Open CPN, UK charts. Admiralty & alternatives

requiem

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From over here it looks like the cross-platform option is not OpenCPN, but only qtVlm. It would be much tidier if VMH simply offered a package in S-63 format (or S-57, but good luck with that) so that they could be used with any application that can ingest it, be it OpenCPN, qtVlm or something else.

Surely for Tablets / Phones .... Navionics Boating is the way to go ?

It didn't even have a night mode until a few months ago. AFAIK it still doesn't understand the concept of magnetic north, though that's less relevant for professional users. The AIS display is woefully inadequate (though it's a tiny bit better at connecting to the onboard AIS), and good luck adding (M)ARPA targets to it. I'll, uh, pause my rant here.
 

Frank Holden

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I have a variety of charts and charting systems - from the original 'burgle brand' C-Map through to iSailor on assorted devices - no android but PC, Macbook and iPad. My goto and the pick of the bunch is Wartsila iSailor.
Quality is spot on and the prices is right as well - at least for where I sail.
Only for iPhone/iPad but worth crossing over to the dark side for.

However, just today I have discovered TZ iBoat on the app store. Only for Ipads but they say an Android version will be out next year. It is a bit expensive - and I don't need it - but it may suit some. Oh and also - vector, raster and OpenStreetMap whatever that may be.
 
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The O-Charts are 18.50 Euros for UK waters for use on 2 devices (either windows or android or a combination) . Updated for 12 months then just open to use on those devices.
 

requiem

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From over here it looks like the cross-platform option is not OpenCPN, but only qtVlm.
Just realized this might have been confusing without context, as it was in reference to the VMH chart offerings. OpenCPN using charts from O-charts should work across platforms on which OpenCPN runs, and the O-charts charts for the UK are essentially UKHO charts sans warranty.

Further note: I don't think the USB dongle for O-charts works with Android devices, but it makes sense for laptops as it allows swapping to a backup device.
 

ducked

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I wish I could understand Qtvlm, I am an IT Consultant and cannot get into it. Opencpn .just seems so much easier.
Havn't tried (and probably failed) yet, but Starpath have a lot of vid and other tutorial stuff on it, for example using the iphone version as a heading, heal and GPS instrumentation source to the free Mac or PC version via an IP network. Unclear whether free or paid iphone version but probably paid. Pretty badly delivered tutorials but at least they exist

https://www.starpath.com/qtVlm/

The name is a very bad sign though. The smell of the Unix TAR pit is strong in this one.
 
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ducked

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See

Link to CM93_2015 in the Word Doc.
Perhaps I'm missing something, since thats a very large collection of links, but these are mostly home made (georectified?) charts for Asian waters derived from satellite imagery, principally Google Earth.

While there are good reasons to do that, and they (and the procedure for deriving them) would be very useful if I had a boat here, I don't see the raster Admiralty charts for UK waters that were the focus of the OP.

Unlike the CM93 charts, these DIY charts will, I assume, be raster, since they are derived from imagery, and raster charts (which I THINK are needed for SeaClear?) are perhaps otherwise a bit of an endangered species as freebies.

NOAA links for them seem to be dead. Allegedly they still do some "historical" and "training" charts but the catalogue search hasn't turned up anything to match my navigation coursework
 

st599

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Unlike the CM93 charts, these DIY charts will, I assume, be raster, since they are derived from imagery, and raster charts (which I THINK are needed for SeaClear?) are perhaps otherwise a bit of an endangered species as freebies.

NOAA links for them seem to be dead. Allegedly they still do some "historical" and "training" charts but the catalogue search hasn't turned up anything to match my navigation coursework
Raster charts are a bye product of creating paper charts which is ceasing in the near future.
 

lustyd

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Unlike the CM93 charts, these DIY charts will, I assume, be raster, since they are derived from imagery, and raster charts (which I THINK are needed for SeaClear?) are perhaps otherwise a bit of an endangered species as freebies.
You may have missed the link to the global CM93 2015 charts lady in bed was talking about.
 

ducked

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You may have missed the link to the global CM93 2015 charts lady in bed was talking about.
No, I got them, but they are a proprietary vector format. I believe OpenCPN is supposed to be able to open them, and so they might be useful eventually, but I was thinking of starting with SeaClear if there were freebie charts for it, since it looked simpler. I'd buy them for actual use, but this is just an initial fiddle with the softwares.

Of course there are lots of freebie vector charts available. Havn't been able to get OpenCPN or qtVlm to do anything much yet, but its early days
 

lustyd

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OpenCPN does open them very well. Sorry missed that you wanted raster. Raster is not very common any more so worth becoming familiar with vector and how to set them up properly as they are certainly the winning format going forwards.
 

ducked

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You may have missed the link to the global CM93 2015 charts lady in bed was talking about.
No, I got them, but they arent raster.`I think they are a proprietary vector
Raster charts are a bye product of creating paper charts which is ceasing in the near future.
And yet I think I still see "should not be used as a substitute for paper charts' CYA warnings on the software, which seems a bit reality defying if you can't get them
 

requiem

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And yet I think I still see "should not be used as a substitute for paper charts' CYA warnings on the software, which seems a bit reality defying if you can't get them

Indeed. I blame... <gestures wildly at everyone>. Plenty of people had their heads in the sand about going electronic, as a result they now get nothing (at least on the US side of things). (Ok, they did add a way to print a "flattened" ENC.)

NOAA has already retired all raster products, their archives only have PDF or JPG formats. I believe some of the folk over on Cruisers Forum have tried to archive the last versions of the RNC files; so if you dig around you may find a copy.

Speaking further on the US side, smaller (commercial) boats often use ECS software like Rose Point or TimeZero. RTCM class A, B, or C ECS are considered to meet carriage requirements, but the number of apps certified against those standards are few, so I believe some "enforcement discretion" is in play. For larger ships, expensive electronic setups (i.e. ECDIS) are type-approved to use the electronic charts for navigation.
 

st599

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I'm the UK, the coastguard has just published the small vessel ECS specification which removes not for navigation warnings - and most of the chart content useful to small vessels.
 

lustyd

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And yet I think I still see "should not be used as a substitute for paper charts' CYA warnings on the software, which seems a bit reality defying if you can't get them
That has nothing to do with vector/raster at all. It’s a warning that the system does not comply with legal requirements for navigation. Vector is the very clear winner and has many advantages when used properly.
 
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