My Configuration
I'm running OS X Yosemite on an 11" MacBook Air and BaseCamp 4.4.5, which is the latest at the time of this writing. My GPS is a Garmin Nav IV that came with my K1600GT.What I Tested
Basecamp seems like it has a lot of capabilities and over time I'll test more of them; but, this test was to create and ride a 100 mile loop near my house. For this test, I needed to load BaseCamp on my computer, update my maps and software, plot the route, download the route and ride it with all the expected voice and visual queues I'd expect if riding a route created right on the GPS. Along the way, I downloaded and reviewed previous routes I've been on. This worked exceptionally well and was easy.What I Didn't Test
BaseCamp is pretty feature rich. You can create a long distance trip over multiple days, add way points, search for lodging and eateries in the area where you will stop each night, etc. I only looked at this briefly and found that it wasn't intuitive, so I bailed on it for now, for a simpler test. I will probably write more about the trip functionality once I understand it better.Installation
Installation was a breeze. Download, next, next, accept, next, next, OK, next, bingo...or something resembling that.Once the clickfest ended, I opened BaseCamp and immediately got a notification that my GPS wasn't connected. Well, it was in fact, still in the cradle on my bike. It took me about half an hour to figure out how to get it out of my K1600GT. It's never been out before. If you're riding a K16 and have no clue, raise the windshield, press the button to the left of the screen, reach under the unit and make sure it is as high up as possible, find the lever behind the top right of the unit to release it from the cradle, tilt it forward and pull it out.
So, now I'm in BaseCamp, with my GPS attached and want to update my software and maps. You can't do that in BaseCamp. For that, you need to download and install Garmin Express using the same clicking procedure as is standard with darn near every piece of software you get these days (outlined above). Once in, I tried to do the update; and was able to update the software; but, the maps wouldn't update all the way. I called Garmin and they made me switch to the latest version of Express and then everything worked fine. They led me through it and were really professional and helpful. They get a gold star for support in my book.
Back to BaseCamp with a completely updated GPS. Being a computer geek, I'm not one to read a manual or watch an instructional video. I believe software needs to be intuitive, or they need to do a better job in the next release. I would say BaseCamp is not intuitive. I had to go watch videos on YouTube (Boo, :-( , etc.). Finally, I started to understand how their interface works enough that I was able to create some routes.
Needs improvement
The Interface is Clunky. It's not that you need a degree in Computer Science to operate it (I have one), it's that it's not intuitive. As an example, when you use Google Maps and want to change your route, you just drag one section to the place you want to go. It's simple. You can also just type your way points right into the interface. So, if you want to go from Miami Florida to Seattle Washington by way of Atlanta Georgia, Memphis Tenn, Denver Colorado, Yosemite National Park and Boise Idaho, you just type that in and wham, you have a route that you can simply adjust. I haven't figured out any way to just do that yet - not intuitive.Another problem with the interface is that you're constantly selecting tools, kind of like when you're using photo editing software. You have choices between zoom tool, pan tool, pointer, etc. You either use the right tool, or you get to do it again. I think better use of the mouse/track pad is in order here.
Particularly distressing is the ability to zoom on the fly. Say you're going on a trip from the acquarium in Tampa Florida to your favorite bistro in Atlanta Georgia. You zoom all the way in on Tampa, find the acquarium, switch to the route tool, click on the acquarium. Now, you're zoomed in so tight, there's no way you will see Atlanta, or for that matter anything further than a couple blocks from the aquarium, so you figure out that you have to use the + and - keys to control zoom, get the picture big enough that you can now see Atalanta, but, now what? You can see Atalanta and Tampa in the same screen; but, forget about using your zoom tool to zoom in on Atlanta because you will zoom right back in on Tampa. Remember, you're still in your routing tool, so clicking on the map will reorient your zoom; but, also plot a route to that point. What I had to do was exactly that - drop a point on the route over Atlanta and then start to zoom in on my point. Say the point is on the Northwest of city center and when you zoom in, you realize that you dropped your point Southwest. I just hit control Z, and then clicked on a point closer to my destination and repeated until I had it right where I wanted it. I'd say that's pretty clunky and I hope that after I watch a couple more hours of video, I'll find there's a better way. As a sidebar, the videos were produced by some marketing guy, I'm sure of it. I don't need to be sold. I already have the product. Explain it to me, don't sell it to me. I digress.
The third nasty surprise is moving a point on a route. Back to our example with Google Maps... Got a route and want to bend it to another highway? No problem, grab it and drag it. Done. Not so much with this interface. I think you hold the option key and then click. When you do, you get these crazy vector cross hair kind of things that make you think you're about to vector a missile into outer space or something. It clearly makes you think you believe you learned something about this in sophomore year geometry; but, you forgot it. Either way, you have to drag a point before the intersection of the part of the route you want to move or it won't work the way you expect. Wait! I think it's the other way around. You may have to grab a point of the leg after the intersection... See what I mean? It's a disaster. I haven't moved very many points this way at all. It should be intuitive and it's not. I'll watch more instructional videos.
Worked Well
Clearly, I can (with a little work) make my own routes and upload them. I can also download previous routes. Having this much control over my routing is outstanding. Up until now, the only controls I really had were shortest vs. fastest route plus avoidances (traffic, highway, toll, ferry, etc.). This is a major step up. I can also share my routes with other people. So, if I happen to find the most awesome-est route through Yosemite National Park, I can download it, send it to a friend, who can upload it into their GPS and ride it. This is a really awesome capability.I tried hard to make BaseCamp take a route that violated my preferences. It wouldn't do it. I said no highways and Garmin carved that into stone. When part of my route would have been faster and shorter by using the highway, Garmin stuck to it's...software code (since it doesn't have guns) and routed me according to my preferences. No matter what I did to try to trick it into taking the highway, it wouldn't.
I liked that Garmin requires you to plug in your GPS. I know they do it for licensing reasons; but, by making you do that, you're guaranteed not to get a route out of BaseCamp that you can't ride because your map isn't up to date. I see this as a plus. I also see it as a plus because as as long as you're plugged into a laptop with an Internet connection, you can update your map.
Riding the route, my GPS prompted me just as I expected. In fact, I was a little careless in clicking my route points and in one case, I actually clicked on the airport, about a quarter mile from the intersection, so the GPS tried to take me there. The good news is that when I ignored the point and stayed on the rest of the route, it didn't try to recalculate my route back to the point I missed.
Welcome to Base Camp
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