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    • CommentAuthorgalpd320
    • CommentTimeFeb 17th 2007
     
    Hello, I am attempting to download a route to my GPS device via the .GPX file download. When I click on the link to download the file, it saves it as a .XML file with no other option. The Google Earth download works well, but I have no way to put that on my GPS reliably. I could be doing something wrong. Any help would be appreciated.
    Thanks,
    Mike
    • CommentAuthorjxf
    • CommentTimeFeb 26th 2007
     
    I have the same problem and no solution. Can somebody help us?
  1.  
    Yeah me too.

    Wim
    •  
      CommentAuthorJules
    • CommentTimeFeb 26th 2007
     
    Are you saving it to your computer first? i.e. right click "save target as..."?

    If the problem is that it's saving with a .XML extension, you can simply rename it to .GPX.

    What software do you plan to use the GPX file in?
  2.  
    I right clicked, saved en renamed, but Mapsource said it couldn't be imported.

    Wim

    Btw
    Why right click?
    KML downloaden and convert with GPSBabelGUI.exe into gpx does the job.
    • CommentAuthorScot_Gore
    • CommentTimeFeb 27th 2007
     
    I think I might see what's going on.
    When I use Firefox I get Jule's experience. When I select Share, Download GPX in Firefox I get this option

    I choose Save and it downloads to my desktop as a GPX

    I select Open and Choose notepad I get this:



    When I use MS Explorer 7 I get this

    My only available choice is to save as XML.

    I think you can take Jule's earlier advice and change the extension to GPX at this point and be good to go. I don't have any experience loading to a GPS, but give this a try.

    Scot
  3.  
    THX Scot

    But renaming didn't work for Mapsource.

    Wim
    •  
      CommentAuthorJules
    • CommentTimeMar 1st 2007
     
    Sounds like mapsource doesn't like Bikely's GPX files.

    I don't have a copy of Mapsource so I'm not able to test this.

    Does it offer any error messages?
  4.  
    Jules

    Only that the file "cannot be imported".


    Wim
    •  
      CommentAuthorJules
    • CommentTimeMar 3rd 2007
     
    Try it again - I've just reduced the precision of the elevation data, which was crashing mapsource for one of our users. This could have fixed the problem for you.
  5.  
    I changed rondje-helmond.xml into rondje-helmond.gpx and still the same error occurred.

    wim
    • CommentAuthorjspeare
    • CommentTimeMay 12th 2007
     
    Was there ever a resolution to this? I'm running Mapsource too. Tried the rename. Same import error.
  6.  
    No.
    Only downloading the KML file and converting it with GPSBabelGUI.exe into gpx works.

    Wim
    • CommentAuthorSholto
    • CommentTimeMay 22nd 2007
     
    It's somethig to do with the elevation data. The routes I downloaded up to about last November opened OK with Mapsource (once I changed the file Properties "Opens with:" to Mapsource Application, the extension remains XML). There was no elevation data in these files (Australian routes).

    Routes downloaded since then contain elevation data and will not open. As a test i edited a file to remove this type of entry <ele>8</ele> and it opened normally in Mapsource.

    I tried GPSBabel briefly without success - I expect i will have to read the instructions...
    • CommentAuthorSholto
    • CommentTimeMay 24th 2007
     
    Wim

    Help please, what settings did you use with GPSBabelGUI?

    It seemed pretty straight forward but nothing i tried would work. Input file "Google Maps XML" and output "Garmin Mapsource -gdb", Routes only selected. No options. The file will open in Mapsource but contains no data!

    I tried various combinations but no joy. Those that do produce an XML file didn't contain any data either.

    Note: Metroguide Australia & City Navigator Europe do not contain elevation data for Routes.
    • CommentAuthorgmc
    • CommentTimeMay 24th 2007
     
    Hi Guys,
    I have been having the same problem getting a .gpx file into Garmin MapSource. The tip about the elevation data was very helpful.

    If I download a .gpx file from bikely (in my case a UK ride, Beast-from-the-East-600km-Audax.gpx) and try to load it into MapSource it is rejected. Drag and drop the file onto MapSource and MapSource says "<filename> could not be imported".

    One way to strip the elevation information is to use Perl. It means a download (free) from http://www.activestate.com/store/productdetail.aspx?prdGuid=81fbce82-6bd5-49bc-a915-08d58c2648ca but once you have it then the removal of elevation data is easy. If I had the time I'd write a simple executable and somehow share it on bikely...

    Once you have Perl installed then the following windows console command will do it.

    C:\downloads\CyclingRoutes>perl -ne "print if (!/ele/)" < Beast-from-the-East-600km-Audax.gpx > Beast-from-the-East-600km-Audax_noElevation.gpx

    The file Beast-from-the-East-600km-Audax_noElevation.gpx can be drag-n-dropped straight into MapSource.
    • CommentAuthorSholto
    • CommentTimeMay 26th 2007
     
    gmc

    your Perl routine worked for me, many thanks!

    Sholto
    •  
      CommentAuthorredfox
    • CommentTimeJun 5th 2007
     
    The default file is an Internet Explorer issue, Firefox downloads with a .gpx extension, but either way it does look like MapSource doesn't like elevation tags that aren't round numbers.

    I couldn't work out why I had no problems with Bikely routes in MapSource when a number of other people seem to. However, I use a home brew tool to convert Bikely's route point format gpx files to my preference of track points, which rounds the elevation to the nearest whole number.

    The tool gives me a lot more control over converting and managing gpx files, but it is not in a state where I would want to make it available publicly at the moment, if you don't have any success following other advice, PM me and I will see what I can do.
    • CommentAuthorSholto
    • CommentTimeJun 7th 2007
     
    Redfox said "it does look like MapSource doesn't like elevation tags that aren't round numbers".

    Some of us seem to have different issues.

    I tried loading these without success (the files i downlaoded had no decimals anyway). I tried editing the file to include the same number of decimals that Mapsource waypoints use without success. I also tried commenting out the elevation data again without success.

    Only removing the elevations entirely, either with Wordpad or Perl, would work for me.
    •  
      CommentAuthorredfox
    • CommentTimeJun 8th 2007
     
    Sorry Sholto, looks like I was a bit quick of the mark there, it does fail with rounded elevation tags as well. The fact that it worked for me was purely a coincidence.

    What does seem to cause MapSource a problem though is if the <name> tag precedes the <ele> tag. I have tested this with a few different files now, as well as changing the order when writing out the file in my own software.

    Routes in this format work:

    <rtept lat="46.20842" lon="6.164987">
    <ele>378</ele>
    <name>Point 3</name>
    </rtept>

    And this format fails:

    <rtept lat="46.20842" lon="6.164987">
    <name>Point 3</name>
    <ele>378</ele>
    </rtept>

    Which tallies with you experience of removing the <ele> tags altogether to get get things working.
    • CommentAuthormdxix
    • CommentTimeJul 7th 2007
     
    I am using Garmin MapSource and have the same problem when I download the GPX files. Even when I change the extension from .xml to .gpx, it still cannot import.

    I have used GPX files from other sites and they work fine with MapSource.

    Is there a plan to fix this problem on this site?
    • CommentAuthorpamnpaul
    • CommentTimeJul 20th 2007
     
    The problem stems from the fact that the <ele> tag is not defined in the .gpx 1.1 XML schema. To fix the prblem simply repalce the <ele> tag with a defined tag such as <cmt> for comments, or <desc> for description.

    1. Open the XML file in notepad
    2. replace all ele with cmt
    3. Save As
    4. Be sure to select "All files" as the file type, and add .gpx to the end of the file name.
    5. Close the file and open in Mapsource.
    • CommentAuthorchristh
    • CommentTimeJul 20th 2007
     
    Thanks pamnpaul!!!! Replacing ele with cmt worked perfectly!

    Chris
    • CommentAuthorBlueMM
    • CommentTimeJul 20th 2007
     
    replacing <ele> with <cmt> just converts it into a comment. But will cause problems if there already is a <cmt> for that point. Also, not sure who wants the elevation in a comment.
    I think Redfox got it right, Mapsource seems to have an issue with the order within a route point <rtept> (<ele> needs to come before <name> for some reason).
    pamnpaul: GPX 1.1 does define the <ele> element in GPX points, see GPX 1.1 Schema Documentation - wptType.

    Interestingly, it lists the <ele> as the first child element of a point, maybe Mapsource needs it to be in the specific order listed in the Schema? Given that it is XML, Mapsorce shouldn't die on Bikely GPX's.
    Maybe Bikely could change it's GPX export format to match the order listed in the GPX 1.1 schema?

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