I suppose you could get into a religious discussion about charting software. I’ve purchased three packages over the years, the most expensive two were Cap’n and Nobeltec. (I didn’t actually purchase Cap’n, I wrote some software for them and they sent it to me for free). I didn’t like it so I got Nobeltec VNS. It’s pretty good. I used to use my laptop for all my navigation, but now use a cockpit RADAR/Chartplotter for piloting and the notebook for planning. A good package runs about $500 these days, which is a piece of change. As I’ve said before, I wouldn’t waste my money if it didn’t have great route planning including currents overlay. Here’s a screen shot from my machine. My GPS isn’t connected. It overlays the raster charts into a quilt, so it looks like one continuous chart and overlays current arrows right on the screen. The blue boxes are raster charts (free download). When you zoom in, detail from smaller charts is shown automatically. Currents in my cruising area run typically a knot or so, but can run as high as 6 kts in a few spots, and they run in different directions at different times. You can mouse-over the current arrows and see what they are running. You set the time of day on the tool-bar. The dark line is a route I had previously run from Chatham to Woods-Hole. You can open a navigation window and set COG for each leg based on current predictions for the date and time you expect to depart and it computes the ETA for each waypoint. I go back and forth for each waypoint, checking the tide for that time of day and adjust SOG accordingly. I adjust my departure time to make use of the current. If I play it right, I can make an average SOG of 8+ kts yet only have a speed through the water of 6.5kts. Play it wrong and have an average SOG of 4kts. I have an older version of VNS. I should upgrade one of these days. It would be nice if route planning automatically adjust each leg speed for the current so I don’t have to manually enter it, but there are usually only a few legs in a route so it isn’t a big deal. It has a few annoying things that are probably fixed in later releases.

There are other packages out there. You can’t tell how good they are until you pay for them. Coastal Explorer looks similar to VNS. If it has quilting, current arrow overlay, and supports route planning as well as VNS it might be a good choice.

Rich

I'll agree that OpenCPN takes a little getting used to, but to save a route, right click on any line or waypoint – the context menu will ask to export it -which is what you're really asking it to do.

Easy, peasy, once you read the help file… I've written software for 25 odd years and this isn't as bad as I've seen and it isn't as good.  I've used it already for trip planning and distance measuring and saving routes. 

I'm not religious about it, but since I've never been satisfied with the tech support from major software vendors, if I'm going to have to figure it out myself, I'd rather not pay $400 for it.

But that's just me…

Bob

—
Bob Fine
s/v Pelican
Pearson 424 Hull #8
http://thesailinglife.blogspot.com
Follow me at: http://www.tinyurl.com/WhereIsBobFine

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I picked up Maptech chart book for New England and it came with a lite version of their Offshore Navigator. I have downloaded and installed nearly all the RNC for the eastern seaboard and imported them into the menu tree for OffShore Navigator.
Since I don’t have a chartplotter at the helm so I plan my routes on the laptop and export them to my Garmin handheld GPS then use my chart book to and the GPS to navigate.
I have been pleased with OSN and considered paying for the upgrade but what I have is working for what I do. I found using the software pretty intuitive (hate reading software manuals).
I will probably keep this for planning even when I upgrade to a helm mounted plotter / radar.

Eric

— On Thu, 12/17/09, Patrick Walters <> wrote:

Bob

See it’s I don’t speak the language. I think of exporting as a method of sending the route to another application or device. I have played some more and can’t wait to try it while hooked up to a GPS.

Thanks

Linus

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When this thread started I downloaded OpenCPN  for about the 3rd time in the last year or so.  The previous times I gave up because it lacked several features – don't remember what they were so I guess they weren't really that important.  This time the missing feature is stability. 
I can't run the program on my Netbook with NMEA input (38,400B) for more than 15 minutes before I get the “We're sorry ….”” windows screen and the program aborts.  The NMEA input does not include AIS as I'm too far from any shipping channels.  I was really looking forward to an alternative to CE and Fugawi for coastal navigation with NOAA RNCs and ENCs.
I guess I'll take another look in the spring.

On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 9:14 AM, Linus Martinez < ([email][/email])> wrote:

I also interested in this.Do we have to load charts separately and where do we get them?

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Joe,
You can get the RNCs (raster charts) and ENCs (vector charts) from the NOAA site at: http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/staff/chartspubs.html

On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 9:39 AM, joe shimkonis < ([email][/email])> wrote:

Hey, John,

It may not be the software – it may be the USB handler because I've seen problems with it.  On the other hand, writing serial communication software can be tricky.  I used 4800baud, and didn't try any faster.  You can tell the OpenCPN people of your problem.

Bob

—
Bob Fine
s/v Pelican
Pearson 424 Hull #8
http://thesailinglife.blogspot.com
Follow me at: http://www.tinyurl.com/WhereIsBobFine

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I have been using Nobeltec for the last 10 years and loved it but my new laptop has Vista and will not run the old Nobeltec program. I did not want to spend $1,000 for a new Nobeltec so I started looking on e-bay, I just got a new Maptech Chart Navigator PRO off e-bay for a $105. It has the Quilting, AIS, Vessel up, Tides & Current, runs BSB & Vector charts, Areial Photos, Internet weather and best of all it will run on Vista.

The current information in OpenCNP from: Burrard Inlet 049 19.036N 123 07.757W (just north of Vancouver BC Canada) to Nawhitti Bar 050 56.958N 127 52.988W (at the north end of Vancouver Island) is displayed in a tide data box. Also I did not see any current information from Nawhitti Bar to just south of Prince Rupert BC Canada.