Well, I’ve finally figured out how to get a great Geocache program running on the Mio C230 that appears to have all of the features we’ve been looking for for straight-line navigation, marine navigation, etc. as well.   My testing indicates that it deactivates Static Navigation as well, so that accurate tracks while hiking under 3 mph are possible. 

Al Harrington is considered a Geocache expert and as you’ll see in excerpts from an article he wrote, courtesy of Smartphone & PocketPC magazine, he highly recommends the program as well, as you’ll see in his article I’m including here.

Geocaching Find hidden treasures with a GPS-enabled Pocket PC By Al Harrington

Geocaching is a world-wide sport where people use Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to find hidden treasures (caches). Before May 2000, GPS satellites were configured with “selective availability,” which limited the accuracy of personal GPS units. In May 2000 the Clinton Administration officially removed this limitation, giving civilian GPS units much greater accuracy. Soon after this a GPS enthusiast hid a cache and posted the coordinates on an Internet newsgroup. A few months later, Jeremy Irish created Geocaching.com, the major Web site supporting this new sport. In the six years since the first cache was hidden, geocaching has grown dramatically. Currently, there are 250,000 active caches in over 200 countries. The basic object of the game is to find these caches and log your finds on Geocaching.com (or another geocaching Web site). “Take something, leave something” is the geocaching motto, and most caches contain trinkets to trade and a logbook to record your find. Caches are located everywhere, from remote forest locations to busy mall parking lots. I live in a typical suburban neighborhood and there are over 200 located within a 5 mile radius of my house. You can find a list of all caches near you on Geocaching.com. …Normally, there are two phases to geocaching: driving to the general location and walking around looking for the cache. While you’re driving it’s nice to have the Pocket PC somewhere visible and secure, so it’s a good idea to purchase a vehicle mount. I use the Arkon Powered PDA mount for my iPAQ (http://www.arkon.com). I like this mount because it not only secures my Pocket PC, it also includes a built-in speaker that helps me to hear the voice navigation instructions of my GPS software over the noise of my truck’s diesel engine. Running down your Pocket PC’s battery while you’re geocaching is no fun. At a minimum you should invest in a cigarette lighter adapter for your vehicle, which lets you power and charge your Pocket PC while you’re driving. Also, you might want to consider a rugged case to protect your device, especially if you plan on Geocaching in the rain. OtterBox (http://www.otterbox.com) has solutions for most Pocket PCs. They also have a case for Bluetooth GPS receivers. Geocaching software Most GPS navigation software is designed for vehicle navigation and is fine to help you get to the general location of a geocache. We published a comprehensive review of these in the September 2005 issue of Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine. Unfortunately, these programs don’t help much when you get out of the car and start tromping through fields. Other software packages, designed specifically for geocaching, are needed. Before you select your software it is a good idea to understand a little about how geocache information is stored. Manually typing in coordinates can be time consuming, so Geocaching.com provides two types of files to help with this. The simplest and free version is a LOC file. It contains the basic information needed to find a cache (name and the “waypoint” or coordinates). If you become a premium member of Geocaching.com you can also download GPX files, which not only contain the name and coordinates, but also all the cache details including description, hints, and recent log entries. Premium members can also set up “pocket queries” which e-mail you a list of up to 500 caches based on your search criteria. GPX files are definitely the way to go so if you are serious about geocaching I highly recommend becoming a premium member of Geocaching.com. The cost for this is only $3 per month or $30 for an entire year. There are several geocaching programs for the Pocket PC. Some are focused on “paperless caching,” which uses the Pocket PC as a database to organize all the cache information (including description, hints, log entries, etc.). Other software packages are focused on navigation-helping you get to the cache site. To make the most out of your Pocket PC geocaching experience you will want software that can load LOC or GPX files directly. The software package I use is BeeLineGPS (http://www.visualgps.net/). BeeLineGPS not only provides navigation capabilities but also stores all the paperless cache information so there is no need for me to switch between programs. Let’s go geocaching! Now that you have your hardware and software, it’s time to go geocaching. The first step is to identify the caches you want to look for. To do this, go to the “Search for caches” section of Geocaching.com and enter the Zip code of the area you’re interested in. (You can also search by country or state.) This will take you to a list of caches in the area. Select the cache(s) you are interested in and download the cache information to your Pocket PC. Once you load this into your navigation software you are ready to hit the road. …Once I get near the cache site I load BeelineGPS. The map screen will show all caches located near your current position. From the map screen I tap on the cache and select Goto Waypoint. I then change to the Panel tab which gives me a large compass showing me which direction to go and the distance to the cache site. By default BeeLineGPS will notify you when you are within 100 feet of your destination. With geocaching this isn’t very useful, so change the default to 1 or 2 feet. When you’re within this distance, the icon on the map page will change to show that you’ve found the cache (Fig. 4). Unfortunately, there are a number of factors that can affect accuracy. Even under ideal conditions, with the default set to 1 foot, your accuracy may only be 15 feet. That means that even if BeeLineGPS indicates that you are at the cache site, it could still be located within a 15′ radius of where you’re standing. This is when the real hunt begins, and this is where having the cache details on your Pocket PC comes in very handy. Most cache details will give you a hint to the location (e.g., “try to keep your feet dry” could indicate that the cache is located right next to the stream) and sometimes the log entries of other visitors will point you in the right direction (Fig 5 below) The cache is usually a small weather sealed box of some sort. Once you find it, open it up, swap treasures, and sign the log. You can also enter information about your find on your Pocket PC. To do this open the BeeLineGPS map screen, tap on the icon representing the cache, and select Geocache >Found It from the pop-up menu. At this point you are prompted to enter “field notes” about the cache. These notes will help you remember the specific about the cache and come in handy, especially if you’re hunting for more than one cache. Finding your way back If your cache hunt took you far into the wilderness, you may not remember exactly how you got there. One very helpful feature of BeeLineGPS is tracking. Tracking displays a representation of the path you took from the point you started at to your current position. The meandering dotted line indicates the path you actually took to the cache. It takes into account trees, lakes, and other obstacles you had to navigate around, and is more helpful in finding your way back than the straight red line in the figure. Important note: make sure you mark your starting location before you head off into the wilderness looking for the cache. Otherwise, you won’t be able to set your original starting location as your new destination. With BeeLineGPS you do this by selecting Mark Waypoint at Current Position from the Waypoint menu. When ready to head back simply select this waypoint as your destination and tap on “Goto.” You can now use the tracking line on the map page to help you get back to your starting point.

BeeLineGPS is a high performance Pocket PC cache navigation and management software tool. Import GPX files and manage thousands of waypoints with the advanced Waypoint Manger. View, manage and hunt geocaches with ease and confidence while having fun, a perfect paperless solution. BeeLineGPS also includes active waypoint technology where a waypoint can trigger a warning window for speed traps, safety cameras or play a sound byte while on a guided tour. Other features include waypoint averaging, altitude profiling and a comprehensive trip computer. BeeLineGPS is the ultimate GPS tool for your geocaching and outdoor needs.BeeLineGPS waypoint database can support thousands of waypoints with over 120 icons to  depict specific locations. If you don’t see a specific icon, ask for it and we’ll add it.

BeeLineGPS has specific features to help the Geocacher find and manage the cache. With many Geocache icons, BeeLineGPS can help identify found, attempted, new and other cache states. Below shows the states and icons associated with these states. BeeLineGPS will also show detailed information using the web browser for each cache by simply clicking on the cache waypoint on the map.Using the GoTo waypoint feature along with the map screen, you can zero in on to the cache using the on-screen direction finder. Archived or missing This icon shows that this is an archived or missing cache. Attempted Shows that an attempt was made to find this cache, but has not yet been found. Bonus This icon is handy to show bonus caches Earthcache Indicates that a unique geological features exist here. First to Find Shows that this cache was a First to Find! (FTF) Found This icon represents a found cache, but not yet recorded on the Geocache web site. Found and recorded This icon shows that this cache has been found and recorded on to the Geocache web site. Future Cache This is a future cache — The date on the cache shows a date this is in the future from the current date on the Pocket PC. Letterbox Cache Shows that this cache is a letterbox cache where only clues give you the location of the cache. Milestone Shows that this cache was a personal milestone. Multi Cache Shows that this cache is part of a multi-cache. My Cache This icon that this is a cache that you have hidden. Mystery Cache Mystery or puzzle cache New Cache If the cache has been placed within 30 days of the current date, then the “Not Found” icon will show as a new cache icon. Not Found This is the standard icon for caches that have not yet been found. To Do This icon shows that you plan to find this cache and is still on your to do list. Unknown Cache Same as Mystery Cache Virtual Cache Indicates a cache made of a location. Point of Interest.

BeeLineGPS included a comprehensive trip computer that will allow you to show the distance to a specific waypoint, show total distance traveled (odometer),  total altitude ascent/descent, percent grade/hill climb, bearing and many other item. The trip computer contains over 30 programmable trip computer items.Import and waypoints using the standard GPS Exchange format (GPX). Export tracks to GPX, CSV and Google Earth KML format. Cache detail/info Example Trip Computer Fields Altitude Altitude Difference Average Grade Average Speed Average Grade Ascent Average Grade Descent Battery Status Bearing (numeric) Bearing (symbolic N,S,E and W) Cross Track Error Distance to Waypoint ETA (12/24 hour mode) ETE (12/24 hour mode) Gradient Heading (numeric) Heading (symbolic) Maximum Altitude Maximum Gradient Maximum Speed Minimum Altitude Minimum Gradient Odometer Time (12/24 Hour) Total Altitude Ascent Total Altitude Descent Trip Duration

Simple mapping Tracks Export Tracks to Google Earth KML files (learn more…) Map Modes: Course Up and North Up Programmable navigation fields (Map and Trip screens) (Bearing, Bearing Symbolic, Cross Track Error, Distance to Waypoint, ETE, ETA. Heading, Heading Symbolic, Odometer,  Speed, Max Speed, Maximum Altitude, Minimum Altitude, Average Speed, Trip Duration and Altitude Difference (max-min), gradient (min,max and average), altitude total ascent/decent and a lot more) Altitude, speed and acceleration profiling Waypoint management – thousands of waypoints (PDA memory limitations apply) Waypoint Averaging Programmable Dilution of Precision (DOP) threshold to enhance average calculation Standard deviation of the position to show the position accuracy Waypoint Projection Support for GPX and CSV files Active waypoints Setup active waypoints to play a sound file when they are within a programmable range BeeLineGPS can alert when you are near a geocache, safety camera. Multiple screens Analog gauge panel – Altitude, speed, compass and vertical speed GPS Status – Position, Azimuth/Elevation,Satellite Signal Quality Trip/Digital Panel Map Analysis NMEA logging – recording and playback Differential mode indication Over 120 waypoint icons to choose from Support for any screen resolution Support for VGA screen resolution Support for landscape and square screens User configurable screens Map showing many caches and waypoints Hunting a cache Example. Note the arrow pointing to the direction of the “go to” waypoint

• Geocaching – Supported states and icons
  

  Archived Attempted Earth Cache First to Find (FTF) Found Found and logged Future Cache Letterbox Cache Milestone	Multi Cache My Cache Mystery Cache New Cache – Placed within 30 days Not Found To do Unknown/Mystery Cache Virtual Cache

• Safety, Red Light and Speed camera warnings – Import GPX and CSV files
  

  	Red Light Camera
  	Roadside Camera
  	Speed Camera

• Voice Guided Tours – Setup active waypoints to trigger a sound file describing a specific location.

• Data logging (NMEA) and playback

• Hiking

• Biking (altitude analysis, percent grade (max, mind))

• Position Averaging and analysis

Yes, the program is BeeLineGPS ( see http://www.visualgps.net/BeeLineGPS for more information and http://www.visualgps.net/BeeLineGPS/BeeLineGPSInstall.CAB  for the latest version of software) and my package of it along with the drivers needed to run it on the MIO C230 is available at http://www.mediafire.com/?zjhmpy1dbc1 

This is a good example of how it takes the right combination of drivers to get some programs running.   You would think that just adding the program into the Scripts folder that already contains your drivers would do the trick, but some drivers must cancel out others, as it took a few hours for me to figure out the exact versions and combination of drivers I needed to add to the BeelineGPS download.

The additional drivers I needed to add are:

• AYGSHELL.DLL (of course)
• DOCLIST.DLL
• MFCCE300.DLL
• OLECE300.DLL

To show appreciation of the work put into this project I would appreciate if the Ameridan_Read_Me.txt file remains with your download of the driver files I added.    I’ve also added a .reg file I created for those having problems getting the program to detect the GPS chip, which you can import into your registry using your Reg Editor.    I recommend setting the GPS Serial Port config manually (COM2 @ 38400 baud (or 4800 for some)), since the Automatic config flew right past the baud setting for me.

 Although designed for portrait mode, it has been upgraded such that almost everything works in our 320×240 landscape mode.  So far, the only thing that appears not to work are the help screens, which are html and need a web browser.    The Waypoint Manager creates it’s own database, but it seems to build html pages for the waypoint data page displays.    I’ve pointed the default folder for the .wpt database to \Storage Card\Tracks so that it will use the same area as exported tracks using MioMap.

Another hint – to get to the options in the Panel screen, you’ve got to tap and hold your stylus on the screen for a few seconds. 

The program is a 30-day trial version, but if it works as expected, there will probably be quite a few takers among the C230 Blog readers 🙂   My understanding is that a nag screen remains beyond the 30-day limit, but that the program continues to function, in case you still haven’t made up your mind at that point.

BeelineGPS version 1.83 Build 125
with additional files needed to run on the Mio C230
compiled by Ameridan @ http://C230.wordpress.com
***************************************************
Please keep this document with the package in
appreciation of the many hours invested to get the
program running.

Install the entire folder into either:
\Storage Card\BeelineGPS  OR
\My Flash Disk\BeelineGPS

I’ve also created a registry file that you can
import into your registry if you have problems, or
to add into your reboot procedure (i.e. autopatcher.mscr file)
if you want the settings retained during hard resets.

Enjoy!!

Enjoy!!

If you are pleased with the helpfulness of my Blog Site and the capabilities of your Unlocked Mio C230 using my downloads, and haven’t already done so, kindly consider a small donation to my coffee fund.

These are the Edit Waypoint screens I pull up now…

  Bringing the most recent Unlock & MioMap Menu packages  back to the front of the line in my Blog…

Unlocking the Mio C230 – Version 3.5 with Route, Theme, Screen, Settings & Skins Management

Upgrade of MioMap Menu to Ver 3.6 – Deleting individual entries from Location History & Dominique’s Skin Trick

  Just announced this week…

Nav N Go suspends deliveries to Mio

Nav N Go regretfully announces the immediate suspension of all business activities with one of its partners, Mio International Ltd., a 100%-owned subsidiary of Mitac International Corporation, as a result of continuous breaches of contract.

Nav N Go’s award-winning navigation software, iGO My Way [MioMap is Mio’s adaptation of this iGo title], had been included in all Mio devices for Europe, North America and other regions. Mio, always considered a strategic partner by Nav N Go, has dramatically increased its market share in the last few years as a result of using Nav N Go solutions.

Nav N Go, out of respect for its current and potential future partners, does not wish to go into the details of its decision, and asserts that every effort will be made to resolve the situation amicably.

Nav N Go, as one of the main software providers to the navigation industry, still predicts major growth in turnover compared to previous years, based on its current contracts with leading market players.

I think it is safe to assume that there probably won’t be any iGo updates to MioMap for our C230 units, nor any official updates to the TeleAtlas maps that are paired with MioMap, making the enhanced skins and MioMap menus that we have developed that much more valuable!

If you are pleased with the helpfulness of my Blog Site and the capabilities of your Unlocked Mio C230 using my downloads, and haven’t already done so, kindly consider a small donation to my coffee fund by clicking on the cup.

click

Thank you!!

(The title screen artwork is by Art Fitzpatrick and can be purchased here.   I just felt that a link would be the right thing to do, in return for borrowing part of this great painting – ’69 Pontiac GTO at Hydra Island   )

  Clicking on the Save Car Location button saves 4 clicks…

  and takes you right to this screen…

  Click on Coordinates, then Done, and your Car’s present parked location is in memory.

  To locate your parked car…

  QuickSilver CarLocator  ~ Version 1.47

1. Reincorporated the additional Pin/Unpin feature of the Map cursor popup menu that Mio had removed for the C220 and C230.  To add a thumbtack pin, tap the screen where you’d like it to appear and select Pin.    To delete a pin, tap the pin and select Unpin.
   
2. OP’s incorporation of the Binocular button (Fit Route view on screen) and the Route calculator button (Recalculate toggling method each time, also known as the trip computer) borrowed from the Olivercp Skin (GREAT JOB OP!!) in the Browse Map screen.   I tweaked the placement of these buttons to make them easier to access with your finger.   Note that these buttons only appear if there is a route in memory.
   
3. OP’s incorporation of the POI button in the Cockpit screen and his subsequent button added in version 1.47 in the Map Settings menu to toggle it’s display on the map screen.
   
4. I took the liberty of upgrading OP’s POI button so that it matches the other POI buttons in this package.
5. CD’s improved Browse Map and Cockpit View icons, with matching toggle buttons while in Map View and Cockpit View.
6. Ameridan’s revised flyover button, again just to be unique and replace the fly with a biplane.
   
7. Ameridan’s  revised Coordinates button (trail boots).
8. Ameridan’s revised Address button (mailbox).
   
9. Name change to “Quicksilver CarLocator”.
10. Reincorporated the factory Message Panel, along with my own buttons, since I felt the Quicksilver version was too bland.
    
11. I’ve also revised screens and icons to give this skin it’s own look (Version 1.42 was CD’s Quicksilver ’66 skin) and tweaked some of the original code that basically named the favorites Home and Work on some of the screens, regardless of any renaming you may have done, so that they reflect your changes as much as possible.

This skin by default names the two favorites Home and Car, and the main screen has a new button to program your current location and assigns it to Car, the intent being that it will facilitate finding your Car later.

This is a skin alternative, not an Unlock package, and can be used as a new skin without unlocking – just don’t use the Exit button.

To avoid a lot of confusion when doing Route preplanning, stay in Browse Map mode with Auto-Recalculation turned off, since Cockpit mode is always focused on your current location and will appear to be ignoring your route.

   Version Log…

QuickSilver Reborn – A MioMap 3.3 Skin
Created By Ashwin Wavde
Inspired by Quicksilver for MioMap 3.2 by Matt Mullins (roscoe)

QuickSilver Reborn 1.0
* QuickSilver 1.0 for MioMap 3.2 modded for MioMap 3.3
* Added Cockpit Bar transparency
* Fixed turn distance guide visibility
* Various other improvements

QuickSilver Reborn 1.1
Compiled 2:56 PM 4/08/2007
*Adding compatability for split-screen data.zip

QuickSilver Reborn 1.3

*Added simple static car over arrow

Quicksilver ’66 for C230
*Icons redone by CD
*GTO car over cockpit arrow –  CD
*added toggle buttons cockpit view <-> browse map view – CD
*config folder fixed for C230 (roundabouts weren’t being announced) – ameridan

Quicksilver CarLocator for C230 1.45
Compiled 6:00 PM 2/15/2008
*2nd favorite tailored to Car location, rather than Work – ameridan
*All Favorite icons redone – ameridan
*New shortcut button on Main Screen to input location coordinates of parked car – ameridan

Quicksilver CarLocator for C230 1.46
Compiled 7:30 PM 2/27/2008
*added the the Binocular (Fit Route view on screen) and Route calculator (Recalculate toggling method each time) from the Olivercp Skin to the Browse Map screen – OP
*added POI button to cockpit screen – OP
*redid POI button to match others – ameridan

Quicksilver CarLocator 1.47
[probably the final version of CarLocator as community efforts to refine skin further will be without my dedicated CarLocator feature] – ameridan
Compiled 12:00 PM 3/6/2008
*toggle for displaying POI button added to Map Settings – OP
*redid flyover button – ameridan
*added pin/unpin button to browse_map cursor popup – ameridan

  Version 1.47 download is available HERE.    The file DATA.ZIP   should simply replace (after backing up your original) AS-IS (don’t unzip):

•    \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\DATA.ZIP, if C230 is unlocked

•    \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap\DATA.ZIP, if C230 is locked

OR if you are using my Menu with Skin Management, place DATA.ZIP into a folder in your SD card’s Skins folder named “Quicksilver CarLocator″ 

As an option to try out Dominique’s Skins trick in an unlocked C230, copy the “SKIN” folder from the  Version 1.46  download into \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2  (or the contents of DATA.ZIP within should be added into  \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\SKIN\DATA.ZIP).    See the Blog on Version 1.46 for more on this.

What I have in mind for a geocache / straight-line navigation screen…

By changing the value of compass_type in the [debug] section of SYS.TXT from the default of 0 to 1,2, or 3 [option 3 doesn’t appear to function in US units]- the compass arrow takes on a different appearance, as shown above.

I was hoping to find the bmp file that produces the compass images above, similiar to the diriconbig.bmp file that is used for visual indications in the cockpit screen (I’ve uncompressed it to see what it looks like  –  it is shown on the right).  

Using that as a guide, I wanted to produce a compass rose (like the one shown below) in various positions to produce a screen on this order.  If this doesn’t work out, perhaps we’ll just use #3 on a circular background instead.

Or just use the same strategy that’s used to create the speedometer screen…

Now as murphy mentioned, the other hurdle to clear is getting the navigation computations to occur without having to use road data.   You are able to avoid highways, dirt roads, toll-roads, etc.,  so we’ve just got to figure out how to also avoid all other roads and streets.  

To be continued…

(Here’s an iGO 8 screenshot that’s close)

No stylus required with this skin!! 

[Update 4/1/2008]  Made some headway this past week.

Quicksilver CarLocator 1.48
Compiled 4/1/2008 – ameridan

*fixed the Stop Recording Track Log button on the map screen that resulted in an error – ameridan
*flyover button tweaked – ameridan
*cursor button text changes from “Cursor” to “Close” when menu bar is opened – ameridan
*back button changed from small pale green arrow to larger yellow arrow – ameridan
*added “Clear Pins” button to History screen, and changed Clear button text to “Clear All” – ameridan
*Cockpit screen & Map screen menu bars – back button changed from down arrow to left arrow – ameridan
*****************************************************
MAJOR UPDATE TO BROWSE / NAV MAPS SETTINGS SCREEN – ameridan
*POI button on Cockpit screen (from ver 1.46) changed to Cockpit settings button for quick access to Settings
*display/hide toggle button in Cockpit settings menu in place of zoombar display/hide
*added toggle option in Cockpit settings for auto day/nite in double-button with manual toggle
*added toggle option for Cursor menu popup in double-button with Info show/hide toggle
*added track recording start/stop button  in double-button with Manage track logs button  – also serves as latge indicator that track logs are RECORDING.

When I think “Back” I expect a left arrow, so that’s what I’ve got now. This is what the normal Settings screen looks like now with the new “double-buttons” I’ve created.

clicking on the Settings icon (gear)…

gives you these options directly vs.

QuickSilver CarLocator for C230 ~ Version 1.46 update

1. OP’s incorporation of the Binocular button (Fit Route view on screen) and the Route calculator button (Recalculate toggling method each time, also known as the trip computer) borrowed from the Olivercp Skin (GREAT JOB OP!!) in the Browse Map screen
2. OP’s incorporation of the POI button in the Cockpit screen
3. I took the liberty of upgrading OP’s POI button so that it matches the other POI buttons in this package
4. CD’s improved Browse Map and Cockpit View icons, with matching toggle buttons while in Map View and Cockpit View
5. I’ve also revised screens and icons to give this skin it’s own look (Version 1.42 was CD’s Quicksilver ’66 skin) and tweaked some of the original code that basically named the favorites Home and Work on some of the screens, regardless of any renaming you may have done, so that they reflect your changes as much as possible.

This skin by default names the two favorites Home and Car, and the main screen has a new button to program your current location and assigns it to Car, the intent being that it will facilitate finding your Car later.

This is a skin alternative, not an Unlock package.   The instructions are aimed at those using my Unlock menu with Skin Management, but can be used as an alternative skin without unlocking – just don’t use the Exit button.

Clicking on the Save Car Location button saves 4 clicks…

and takes you right to this screen…

Click on Coordinates, then Done, and your Car’s present parked location is in memory.

Then, as an option, adding my “Favorite” icons and buttons with Dominique’s Skin Trick results in consistent display in other skins as well…

Sorry, but you won’t see all those heart icons for Favorites anymore if you incorporate this portion of the package. 

Version 1.46 download available here.    Note that there are two folders that should each be copied to their respective locations:

• The “Quicksilver CarLocator for C230″ folder should be placed in your SD card’s Skins folder
  OR the DATA.ZIP within should replace:
  •    My Flash DiskMioMapMioMap2DATA.ZIP, if C230 is unlocked
  •    My Flash DiskMioMapMioMapDATA.ZIP, if C230 is locked
• As an option to try out Dominique’s Skins trick in an unlocked C230, copy the “SKIN” folder into My Flash DiskMioMapMioMap2  (or the contents of DATA.ZIP within should be added into  My Flash DiskMioMapMioMap2SKINDATA.ZIP).     Otherwise, just disregard this folder.

In  General Settings, you can rename Favorite#2 from Car back to Work if you like, but chances are you won’t be changing that location too much.

Another possible use for my modification?   Rename Car to Delivery.   Instead of creating POIs  each time a (Pizza) delivery person gets an order, just tap the Save Delivery Location button, input the address, and you are ready to Find your way to that location.

The main reason for stating that this version is for the C230 is that the config file is from a MioC230 and the mods/changes/updates were only applied to the 320X240 folders.  Having said that, this package could very well work for other Mio models with MioMap 3.3 and 320X240 screens in landscape mode.

Proposals for next revision  (1.47 – which may be the last for CarLocator):    

1. Name change to “Quicksilver CarLocator”    DONE
2. OP’s toggle “POI button in Cockpit view” script    DONE
3. Perhaps the pinpoint script if OP figures it out 🙂   DONE
4. I like the factory message panel better    DONE
5. Routes screen flyover button? (instead of the fly)     DONE

I’d tried other WCELOADs before without success as well as cabinstl, which at-least ran but actually did nothing.   So getting a WCELOAD from dominique that worked was a nice surprise in that the program(s) within the cabFile actually install with registry settings and all.

There is a StickiNote BlogPage  for dominique’s version with Notes on using it and a registry file I did to make using it easier, but per Amida’s recommendation I’ve posted this Blog to bring to everybody’s attention.

Enjoy!

QuickSilver CarLocator for C230 ~ Version 1.45 update

[Version 1.45 download is no longer available as a newer version has replaced it.]  

Combining CD’s latest Quicksilver ’66 revisions & Ameridan’s (me) CarLocator revisions…

[Version 1.44 download is no longer available as a newer version has replaced it.]  

Another possible use for my modification?   Rename Car to Delivery.   Instead of creating POIs (and adding to the History log) each time a (Pizza) delivery person gets an order, just tap the Save Delivery Location button, input the address, and you are ready to Find your way to that location.   Update 2/18/2008:  Apparently, once you use the Find Location option, the History log does gain another entry similar to routing to a POI.

For you techies out there, what I had to do to fix the Exit issue was change the state to this screen first  (using the command NEXTSTATE STF_USERHOTSPOTSETTINGS, ) so that the back button will have a former state (main screen) to return to.
 

 <BUTTON xxx x=278 y=140 z=170 bmp=”mio/320_240/car.bmp” color=#ffffff onrelease=’ NEXTSTATE STF_USERHOTSPOTSETTINGS, run sc_changehotspot2 ‘>

This being my first in-depth skin editing, it only took me all day      and 3 pots of coffee      to figure this out.  

I know, we normally don’t ask the ladies to be louder    , but when you are on the highway in a vehicle that doesn’t qualify as “Luxury Class”, or perhaps you’ve adaped your Mio C230 for motorcycle cruises, Samantha could be a little louder.   This blog will hopefully remedy that issue for you.   In fact, I found myself turning down the Master Volume from 100% down to about 80% for normal usage, which just about returns the voice command volume to where it was before the change.   Now, however you will have an additional 6dB of volume in reserve, which equates to two times (2x) louder than normal!    That’s worth another cup of coffee you say?   I agree…. 

See the new StickiNote I added today (they don’t get buried when they get older) for more…

[This is not a full version release, but rather an upgrade of the MioMap menu only] 

[Updated 3/4/2008.   My intent was not to force the user to use a SD card, but to help the user by setting up the file structure if it was installed.   Please download again if you were getting an error message complaining about no Storage Card – I’ve updated the routes.mscr file.  Thank you bulldog for bringing this to my attention!]

The primary improvement that this upgrade allows is the ability to be able to delete individual Location History items from your iGo.db file vs. your only option currently to CLEAR ALL.    I wish to thank WildBill very much for seeing this project through to fruition.   It serves it’s mission quite nicely considering that it isn’t a dedicated program like POI Explorer.   He has come through with a SQL script that does the actual repairs to a temporary working copy of iGo.db and “vacuums” it when it is completed.   You do not have to know SQL to take advantage of this program  🙂

Secondly, this will upgrade the MioMap Menu (ROUTES.MSCR) to revision level 3.6 if you are using my version 3.3, version 3.3 LITE, version 3.4, or version 3.5, so that you will have all of the latest menu options including the two that aid in editing your Location History entries, Skins Management, Screens Management, and Settings (SYS.TXT) Management.   For instructions on using all of the menu options other than the two newest covered in this blog, refer to the Version 3.5 Blog.

The file includes Version 3.6 of Routes.mscr and the SQL file that WildBill wrote.  The menu has been rewritten to coincide with the LITE Unlock as well, and will serve as my upgrade for that version without the need for a seperate version.

Simply download the  upgrade  and extract all of the files into the Script folder.

Routes.mscr will create a working folder on your SD card for the temp file and will copy the SQL script there as well, so that if you use a SD card reader, you will not have to link up your Mio to your PC to perform this editing.   This also allows you to revert back to the original iGo.db file if you decide you are unhappy with the results of your editing.

NOTES:

1. For those not using a Mio C230 or not using my Unlock packages, or not wishing to take advantage of the Menu to prep the working file, I’ve explained exactly what steps 1 and 9 do, so that you can edit the file regardless, but you will need to create   \Storage Card\iGo_Work   folder, and copy   Reset_History.sql   to that folder.   That is the only file you need to extract in this case.
2. For those not using a SD card, I suggest either editing Routes.mscr by replacing  “\Storage Card\iGo_Work”  with   “\My Flash Disk\Script\iGo_Work”   (use the Find and Replace tool in your editor so as to catch all instances <without the quotes> in the file)   OR   simply alter the manual process instructions mentioned in Note 1.
3. The SQL script only addresses HISTORY_V4 changes.   Do not manually delete entries in other tables like City History and expect the SQL script to patch-up the database for those changes.
4. As we gain more confidence in this procedure, we may be able to skip the working file concept altogether, and edit the actual iGo.db, but it would involve linking your Mio to the PC each time which would in turn result in a soft or hard reset being required after unlinking.
5. When you back up your Mio C230 (saves your POIs, favorites, Recent Cities and other History lists as well as your preferences within the various settings menus) within MioMap 3.3, it saves the data as iGo_backup.db in the root of your SD card so that you are able to restore your settings.   So if you don’t back-up your C230 after you’ve edited your Location History entries, they may reappear again should you ever use the Restore option.

You will need to download the free Personal version of SQLite Expert to your PC in order to be able to perform this editing.    Bill has asked that I convey heartfelt thanks to the author of SQLite Expert, Bogdan Ureche as well, since he makes this great tool available free of charge and helped in the development of the SQL script. 

Instructions

[BEFORE YOU FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES TO MODIFY YOUR MIO C230, KNOW THAT YOU MIGHT RENDER YOUR C230 UNUSABLE AND YOU MIGHT VOID YOUR WARRANTY. YOU DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK.]

1. Choose the “Prep Location History file” option in the MioMap menu (which first backs up \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\iGo.db    to    \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\iGo_orig.db    and then copies  \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\iGo.db    to     \Storage Card\iGo_Work\iGO_working.db3).     Then, either link up your Mio and your PC with the SD card inserted  OR  if you have a SD card reader attached to your PC, remove the SD card and insert it into your reader.

   
2. Run SQLite Expert Personal and open the working file \Storage Card\iGo_Work\iGO_working.db3  which will show up in your PC as the drive letter assigned to your SD card  (ie.  g:\iGo_Work\iGO_working.db3 )

   
3. The tables and views will be displayed in the left tree panel. Click on the HISTORY_V4 table to display it in the right panel.
4. Click on the DATA tab to display the records in the table.
5. To reveal the blob information stored the DATA field for a record, double click on the BLOB to open the hex editor.
   
6. To delete a highlighted record, click on the delete record button ( – ).
7. Repeat for any other entries you wish to delete from the HISTORY_V4 table. Then click on the SQL tab to open the upper SQL edit window.
8. Select SQL >> Load the SQL Script (\Storage Card\iGo_Work\Reset_History.sql) >> Execute the SQL script (F5 or the folder with the lightning bolt icon).  The working file is now ready to replace your iGo.db file. 

   
9. Power up your C230 and reinsert the SD card into it.    Choose the “Save edited Location History file” option in the MioMap menu (which copies \Storage Card\iGo_Work\iGO_working.db3    back to    \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\iGo.db).   If you wish to revert back delete \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\iGo.db and rename iGo_orig.db to iGo.db

Dominique’s  Skin Trick

See comment below regarding a trick that Dominique submitted on Amida’s blog that can come in very handy.  Now, if you make custom buttons and icons that you want to be used in all of your skins, whatever you add into  \My Flash Disk\MioMap\MioMap2\Skin\DATA.ZIP  will override the contents of your skin DATA.ZIP folder.   Also, if you upgrade a skin, you won’t have to reincorporate your customizations, if you’ve installed them into this folder.

What a great find!!!

NOTE:  Don’t put regular DATA.ZIP files in this folder, or you won’t be able to swap skins using my Skin Management Menu, since the entire skin would be negated by this file.

As an example, as of today, without changing any skins, my Favorite Locations buttons in the Route-To screens will always appear as shown below to reflect the changes I made, regardless of what skin I’m using.

The long-awaited Version 3.5 update to my Mio C230 Unlock includes many refinements since Version 3.4 was released.   Thanks go out to all who’ve contributed to this release, even if I unintentionally forgot to give credit to you.

1. An variety of additional Games screens to accommodate 5 additional games included in this release (thanks to Mike and the individual that put the download packages together!), as well as more of your own.   So as to not bloat the Flash Disk with the additional games, install them in the Games folder in the root of your Storage Card.
   
    
   
    
   
2. A “Screen Choices” menu that has been further refined to allow you to select a theme that will be applied to the main desktop screen, the Extra Tools screen and the Games screen in unison. 
   
3. A “Skins Choices” menu (thanx Mike FFI) to manage your favorite skins saved on your SD card and be able to choose them on the fly to further personalize your C230!
   
    
   
4. A “Settings Choices” menu that now allows you to choose the menu text font size and suppress upcoming cities and communities in the navigation bar in addition to the flyover options previously offered, again, on the fly as the needs change.
   
5. The latest version of Ameridan’s (me) skin (an enhanced Mio skin) and CD’s (C. Dean) Quicksilver ’66 skin, both adapted exclusively for the Mio C230.   These will be installed in the Skins folder of your SD card.    You can add your own additional favorites to this folder as well.
6. A set of document viewers so that you’ll be able to peruse just about any common document type out there.   The set includes:  a PDF document viewer , another Image viewer, a Powerpoint presentation viewer, an Excel document viewer and a Word document viewer.

Please note that this release does not apply to those using my Version 3.3 LITE.  That release will be published seperately.

From either desktop screen, you’ll be able to access the ”Extra Tools” screen, the new “Games” screen  or your chosen clock screen. You might also choose a clock or desktop default screen and never access the others.    All served the way you like it!

The largest advantage is the ability to pre-plan upcoming vacation trips, business trips, delivery routes, etc., save those routes, and activate them at your convenience.

Many blog readers are stating that this is their main reason for unlocking, not for the desktop access of other programs.

New Skins

CD’s Quicksilver ’66 for C230 Skin is included in this package.   It includes my fix resolving the proper announcements at roundabout intersections.   You’ll also find details on his nice personal refinements to his Unlock screens, as shown in photo above, here.

Check out the GTO car icon that he designed himself!

New Games 

Aquelaball is a JezzBall-like game for PocketPC.

Just draw a line with the stylus to have a vertical or horizontal line spread across the whole screen. If a ball touches the line while it is being drawn, it will be cancelled and you&ecute;ll loose alife.

Cover over 75% of the screen and make it to the next level, with 1 more ball.

 Test out your reflexes and Stylus control with BallBreaker !All the balls are shooting strait at you, and you just can’t touch them…   The only solution is to explode them against the grey squares…The more balls you break, the more you’ll have coming at you.

 Caisses is a Sokoban clone that includes 500 levels and 14 different backgrounds and themes.   The original version of Caisses is Caisses DS, a Nintendo DS homebrew coded by Kukulcan.In this game, you are a warehouse keeper, and your mission consists in arranging boxes by pushing them onto their designated locations…Boxes can be pushed, but not pulled, and the controls are simple : either point to the spot to move to with the stylus, or use the directional pad !

 Pipes is a classic in the puzzle world.Select one of the 6 difficulty levels (actually 12 as for each you can activate wrap mode, making it MUCH harder…) and try to light up all the flowers…Turn the pipes by clicking on them, and try to bring water throughout the whole board in as little time as possible.

 Skinz Sudoku is a Sudoku game which combines good looks and ease of use…It offers beautiful graphs by Daydream, with 4 different skins depending on the difficulty level.
The game’s particularity is that it offers 4 different input methods for you to select from, to fit everyone’s needs…
– Wheel : Select a number from the number wheel around the tile you touched. You can also set a hint by touching one of the corners…
– Square : Same thing, but in a simplier/more compact layout…
– Bar : Select first which number to plot, and then touch the grid to put it anywhere…
– Writing : In this mode, touch a tile to have it zoom, and just write down the number you want !   You can also add small number hints at anytime, with every input method, using the top right button, or undo if you make an error…All the levels are randomly generated, so don’t expect to finish the game soon

Additional Games are available here.

Route Management

Someday, there could well be built-in MioMap screens for Route Management (I’m available, Mio) either in alternative skins or adopted by iGo or Mio in an update, to do these same functions using the logic strategy contained in my menus (with thanks to Xania for the initial work), but for now the menus seem like an excellent alternative, especially now that the Exit button functions so nicely.

 

With the Route Management menu, you can not only preplan your routes, but by

• Exiting
• Saving your route with a descriptive name
• Restarting MioMap back up again with that route still in memory or loading that route into memory at a later time
• Using the Edit Route screen and reversing the order of your waypoints
• Exiting and Saving once again with a different name representing the return trip
• – Voila – you’ve got your return trip available in the menu without inputing all of your way-points once again.

Use the GPS power button now available in the enhanced skins to temporarily turn off the GPS chip, so that when pre-planning routes not having anything to do with your present location, the Route recalculation will not mess you up your itinerary.

The Ameridan skin (included) for the C230 includes all of the tweaks mentioned in this blog including:

• Exit Door button needed if you are unlocking your C230.
• Revised start screen identifying the source of the modified file.
• Export Track button allowing you to export the track log into a gpx file directly.
• Easy Route option described here.
• GPS Screen with the globe rotated such that North America is proudly shownand the GPS Power button needed for uninterrupted general map viewing and Route preplanning without Auto Route Recalculation kicking in.

Starting with Version 3.3, the menu script creates automatic  entries to the SYS.TXT file needed for this menu to function. You no longer need to run through the setup process prior to using the menu.

I’ve gone through a lot of coffee again on this release ( the best one yet! ) and if you are pleased with the results and haven’t already done so, kindly consider a small donation to my coffee fund.

click

 

   Other ongoing projects:

1) Investigating how to delete individual items in the Route History list which is part of the SQLite 3.0 database file iGo.db, since right now it’s Clear All or nothing.     DONE

2) Investigating how to put a Restore CE Core package together, so that we can atleast run .cab files again or install programs via ActiveSync.      CAB INSTALLER PORTION DONE

3) Investigating how to raise the volume of Samantha’s TTS speech, per requests.     DONE

Oh, and don’t forget to check out my Mio-C230 StickiNotes in the right column where blog items and other tidbits readers provide will be easy to find.

Unlock Version NXT-R3.5

[BEFORE YOU FOLLOW THE PROCEDURES TO MODIFY YOUR MIO C230, KNOW THAT YOU MIGHT RENDER YOUR C230 UNUSABLE AND YOU MIGHT VOID YOUR WARRANTY. YOU DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK.]

Installation procedure

1. Turn on C230 and connect it to the computer using a 5-pin Mini-B USB 2.0 cable (not included in the package).
2. C230 will show up as a flash drive in My Computer as Mio Device. Mine is assigned as F drive. I’ll use F drive in the following steps. Substitute it with the actual drive letter of your system. If you have a SD card in the slot, it shows up as well – in my case as G drive.
3. Rename the folder F:\MioMap\MioMap to F:\MioMap\MioMap2.
4. In order not to get the message ”destination full”, you may need to free up some space on your flash disk. See Note3.
5. Download MioC230_NXT_R3_5.zip
6. USA MioC230 users – The enhanced C230 skin is included in the download.   Owners of the European C230, please review this page and Note 4, before Unlocking for information on using this Unlock on your units. You can modify the file yourself – See Note 4.
7. Extract the files from your Unlock download and find the four folders MioMap,  Script, Skins and Games. 
8. Copy MioMap to F:\MioMap\ and copy Script to F:\ as in the screenshot. Don’t speed through this step – it’s got to be done as described!
    
9. Copy the Skins and Games folders to the root of your SD card and make a backup copy of the original data.zip file to your PC or Storage Card.
10. If you would rather use the “iPhone-look” icons without the English sub-text, then replace the icons in  \My Flash Disk\Script\Icons  with the alternate icons available here and in the comments for the Version 3.4 Blog.
11. Disconnect Mio C230 and do a hard reset by sliding the switch on the rear of your C230 to OFF and back to ON again.
12. After calibrating the touch screen, the initial Unlock script will automatically run AUTOPATCHER (no menu selection necessary), soft reset and present you with a desktop screen.   It is important that you select a skin that has an Exit button before launching MioMap, so go into the MioMap Management Menu (first large icon in top left corner) and choose an enhanced MioMap skin (Ameridan C230 is suggested initially), unless you are manually modifying DATA.ZIP per Note4 below because you are unlocking a MioC230 that isn’t the USA or Canada version.    

Note 1: If you wish to undo the enhancements and return the Mio C230 back to factory condition:

1. Turn on C230 and connect it to the computer using a USB cable.
2. Rename the folder F:\MioMap\MioMap to F:\MioMap\MioMap3 (or delete) and rename the folder F:\MioMap\MioMap2 to F:\MioMap\MioMap
3. Copy back any map files you may have deleted or moved to your SD card and restore your DATA.ZIP file.   The SYS.TXT file shouldn’t need to be restored.
4. Disconnect the cable and hard reset C230 using the switch on the back of the unit.

Note 2: Remember, every time you disconnect the USB cable linked to your PC, you will need to do atleast a soft reset, although in some cases you really should do a hard reset. The time and date will need to be reset after a hard reset, unless you are going right into MioMap with Time Autosync enabled. This is why you might consider using a SD card in conjunction with a USB card reader for adding programs and storing media files once you’re happy with your unlocked Mio setup.

Note 3: In order not to get the message “destination full”, you’ll need to free up some space on your flash disk by moving at-least 12MB of map files to your SD card by creating a MioMap folder and within that folder a maps folder so that the path appears as G:\MioMap\maps. Choose a combination of map file(s) you’re not accessing every day (in case your SD card isn’t always inserted) from F:\MioMap\MioMap2\maps and move them to the maps folder on your SD card. MioMap will see them after a hard reset as if nothing happened. Or you could delete them (or copy to your PC) if you choose not to use a SD card at this time, since it’s easy to explore your MioMap DVD and copy them back to the original folder or a SD card later, if needed.

Note 4: Instructions to modify your DATA.ZIP file yourself (from Amida’s Hack #2). 
[Not normally applicable for US and Canada units any longer, because Skins Management will allow you to choose Skins that already incorporate the needed revisions]

Version 3.5 User’s Manual: Using your unlocked C230

Default Screens

Any one of these can become your default screen simply by making your choice in the Screen Choice Menu.

 

 

 

Screen Choices Menu

If you scroll down in the Route Management menu selections, you’ll see the option for Screen Choices that is brand new in Version 3.4

• Would you like to make any changes to the desktop or clock Screens? This gives you a chance to get out without going through the other questions.
• Would you like a desktop screen to be the default screen? No makes a clock screen the primary screen after a reset instead.
• Would you like to swap clock screens? Your preference – the green one or the orange one.

• Would you like to swap desktop screen themes? Your preference – the green theme or the “iPhone-look” theme are applied to the primary desktop screen, the Games screen and the Extra Tools screen simultaneously.

   

Clock Screens

You’ll note that the MioMap icon and the Next Screen icons are dimmed in the Clock screens, so that the initial screen might serve as a simple, unclutterd clock screen in your RV or automobile.

• The MioMap icon will take you directly to my new menu with options to either proceed into the MioMap program, Save / Delete / Rename / Load routes, View / Update MioMap settings in SYS.TXT, view a brief Help screen on Exiting MioMap, quickly be able to turn off the taskbar before running MioMap and of course make your screen choices.
• The Next Screen arrow icon will take you to your chosen desktop screen.
• You can return to the Clock screens by clicking on the Clock icon.
• From the desktop screens, you can proceed to other screens you may have designed, or to the Games or Extra Tools screens, which are included only in this unlock package.

Games

Eight (8) games are included in this package.   I’ve written MortScript scripts for each of the games that run in portrait mode that will do so automatically and will return your unit to landscape mode when exiting the game.   If you want to downsize the package or if you know you won’t want any or all of the games, simply skip copying the Games folder to the root of your SD card. and you will be left with only Solitaire and LitesOn.

Route Management

^ From either the clock screen or the desktop screen, click on the MioMap icon (the GPS icon in the upper left)

Prior to unlocking your Mio GPS, you would be unable to save multiple routes and the default route.dat file normally saved in \My Documents\MioMap folder would be erased during a hard reset, making the Route Management menu feature a substantial add-on to your Mio C230!

Normally you don’t need to save a route on your Mio, since you can just create a POI for the destination and regenerate the route dynamically when you want to go there. If you want to see where you actually drove along the way, you can record a track log. However, there could be times when you have created a more complex route with multiple waypoints, and you want to save it. This could be because:

• you’ve imported the route as a set of waypoints from an online route planning site, and you don’t want to lose the effort of setting it up on the Mio
• vacation pre-planning – you’ve set up a complex route for a vacation trip that doesn’t start from “home” and you want to load it into memory once you’ve arrived at the start point
• you want to share your route with another Mio user.

NOTE: When planning routes that start from a location different from your present location (Vacation pre-planning), the Off-Route Recalculation option has a habit of interfering. You have a few options here:

• The first leg of your trip can be from your present location to the intended starting point. Just keep setting your route up and when you’re finished, remove the first Waypoint (using the second button on the bottom of the Edit Route screen) which deletes that first segment of the Route. It seems that once you’re in the Edit Route screens /Fit to screen/ etc., that the GPS doesn’t recalculate from your present position. It’s when you are in Map or Cockpit where that happens. With the Route Management Menu, you just exit and Save your Route for future viewing or navigating.
• The bottom selection on the General Settings page is Off-Route Recalculation. Switch this from Automatic to Disabled. This doesn’t actually turn off the GPS receiver, but it keeps the C230 from messing up your Route planning. Just don’t forget to switch it back to Automatic when your done with your Route planning.
• If using an enhanced skin offering the GPS power button, turn the GPS chip off with this button and you will not experience any off-route calculation interference.

Sample pre-loaded route to view

^ click on “Load a Saved Route…” and select this sample file and it should copy itself as route.dat and open up in MioMap.    To visualize this Route, select Cockpit > Menu > Routes icon (third in bottom row) > Info > Fit to screen.     When you edit or delete route from within MioMap, you are impacting route.dat file, not the saved file you selected from the menu, so if you want to save changes you’ve made, you’ll have to do so after you exit MioMap and return to the Route Management menu.

Creating Routes

• We’ll make an example up > Go to History or Address and select a destination, Mio will create a route, click in the area of the 3 green rectangles, Select Fit to Screen to see route. Your route has already been autosaved as route.dat.
• Now we’re going to save it with another name so it doesn’t get erased > Menu, Home, Exit, go to Route Management Menu, select Save, select a Name and you’re done.
• If we go back into MioMap, it always resumes with the route.dat file (if it exists) so if you wan’t to work on a different saved route, you need to load it into memory using that option in the Route Management menu.
• If you create a new route in MioMap now, that route replaces route.dat with this new information, but since you’ve saved the former route with another name, you can just load that saved route in to replace route.dat again.

Settings Management

Map Font Size

The first option involves the font size of the map text (street and city names) that by default is 100; I believe this means 100%, rather than actual font size, since the text size varies with the zoom level.     I’ve come up with two larger sizes to help the visually challenged (either because of eyesight or non-ideal conditions in the placement of your GPS unit – like on a motorcycle).  LARGE which is 130 (30% larger) and XLARGE which is 150 (50% larger).   Realize that the there is a downside to the large fonts.   If the road is short or the name is real long,  the name may not fit and may not show until you zoom in further.   Also, the map may take on a cluttered look in a city where the streets are in close proximity to each other.   That is where the menu option to change the font size on the fly comes in real handy.

If you find that you would like LARGE and XLARGE values to differ from what I have chosen, adjust the numbers in the script to suit your needs.

City Names in the Navigation bar

By default, if your route goes through several settlements, MioMap displays the next city name instead of the name on the top of the cockpit screen until you get closer to the next maneuver. I usually do not care about the next city name – what I would like to see is the upcoming street name whenever I look at it. Especially since on US maps there are so many little “settlements” nobody even knows that they exist…

The second option addresses the complaint quoted above by giving you the option of suppressing the Cockpit display of upcoming city and community names in the Navigation bar.   The factory setting is annoying to may users in that they don’t want to see the names of the upcoming cities in the Navigation bar; they can see those on the map itself.   They simply want the next street name requiring their attention to appear in the Navigation bar, even if it is many miles away.   

This setting can be changed on the fly as well, but I find myself keeping the setting set to Suppress all of the time.

Flyover settings

iGo calls the two flyover modes: Lifelike simulation mode which runs real-time (at speed-limit rate) and includes voice instructions – mainly used by retail stores with looping turned ON as DEMO mode, and for the user to become familiar with it’s routing functioning. Fast-flyover mode runs 10 times faster (10X the speed-limit rate) and voice instructions are not played in this mode, but I find that it is much more useful for reviewing a planned route.

^ your choice. Mio’s default is YES (demo mode), but I prefer NO.

^ the script reads your current SLOWSIM value (slow simulation – which is the inverse of fast flyover) entry in the file and allows you to keep the value (YES) or change it (NO). For fast flyover, slowsim=1 is changed to slowsim=0.

NOTE:  Accelerated Flyover should be set to OFF, if you are using enhanced skins that also give you Flyover options while in the Route screens, so as to not reverse the expected behavior when chosing your options from within MioMap.

One-Way streets

^ the script reads your current entry in the file and allows you to keep the value (YES) or change it (NO).

This is another option that is nice to be able to change on the fly.   When turned ON, you will see pale blue arrows indicating the flow of traffic on One-Way streets.   You will also see red icons indicating roads that you are not allowed to drive on, such as golf cart only and private roads.

Desktop Theme Management

When selecting themes now, you set the background and icon selections for not only the main desktop screen, but the Extra Tools and Games screens as well.   The choices currently offered are the Green Theme and the iPhone-look theme.    You can change the whole look by simply chosing your own background image and substituting it in place of the back.bmp or back_black.bmp files in the Script folder.

Skins Management

You can add as many additional skins as you want by creating folders within the Skins folder that’s on your SD card.   As an example, if you want to add Riks skin, create a folder ‘Riks for C230’,  and then copy the respective DATA.ZIP as-is into that folder – not into the MioMap2 folder as you do for singular skin changes.

Green Theme

You’ll note that the MioMap icon and the Media Player are larger than the rest. My reasoning for this is that they will probably be your favorites and you are likely to access these without a stylus. The other icons…

• MioTool– hitting the small “ab” box in the top left corner with your stylus will reveal a virtual keyboard for entering data. To turn the keyboard off again, just hit the icon again. Another method of engaging the keyboard is hitting the keyboard icon on the taskbar (2^nd from the right).
• MioMap– Starts my new menu with options to either proceed into the MioMap program, Save / Delete / Rename / Load routes, View / Update MioMap settings in SYS.TXT, view a brief Help screen on Exiting MioMap, and quickly be able to turn off the taskbar before running MioMap. Exitand Cancel both take you back to the desktop screen. You can either select your option and hit OK, or simply double-click your option.
• TCPMP Media Player – Core Pocket Media Playeris loaded with features and options that aren’t realized until you click Options\Settings\Select Page and explore around. The current version in this build is TCPMP version 0.72RC1 with all of the available extra drivers and it will play manyaudio and video formats, as well as photo files and flash videos. By running the program once, you will associate all of the supported file types, so that you will then be able to click on a .wav file, as an example, in File Manager and play the file.

Shortcuts 2nd row-from-bottom across:

• Clock – proceeds to your chosen Clock screen for that uncluttered look.
• Windows Explorer – my primary reason for using this shortcut is to fix file icon associations in File Manager and to resolve the Show Toolbar performance.It should be noted that the first time you select Windows Explorer, you are likely to get the Mio orange screen with a minimized taskbar at the bottom. You just need to use your stylus in the right corner of the hidden taskbar (the narrow gray stripe at the bottom edge – this is why it is important to carefully calibrate your screen with a stylus!) and choose Desktop (don’t click on MainShell). At this point, the taskbar and Windows Explorer will behave better, and the icon associations in File Explorer will work, and other programs that seem to be missing menus, like exit, folder selection, etc. will display their own taskbar (see the Freecell screenshot).
• Pocket Notepad– viewing txt files and for creating quick txt files with the virtual keyboard. Comes in handy for quick editing ini, mscr and other text files.
• Volume Control – graphic volume control display
• Games screen  – <described above> proceeds to the Games screen, dedicated to the included Game programs (some of them provided by Blog readers) so that you can have some fun too.   A stylus is recommended for most of them though (not a pen).

  

• An empty spot for a shortcut of your own (plus room for another 8 shortcuts above this row and as many more pages full of icons as you wish) *
• GQ Photo Viewer– GQ is easier to use for viewing multiple photos than media player, and it has a zoom function
• Restart – soft reset button

Shortcuts 1st row-from-bottom across:

• MioUtility– quick access to adjust Backlight, Volume, Screen calibrate, Power, Date/Time and Language. This is the program that older units like the Mio C220 used to exit from MioMap into, but MioMap 3.3 has been written such that these choices are all available from within the program now and in fact the Volume Control appears to be non-functional. You’ll find that setting the date and time is much easier by clicking on the clock on the toolbar, unless you like the 24-hour format.

• Taskbar toggle –toggles the taskbar on and off in whatever state it is in (hidden or revealed) The taskbar area of the green desktop screen is also programmed to trigger this function.
• FileManCE2 – Two-pane File Manager application alternative to Windows Explorer.
• Extra Tools Screen –<described below> an animated slide to another Desktop screen with additional tool programs that may not be used as frequently. This will serve as an example for you to come up with alternative screens if you install many other programs onto your Mio C230 and wish to group them onto their own screens.
• WR-Tooks ResInfo –Quick access to status info on battery, program memory, storage memory, Flash Disk useage, Storage Card useage, tasks and processes currently running, system information and settings. Most of this information is also available from Control Panel as well.



• My Calculator – a scientific calculator that is large enough to use without a stylus. To exit, click on the About tab, then on the X on the right side
• CapScrUtil– a screen capture utility. Remember to store the .bmp images to either Storage Card or My Flash Disk for easy access to the screenshots. (This utility was used to create all of the images in this blog page)

“iPhone-look” Theme

I changed the solid-black background to a dark brushed metal background for this release   ↓

 

Program icons starting with the top row (small icons):

• MioTool– hitting the small “ab” box in the top left corner with your stylus will reveal a virtual keyboard for entering data. To turn the keyboard off again, just hit the icon again. Another method of engaging the keyboard is hitting the keyboard icon on the taskbar (2^nd from the right).
• Move Any Window– the mouse icon, is used when you anticipate needing to move windows around (those that drag properly can just be slid over with your finger) or gaining access to the right mouse function by opening this program window beforehand.
• More Tools Screen –<described below> an animated slide to another Desktop screen with additional tool programs that may not be used as frequently. This will serve as an example for you to come up with alternative screens if you install many other programs onto your Mio C230 and wish to group them onto their own screens.
• Volume Control – graphic volume control display
• Taskbar toggle –toggles the taskbar on and off in whatever state it is in (hidden or revealed).

Program icons starting with the top row of large icons:

• MioMap– Starts my new menu with options to either proceed into the MioMap program, Save / Delete / Rename / Load routes, View / Update MioMap settings in SYS.TXT, view a brief Help screen on Exiting MioMap, and quickly be able to turn off the taskbar before running MioMap. Exitand Cancel both take you back to the desktop screen. You can either select your option and hit OK, or simply double-click your option.
• TCPMP Media Player – Core Pocket Media Playeris loaded with features and options that aren’t realized until you click Options\Settings\Select Page and explore around. The current version in this build is TCPMP version 0.72RC1 with all of the available extra drivers and it will play manyaudio and video formats, as well as photo files and flash videos. By running the program once, you will associate all of the supported file types, so that you will then be able to click on a .wav file, as an example, in File Manager and play the file.

• GQ Photo Viewer– GQ is easier to use for viewing multiple photos than media player, and it has a zoom function
• FileManCE2 – Two-pane File Manager application alternative to Windows Explorer.
• DPMS– puts your screen to sleep while everything else continues to run. This could save battery consumption while recording GPS track logs or playing an audio book, etc. Apparently, if you leave the icon in it’s present location, it also seems to toggle the screen back on when you tap it with the screen dark. This is a quirky program / icon sometimes, so if relocate it and it behaves badly, you’ve been forewarned.

Program icons starting with the 2nd row of large icons:

• Clock – proceeds to your chosen Clock screen for that uncluttered look.
• My Calculator – a scientific calculator that is large enough to use without a stylus. To exit, click on the About tab, then on the X on the right side.
• Games screen  – <described above> proceeds to the Games screen, dedicated to the included Game programs (some of them provided by Blog readers) so that you can have some fun too.   A stylus is recommended for most of them though (not a pen).
  

Pocket Paint

Program icons starting with the 3rd row of large icons:

• Restart – soft reset button
• MioUtility– quick access to adjust Backlight, Volume, Screen calibrate, Power, Date/Time and Language. This is the program that older units like the Mio C220 used to exit from MioMap into, but MioMap 3.3 has been written such that these choices are all available from within the program now and in fact the Volume Control appears to be non-functional. You’ll find that setting the date and time is much easier by clicking on the clock on the toolbar, unless you like the 24-hour format.
• WR-Tooks ResInfo –Quick access to status info on battery, program memory, storage memory, Flash Disk useage, Storage Card useage, tasks and processes currently running, system information and settings. Most of this information is also available from Control Panel as well.
• CapScrUtil– a screen capture utility. Remember to store the .bmp images to either Storage Card or My Flash Disk for easy access to the screenshots. (This utility was used to create all of the images in this blog page)
• Windows Explorer – my primary reason for using this shortcut is to fix file icon associations in File Manager and to resolve the Show Toolbar performance.It should be noted that the first time you select Windows Explorer, you are likely to get the Mio orange screen with a minimized taskbar at the bottom. You just need to use your stylus in the right corner of the hidden taskbar (the narrow gray stripe at the bottom edge – this is why it is important to carefully calibrate your screen with a stylus!) and choose Desktop (don’t click on MainShell). At this point, the taskbar and Windows Explorer will behave better, and the icon associations in File Explorer will work, and other programs that seem to be missing menus, like exit, folder selection, etc. will display their own taskbar (see the Freecell screenshot).

Extra Tools

• ScreenRotate – gives you the ability to rotate the screen counterclockwise 90° with each tap
• DPMS– puts your screen to sleep while everything else continues to run. This could save battery consumption while recording GPS track logs or playing an audio book, etc.
• Volume Control – graphic volume control display
• Taskbar toggle – toggles the taskbar on and off in whatever state it is in (hidden or revealed)
• Move Any Window– the mouse icon, is used when you anticipate needing to move windows around (those that drag properly can just be slid over with your finger) or gaining access to the right mouse function by opening this program window beforehand
• RegEditor – TRE Registry Editor ver 0.82 Only use this to view entries though until you are confident that you are not going to end up with a C230 “brick” (Not really since a hard reset wipes out all of your changes)
• ITaskMgr – Another tool to allow you to view CPU usage, as well as view and manage processes and tasks that are currently running
• Restart – soft reset button
• Microsoft® PDF document viewer
• Microsoft® Image viewer
• Microsoft® Powerpoint presentation viewer
• Microsoft® Excel document viewer
• Microsoft® Word document viewer

Taskbar

The registry tweaks introduced with version 3.1 should help tame the taskbar performance. The default setting for “Always on Top” has been deactivated. Try to remember to toggle the taskbar OFF prior to using MioMap though. Want the day and date? Press and hold the clock on the screen. Want to minimize the taskbar? Start/Settings/Taskbar Properties/OK.

Adding your own programs and icons

Add any additional programs (.exe files, not .cab files) you’re interested in to the script folder, try them (try them means not only do they seem to work, but that they don’t cause any issues with the other programs, especially after a hard reset), and if you decide to keep them and want a desktop shortcut to them, add your own icon (.ico file) to the script folder and add the data to main.ini, also in the script folder.

* Any “empty” icon(s) on the desktop screen are in fact not empty, but the icons are “dimmed” to zero (actually 1). Otherwise the go.ico would show with no program associated with it and people would complain about the error message and ask why the icon doesn’t work. I doubt that you’ll find this documented anywhere else on the web – but just change the ScaleAlpha parameter to 100, and wala, the icon will shine thru at full “brightness”. That is how I “dimmed” the two icons on the default clock desktop screen – I set the ScaleAlpha to 25. You could dim those icons to 1 if you wanted to hide them completely, but they would still function.

ICONXPBUTTON
X = 121
Y = 175
Command = \My Flash Disk\Script\(your program.exe)
SizeNormal = 32
SizePushed = 32
ScaleAlpha = 1 (change to 100)
IconNormal = \My Flash Disk\Script\(your icon file name).ico
ScaleAlpha = 100
IconPushed = \My Flash Disk\Script\go.ico

For an english translation of the online manual to learn more about SystemInformation that controls all of the desktop screens.

Registry tweaks that are included

• The 2007 changes for DST work correctly now for the EST time zone*
• The default time zone is GMT-5 (EST)*
• Key clicks and screen tap sounds are enabled
• Volume level in Windows CE, which is independent of the volume settings within MioMap, is cranked up
• File Manager font is Tahoma 7, which works much better on the 3.5″ screen
• The default folder for GQ Viewer media is \Storage Card
• The default ALWAYS ON TOP behavior for the taskbar is disabled, although the setting seems to sneak back in once in awhile
• The automatic tutorial during startup of the Calculator is disabled

* Added instructions in the script file so that using my code as an example, you can adapt the script to a time zone other than EST.

To return to the desktop screens or the Route Management Menu from within MioMap, simply click on the Exit Door.

ENJOY!!