Garmin G-Chart. Help needed to reformat the card and download a chart

[scarlett]

I have three Garmin G Charts, one of which misbehaved when I sailed out of its primary area. It started saying 'Card format not recognised' but by cold swapping it, it would work ok. Then it got so that it would give the message all the time, whatever I did. It had not got damp and electrical contact spray did no good.

The other two charts are working perfectly.

Contact with Navionics, from whom it was purchaed in 1999, suggested I should put the problem to Garmin.

Garmin say they know not how to fix the problem. They offered me an ok deal on a new plotter but poor exchange for my three charts. Their BlueCharts are another proprietary brand and they refuse to say how long they will continue with them. Nor will they tell me the specification of the chart.

Please, does anybody have any ideas for a website where I might come across a reliable electronics 'whiz kid' who would like to have a go as a challenge. I don't care that I might lose the software chart itself as someone might be able to reinstall their chart onto the chip. I have nothing to lose in letting someone play with it.

The bad news is that I am unable to check if their work is successful, as the plotter is on the boat.

I put this post in The Lounge but didn't get a positive response.

Thanks

 

[ShipsWoofy]

Which type of card is it?

To prevent people copying the card navionics have I think written code into the cards bios, much like the special function cards on olympus digital cameras like panorama.

That is how I believe they have done it, I am yet to get into the bios though!

 

[scarlett]

Thanks for taking an interest.

The card is about twice as thick and twice the area of an SD card. It has a metal plate sealing the underside and has 'Garmin' moulded into the plastic. The capacity is a nominal 64k. It does not fit into any of the four slots on my card reader.

Thanks

 

[ShipsWoofy]

yes, this is a navionics card... I am not sure you can buy the readers for them.

The one on the right?

 

[BrendanS]

Cards don't have a bios, just a proprietary format

Yes, you can buy readers for Navionics cards, but only from the manufacturers, there are no oem retailers

 

[scarlett]

Thanks both. It is slightly different from the one on the right but near enough..

I suspect that if the companies were British there would be a kind technican who would have the equipment and liked the chance to do something interesting with his day. I might be wrong but Garmin and Navionics UK are just distribution agencies. They may have technicans but with limited scope.

I sent my chartplotter back to Garmin for repair when it was new, with a request that if they were going to replace it 'to download the 200 waypoints onto a PC and to upload them onto the replacement.' He did not do so because 'they did not have a working PC'. "Could he please hang on to the old one till he did?" 'Too late -it is in the bin and would be impossible to find'.
Having had other Garmin products that have packed up and hearing the tales of others, they have a very good customer service but many and repeated failures of their equipment. That is why they need good customer service.

A Garmin card reader would not necessarily solve the problem. I suspect my card readers are not able to write to the cards. I think Garmin sold Garmin software that enabled the chartplotter to be linked to the PC and the charts to be used on an ordinary monitor. I am hoping to come across someone with more ability than I, who wants to have a go with my chart. Failing that someone who wants to take the metal plate off and have an educated 'poke around'.

Maybe my knowledge is so limited that I expect more from electronic hobbyists than is reasonable. I would have thought there would be a web site somewhere populated by people with the sort of information gleened from experience that live on these sites devoted to boats.

Thanks again

 

[duncan]

[ QUOTE ]
I think Garmin sold Garmin software that enabled the chartplotter to be linked to the PC and the charts to be used on an ordinary monitor

[/ QUOTE ]

don't think so. You can talk direct to the unit's memory via a serial connection to update softwate and maintain waypoints but not talk to the charts/chart software as far as I am aware.

Navionics licensed the use of their chart software onto the G-Charts and some retail distributors had hardware/software to maintain and load charts onto the cartridges. I understand that Navionics withdrew support and unless the equipement is still out there somewhere with a retailer you won't be able to do anything about it. As most of these utilities are timebased for licencing I doubt any are available - additionally if they were some bright spark would be running a very nice business re writing G-Charts!

I believe your only option is to use ebay or other resources to replace the chart - expect to pay around 130 euro if you can find the one you want.

I can't help you for Greece - I have Holland, Denmark, Germany and Baltic G Charts that I might sell but no Med ones at all.

 

[ShipsWoofy]

Ok, bios is the wrong word, but it kinda fits. I used the terminology which is how I think it. It is code stored in memory that remains hopefully for the life of the card. A bit like bios.

On the old smartmedia cards a portion of the memory you bought was unavailable, where the FAT type table was stored. Among this data on the Olympus cards was low level formating. With a hex editor you can read and alter this code to either repair or allow the card to be used as a special function card in Olympus cameras.

At the time some software had been written to allow non Olympus cards to be altered to resemble OEM cards and to repair those that had been formated on a card reader rather than on the camera. This kills them.

For this reason, I would suggest to anyone, do not format your chart compact flash or MMC using your PC ever, you will undoubtedly kill them.

I am still trying to find a way to back up the cards for my own security, not for piracy. I have some ideas, any one prepared to give me some help I will be all ears.

An idea of the hex reader used to view and alter smartmedia cards>>

 

[jkim1]

There have been a few posts on Garmin G charts.
Garmin refuse to support them.
Navionics say that they made some to a special Garmin format, and will never make any more. I would guess unless garmin ask them to.
Garmin say they have been superceeded.
To the best of my belief no one makes anything that you can adapt or plug in, to take a blue chart or any other for say XD card. I have spoken to a fair number of people and most refuse to be bullied by Garmin or others. And are going the PC laptop route, at least then you are not tied to the original chart supplier. The garmin 225 originally retailed at £2995. Can you imagine how peeved people are who paid that price.

 

[duncan]

[ QUOTE ]
I would guess unless garmin ask them to

[/ QUOTE ]

my understanding is that they (G) did, but they (N) wouldn't as G were moving away from them going forwards.

And yes I have both a 225 with differential and a 215 with differential - can I be double peeved with differentials on?

 

[scarlett]

I did some research on the subject of the Garmin failure to support their G Charts a couple of years ago. It seems that Navionics were producing more more information to go on the charts but whilst the cards could have got kb wise bigger, the internal software was not able to handle more data. I guess the blame must be laid at Garmin's door because they produced a product with a limited life but failed to warn the consumer. Not just this but just months before they pulled out they were still advertising G-Chart plotters. And 18 months ago Kelvin Huges [?] were adverising the plotters in their catalogue. Navionics stopped updating the charts in 2000 so, whilst Med Charts have some value, for anywhere with sand and mud banks they are less helpful.

recently I was offered Bluecharts at 25% off in exchange for my G-Charts but a couple of years ago speaking to two people at Garmin UK, the cartographer and a guy who's name might be Crosse, the boss of Garmin UK, were not able to guarantee or indicate the duration of support for BlueCharts.

The attitude of YM and Garmin was that I should equate chartplotters with Microsoft Windows and expect to change my computer and chartplotter every five years.

If this is true , I am lost. I was not brought up to throw things away. I have a garage to prove it.

I have a pair of old G-Charts which cover western Greece to Marsailles which should do me. When I get back to northern Europe, in maybe five years time, I will consider the purchase of a new chartplotter but it won't be a Garmin.

My thanks to everyone who have taken an interest. I haven't given up.

 

[duncan]

[ QUOTE ]
Navionics stopped updating the charts in 2000 so, whilst Med Charts have some value, for anywhere with sand and mud banks they are less helpful.


[/ QUOTE ]
you could still get gcharts up to 2004

the underlying charts, excluding bouys etc, would rely on new survey material which just isn't updated that often anyhow. paper or electronic you are reliant on surveys.