| Street Atlas 6 w/ Earthmate Receiver Reviewed by: Michael Flaminio Rating: *** Review Date: 3.2.00 Developer: DeLorme MSRP: $50, $180 w/ Earthmate |
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Street Atlas 6 is the latest Macintosh release of the DeLorme mapping and trip
routing software. Combined with the Earthmate GPS receiver, Mac users can plot and
track trips in-route with a PowerBook or iBook.
Street Atlas 6 USA
Street Atlas features detailed maps of the United States. The maps feature zooming
for a large, national overview down to street level detail. The maps can be customized
to show/hide ZIP Code boundaries, major roads, back roads and other landmarks. Users
can also add 
personal
information to the maps. For example, users can add additional local landmarks or
specific addresses, such as stoplights or businesses. Street Atlas 6 also allows
users to import address books, which will plot the locations of contacts on the map.
While interesting for simple map displays, Street Atlas' real potential comes in
with its routing. Street Atlas will find custom routes between two points. Whether
it's across town or cross-country, Street Atlas can find the best route for you.
Users can customize trips for scenic, speed or distance preferences. Users can also
specify speed limits to help better calculate travel time and route.
To find a location, users can enter in a street address or just a city. In my tests,
Street Atlas usually found the best route with a few exceptions. For these occasions,
Street Atlas allows you to route through preset waypoints to better specify a certain
route you would prefer to take. Even though you can configure the software to prefer
certain types of routes, I found that it still does not guarantee the best directions.
Earthmate GPS
The Earthmate from DeLorme is GPS receiver with a serial interface. The receiver
connects to the Mac and sends data to Street Atlas. The GPS receiver to powred by
two AAA batteries. With the hardware/software combo, a portable computer can become
a powerful mapping tool. The GPS receiver triangulates the user's position by tracking
multiple GPS satellites. The unit requires data from at least three satellites to
be at all effective. Four satellites are needed for accurate directions, and additional
satellites further increase accuracy. For best results, Earthmate will need a clear
view of the sky.
The unit IGM received was designed for Windows computers. The Earthmate ships with
a nine-pin serial converter, which will connect to a standard Mac serial port. For
newer USB Macs, Mac users will need a serial to USB converter. DeLorme suggests the
Keyspan Twin Serial Adapter;
however, other converters may also work. DeLorme told IGM that they plan to ship
a USB version of its Earthmate in the near future.
Collaboration
With Street Atlas 6 and the Earthmate receiver, Mac users can locate their current
position, route a trip between locations and track their progress along the route.
Street Atlas offers both a highlighted map and written directions to get you to your
destination. When using a GPS receiver, arrows track your movement along the maps.
If you've planned a route, Street Atlas will tell you how much further/longer you
will need to travel before your next turn.
I found the combo accurate both on the highway and on city streets. I found the solution
to be
extremely accurate on the freeway, where there are no obstructions to the sky. When
I tested it on the freeway, it accurately tracked my speed, direction and movement
across the freeway. On the freeway I was very impressed with Street Atlas' directions.
It was right on the nose for my exits, giving me an accurate countdown to each exit.
Also it provided information on the landmarks around the area, if anything just to
pass time. On the other hand, driving city streets at times lagged behind my progress.
Tall buildings, trees and polls caused some interference with the GPS receiver, which
hampered its directions.
[Note: I wouldn't recommend using a PowerBook and driving 75 MPH. Bring your own
copilot if you plan to track your travels in-route.]
The GPS receiver worked pretty well most of the time. I found that it worked
best when I placed it far up on the car's dash, almost flush with the window. When
you first initialize the GPS tracking, Street Atlas takes some time finding the GPS
satellites. But once the software starts tracking the satellites, things seem to
work pretty well. One other complaint I had was that there's no feedback from the
GPS unit. There is no power switch or power indicator on the receiver. At times I
had troubles getting the GPS receiver to work, and it was frustrating trying to diagnose
the problem. Just knowing the receiver was powred would have saved some grief. One
other item to consider is that older PowerBooks only have one serial port. You'll
want to make sure that printing and AppleTalk are not configured for the port, or
else the Earthmate will not work.
Conclusions
By itself, Street Atlas 6 is a pretty good program. You can prepare and print maps
for directions, either out of the box or with customized formats and information.
When combined with the Earthmate receiver, things get pretty cool. I tested the Earthmate
with a PowerBook G3 (Wall Street).
There are numerous
solutions for GPS mapping, but a laptop is the most complete. A PowerBook
or iBook can act as a complete mapping/routing solution for the road. Other GPS devices
have advantages such as being much smaller, greater battery life and overall lower
cost. It's much easier to store or carry a portable GPS device than a PowerBook,
but none of these devices display the quality or availability of maps found with
Street Atlas. Most GPS devices require users to preload maps from a computer and
do not offer routing. With the Street Atlas CD, you have pretty much everything you
need.
At times the combo can be a little flaky and driving with the receiver on your dash
isn't really the best idea. But if you're lost or want to verify where you are along
a trip, there's no better way to keep yourself on track or out of a jam. And best
of all, you won't ever have to stop for directions again.
Pros: Complete, highly detailed maps that allow routing and customization.
Add the Earthmate receiver for real-time positioning data.
Cons: Earthmate requires adapter for USB. Receiver offers no feedback to indicate
if it's functioning. Total notebook solution can be bulky, expensive and a power
hog.
System Requirements
* PowerPC Macintosh or later
* Mac OS 8.0 or later
* 16 MB of application RAM
* 50 MB minimum of available space on a hard disk
* CD-ROM
* Color monitor (recommended)
* Printer capable of grayscale or color printing (recommended)
GPS Connection Requirements
* DeLorme Earthmate; DeLorme GpsTripmate; Garmin 30, 45, GPS II, GPS II Plus,
GPS III, GPS III Plus or GPS 12XL; Magellan; Rockwell; Trimble Scoutmaster or a fully
compatible NMEA receiver
* Connector cable (required for some GPS receivers)
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