As a recently joined member, I would like to say a warm hello to everyone and look forward to learning from you all and even contributing the little that I know.
I fly for Qantas, and have been exposed to the Navstar GPS System and it's associated onboard navigation systems for nearly 15 years. Obviously the accuracy, availablity and redundancy we require from our dual receivers and dual antenna GPS systems has a heafty price tag ..... US $320,000.
With "Selective Availablity" turned OFF by the US Department of Defence (DoD) under the administration of Bill Clinton the previous 300 metres accuracy is now down to less than 15m for 99% of the time (GPS RAIM Shadows over the Southern Hemisphere). During instrument approaches in or aircraft, we are achieving less than 2 metres 99% of the time.
Anyway I'm getting side tracked here.
I have finally bitten the bullent and purchased a Tom Tom GO 720 for my wife and myself. My wife for her ability or lack of ability to follow a UBD directory and mine to reduce speeding fines in Victoria. Having been booked doing 106 kph in a 100 kph zone on 3 occassions in the last 6 weeks was the final straw. Why did I leave NSW ... lol
I have to say, the Tom Tom 720 is the easiest GPS I have ever used, but I have only been restricted to exposure of OEM GPS in rental cars.
The website instructions regarding the downloading of Speed / Red Light Camera .... BMP + OV2 Files ... is fine for Windows XP but a little drawn out for Windows Vista, which can have files transfered in 20-30 seconds instead of minutes.
Here is what I have done to speed up the process using Windows Vista. I have written it in the most simple form to help those with no computer experience before
1. Connect Tom Tom 720 to docking unit and connect docking unit USB connector into computer.
2. Turn on GPS and when prompted, press CONNECT TO COMPUTER
4. Download and "SAVE" Speed / Red Light camera BMP + OV2 Files to DOCUMENTS
5. Using the bottom left circular Windows Icon on your desktop, go to COMPUTER
6. Open COMPUTER and you will see Tom Tom as ... G: Drive open G: drive
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DELETE ... delete all previous files title with Red Light or Speed Camera. There a 3 files that come with the Tom Tom 720 database and are included when you first conduct a "Update" on the Tom Tom Website. Without removing these original files, there will be a conflict, with the new files your about to install.
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7. Look at the list of all the files on G: drive (GPS Hard Drive) and up near the top of the page you will see AUSTRALIA folder
8. Open the AUSTRALIA Folder and you are now ready to "copy" files from DOCUMENTS to AUSTRALIA folder. This can all be done on this page.
9. On the left top of the page, you will see DOCUMENTS. Open this (you will move to a new page) and find the two files BMP + OV2. Highlight both of these and then COPY them.
10. Go back now to the previous AUSTRALIA folder page, and at the bottom of the folder files PASTE the BMP + OV2 files.
11. When the "Hard Drive" symbol on the GPS unit stops flashing, you can turn off the GPS unit and remove it from the docking cradlle
TomTom + Vista + OV2 Files
