needed.

Disclaimer: I am submitting this post in an effort to be helpful. If I got something wrong, I am very sorry. I suspect I will still get stomped-on by someone, if history is any indication.


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## SailingStNick

No Mac version...boo


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## Orksail

My Garmin72 GPS(dangled out the window!) is sending NMEA 0185 to SeaClear installed on my desktop PC (Windows 7) so long as I select 4800 baud rate and the correct COM port (which I can read in Devices & Printers). However when I try to do the same on a laptop running Windows XP there is no communication. I connected the Garmin through a USB port in both cases. Do I need to instal a driver with Windows XP?


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## Donna_F

Orksail said:


> Do I need to instal a driver with Windows XP?


Switch to either Polar Navy or OpenCPN. MUCH easier to use and they are both fully supported and have good customer support.


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## TakeFive

Orksail said:


> My Garmin72 GPS(dangled out the window!) is sending NMEA 0185 to SeaClear installed on my desktop PC (Windows 7) so long as I select 4800 baud rate and the correct COM port (which I can read in Devices & Printers). However when I try to do the same on a laptop running Windows XP there is no communication. I connected the Garmin through a USB port in both cases. Do I need to instal a driver with Windows XP?


I can understand why you want to make SeaClear work. OpenCPN is very nice for many applications, but I still like SeaClear better for some things. My 30 day trial with PolarNavy was a disaster. I thought it was very non-intuitive, although YMMV.

The problem you describe is well known for SeaClear, and emanates from the fact that USB is not part of the NMEA standard. For many programs that expect true NMEA, you need a software emulator that is designed to take the USB signal and map it to a COM port. My Garmin Oregon 400c works under SeaClear using Garmin's Spanner software, available for free download. Try that first.


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## LeeV

*SeaClear II won't recognize my Garmin 76cx*

I don't have a serial port available, although I imagine I can find a serial cable for the gps, but I can't understand why SeaClear ii won't recognize usb ports. I can get maps in, etc... but can't hook up this dang gps! Ideas?


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## Donna_F

SeaClear hasn't been updated or supported in ages. It was created to fill a hole when there was no free nav software available. That's no longer the case. You might want to try a different program. This thread is two years old and the two major software programs (OpenCPN and Polar Navy) have been continually updated and have good customer support.


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## whorne

If your GPS has a serial interface you can get an adapter for the computer that will give it a serial port. If your GPS has a USB interface you're out of luck.


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## LeeV

DRFerron said:


> SeaClear hasn't been updated or supported in ages. It was created to fill a hole when there was no free nav software available. That's no longer the case. You might want to try a different program. This thread is two years old and the two major software programs (OpenCPN and Polar Navy) have been continually updated and have good customer support.


Thanks for the response. I'm looking at them, but it seems they do not readily connect to a USB driven hand-held gps either!

Thanks,
~LeeV


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## kunkwriter

I use it all the time. Bought a usb gps online for five bucks. Need to use the mapcal program inside the downloaded file to put the charts in the program. It's a bit more work then some other programs, but when put on automatic, I find it works as well or better.


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## LeeV

kunkwriter said:


> I use it all the time. Bought a usb gps online for five bucks. Need to use the mapcal program inside the downloaded file to put the charts in the program. It's a bit more work then some other programs, but when put on automatic, I find it works as well or better.


Let me make sure I understand - you have a gps connected by a USB port and it's communicating with SeaClear?? I have the mapcal part worked out with the charts; I just can't get SeaClear to see my GPS (USB).


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## kunkwriter

I have a g-star IV usb gps. The seaclear program reads it automatically as long as it is connected to a usb port on your computer. When I bought a new laptop, I opened the program, plugged in the gps, and it read it again, without me telling it what port. When it's not plugged in it will tell me it can't read from that port, so seaclear begins looking for it. I've never had a problem and use it as my primary nav. I sail the SF bay area and the california coast. I bought the gps on ebay for 6.99. Just looked and they're up to 20 bucks, but that's still cheap.


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## kunkwriter

If it's not reading your gps, maybe go into the tools section, look at the 'comm' tab, and try manually checking the different ports. ONe of them should work.


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## smurphny

Sea Clear is one of the first plotting programs but is pretty limited nowadays. It will only read Raster format, available from NOAA but few other sources. It will not read ENC format. You can create your own raster charts of other areas by using GE pictures but I wouldn't trust these. Almost free is the Polar Navy program which is a great little program for little money.


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## LeeV

smurphny said:


> Sea Clear is one of the first plotting programs but is pretty limited nowadays. It will only read Raster format, available from NOAA but few other sources. It will not read ENC format. You can create your own raster charts of other areas by using GE pictures but I wouldn't trust these. Almost free is the Polar Navy program which is a great little program for little money.


I decided to try Polar Navy based on your suggestion. I downloaded the free 30 trial installed it and plugged the Garmin 76cx into the usb port. The instructions say: Right click on PolarCOM tray icon and select Configure menu option. Well, there is no tray icon (Blue Globe) and I cannot open the Configure menu! Even with the shift/alt/C, it won't open. So....here I go again!


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## smurphny

One of the initial set up procedures that involves some experimenting is in getting the input GPS signal onto the right port and format. The Garmin USB format sometimes is not the initial set up so it needs to be set up. *PolarCOM* is the communications program. Did you download it as well?

By the way, I do use SeaClear to print out raster charts. It has no advertising logos, etc, and seems to be the best program to do simple chart printing.


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## latka

Further to this thread: Downloaded SeaClear correctly in Windows7, looks fine.
Got GlobalSat USB GPS receiver installed. Runs fine.
Open SeaClear, window comes up with the message CAN NOT OPEN PORT 1.
No idea! 
Anybody with suggestions?


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## whorne

Seaclear uses a serial port (com1,com2,com3 or com4) not USB port.


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## BarryL

Hello,

Your USB GPS should come with a software driver that will create a serial port (virtual). You need to run the device manager (start control panel and then device manager) and look at the 'Port's section (click the + to expand the section). One of the items should have a COM port and 'GPS' associated with it. That's the com port you want to use with Seaclear.

Good luck,
Barry


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## eherlihy

LeeV said:


> I decided to try Polar Navy based on your suggestion. I downloaded the free 30 trial installed it and plugged the Garmin 76cx into the usb port. The instructions say: Right click on PolarCOM tray icon and select Configure menu option. Well, there is no tray icon (Blue Globe) and I cannot open the Configure menu! Even with the shift/alt/C, it won't open. So....here I go again!


Sorry that it took me so long to notice this thread (thanks Barry).

Stated earlier is that for PolarNavy to detect the GPS, you have to start PolarCOM either before or after you start Polar Navy (i've tried it both ways). PolarCOM creates and manages the virtual serial ports for the USB GPS.

I have tried SeaClear, OpenCPN and PolarNavy. For the cost of the software, and the ease of loading and updating charts, and the integration with ActiveCaptain, Polar Navy is, IMHO, the best of the bunch.


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## Donna_F

For Polar Navy, at least, the GPS only works with the paid version.


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## eherlihy

Thanks Donna, but I can find no notation to that effect...

I believe that PolarView NS will work if you download and install PolarCOM.

PolarCOM is a FREE, but separate, download. Here is the description;


> PolarCOM was developed to be an integrated NMEA 0183 marine navigation instrument data bridge and multipurpose data display. It combines background server operation with high quality easy to read and fully customizable digital instrument views, complementary to a chart display of PolarView.
> 
> PolarCOM can bridge any NMEA 0183 compatible data. It will understand and display data based on following sentences: GLL,GGA,GSA,GSV,VTG,RMC,DBT.
> Available instrument types include:
> - GPS position
> - Speed Over Ground
> - Course Over Ground (True)
> - Course Over Ground (Magnetic)
> - Depth Below Transducer
> - Time of Day
> - GPS Satellite Status
> Here are some key features of "PolarCOM":
> Support for multiple NMEA 0183 data sources and instrument types
> TCP and UDP network server support permits sharing your NMEA 0183 data with network-enabled navigation software
> NMEA data logging and replay capability
> Customizable set of digital instruments for data display, providing virtually infinite combinations of views


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## eherlihy

... Continuing...

I am glad that this came up. I just visited the Polar Navy site, and see that in Polar Navy 2.0, PolarCOM is retired! The product is now fully integrated as of October 14, 2013. I'm going to try it now.


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## eherlihy

With the updated version (2.0.2), I notice that it loads more quickly than the old version (1.whatever). I don't have my USB GPS puck, so I can't try that right now.

I did, however update over 450 charts in my library in UNDER 20 minutes.


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## Donna_F

PolarCom was free, but you needed the key they give you to unlock it so that it worked with the GPS. I haven't purchased a new version. Maybe that has changed since PolarCom is not used.


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## eherlihy

Updates to PolarView NS are FREE once you have purchased a license. If you have purchased, then you are entitled to an upgrade.

Also according to PolarCOM Free Download PolarCOM is FREEWARE;


> The term freeware generally denotes software products that may be downloaded and used at no cost, for an unlimited period of time. This is in contrast to the trial licensing model, for example, where the software may be used fully and freely, but for a limited amount of time (usually 15 to 90 days).
> 
> There is an important distinction to be made, however, depending on how the software is used and on vendor policies. Using a product at home for activities that do not generate income is deemed as personal use, whereas using it in a company or other similar scenarios is classified as commercial use. It is common practice for software vendors to make an application freeware for personal use and at the same time require a fee to be paid for commercial use. Nevertheless, there is a considerable amount of software that is freeware for both personal and commercial use.


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## latka

Thnx for that guys. I have sorted the problem in the mean time, the GPS is using the COM3 port whereas the computer was looking at COM1 !


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## N4HHM

I've used it for several months and it works great. Using a module to convert 12 v to 19v for my laptop so I would not have to use an AC inverter (keeps everything DC). I think mine was $ 79.00 with the usb/gps.


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## christian.hess

^^more info about that please?


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