OziExplorer

Program History

Version Release Policy

So users can have quick access to the new features the developmental releases of the software are posted almost as soon as the coding is finished . Some testing is done but usually not enough, the new features will most likely have bugs, adding in the new code may also cause problems with existing code which had been functioning correctly. Check the web site regularly for new releases.

Release Version 3.95.6e (September 2015)

Changes

• Fixed the support for the Internal GPS for Windows 10

Release Version 3.95.6c / d (February 2015)

Changes

3.95.6d

• Fine tuning of the new (3.95.6c) and old map saved positions.
  • The saving of the "Last Map Saved Position" now happens on program close as well.
  • The User "Save Map Open Position" has been put back on the Map menu (removed in 3.95.6c).
  • Added a User "Clear Map Open Position" to menu as well (you must remove the "Saved Map Open Position" (if there) so the "Last Map Saved Position" can work (if you want it to)).
  • The "Saved Map Open Position" overrides the "Last Map Saved Position" if both are in the map file.
  • The last Zoom is also saved and used with the "Save Map Open Position" and "Save Map Last Position".
• Removed "Set last Map Zoom and Position" option in startup from Configuration as it is no longer needed.
• Removed "Keep Zoom Level" option from Configuration as it is no longer needed.
• Added Pixel Sale to Recently Used Map List.
• Added button to Recently Used Map List to sort in recent order, other sorts (pixel scale etc) can also be used.
  • To see a valid pixel scale in the recent map list the maps must be opened again at least once.

3.95.6c

• Fixed - the previous version was not setting the corner markers correctly for new map calibrations.
• Much improved track handling, which includes creation and insertion of track points and their manipulation.
• Improved Track Control, new options, resizing of dialog and columns.
• Improved Point Set handling, which includes point creation and their manipulation.
• Improved Point Control, new options, resizing of dialog and columns.
• The Maximum point sets have been increased to 1000.
• The Selection Control has new options for above changes.
• Some options on the Select Menu have been removed and are now only available on the Selection Control.
• Added a "Recently Used Map" list, same as the "Load Recent Map" menu option but in a dialog list.
  • Provides a list of the "Recently Used maps" in a dialog for instant access.
  • Allows you to remove a Map from the list.
  • You can open a Map at the Map Saved position or current Map position.
  • The new option is on the Load Menu (below "Load Recent Map").
  • Also available as an option for the User Toolbar (you need to add it to the toolbar yourself).
• Added an option in Configuration to "Load Last Data" (defaults to On). On OziExplorer start up will load :
  • the last waypoint file
  • the last route file
  • the last event file
  • the last track files
  • the last point files
• Maps now remember their last position when closed and reopen to the same position when opened.
• The "Save Map Open Position" option on the map menu has been removed.
• A new OziExplorer "Update to a new version" method has been added.
  • To update to this version it will have to be done manually as the new method is not in the previous version of OziExplorer.
  • However for the next OziExplorer update OziExplorer will download the update and run the setup for you.
  • You will then run through the setup options as usual.

Release Version 3.95.6a / b (November 2014)

Changes

• Increased number of waypoints from 10000 to 100000.
• Added full support for Windows 8 internal GPS - position, speed, heading and satellites.
• Now supports 32bit tif map images.
• Fixed crashing if using tif map images and rotating the screen.
• Added a map scale, View Menu / Show / Map Scale. Drag map scale into position on the map.
• Fixed name search searching for names with extended characters.
• 3.95.6b - needed to hide scale during map calibration otherwise it can cause errors to popup.

Release Version 3.95.5t (July 2013)

Changes

• Fixed problem with Lat/Lon georeferenced geotiff images not importing correctly. The problem was caused by a new geotiff dll used to supprt bigtiff images, it was not formating the geotiff output correctly for lat/lon coordinates.

Release Version 3.95.5s (May 2013)

Changes

• Added support for Windows 8 internal GPS using the API (experimental support was in the previous version).
  • Windows 8 GPS API does not provide speed or heading. These are calculated from position data and time so may not be as accurate.
  • Windows 8 GPS API does not provide satellite info.
  • You must turn on the GNSS Device (the GPS) in windows settings.
  • You must turn on the "Windows Location platform" in Control Panel Location Settings.
• Fixed issue with BSB kap files converted with img2ozf.
• Fixed issue with importing mapinfo raster maps with tab file and geographic (lat/lon) projection.

Release Version 3.95.5p/q/r (March 2013)

Changes

• Added support for the new OZF4 image format (soon to be released).
• Added the ETRS89 datum
• Fixed internet maps so they can be used from the cache (without initially connecting to the internet).
• Fixed Google Terrain internet map, it works again.
• Version 3.95.5q - Fixed datum error in seamless maps
• Version 3.95.5q - Added support for BigTiff (tif images > 4 GBytes)
• Version 3.95.5r - Fixed seamless maps not being able to load .ozf4 and some .ozfx3 images.

Release Version 3.95.5n (November 2011)

Changes

• Added the following Garmin GPS receivers to the GPS list in OziExplorer Configuration.
  • eTrex 10/20/30
  • Montana
  • Edge 200/500/800
  • Astro
  • Aera
• Removed the Seamless Map from Map searches (it was always found regardless).
• Added an option on the OziExplorer Help menu to delete the "MapView" Map Image thumbnails. Sometimes the thumbnails become corrupted (usually are black) - this allows them to be easily removed.
  The thumbnails can be removed at any time as they are automatically created when needed.

Release Version 3.95.5m (August 2011)

Changes

• Added Seamless maps - same as in the development version, please see the help for details.
  • This is the loading of multiple maps into OziExplorer so they are merged together to form one map.
  • This is a first look at the seamless map support in the release version and issues can be expected.
  • See the extensive details in the OziExplorer help.
• Updated map version number in the url for for Google Satellite maps (part of Internet Maps).
• Updated Open Street Map support  (part of Internet Maps) - it is import to reduce the load on the Open Street Map server..
  • Changed User Agent String.
  • Reduced number of threads being used to get tiles.
  • No additional tiles are now queued - other those those in the viewing area.
• Some settings in Internet Maps can now be controlled by an im.dat text file (download from the OziExplorer internet maps web page).
• The Track Tail (track collected for viewing on screen as you move) is now a buffer of 10000 track points.
  • The last 10000 track points are automatically saved and loaded.
  • The track tail is no longer logged into track 1.
  • The Track Tail defaults are on the Track tab in Configuration.
  • The are options for the Track Tail on the Moving map menu.
  • A smart algorithm based on changed distance and heading is used to log points.
• Track logging to File is now enhanced.
  • You can specify Daily Files, Weekly Files, Monthly Files or "Never change the file" (the previous version method).
  • The default is a Daily Log file - this means for each day of travelling a new track file is automatically created.
  • The Track Log File default is on the Track tab in Configuration.
  • There are options for the Log Track to File on the Moving map menu.
• The number of user loaded tracks has been increased to 1000 (from 75).
• When a Track is loaded it is automatically inserted into the next free track (not track 1), previous versions always loaded a single track into track 1.
• A new property for Line Style has been added for tracks.

Release Version 3.95.5h / 3.95.5i / 3.95.5j / 3.95.5k (June 2010)

Fixes

• 3.95.5j - Fixed issue with waypoints not being redrawn when changing from Internet maps to another map.
• 3.95.5j - Fixed issue with map dragging near the edge of the map.
   
• 3.95.5i - Fixed the issue of Internet maps not saving the Tile Store Path for maps other than Open Street Map.
• 3.95.5i - Fixed the issue of only *.rt2 files being displayed in the open file dialog when loading routes.
   
• AIS - Class B vessels now display the name and other parameters.
• There have been a few other minor fixes.

Changes

• 3.95.5k - Added support for the new Garmin Zumo 220 and Nuvi 1490 models.
• 3.95.5k - Updated map version number in the url for for Google Satellite maps (part of Internet Maps).
• 3.95.5k - Fine tuning done for more and less detailed map option.
• 3.95.5k - The printing of the route list has been improved.
• 3.95.5k - Changed how the first waypoint in a route is handled when navigation is started - the proximity zone no longer defaults to 100 meters but is now the same as the "Route Waypoint proximity" setting.
   
• 3.95.5j - Added the display of elevation onto the top status line next to the position when using OziExplorer3D.
• 3.95.5j - Improved waypoint list printing.
  • Choose Portrait or Landscape.
  • Choose Font size.
  • Adjustment to the column width for the waypoint name.
     
• Added / fixed support for the Garmin Dakota and Oregon x50 GPS models.
• Added support for the Garmin GPSMAP 78 and 62 models.
• The Garmin Oregon and Colarado can now be used for Moving Map - Set the GPS Interface to "Garmin Spanner" (do not install or start the Garmin Spanner software, it is not needed) - connect to the PC using normal USB cable - on the GPS screen set mass Storage Mode OFF - in OziExplorer configuration make sure "Garmin USB" and "Use PVT for Garmin instead of NMEA" are both checked - start moving map in OziExplorer.
• Added time zone offset into the track files and the offset can be edited in track properties. Any display of a track point time will use the time zone offset if it is available.
• The User Toolbar can now have different sizes. The setting is on the User Toolbar configuration dialog.
• A Find GPS Port button has been added to the GPS tab in OziExplorer configuration. The ports on the PC will be scanned and the information about the GPS found will be displayed so the information can be manually entered into OziExplorer configuration.
• Options for More and Less Detailed Map have been added - the options can be added to the User toolbar or Function keys, they are not available on the standard menus.
• More Internet maps have been added - by opening the Internet map the new maps can be seen on the drop down menu.
• Added option to Internet maps to ignore the cache so new tiles will be downloaded from the internet.
• The help for OziExplorerCE has been removed from the OziExplorer help to reduce confusion between the two programs.
• For Windows Vista and 7 the default folder where OziExplorer stores its system files has been changed to "c:\{user}\.OziExplorer" , this has been done to make it easier for users to find these files (the AppData folder which was used by previous versions is hidden by default in Vista and 7). Please Note - existing installations will still use the same folder they are currently using, this ensures your configuration files will still be found.

Release Version 3.95.5g (December 2009)

Fixes

• Fixed issue with 24bit color tif image support.
• Fixed issue where internet maps would stall (stop loading tiles).
• Fixed an issue with routes in gpx files.
• Fixed an issue with AIS configuration where the "Ship Label" settings were not being saved.

Changes

• Added latest Garmin GPS models to the selection in configuration.
• Added support for lower case and extended characters for Garmin GPS.
• Added moving map support for the Garmin Nuvi, Zumo and Streetpilot models when connected to the PC by the special Garmin serial cable. These use the PVT protocol. Only tested with the Nuvi 760 but it is assumed other models mentioned will work.

Release Version 3.95.5f (October 2009)

Fixes

• moving map compass display fixed for non 100% zooms.
• some fixes and improved support for XP and vista themes.

Changes

• Google maps changed their map url, this has been fixed.
• New Zealand have released their new NZTM topo maps so have added support for New Zealand NZTM grid and datum.
• Added support for the new topo maps for New Zealand. The topo50 maps are 24bit color geotiffs, the topo 250 are 24bit color geotiffs but stored within the tif as color planes (an unusual tif format for PC use).
• 24 bit color tif files can now be paged instead of having to be fully loaded into memory.
• Added support for loading planar configuration tif files (but not paged - must be fully loaded).
• Automatic Ship Identification (AIS) help is now listed in the Help contents.
• Added the ability to store altitude in kml files.

Release Version 3.95.5e (September 2009)

Fixes

• Exporting waypoints to text file fixed.
• Some minor cosmetic issues fixed.

Changes

• Added the new Garmin Dakota to the GPS list.
• Project Manager
  • When a project is loaded the tracks are now loaded in the same order that they appeared in the Track Control when the project was created.
  • You can now specify a map position where the loaded project starts.
• OziExplorerCE .rt2 route files can now be loaded, rt2 files cannot be saved but OziExplorerCE can read OziExplorers .rte files.
• Added a Zoom Number display to the Internet maps control toolbar.

Release Version 3.95.5d (August-2009)

Fixes

• Fixed issues with Update options on Help menu not being remembered.
• The change of compiler caused some unusual issues on some systems.

Changes

• Added support for Open Street Maps and Virtual Earth Internet maps.
• Google Maps support now works differently, it is part of the "internet maps" control, script errors should no longer happen. The Google Maps.map file will still work but is no longer provided - use the Internet Maps.map file instead.
• Changed Google Earth support so the Google Earth software is no longer closed until OziExplorer is closed.

Release Version 3.95.5c (August-2009)

Fixes

• Fixed issues with shape file import and export.

Changes

• Added support for USA Terraserver maps.
• Added zoom level menu to Google maps.
• Added ability to sort on CPA for the AIS (ship indentification system).

Release Version 3.95.5b (August-2009)

Fixes

• some more minor fixes.

Changes

• Now includes support for Google Maps within OziExplorer. There is a link to the OziExplorer Google Maps page (on the OziExplorer page) where the .map file can be downloaded.
• Some fixes done for the Google Earth support.
• Added the ability to check if there is an update available. The default is a daily check but can be changed using the option on the Help menu. The update is not automatically downloaded but you are advised if there is one available and the changes that have been made.

Release Version 3.95.5a (July-2009)

Fixes

• some minor fixes.

Changes

• Now includes support for Google Earth within OziExplorer. There is a link to the OziExplorer Google Earth page (on the OziExplorer page) where the .map file can be downloaded.
• Fixed some unusual Vista issues.
• Added support for AIS (Automatic Ship Identification) system. The option is on the Moving Map menu. This is the same as included in the development version of OziExplorer.
• Changed to a new version of the compiler used to develop OziExplorer.

Release Version 3.95.4s (Oct-2008)

Fixes

• Fixed some issues with the support for NV Digital Charts.
• Fixed issues with gpx files being used with Garmin Mapsource.

Changes

• For Windows Vista the OziExplorer configuration files (and other OziExplorer system files) are placed in a specific folder in the "User" area of C drive. This caused problems when more than one copy of OziExplorer was run on the same computer or when OziExplorer was run from a removable drive. This version will place the configuration files in the "User" area in a folder name based on the OziExplorer installation folder name so the configuration files are kept separate for more than one installation. If OziExplorer is on a removable drive the configuration files are stored in the OziExplorer installation folder on the removable drive. If it is desired to force the configuration files be kept in the OziExplorer installation folder a special file called "AppDataLocal.dat" can be placed in the OziExplorer installation folder, it does not matter what is in the file the presence of the file is the trigger.

Release Version 3.95.4r (Sep-2008)

Fixes

• Minor fixes relating to map import.

Changes

• Added support for NV Digital Charts. These are imported using the BSB import option.
• Added direct support for the Garmin Colorado, Oregon, Nuvi and Zumo GPS receivers. OziExplorer reads and writes the GPX files stored in the GPS when it is connected to the PC as a disk drive.
• Added Garmin symbols to GPX export and import if OziExplorer is configured to use a Garmin GPS.
• Minor changes to work better with the Australian Natmap 2008 raster maps.

Release Version 3.95.4q (Apr-2007)

Fixes

• Removed 216 error when closing OziExplorer and running Windows Vista (again).
• Minor fix to correct the loading of some BSB4/5 charts.

Changes

•  Added support for the Australian UBD regional cities and towns DVD Version 3. The map files can be downloaded from the Australian page of our web site.
• When using Garmin PVT mode for moving map OziExplorer will now automatically reconnect to the GPS if PVT data transmission has been interrupted.

Release Version 3.95.4p (Feb-2007)

Fixes

• Removed 216 error when closing OziExplorer and running Windows Vista.

Changes

• Windows Vista does not allow programs to store configuration files in the "Program Files" folder tree. If installed on Windows Vista this version of OziExplorer stores its configuration files in the AppData folder of the current User. Note that this folder is not visible to a User unless the "Show Hidden Files and Folders" option is selected in "Search and Folder Options".

Release Version 3.95.4n (Nov-2006)

Fixes

• minor

Changes

• Added support for the Australian UBD Version 4 maps - version 4 .map files can be downloaded from the Australian page of the web site.
• Added Russian language support

Release Version 3.95.4m (May-2006)

Fixes

• NASA changed the web page links to the SRTM height data, these links on the OziExplorer 3D/Elevation menu have been fixed.

Changes

• Added support for the D801 PVT mode for the new Garmin "x" series GPS receivers.
• Added the Garmin Edge to the list of Garmin GPS receivers in configuration.
• Added support for the Garmin Edge track download (D304 data type). Track upload is not supported in this model.
• Added support for additional ozfx3 image format types.

Release Version 3.95.4k (December-2005)

Fixes

• NASA changed the web site for download of SRTM data, the links used to download SRTM height data have been fixed (preliminary fixes were done in the version 3.95.4j soon after its release, this version contains the official fix).
• GPX and KML import generated access violations, these have been fixed (preliminary fixes were done in version 3.95.4j soon after its release, this version contains the official fix).
• The GPX format OziExplorer generated failed to load in some other software, this has been fixed.

Changes

• For GPX and KML file formats the <, >, and & symbols and now being translated as special characters.
• Modified the Google Earth KML import to import a track as single track with sections (instead of multiple tracks).
• Added the ability to export Tracks as Points in ESRI Shape File export.
• Modified the Mapview code to remove the large flicker when resizing the window.
• For Eastern languages OziExplorer replaces the degree and minute symbols with spaces (question marks were being displayed).
• When loading a project file the map zooms and centers to show the data extents (if possible, the lowest zoom number available may not be able to show the data.).
• Added a Zoom Data Extents button to the User Toolbar, if you already have a user Toolbar defined you will need to add the button manually if you want it displayed.

Release Version 3.95.4j (December-2005)

Fixes

• minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for the UBD Australian City maps. Only the new "Australian City Streets Version 3" maps are supported. See the Australian page of our web site for details. NOTE: The interface to OziExplorer does not work on systems running Windows 95 / 98 / ME Operating Systems.
• Added support for Projects - a Project can be defined which includes a map and various data files. Projects can be created and saved and the map and all the data files are loaded when the Project is loaded.. The Project Manager option is located on the Options menu.
• Added support for reading and writing GPX files, the options are on the Load and Save menus. These options can also be installed on the User Toolbar.
• Added support for Google Earth - reading and writing KML files ; view waypoints and tracks in Google Earth ; show current map position in Google Earth. These options can also be installed on the User Toolbar.
• Added the ability to join tracks together, this option is located on the "More Options" button on the Track Control toolbar.
• A new option is provided on the 3D / Elevation menu (OziExplorer3D must be installed) to download SRTM height data for the region of map being viewed.
• Increased the number of user datums supported from 10 to 30.
• In Configuration the number of Com Ports has been increased to 50.

Release Version 3.95.4i (May-2005)

Fixes

• minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for the Magellan Explorist USB GPS Receivers. There is a new selection in the GPS Models called "Magellan USB". The upload/download is done by reading and writing files directly into the GPS. Note that because of the slight difference in the way the Explorist USB does its route files the reading of the route files from the Explorist USB has not yet been implemented.
• Added the VICGRID94 grid (for Victoria Australia).
• For Garmins - if the altitude is not available in a downloaded waypoint or trackpoint record but the depth is available the depth will be read as the altitude.
• Have finally written the proper printing code for ozfx3 images produced by MapMerge so full printing is now available.
• Some other internal changes.

Release Version 3.95.4h (March-2005)

Fixes

• Moving map when using PVT mode for Garmin USB GPS receivers was causing random Access Violations, this has been fixed.
• Proximity / Route Symbols attached to a waypoint were not being displayed when the proximity was entered, this has been fixed.

Changes

• Added new the Garmin GPS Receiver models to the list in Configuration.
• The print preview window will now remember the last zoom level used.
• Some other internal changes.

Release Version 3.95.4g (December-2004)

Fixes

• nil

Changes

• Added support for Kompass maps www.kompass.at - please note that the dll to use Kompass maps is required to be downloaded from the our Optional Extras web page.
• When measuring distances the "total distance" is no longer is zeroed when loading a new map.

Release Version 3.95.4f (December-2004)

Fixes

• a few minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for the new Garmin protocols used in the Garmin Quest and the new firmware for the 276C and 296 models.
• Added limited support for jpr files during map import.
• added support for RGBA format png image files.

Release Version 3.95.4e (November-2004)

Fixes

• Fixed a minor problem with waypoint sorting in the waypoint list when selecting waypoints.
• Fixed a problem where the screen display lagged behind the actual position, only applies when using PVT mode with a Garmin USB Gps.
• Fixed import of E00 and SHP files when using units of feet.
• Fixed minor screen drawing problem for track replay.
• Fixed the import of Albers map projection for SHP files broken a couple of versions ago.

Changes

• Added support for the ProjCenterLongGeoKey Geotiff key for map importing.

Release Version 3.95.4d (October-2004)

Fixes

• Waypoint selection from the map did not always show correctly in the waypoint list (once selected they could not be unselected from the map).

Changes

• Added support for variation to the ozfx3 image format which the next versions of Map Merge and Img2ozf will create. This variation of the ozfx3 format will be quicker to load and change zooms  (this will not be noticeable on the PC but will be noticeable in OziExplorerCE on a PDA).
• The Enter key can now be used to open a map from the "Find map" list.

Release Version 3.95.4c (September-2004)

Fixes

• Fixed the display of symbols in the waypoint list which I very intelligently managed to break in the previous version.

Release Version 3.95.4b (September-2004)

Fixes

• Waypoint symbols would not change to the specified foreground and background colors, this has been fixed. Note this does not apply to the colored Garmin symbols which always use their own colors.

Changes

• Support for the Garmin GPS 18 USB GPS has been added. In OziExplorer configuration select the GPS Make as Garmin, GPS Model as Other Garmins, on the COM tab tick the "Garmin USB" checkbox and tick the "Use PVT for Garmin instead of NMEA" checkbox.
• The creation of the image thumbnails for MapView from large TIF or BSB images could cause problems as it required too much memory for some systems, this has been improved.
• The printing of ozfx3 map images created by Map Merge was too restrictive, the restrictions have been relaxed but not totally removed.

Release Version 3.95.4a (August-2004)

Fixes

• On small BSB or TIF map images specifying low % zooms could cause an access violation.
• The size of the MapView window was not being saved.
• Waypoints symbols were not being printed or saved correctly when maps were printed or saved.
• The MapView window may show even though it had been turned off in configuration.
• Hidden waypoints would still show the hint when the mouse pointer was hovered over their position.
• When a waypoint was created from a track point it would not show until the screen was refreshed.
• OziAPI waypoint functions which were broken with this version have been fixed.
• Some other minor problems have been fixed.

Release Version 3.95.4 (August-2004)

Fixes

• Fixed an access violation problem with upload/download for older model Garmins.
• Hidden waypoints were being saved with the image when using the "Save Map Image" option.
• The Waypoint List used when calibrating a map from waypoints was showing the waypoint number instead of the waypoint name.
• Other minor problems fixed.

Development Version 3.95.3g6 (August-2004)

Fixes

• Under certain circumstances the map could not be saved from the Check Map Calibration option, this has been fixed.
• Fixed a problem with loading route files caused a couple of versions ago when the number of waypoints was increased, the route waypoints did not match the loaded waypoints.
• More changes for Lambert Conformal Conic import, mapinfo tab files in Lambert CC are now supported, fixed problem where the parameters were being saved in the .map file as feet instead of meters (if the import was in feet).
• Fixed a problem with the new ozfx3 format when creating 3D maps.

Development Version 3.95.3g5 (July-2004)

Fixes

• Fixed the calibration from waypoint list.
• Fixed the "Projected Track" line in moving map.
• Printing of ozfx3 images should now work.
• Lambert Conformal Conic dialog now allows entry of latitude origin, calculations no longer assume latitude origin equals zero (not tested yet), this applies to map calibration and map import.

Development Version 3.95.3g4 (July-2004)

Changes

• More fine tuning of the Garmin USB interface code, fixed various minor problems.
• Added support for the new waypoint and track protocols used in the Garmin 172C and 178C.
• Added the Lambert Conformal Conic map projection to the DRG (map image) import dialog - this is relatively untested.
• Added the ability to specify meters or feet in the DRG (map image) import dialog - this has had very limited testing. If you specify feet then you must also use feet for any of the  projection parameters which require a distance.

New/Updated Features

• New software called the "Map Merging Utility" is now available to merge maps together and create a new map for use in OziExplorer which is a mosaic of many maps. This is available for download on the Map Merging Utility page.
• The number of waypoints has been increased to 10,000. This involved a lot of code rewriting so you may find errors and inconsistencies, these will be fixed as they are found.
• The Waypoint list is now floating and can be left open while manipulating waypoints on the map.
• The Mapview window can now be made larger than the previous version (just drag the borders to resize, the dragging looks a little messy right now but that will be fixed).
• The image in the Mapview window is now of better quality for all map image types. To obtain the better quality you must have the "Create Map Thumbnail" option ticked on the Maps tab in OziExplorer configuration. The thumbnails are saved in the System Files folder and are shared with the "Map Merging utility" if it is installed in the OziExplorer folder.

Development Version 3.95.3g3 (June-2004)

Changes

• Support for the Garmin USB gps receivers has been fine tuned, it may support more models now but I have only tested it on a 60CS. Let me know if any models still do not work.
  • If using a Garmin USB connection you must tick the "Garmin USB" checkbox on the COM tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
• Support for Garmin USB PVT mode for moving map has been rewritten and should not lock up.
  • If using Garmin USB connection you must also tick the "Use PVT for Garmin instead of NMEA" checkbox on the COM tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
  • If the GPS does not have a fix it does not output any PVT data.
• Added support for Maptech .025 map files.

New/Updated Features

• New Map Searching dialog, the list of maps in a search are now presented in a new dialog, all the columns can be sorted by clicking on the column header, I find sorting by pixel scale is very useful.
• New Printing dialog - allows print preview with selection of the pages you want to print, the area to be printed can now be selected by drawing a box on the main map.
• New Track Filtering methodology for reducing the number of points in a track, this is a much better algorithm and gives very good results, also has the ability to specify the number of points required in the track.

Development Version 3.95.3g2 (May-2004)

• Some minor things.

Changes

• Garmin USB support now includes the Garmin 2610 and other USB models. If using Garmin USB connection you must tick the "Garmin USB" checkbox on the COM tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
• Moving Map  PVT mode for USB connections should now work. If using Garmin USB connection you must also tick the "Use PVT for Garmin instead of NMEA" checkbox on the COM tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
• Fixed the Symbols for the Garmin 60C/CS.

Fixes

• Waypoint download from the Garmin 60C/CS could stall when using USB, should now be fixed.

Development Version 3.95.3g (April-2004)

Fixes

• Some minor things.

Changes

• Added preliminary Garmin USB upload/download support for the Garmin 60C and 60CS. There are some things that do not work yet and these will fixed soon.
  • PVT mode (using USB) for real time tracking is not supported yet.
  • Getting a specific single route using the OziExplorer Route Editor does not work because the 60 uses names for Routes not numbers.
• Added preliminary upload/download support for the Garmin Forerunner. The Forerunner handles tracks a bit different to other models, I am not sure if I have the difference between the saved tracks and active track working properly yet.

Release Version 3.95.3f (February-2004)

Fixes

• The Compass Rose was not displaying in the correct position on some image format types.
• Some fixes for languages other than English - some strings were not being translated.

Changes

• The Compass Rose now adjusts itself so it displays correct bearings for non-conformal maps (maps with different scales north-south and east-west). The Australian Raster 250K mosaic and the Toporama maps of Canada are examples of such maps. With non-conformal maps the tick marks around the compass will not be in even intervals.
• Added support for Maptech Terrain Navigator maps (.024,.100,.250) and Maptech Aeronautical charts (.AER). To use these maps you need to download the Maptech DLL's from our Optional Extras web page.

Release Version 3.95.3e (December-2003)

Fixes

• none

Changes

• Added some additional function calls for the OziAPI, see the OziAPI web page for details.
• Some of the Header files provided with the SRTM-30 Height Data files have just a carriage return as the end of line marker, as far as I know this is not a recognised standard (linefeed or carriage return + linefeed are) so OziExplorer was not reading the files correctly. OziExplorer has been changed to allow for this.
• some other minor changes.

Release Version 3.95.3d (November-2003)

Fixes

• none

Changes

• The addition of Italian help.
• Some changes to languages other than English.

Release Version 3.95.3c (September-2003)

Fixes

• Both uppercase and lower case was allowed for waypoint names and messages in the Magellan Sportrak basic model, this is not correct and has been fixed, now only uppercase is allowed.
• A minor problem with Brunton/Silva dates downloaded from the gps when using a different date separator has been fixed.

Changes

• Geoscience Australia has released the new 250K Mosaic map of Australia. This map is in a geographic projection (latitude/Longitude) so is not a constant horizontal scale when when moving north/south. OziExplorer has been modified to recognize the varying scale and make adjustments when drawing objects on the map. Example - proximity zones and range rings will plot as ellipses so the distances are correct.
• During map searching any corrupted or incorrect map files will now be ignored instead of generating an error exception.

Release Version 3.95.3b (July-2003)

Fixes

• Printing a map could generate an access violation, this  has been fixed
• Some other minor fixes.

Changes

• The translated text for the new features has now been updated for the Dutch version.

Release Version 3.95.3a (July-2003)

Fixes

• Anchor Alarm - had problems when the regional settings were using a "," instead of a "." as the decimal separator - fixed.
• The GPS Fix Data when displayed using the command line parameter showed a window which was not active - fixed.
• The SRTM height data support had problems with files from the southern hemisphere - fixed.
• Some other minor fixes.

Changes

• The Moving Map menu help has been modified to include links to the GPS Fix Data and the Anchor Alarm help.
• If visible the Compass is now drawn onto the map image when the map image is saved.

Release Version 3.95.3 (July-2003)

Fixes

• Map searching would not work if there are commas in the path names where maps are stored, fixed.
• PNG map images would always render in grey scale on 256 color systems, fixed.
• The Event marker symbols in Lowrance USR files were not being saved correctly.
• The moving map track log was putting a comma in the altitude field in the track log file instead of dot when using the "," as a decimal separator.
• Italian version - fixed a problem with the Italy grids selection not being correct. Note maps already created using the Italy grids may need to have the grid selected again in Map Calibration.
• Some other minor fixes.

Changes

• An Anchor Alarm has been added, the option is on the Moving Map menu and there is help available.
• A satellite display has been added to the GPS Fix Data option on the Moving map menu.
• There is preliminary support for the Maptech BSB version 4 charts, to use BSB 4 charts the dll's must be downloaded from the Optional Extras page on our web site.
• Preliminary support has been added for importing map images by using a supplied Mapinfo .tab files (tab files which mapinfo uses to georeference a RASTER image only). Only support for lat/lon and Transverse Mercator grids (utm should be ok) has been done. Tab files using other grids can be emailed to me (with the image) and I will see if I can add support to the code.
• The .ozline2 files (index files for some DEM file types) will need to be created again, this is an automatic process. This is to remove a problem where the indexes were being recreated when the time zone on the PC was changed. The good news is that for Grid ASCII files the indexing process is now much faster.
• SRTM height data files can now be used directly in OziExplorer. Download the files, unzip them and place them in the "Globe (Arcview)" configuration folder. Do not change the file name of the .hgt file as it is used to position the dem.
• Added the Garmin Geko 201 to the list of GPS Receivers in OziExplorer configuration.
• Importing of Geotiff images now supports the Albers Equal Area projection.

Release Version 3.95.2 (13th-Mar-2003)

Fixes

• Fixed a bug in map searching - if you removed all the .map files from a folder it would not be re-indexed so would always show the old maps (which were removed) as existing. These folders are now checked, if there are no map files the index file is removed.
• The Shift Enter key combination to add waypoints and other objects now works again.
• The printing of 24bit color Tiff images has been fixed (it was broken by changes in previous version).

Changes

• Map Searching
  • More fine tuning - mostly to do with the index map and getting it to notice changes in the map files.
  • Added the ability to re-index the map files to the Map menu. This will re-index the map files so they will be up to date for map searching functions. In theory this is not necessary  for normal operation operation as OziExplorer will automatically keep the map index files up to date.
  • Map Searching will now ignore hidden .map files.
  • Updated map search section of the help file.
• Index Map - Added the ability to turn on and off the list of the available maps which follows the mouse pointer; this option is on the drop down menu button.
• OziAPI - many new functions have been added; see the OziAPI web page for details.

Release Version 3.95.1 (26-Feb-2003)

Fixes

• Fixed minor problems with the Garmin symbol set for some models.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.90.4k1

Fixes

• Fix to area calculation method which could occur in some cases when the map was not at 100% zoom.
• Waypoint proximities would always print even though they were turned off via the menu option, now fixed.
• A problem with saving PCX5 trk files has been fixed.

Changes

• Some more fine tuning of the new map search function.
  • Some relatively common map files being generated outside of OziExplorer are leaving the MMPNUM parameter out of the map file, this defines the number of corner markers being used and is required by OziExplorer for finding maps. I have now modified the search function to assume the number of corner markers is 4 if this parameter is not found. If this affects you the files in the System Files folder under OziExplorer must be deleted so the indexes can be created again.
  • Help is now available for Map Searching in the "Map Related" section of the help Index.
  • An Index file is no longer created for folders which do not have map files in them.

Beta Version 3.90.4k

Fixes

• Some minor printing problems with waypoint proximities.

Changes

• Map Search
  • Problems were caused when scanning map files with missing information (map files created manually outside of OziExplorer) - an exception was generated because required parameters were not in the file, changes have been made to ignore map files which do not have the map corners (lat/lon) and other parameters in the map file.
  • When creating the indexes the folder being scanned is shown on the status line.
  • Some other minor fine tuning.

Beta Version 3.90.4j1

Fixes

• Old version .map files were not being searched correctly and could not be found in the new search routines added in the previous version "j". This has been fixed.

Changes

• I must apologise, I changed the format of the DEM "ozline" index file without realizing that this would prevent versions previous to the "j" version from reading them correctly.  The ozline files are used with GridAscii and USA 24K DEMs only, they are stored with the corresponding DEM file.

  I have now changed the name of the "ozline" file to "ozline2".  This means :
   

  • The ozline2 files will need to be created when this "j1" version is run, this is a one time process (again ...). If you have many/large GridAscii or USA 24K DEM's this will take considerable time to complete, during this time OziExplorer may appear to be frozen and not responding so please be patient.
  • If you created ozline files with version "j" please delete them as they are not correct for versions previous to "j" and will not work correctly, if you run a previous version it will recreate them if it does not find them.
  • If you do not intend to run versions previous to "j" then delete the "ozline" files as they are no longer used, "j1" uses "ozline2" files.

Beta Version 3.90.4j

Fixes

• Corner Markers now relocate to the correct position when zooming the map in calibration mode.

Changes

• Map searching when you have many thousands of maps is now much faster, the map paths are indexed and stored in index files with OziExplorer. The first time a folder with maps is searched it is indexed (this is a slow part), after that the searching is fast. If a .map file in a folder is changed or deleted or added the folder is automatically re-indexed the next time the folder is searched. Fast map searching works with "Map Find", "Moving Map", "Track Replay", and "Index Map".
• Added some new calls to the OziAPI
• When importing images using the Import DRG options the image file name is now displayed on the DRG defaults dialog.
• When creating waypoints from Name Search the full name is now used for the waypoint name.
• Ozi3D - The creation of the .ozline files for Elevation data files (DEM's) has been modified to include a checksum so the ozline file can be recreated if the Elevation data file changes, this means that with this version all the ozline files will be created again the first time the elevation files are used - this may take a while, but this happens only once.
• OziExplorer can now load ECW images from ecw web servers - place the url to the image as the first line in a text file which has a .ecwp extension, then you can use this file to load and calibrate or import the image.
• The ECW image library code has the ability to keep the memory cache for an image active even though the image has been closed by OziExplorer. The more images you open the more memory is used (within certain limits). I have now changed the way OziExplorer handles this by closing the file and getting the library to free all the memory cache being used for that image. This may help systems which have limited memory available.

Beta Version 3.90.4i

Fixes

• When creating map comments at zooms other than 100% they now initially display at their real size rather than at the 100% size.
• Other minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for the Lowrance iFinder and any other Lowrance which reads and writes USR files on a multimedia card.
• Now supports lowercase characters for the Magellan Meridian and SportTrak GPS receivers.
• Holding the Ctrl key down now allows dragging of the map in all circumstances.
• Added new Garmins to the GPS list in Configuration.
• Waypoint names can now be of any length for use in OziExplorer. Of course they will be trimmed when uploaded to the GPS. In any dialogs where waypoint names can be edited the name will be displayed in a different color when the length used by the GPS has been exceeded.
• When Deleting track points the track is not split into a new section automatically.
• many other minor changes.

Waypoint List

• Added display of the symbol in the list.
• Added the ability to modify most properties of selected waypoints, these options are on a drop down menu on a button on the Waypoint list toolbar.

Event List

• Added display of the symbol in the list.
• Added the ability to modify most properties of selected events, these options are on a drop down menu on a button on the Event list toolbar.

Track Logging

• Added an option to the Moving Map menu to turn Track Logging to File On and Off.
• Added an option to the Moving Map menu to turn Track Logging to Memory / Screen On and Off.
• Added the ability to specify the name of the file used to log the track.
• The Track logging status appears on the lower status line next to the GPS position - F = logging to file; M = logging to memory/map

Beta Version 3.90.4h2

Fixes

• Fixed a bitmap leak in ECW when using very large maps and greater than 100% zoom. Also fixed a couple of minor memory leaks in all ECW handling.
• Fixed a problem with DTED elevation data when there is no more data available past the edge of the current region.
• Fixed a problem with OZF2 map images on win 95, 98, ME when using zooms below 100% and there are waypoints on the map. The map would write over the top of the menu and toolbars.

Changes

• Added new command to the OziAPI for moving map control.
• Added new command to the OziAPI for finding maps.
• Increased number of waypoints per route to 255.

Beta Version 3.90.4h1

Fixes

• OZF2 maps sometimes generated an exception when changing zoom levels - fixed.
• There was a memory leak with the OZF2 format causing additional memory to be taken each time the map was scrolled. This was particularly noticeable in moving map where the map is continuously being scrolled.

Changes

• Changes to how file attachments to waypoints and map features were processed meant files attached by url's did not work, a change has been made to allow these to pass through my checking code so they work again.

Beta Version 3.90.4h

Fixes

• New versions of Garmin GPS firmware caused OziExplorer to give a "floating point error" under certain circumstances when downloading waypoints, this has been fixed. Downloading tracks under certain circumstances caused the same error but for a different reason, now fixed.
• Fixed the edge affects that occurred on the 3D maps when using DTED and Grid ASCII DEM files. The edge affects were visible when moving viewing across DEM boundaries.

Changes

General

• To scroll the map by dragging with the mouse no longer requires the "Drag Map" button to be depressed, the map can be dragged at any time.
• The "Drag Map" button is now used to "Lock" and "Unlock" the dragging of map objects (waypoints, map features .....).

OZF2

• There have been many changes to how the OZF2 format is used. OziExplorer now generates most of the zoom levels "on the fly" and they no longer need to be stored in the OZF2 file. This results in considerably smaller files. Only the Zoom levels 20% and below are stored in the OZF2 file.
• Existing OZF2 files can still be used - there is no change to the OZF2 file format. A new version of the Img2Ozf converter is available - see the Img2OZF web page for details.
• OziExplorer no longer displays scroll bars when using OZF2 files, the map can be scrolled by dragging with the mouse or by using MapView.

3D

• There has been a change in the way OziExplorer adds altitudes to waypoints and tracks when using the 3D add-an. Altitude is no longer automatically added when a waypoint or track point is created or moved. There is a differing of opinion on how this should work - example when dragging a waypoint a short distance the original potentially more accurate altitude from the GPS may want to be kept instead of being replaced by the DEM altitude. Altitudes can now be added from the Waypoint and Track Lists - the options are on the one of the drop down menu buttons. Of course for any function in OziExplorer which requires the altitude (track profile or sending to Ozi3D) the altitudes are still automatically added "on the fly" if there is no altitude.

Beta Version 3.90.4g

Fixes

• minor fixes

Changes

• Additional changes to suit the "New" OziExplorer API just released (the link to the API is on the Utilities web page).
• The Moving Map Control and Navigation Control now remember their positions and the PgUp/PgDn and Arrow keys now work on the Moving Map Control and Navigation Control.
• 16 Million color (24bit) and grey scale png images can now be loaded.
• Added the VICGRID map grid (for Victoria Australia).
• The "Find Map from Entered Position" dialog now includes separate buttons for positioning the point on the current map and finding maps which include the position.

Beta Version 3.90.4e

Fixes

• For some dem types (USGS DEM and ASCII grid) we discovered that we had misinterpreted the way the start coordinates of the dem are given. This caused the heights to be offset slightly from their actual location (half a grid spacing in the east-west and north-south directions). This has been fixed.

Changes

• Added support for the NIMA DTED height data.
• Added additional parameters to the default.ozproj file for working with the user grid and projections, also added the ability to shift a DEM in the x and y directions (unrelated to the fix above) - see the Height Data web page or help for details.
• Added the option to turn ON and OFF the ability to read depth from the NMEA sentence. This is to allow for those cases where a GPS is outputting the depth sentence but the GPS is being used on land. This only affects the ability to read the DBT and DPT NMEA sentences, if your GPS does not output these sentences then this option has no affect. The option can be found on the Moving Map tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
• The MGRS grid can now be displayed as a grid on the map.
• ECW images can now also be imported using the "Import DRG" option on the Import menu, this provides the ability to specify the missing parameters.

Beta Version 3.90.4d

Fixes

• Fixed a problem when using USA 24K DEM's with old format headers.
• Also added the ability to use USA 24K DEM's which have line feeds at the end of each record.
• Fixed a problem when importing Arcview shape files which have null records.
• Fixed some problems with 16 color (4 bit) ozf files.

Changes

• Added the ability to use Grid Ascii and ArcView BIL height data files which are not in Lat/Lon. Most Grids (supported by OziExplorer) and datums can be used. This is handled by placing a special file called default.ozproj in the folder where the particular DEM files are stored. OziExplorer looks for this file as it scans the dems and uses the Grid, datum and zoned contained in the file. See the Height Data help (bottom of the page) on information on how to do this. (This should enable those New Zealanders trying to get some of their free data which is in the NZ grid and using the Geodetic Datum 1949 to work with OziExplorer (you need the Grid Ascii data files by the way).)
• USA 24K DEM's in Lat/Lon format can now be used - Canada DEM's appear to be in this format.
• Added the ability to select the map viewing window on the 3D Map Creation control.

Beta Version 3.90.4c

Fixes

• Fixed a problem when calculating height data for Ozi3D when using the filtering option.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.90.4b

Fixes

• Some USA 250K DEMS have a slightly different way of formatting fields in the header to the others. Ozi3D would reject these as not being valid even though they are - now fixed.
• Regional Map and Index Map would not properly load maps with a Transverse Mercator (User Grid) projection - fixed.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.90.4a

Bugs

• Removed some more track manipulation bugs put in by the previous version.

Changes

• Added the interface for Elevations and OziExplorer3D.
• Added the ability to use the function function key assignments while these windows have the focus, Navigation Control, Index Map, Name Search, Route Editor and the NMEA Output window.
• Added Blue and Gray to Night Vision colors
• Added Set Intensity (map brightness) button to the User Toolbar button and Function Key selections. This option allows you to cycle through the intensities at 10% intervals.
• The ability to create a Waypoint from a Track point has been added to the right click menu of an active Trackpoint.
• DRG Image Import will now assume that if there is a negative Northing in the georeference file (tfw,jgw,sdw etc) that the map is situated in the southern hemisphere and will subtract the Northing the 10,000,000 false Northing.
• On the Index map the currently loaded map is highlighted (where applicable).
• quite a few minor changes.

Beta Version 3.90.3h1

Bugs

• Removed some track manipulation bugs put in by the previous version (drag track point, insert trackpoint and edit track point position).

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.90.3h

Bugs

• Fixed the PVT problem when using serial port driver #2
• Fixed the "Start NMEA Communication with GPS" and "Stop NMEA Communication with GPS" menu options being enabled/disabled when they should not have been, this only occurred when using PVT mode.
• Fixed the DRG import bug introduced a couple of versions ago.
• Fixed the Map Projection combo box in map calibration, it was set to display too many options in the list causing it to scroll over the mouse causing a option to be selected. Only happened on 800x600 or smaller screens.
• other minor bugs.

Changes

• Fine tuned the Brunton / Silva GPS support, now much more reliable.
• More of the Open file dialogs can now be resized.

Beta Version 3.90.3g

Bugs

• More fixes for the Brunton / Silva support, mainly for route download.

Changes

• Added options to delete all waypoints and routes from the Brunton / Silva GPS.

Beta Version 3.90.3f

Bugs

• The Map Feature name in map feature properties was accidentally restricted to 10 characters, now fixed.
• E00 files could not be imported correctly, fixed.
• The Help link on the waypoint File Attachment dialog help button has been fixed.
• The waypoint file attachments for waypoint and route proximity's has been reworked. The route proximity attachments were not working properly at all and have been fixed.

Changes

• The Brunton / Silva support has been reworked for routes and should now be working properly. The help section for Brunton / Silva has been modified to include more information, particularly about the software version of the GPS.
• Added a new brighter icon to the exe file, the icon of a shortcut to OziExplorer can be changed by using the Change Icon button in the shortcut properties.

Beta Version 3.90.3e

Bugs

• The waypoint description in waypoint properties was accidentally restricted to 10 characters, now fixed.

Beta Version 3.90.3d

Bugs

• Windows XP - Fixed some problems caused by XP theme.
• other minor things

Changes

• The buffer length for NMEA strings has been extended from 80 characters to allow for radio modems (TNC's) which add characters in front of the standard NMEA sentence, the string was being truncated and the NMEA string was seen by OziExplorer as not valid.
• Added a Track reverse function on Track Control menu
• The Track Control now has an option on the More Options button to move any selected track direct to Track 1.
• Regional Map Window - has more window sizes available - and can be disconnected from tracking with the main map window so it can be scrolled independently. The tracking disconnect is on the right click menu on the regional map window.
• A button has been added to the User toolbar and Function Key selections to instantly clear track 1 (no warning given).
• Garmin Geocaching Symbols have been added to the list of Garmin Symbols, if your GPS supports them you will have to create a new OziExplorer symbol set for it by using the Create Symbol set button on the GPS tab in OziExplorer configuration.
• Moving map now has the ability to use User drawn pointers. Select User 1 , User 2 or User 3 options as the pointer types in the Pointer field on the Moving Map tab in OziExplorer configuration. An example file has been provided as a download.
• If the track files (or other files) attached to a map cannot be found at the link specified in the file OziExplorer will try to find them in the exe file path, data file path and so on.
• The Index map now has the ability to automatically hide itself when a map is opened, this option is on the drop down menu on the index map toolbar.
• MLR GPS support has had many changes and additional options added.
• Added the ability to set number of stop bits to Com settings (some MLR GPS receivers require this).
• Added support for Silva Multinavigator and Brunton Multinavigator GPS receivers.
• Added the VICMAP-TM grid (pseudo AMG), this is for maps produced by VICROADS of Victoria Australia. These maps can be imported using the Import / All DRG Maps on CD option. When asked specify the Datum as Australian Geodetic 1966 and the Map Projection as VICMAP-TM (no zone number needed).
• Added the 2 grids for Italy (Italy 1 and Italy 2).
• Waypoints can now have files attached to them for viewing or activation when entering a waypoint proximity or route waypoint proximity zone. This means that sound files (.wav) can be played and symbols displayed when entering these zones. There is a new button on the waypoint properties dialog called Attachments where the files can be specified. OziExplorer help has the full details. The attached files can now also be played and displayed by version 1.10.2 of OziExplorerCE, set the waypoints up in PC OziExplorer first.
  

Beta Version 3.90.3c

Changes

• The scroll bars have been removed from maps using MrSID images, this allows me to reduce the memory requirements (a design thing). MrSID images are  really too slow to scroll by using scroll bars anyway. Scrolling can be done by using the MapView window, double clicking on the map, the "drag map" option (the hand) on the toolbar or by holding down the Ctrl key and dragging with the mouse (the drag map option need not be active). If you really want scroll bars back put a file called sidscrollbar.dat in the oziexplorer folder and restart OziExplorer (if you get errors on loading a MrSID map remove it and see if you still get the errors)..
• Because MrSID images are slow to page there was a white flash as a new image page was loaded after a zoom level was changed, I have removed the flash by disabling the erase background action for the viewing area. Hopefully this will not affect other aspects of the code.
• A few resource leaks have been fixed in the MrSID code.
• A 75% zoom level has been added for ECW maps.
  

Beta Version 3.90.3b

Changes

• The MapView image was upside down and map printing was upside down when using the new MrSID image format. This only happened on win98/me. It hopefully is now fixed.
  

Beta Version 3.90.3a

Bugs

• Fixed a problem with the display datum not displaying grid coordinates correctly. This happened when the display datum was different to the map datum.

Changes

• The NMEA sentences output to the Autopilot are now selectable.
  
• Added support for the MrSID format. There are a few issues with this.

• The MrSID format seems to be slow at paging the image from disk, this is not related to the code in OziExplorer, as when using the same image, OziExplorer loads a page slightly faster than the MrSID Viewer software. There seems to be no way to speed this up.
• Therefore scrolling and zooming of the image will be slow as image pages a read from disk.
• The zooms available have been adjusted to suit the MrSID "native" zoom levels, these give clear images at these levels of zoom. If the zooms are not available in the SID image then the zoom will not work correctly at this stage.
• If you add a file called sidfull.dat to the oziexplorer folder (it doesn't matter what is in the file) and restart OziExplorer then it will load the SID image fully into memory (a lot of memory is required). Loading will be very slow but scrolling and zooming will be fast. Zoomed images and mapview will not be as clear.
• There are a couple of SID images (on the Australian NSW TopoView CD's) which OziExplorer cannot load (2 out of 1000+) but the MrSID Viewer can, it is not known why and there seems to be no way to fix this.

Release Version 3.90.3

Bugs

• Fixed a problem with the index map giving an access violation when many maps were clicked quickly.
• Fixed some minor problems with dialogs not displaying correctly when using large fonts.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.90.2a

Bugs

• Fixed autopilot bug not outputting to serial port when using the same port as the GPS.
• Closing the Area Calculation window no longer clears track 1 (it was not intentional).
• some other minor fixes

Changes

• Added an additional serial port driver to the code, the COM tab in configuration now allows a choice of 2 drivers. There is an increasing use of USB to Serial Port convertors being used on laptop computers. The quality of the drivers provided with some adapters makes it difficult to provide code which works with all of them. Two Serial Port Drivers which use different techniques are provided and either of them can be selected, there is a good chance that one of them will work. The driver that was used in previous versions is "Driver 1", the new driver is "Driver 2" which is the default driver.
• The "Save Map to Image File" option on the File Menu has been completely rewritten to reduce the resources required in win 95/98/ME. The map image is now saved in strips so the full image is never loaded and therefore a large windows "bitmap" object is not created.
• The map images are now saved in 24 bit color so they will be larger than the 8 bit color used in the previous version. The advantage of this is there will not be a problem with the palette when drawing waypoints, tracks and other OziExplorer objects on the image. If you want to use the saved images in OziExplorer you should use a program such as Paint Shop Pro or similar to convert them back to 256 colors.
• The Index Map now has an option on the drop down and right click menu to Refresh the Maps from the Search Path folder.
• The Index Map also has an option on the drop down and right click menu to "Highlight" the map polygons the cursor is hovering over.

Release Version 3.90.2

Changes

• nil

Release Version 3.90.1

Bugs

• Fixed problem with zoom window cross hairs not lining up with mouse cursor (for some graphics card models).
• Fixed import of Quovadis .cal files for the new versions of the cal file.

Changes

• nil

Release Version 3.90.0

Bugs

• minor fixes

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.85.8.1

Changes

• More changes have been made to Name Search. There is now the ability to search for names within a radius of a specified position. There are some other minor changes as well and a couple of bug fixes.

Beta Version 3.85.8.0

Bugs

• Fixed a bug in the Index map when there were more than 2000 maps to process.
• Found and fixed a resource leak, it showed mainly in the Index Map window as the window was resized but was in every window that has the extra button in the caption bar to "roll" the window up.

Changes

• No new features added just fine tuning of the Index map and Name Search.

Beta Version 3.85.7.8

Bugs

• Fixed a bug in the Regional Map window when using certain types of BSB charts.

Changes

• An Index Map function has been added, this allows you to display a small map in a window and see the borders of all the maps in specified folders drawn onto the map, see the help for full details.
• Nightvision support has been added for ECW maps.
• A button has been added to the top status line to allow the display datum to be adjusted.
• Datum selection has been added to all dialogs which display the position.
• Name Search has been refined a little more.
• The Track List now has a button to split and join track sections.

Beta Version 3.85.7.6/7

Bugs

• Fixed the problem of leaving the comm port open in the MLR support.
• some other minor bugs.

Changes

• A Name Search ability has been added. So far there is just a World cities database available for download, the ability to create databases from freely available names files on the internet will be available soon.
• Added Daylight Saving time support when converting from UTC to local time.
• The Map search dialog has been changed slightly.
• NMEA input processing has been adjusted to give more priority to altitude and gps fix information when using large map images. The problem was the info would not be updated as the map drawing was using all the available time.
• The help has been brought up to date (mostly).
• Versions from 3.85.7.4 have changes made to the handling of the "Tabs" of the map calibration panel and the configuration dialog to reduce the large amount of resources used by these screens as the tabs are clicked. This required a little bit of recoding, if these screens give problems such as missing settings please let me know.
• Added high speed binary track download for MLR GPS receivers.
• Added reading of the DPT (depth) NMEA sentence.
• Added a Points list, access the list from the Point Control.

Beta Version 3.85.7.4/5

Bugs

• Fixed a bug with the default waypoint symbol not being used correctly.

Changes

• If most people do what I do and move the map image files around all the time, the links to the map images stored in the map files soon get broken. A new page has been added in the configuration which allows you to specify various paths and drives and so on where the map images may be stored, see the config help for details.
• The distance the map scrolls per mouse click on the scrollbar arrows or when using the cursor keys can now be set in the configuration. Previous version had this fixed at 200 pixels.
• Modified the Garmin upload/download handling to make it more reliable under adverse conditions (poor cable contact, that sort of thing).
• Added the loading of track data files produced by the Compe-Gps software.

Beta Version 3.85.7.3

Bugs

• Fixed a problem with the serial port handling
• Fixed a minor problem with the track profile plot when attempting to view the profile of newly downloaded tracks.
• Some minor bugs in ECW handling

Changes

• nothing new thats usable yet.

Beta Version 3.85.7.2

Bugs

• Fixed track import from text files.
• Fixed problem with moving map using NMEA Only GPS setting.
• Fixed various format problems with the waypoint, event, map feature, map comment and track list.
• Other minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for MLR GPS Receivers.
• When printing maps the Track Line Width per unit trackwidth can now be specified on the print dialog.
• Img2Ozf.exe now supports ECW map images.
• Track files can now be loaded as points (useful for converting tracks to points to upload to a Magellan 315/320 as POI's using Datasend to create a crude map).
• The text for Magellan POI's for Datasend is now always saved in uppcase.

Beta Version 3.85.7.1

Bugs

• The Garmin Symbol Set Creator (added to the previous version) had a bug where it would not read the symbol set correctly if it was the last one in the file, now fixed.
• Fixed some of the default GPS parameters for the new Garmins.
• Other minor fixes.

Changes

• MAJOR CHANGE - The problem of working with ALL "USB to Serial port adapters" is still around. I have done a lot of experimenting with an adapter and have recoded the serial port handling to use the most basic windows API function calls available for serial input/output. I am hoping this will get around the problems/bugs/differences in the supplied drivers of many of the USB to Serial adapters. Of course this new code is also used for the standard serial ports as well. Please let me know if it does or does not work with your USB to serial adapter and of course if it does not work with standard serial ports.
• Added the symbol sets for the Garmin eTrex Legend, Venture and Vista, if they are not correct please let me know.

Beta Version 3.85.6.5

Bugs

• The saving of "new" map files indicated the map file was read only (even though it didn't yet exist), this was a bug introduced in the previous version, now fixed.
• Fixed a minor altitude reading problem when downloading waypoints from certain Garmin GPS receivers.

Changes

• Added entries for new Garmin models in the GPS models selection.
• Added the ability for the user to define the symbol sets used in OziExplorer for Garmin GPS receivers. This option is on the GPS tab of configuration and is a button called "create" immediately above the "GPS Symbol Set" combo box. Help is available on the Symbol Set Creator dialog which explains its functions.

Beta Version 3.85.6.4

Bugs

• Fixed an access violation error when editing track point properties from the track list.
• Fixed scale unit problem on the track profile, the scale would sometimes look like this.
  example 8.0  9.0  10  11  11  12  12  13

Beta Version 3.85.6.3

Bugs

• Fixed a rare naming problem when creating the map file names for Maptech charts.
• Fixed import problem when importing some BSB version 3 CD's.
• Fixed a minor bug when scrolling maps in the ECW image format.
• Fixed a bug that was introduced in 3.85.6.2 when plotting tracks as polygons or alarm zones, they were not placed correctly at zooms other than 100%.
• Editing of Track point times was in UTC instead of Local Time - fixed.
• Fixed some problems with MGRS grid entry.

Changes

• Now includes time and altitude upload/download for Magellan tracks for the new 315/320 software version. The date for each trackpoint is not provided with the download (only the time) so Oziexplorer assumes the date for each point is the download date (incrementing as the time flows over to the next day).
• The code for Magellan download from the GPS has been modified.
• The new D109 Waypoint format for the updated GPSMAP 162/168 and the StreetPilot 3 has been added.
• The window for selecting symbols for map features can be sized and remembers its position and size.
• The Refresh Map option on the map right click menu now clears the map find bullseye which is left on the map after using the Find Map at Cursor option..
• When searching for a more detailed map or the next map when in moving map mode and the image link in the map is not correct then this map can be ignored (you will not even know about it). This option is configurable and is on the moving map tab in configuration. Be careful when using this because if the map images are on a CD and a new CD is required you will NOT be prompted to change the CD and press the retry button.
• The track distance is now updated in the track control when you drag track points.
• NMEA input is now more flexible, it will look through the received string for a valid NMEA string and extract it, this is for reading input from TNC modems which may have placed a prefix on the NMEA string.
• The Swedish grid has been added to import map options and Shape File import and Exporting.
• Time is now an option for the x-axis on the track profile and you can now select the profile background color.
• Map Features can now have a default symbol set (do this on the Map Feature properties dialog).
• The Track Control has its buttons reorganized to stop some confusion, a new button has been added to save the track selected in the list. The height of the window can now be set and is remembered.
• The Point Control has similar changes to the Track Control.
• There is the ability to have manually created track points popup the track point properties dialog, useful for adding altitude information if clicking on contours. This button is on the track control.
• The export of waypoint text files now includes altitude.
• Import of Track text files has been added.
• The export of track text files now includes altitude and also includes extra calculated fields - the "track section number, the "distance between points in meters", the "time between points in secs", the "speed between points in meters/sec" and the "heading from the previous point". The extra fields are ignored when a track text file is imported and need not be included.
• The Import of ECW maps has been added but with the following limitations. The map projection must be based on UTM or Lat/Lon (geodetic). Only certain datums are supported during the import.
• Added the Plessis Ellipsoid

Beta Version 3.85.6.2

Bugs

• Fixed the Hide and UnHide options on the View menu.
• Fixed bug in the Track profile distance.
• Fixed display problem in Waypoint distance dialog and Route Print dialog (Spanish version only).
• Fixed problem in the Grid display where it would lock up when zooming (Spanish version only).

Changes

• Added MGRS and Maidenhead grids.

Beta Version 3.85.6.1

Bugs

• Fixed a couple of things in the Ozi API functions.
• many minor problems

Changes

• The Spanish version is ready for beta release and is available on the Spanish language version of the OziExplorer web page.
• The serial port communication library has been changed. This has improved GPS upload/download performance and hopefuly will fix most of the problems that have occured with serial port communication from time to time.
• Having to change the com timeout to speed up upload/download (com timeout setting is no longer required)
• May work better with USB to serial adapters.
• Because of the change in the communication library the GPS upload/download code has required some rewriting. It has had limited testing at this stage.
• NMEA serial input has also been rewritten.
• The memory buffer size for OziMC can now be specified manually.
• Added the the European 1950 (Spain and Portugal) datum.
• Added a horizontal scrollbar to the file list box on the Options dialog in Map Calibration and to the option lists on the user toolbar configuration dialog.
• In order to develop a Spanish version and also make changes for other types of map formats approximately 2500 to 3000 changes have been made to the source code. That is why it has been so long since the last development version was released. With so many changes bugs may have been introduced into previously working code.

Beta Version 3.85.5h

Bugs

• Many problems fixed in the France grids
• Blank map grid problem fixed when using different datum.
• For Garmins the Get and Send Routes button on the user Toolbar were not working correctly.

Changes

• For Magellans - enabled the sending and receiving of single route numbers from the Route Editor window.
• Magellan routes now download from the route number in the GPS into the same route number in the OziExplorer route list. This is a little tricky because Magellans treat the route number as a name (in the download protocols) but by checking this possibility (of receiving a name instead of a number) in the code it should work ok.
• Individual routes can now be moved up and down in the Route Editor - more functions are still to be added.
• Added Ozi API messages - Numbers 111, 160, 161 and 230.

Beta Version 3.85.5g

Bugs

• Fixed bug in Van Der Griten map projection.
• Some distance calculations fixed.
• The Track profile window size problem when first used has been fixed.
• The Track Profile would cause errors in win98 and 95 when large zooms were used, some checks have been added to correct this.

Changes

• Added a properties dialog for trackpoints, you can now edit the altitude, date/time and the position of an individual track point. The properties dialog can be accessed by double clicking or  right clicking an an active trackpoint or by using the track point list.
• Added the support for all document types to the Map Features. You have always been able to attach a bmp or jpg image to a map feature. You can now attach any document type, and when selected the document is passed to Windows and it will open it in whatever application is normally used in your system to open that document type. The best document type to use is HTML (web browser) as you can display images and text and link that document to any other document. 
• Added the loading the IGC track format for gliding, may need a bit more work yet.
• Added the France grids (I, II, III and IV) for the France maps. The calibrating of maps using these grids has special requirements and you should read the help that is available in the Map Related section of the help file. The use of this function has not yet been tested.
• There is now the ability to select the datum the coordinates are displayed in. The datum name is shown on the position display line, clicking on the datum name will allow you to select the datum to use. The 1st datum in the list is called "Map Datum" and this means the display datum will always match the map datum (and is the OziExplorer has always worked), otherwise select the datum of choice. The datum is saved and used the next time OziExplorer is loaded. Please note SO FAR this works only for the Position display, the object hints and the map grids, ALL OTHER lists, print outs and properties are STILL displayed in the map datum.

Beta Version 3.85.5f

Bugs

• The last version put a bug in the map comments object, it could not be dragged and the right click menu could not be activated, this has been fixed.

Changes

• A Track Profile option has been added, plot Altitude or Speed graphically against the Distance. It still requires a bit of work, printing perhaps, saving as an image. View / Tracks / Track Profile is the menu option. Also available from the Track Control (the More Options ... button) and is a configurable button on the "User" toolbar. There is help available by clicking on the Help button on the Track Profile dialog.

Beta Version 3.85.5e

Changes

• I was not happy with the waypoint calibration window so I changed it from a combo box to a list box for the waypoints. Also added the waypoint description to the list. The memory for the list of waypoints for the window is now dynamically allocated instead of taken as a chunk.
• When checking the calibration of a map sometimes a waypoint would cover where the calibration point should be so the point could not be added or moved. To overcome this if you click on the waypoint the calibration point is added where you click (through the waypoint), use the zoom window to position the mouse. However if the position is not correct remember you can hold down the shift key and use the arrow keys to move the calibration point position.
• A track filtering option has been added, View / Tracks / Track Filter Control is the menu option. Also available from the Track Control (the More Options ... button). There is help available by clicking on the Help button on the Track Filter Control dialog. The filters you setup can be saved and loaded, I have included a few examples in the zip with the exe file.

Beta Version 3.85.5d

Bugs

• The waypoint selection for calibration points was still not right, I have made many changes this time and it is getting better. It should work ok now - if not let me know.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.85.5c

Bugs

• Fixed a bug in the new waypoint selection for calibration points, the use of a "," as a decimal separator had not been allowed for. I also enchanced the display of waypoints in the list a little bit.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.85.5b

Bugs

• PCX5 export Altitudes are now in meters
• Uploading tracks to Garmins with a date of zero has been fixed.

Changes

• OziExplorer has now been converted back from the Delphi 5 compiler to Delphi 3. Delphi 5 caused slow operation and introduced many bugs, the bugs could be fixed but the slow operation was more the problem.
• You can now select the calibration point positions from a list of waypoints. The waypoints must be loaded before you enter the calibration screen, there is some help which can be accessed from the wp selection dialog.
• The track list now shows the Track Point ID, the same ID is shown in the hint for "active" trackpoints. This allows the points on the map and in the list to be matched. The point ID appears to be a point number but it is not, as an example if you insert a point in the middle of a track the point ID's will no longer be in order. The point ID is dynamic and is allocated as the track is loaded or a track point is created.

Beta Version 3.85.5a

Bugs

• Positions were sometimes displayed as "26 17 60.0" instead of "26 18 00.0", this should now be fixed.
• Other minor bugs.

Changes

• OziExplorer has now been converted from Delphi 3 to the Delphi 5 compiler, this may cause some problems, some have already been fixed but there may be more.
• Support for ECW map images has been improved, the images are now paged from disk on demand, this means quicker loading and much larger images can be loaded.
• The altitude is now saved in PCX5 export files.

Release Version 3.85.4

Bugs

• Minor bug in waypoint list and the editing of waypoints has been fixed.

Changes

• nil

Beta Version 3.85.3e

Bugs

• Fixed a problem in OziMC in the CreateOziMC.exe program. Selecting regions in OziSM smartmaps that bordered the zero longitude on the west side or bordered zero latitude on the south side would not be created.

Changes

• The timeout for Magellan downloading (from the GPS) has been increased from 3.5 secs to 10 secs. For some reason the Magellan 315/320 pauses during downloads when using 4800 Baud, the pause was just exceeding 3.5 secs so OziExplorer would indicate an error. I am not sure how long this problem has existed but it is only now being reported. When using 9600 Baud the pauses are very short and download proceeds normally.

Beta Version 3.85.3d

Bugs

• In configuration "Keep Map Zoom" was not being stored correctly, it was always set the same as "Keep Map Objects".
• Fix in AutoPilot output, longitude was missing a leading zero.
• Map file names (including path) were being limited to 120 characters (by error), this has been fixed, the length can now be up to 255 characters.

Changes

• Added the symbols for the Magellan map 330 and an option on the GPS selection. The symbols were created from a Faxed page of the manual so they maybe not quite correct in shape.
• Added an option on the GPS selection for the eTrex Summit.
• Added BWC sentence to Autopilot output.
• More changes to MIF file import to handle Mapinfo user datums.
• Added in the Norske datum for Norwegian Charts

Beta Version 3.85.3c

Bugs

• changed the version number this time
• If there are more than 9 calibration points (either from a map import or added to the .map file manually) they would be deleted when the map was saved from the calibration screen, this has been fixed.

Changes

• For BSB charts a setting has been added to change from the manufacturers calibration to the OziExplorer calibration (where applicable, not all BSB charts have a manufacturers calibration supplied). This setting is on the Option button in Map Calibration. This was done because, while it is rare, the manufacturers calibration can sometimes be in error.
• For BSB charts you are now allowed to change the corner markers if there are only 4 and you can adjust the calibration points if there are 9 or less.

Beta Version 3.85.3b

Bugs

• Major bug in "total route distance remaining" and ETE/ETA has finally been found and fixed.

Changes

• MapInfo MIF file import now can import files in the Transverse Mercator (including UTM) projection.
• E00 file import improved slightly.
• Tracks which have changed (from track 2 onwards) are now flagged and reported if you try to remove them without saving.
• Added some zoom button choices to the User Toolbar, added a "Full" zoom option to the right click map menu.

Beta Version 3.85.3a

Bugs

• Major bug in the previous development version 3.85.2z fixed, when changing to Blank map - any loaded waypoints did not have the datum translated when the blank map was created. If the waypoints were saved then or saved after another map was loaded then the waypoint positions could be corrupted depending on the datum used for the map and the datum used for the blank map. If the datums are the same then no corruption occurs, if the datums are different then corruption occurs. If the data is not saved then no corruption of the data files occur.
  
  It may be possible in some cases to "fix" the "corrupted" waypoint files by shifting the datum back. If you put a file called "dshift.dat" in the oziexplorer folder (it doesn't matter what is in the file) and restart Oziexplorer a Datum Shift option will appear at the bottom of the map menu. Example - if your map is in NAD 27 and the Blank map is in NAD 83 (WGS84) and your waypoints were saved and the positions in the file are now corrupted then load the original map (you must be able to see some of the waypoints in the incorrect position, select the Datum Shift option. Select the datum as WGS84 (or the same datum that you have set for the blank map when the corruption occured). Shift the datum in the forward direction, the waypoints will move (hopefully into the correct spot). The shifting can be done as many times as required in any direction. If you can get them into the correct spot save the file.
  
• Some fixes to shape file import.
• Fixed datum bug in waypoint append to wpt file
• Fixed the access violation error that occured on the map find dialog when selecting a map.

Changes

• NOTE - This version has changed the way the Function keys assignments are stored in the ini file - you will need to reconfigure your Function Keys. This change was done to allow for the new custom toolbar option.
• Added a user customizable toolbar, this still needs a bit more development but works ok.
• Added Wagner IV and Bonne map projections.
• Added some more map projections to BSB import (Albers and Wagner IV).
• The mark (target) that appears on the map when looking in the track list or "Finding a Map at the Cursor" is now removed when - the track list is closed - or a new map is opened from a menu option.
• Mapinfo (mif) file import has been improved, it can now import, lines, polylines, rectangles, ellipse, arcs and points.
• Added E00 file import, a little bit experimental.
• The Close Map option on the File menu now closes the map (in fact loads a blank map) and closes all the data files, The Blank Map option on the Map menu loads the blank map and keeps the data files loaded.

Beta Version 3.85.2z

Bugs

• The printing of grid lines could cause the lines to be disjointed (bits missing), this hopefully has been fixed. Note that printing UTM gridlines will still be disjointed (or misaligned) where they cross a zone boundary, this is just a fact of life.
• minor fixes.

Changes

• Added support for the ECW image format. This format provides very high compression, see www.ermapper.com , there is a free image converter available. It is a lossy compression format, the higher the compression the smaller the file but the worse the image will look.
• The Date/Time and Altitude are now uploaded in the track for the Garmin eMap, eTrex and similar models, of course not all models will accept the date/time.
• When using the Track Point List the currently selected Track Point is marked on the map.
• Waypoints and Events can now be marked by drawing a box around them, there is a new menu called "Edit" which has various options. The marked waypoints or events can be deleted or saved. The Mark Control can be used to do the same tasks as the menu options.
• All waypoints within a specified distance of another waypoint can be marked.
• The lower scale limit for map printing has been lowered to 1:500 (from 1:5000), only down to 1:1000 is shown in the combobox for scale, you must enter lower values manually. Using such low values on maps at larger scales can cause large number of pages (which OziExplorer will warn about) or may even cause numeric overflows.
• 24bit Color TIFF files can now be used - please note that these are fully loaded into RAM not paged from disk as the 8bit color TIFF images are. For large images the amount of RAM and other resources required required can be a factor in whether the images can be used or not.
• Selecting the "Blank" map no longer automatically removes the waypoints, tracks etc, it is now treated the same as any other map.
• There is now the ability to add the date/time to track points for tracks that do not have them provided the track was collected at a set time interval (optionis on track control).
• There is a new option on the Waypoint List to "Append" the selected waypoints to any waypoint file.
• There are now zoom buttons (+) (-) for increasing and decreasing the zoom level below the Zoom combo box on the Toolbar.
• The NMEA input can now be displayed. This uses the old AutoPilot output window which has now been renamed to "Show NMEA Input & Output" and moved to the Moving Map menu.
• The size of the grid line labels when printing can now be specified.
• Shape files (.shp) can now be imported even if there is no DBF file with them.
• Img2Ozf Utility
• Fixed a color problem with PNG Images
• Fixed a memory leak, the more images that were processed in a session the more RAM that was used.
• Deletes the temp file (.$$$) when the processing is done
• More meaningful text in the status line as the image is processed
• Saves the various settings of zoom levels etc.

Release Version 3.85.2

Bugs

• If the name of a MapTech PCX or RML chart had a ":" in the name then the Oziexplorer Map file was not created.
• The Waypoint and Event lists did not print the position correctly in deg/min mode, the minutes came out as 000000 instead of the correct number, one of those last minute changes programmers promise themselves they will never do.
• PCX5 waypoint import was not getting the description field.
• The Track Replay window will now Show and also Hide when it is attached to a Function Key.
• Deleting track points from the track list would cause an error if the track was not number 1.

Changes

• The Regional map window now shows the name of the loaded map.

Release Version 3.85.1

Bugs

• OziMC addon - Fixed a bug in saving features if the save was selected from the "Yes/No/Cancel" dialog if the Cancel Edit button was selected.
• If there was a large amount of free disk space on the drive where Oziexplorer was installed it was being determined that there was not enough free space on the drive (negative number returned) so the oziexp.ini file was put in the "Windows or Winnt" folder instead of the oziexplorer folder.
• Fixed a printing bug, Map Features would not print in correct color (just blackish).

Changes

• Changes were made to support the new "ozf2" image format - it is essential that this version of Ozi be used if using ozf2 files. To use the OZF2 format you need the download the Img2Ozf.exe program from the Optional Extras section of the web page. See the help link on the Image Formats Supported help section, this is under the Map Related section.

Release Version 3.85

Bugs

• Very large Tif files could not be saved to an image, they generated an integer overflow, now fixed.
• When trying to save very large tracks into OziMC, an exception was generated (a buffer overflowed), this buffer has now been doubled in size.
• Importing DRG maps using Albers projection only worked for the first map in a multi import.

Changes

• There is now a configuration option to select if Bearings are in True or Magnetic.
• Some adjustments have been made to the Quovadis map import to support the UTM option in QuoVadis map calibration.

Beta 3.83.m

Bugs

• Manually created track points had their time set as local time instead of UTC time.

Changes

• Due to popular demand the blank map is no longer automatically loaded on program startup.
• Due to popular demand the Map Find dialog now has an option to close it automatically when a map is selected.
• The warning message if HTML help is not available has been modified in the way it is shown. Also if HTML help is not supported you will not see blank dialogs where the "startup" help would have been.
• Sorting a large number of POI's caused a "Stack Overflow", adjustments have been made to stack size and some other minor changes.
• If you are using the Depth (reading the DBT NMEA sentence) it is now displayed with 1 decimal point.

Beta 3.83.k

Bugs

• When a track with active points was moved from Track 1 the active points were left active, this has been fixed the points are made inactive just before moving.
• When Changing Symbols for some Garmins using the waypoint list the changed symbol was not correct.
• The Maptech map import was not correct if the map crossed the 180 deg longitude or if it used a Polyconic projection, both problems fixed (I think).
• Exporting Waypoints using the USER Grid used the wrong User grid parameters, now fixed.

Changes

• When using the POI Manager if there were any invalid bmp files in the Dsymbols folder an error message would be generated, this has now been altered and the invalid bmp files are simply ignored. The Dsymbols.zip file contained a couple of invalid bitmaps, this has been fixed, delete all files in the dsymbols folder and download the dsymbols again. You may have had .nic files in the folder, these are no longer required.
• The Info Dialog (Button on Toolbar) now includes a few additional items.

Beta 3.83.h

Bugs

• Waypoint projection in Nautical Miles was incorrect.

Changes

• The Date and Time for track points is now read from Waypoint+ text files instead of using the PC Date/Time.
• Added the Van Der Grinten map projection.
• Added Range Rings around moving map position, see the new Range Ring Setup option on the Moving Map menu.
• Show/Hide Range Rings has also been added to the Function Key configuration options.
• The NMEA depth sentence DBT has been added to the NMEA input processing and will be automatically read if available. If found the Altitude will change to Depth.
• When selecting the GPS as "NMEA Only" in configuration a "GPS - NMEA Only" menu will be made available. There is an option to send waypoints to the GPS in the NMEA WPL sentence format, many GPS receivers can accept uploaded waypoints in this format. There is also an option to receive waypoints in the same format "WPL" (if the GPS can be configured to output its waypoints in this format), these options needs a little more work to allow other "non-standard" NMEA sentences to be used.
• If you are importing a USA USGS DRG map with just a tfw file and the map image name is in the standard USGS format (example O43107C4.TIF) then OziExplorer will work out the correct UTM Zone number to use from the file name and put it in the Zone field of the DRG Import Options dialog as the default.
• There are some map images supplied as jpg files with an additional .jgw file, the jgw file is the same as a tfw file, OziExplorer will now use this file automatically if it exists.

Beta 3.83.g

Bugs

• Fixed the GPF (in User.exe) which occured when exiting the program. This was related to not closing (in the code) an embedded HTML help window before exiting.

Changes

• Regional Map loading has now been modified so if the map image is not found in the location specified in the .map file then it looks in the same folder as the .map file, basically this is now the same as the loading of a map for the Main Map window.
• A couple of users report the symbols for waypoints will not print, the cause cannot be found (may be specific printer related). Some changes have been made but this may not help. The "old" version symbol printing can be activated by placing a file called "nopcanvas.dat" into the folder where oziexplorer is installed, is does not matter what is in the file.
  

Beta 3.83.f

Bugs

• The Waypoint, Track, Map Feature, and Map Comment lists did not refresh when the map was changed, now fixed.
• The Route name was being saved with 14 characters instead of 16, now fixed.

Changes

• Added the ability to use PNG map images in the regional map window (an oversight).
• Added the ability to change the Garmin Display Format of selected waypoints in the waypoint list.

Beta 3.83.e

Bugs

• Fixed yet another bug in DRG import, the UTM Zone was read incorrectly from geotiffs.

Changes

• Version 3.83.e reduces the windows resources required by a factor of 2 over the previous version.
  Version 3.83.d   System = 27   User = 8  GDI = 38
  Version 3.83.e   System = 10   User = 8  GDI = 21
• The Windows HTML Help OCX (hhctrl.ocx) is not loaded until help is used for the 1st time.
• Added a note about HTML Help which is displayed if your system does not support HTML Help.

Beta 3.83.d

Bugs

• Fixed another bug in DRG import, the datum was always being set to NAD 27 CONUS regardless of the real datum

Changes

• Added the ability to use BSB charts (.kap images) in the regional map window. This was an oversight.
• Added another formatting option to the Grid Line display, you can now specify only the last 3 digits be displayed. Only the last 3 digits are displayed if they are not 000, if the grid number is an even multiple of 1000 (last 3 digits are 000) then it is displayed as example - 243* where the full number would be 243000. This lets you work out the full coordinate number.

Beta 3.83.c

Bugs

• Fixed a bug in formating the lat/lon fields if using decimal degrees and are using a comma as a decimal separator in regional settings.
• When deleting track points from the track point list, deleting an already deleted point caused an exception error - fixed.
• Fine tuning to DRG import - new geotiff tag supported - map datum and zone (if found) is now passed through to the "DRG Import Defaults" dialog as the defaults.
• Fixed bug in Shape File import/export which caused map calibration to be corrupted (depends on map projection used).

Changes

• The Delete key will now delete a track point in the Track Point List.
• In Shape file export of Waypoints the Date/Time is saved in the AUX1 field and the Altitude (in feet)  is saved in the AUX3 field.
• When using Alt K to add a waypoint in moving map mode the Altitude is now saved with the waypoint.

Beta 3.83.b

Bugs

• Fixed a bug in the alarm zones, they would not display using the correct polygon fill.
• Importing New Zealand maps using a tfw file in NZMG had an error - now fixed.
• Saving the image of a Maptech PCX or RML chart did not work correctly.
• The Altitude in the Object hints was not always correct, the string used was too short and the altitude number was truncated - now fixed.
• Fixed a rare bug in the Garmin download protocol code which gave a checksum error when no error existed.
• Fixed a bug in the download of Routes from the Garmin eMap (and other models which use the D202 protocol). Only 1 route would be downloaded.
• Fixed a bug in Points files attached to the map, this would sometimes produce an exception error, caused by unitialized variables.

Changes

• Added the use of PVT output for Garmin GPS receivers which support it. The option to turn this on is on the Comm Tab in OziExplorer Configuration.
• Added the ability to save the map grid default configuration, there is now a default button on the Grid Configuration dialog. When ever the Grid Config dialog is displayed for a map where a grid is not already configured the defaults will be entered automatically (if you have saved defaults), all you have to do is turn the grid on.
• Added the ability to display the Grid (on the map grid) without the meters - example 1273000 can now display as 1273 - there is a new option on the Grid Configuration dialog.
• When using Moving Map mode with a Magellan 315/320 (and most likely other Magellan models) they would indicate a Heading of 0 degrees when they were moving at zero velocity (regardless of the last heading). OziExplorer now traps this and will use the last heading whenever the velocity returned from the GPS goes to zero.
• The sorting of POI names was based on just using the 1st 3 characters of the name. This was done to speed up the sorting. Apparently this caused problems with the Magellan GPS 315/320 find function. The sorting now uses the whole name.
• The tracklist now changes dynamically to show the track selected in the track control list.
• The width of the Route lines can now be changed in configuration - see the Objects tab.
• Added Delete Waypoints, Tracks etc for Magellans, the new options are on the Magellan Menu.
• Added "Vertical Near-Side Perspective" and "Lambert Azimuthual Equal Area" Map Projections.
• Added support to import PCX5 files which use the UTM position format.
• The DRG import has been rewritten. Basically it will still work the same but has many internal changes, it can now automatically use the new format FGD files.

Beta 3.83.a

Bugs

• Sometimes the Waypoint colors would not work correctly, fixed
• OziMC caused extra points to be added to a feature when saving, changes have been made to the save routine.
• There was a minor bug in the Load BSB function (sometimes produced garbage lines in image), corrected.
• Printing Lat/Lon grid on a map would sometimes not work correctly, grid woulf not appear, now fixed.
• Navigating along a route with same wp in more than once would not work, now fixed.
• If the same wp was in route twice the route would not draw correctly when it was the active navigating route, now fixed
• Autopilot operation did not work correctly if serial port was shared with GPS and Autopilot, now fixed.
• Many,many others.

Major Changes

• New Garmin support, eMap and eTrex.
• The Garmin upload/download code has been rewritten quite a bit.
• New GPS configuration screens which make it easier to select the correct model GPS.
• For Magellans with POI's only - the ability to add and edit the POI's from the Datasend CD has been added, see the Datasend help.
• There is now a new object in OziExplorer called a Point, this object defines a point in space and has a name and some other properties. Points belong to a set of points which also has properties. The number of points which can be displayed is unlimited. There is a new Point Control dialog to manage Point Sets. See the Point help for full details.
• Mapcreate Names in can now be used in OziMC, you also need the new version of CreateOziMC.exe.
• Maptech RML and PCX charts (.HDR) can now be imported and used. You need to download the necessary dll's as well from the web site.
• QuoVadis Navigator maps on CD can be imported. Tested with the Africa and Canada maps.

Other Changes

• Symbol sets have been added for most Magellan models.
• The full Symbol set for Garmins has been added for GPS receivers such as the III+, 12Map, StreetPilot and its cousins, eMap, eTrex, and others. These symbols incorporate some color. Please note that the foreground and background colors of these symbols cannot be changed in the property dialogs of waypoints etc.
• Export and Import ESRI (ArcInfo) Shape files for points, polylines and polygons..
• New Track Control, with some new options such as the ability to move tracks between track numbers.
• Track List with Speed, Altitude, Heading and Distance etc
• Speed, Altitude, Heading, Distance travelled on Track replay
• Tracks can now be displayed as polygons (filled in various ways).
• Alarm Zones can be created and attached to a map. Alarm zones a re just a special type of filled track.
• Lock Mapfind to Current map folder, only searches the folder where the currently loaded map was loaded from.
• Attach tracks and point sets. The attaching of track files to the map no longer has a limit of 3000 points, you can now attach up to 50 tracks. The new object Point Sets can also be attached to a map, limit of 50 files also.
• The NMEA communication is no longer stopped when a new map is loaded.
• New Moving Map centering item - it provides centering with more view ahead in direction of travel.
• Button on Moving Map control to suspend centering of map. This allows you to move around on the map manually and also load a different map if required.
• There is a new option on the file menu to allow the changing of the  Image file for current map.
• There is a new option on the file menu to change Image file path for all maps in a folder.
• The default properties for all objects (Waypoints etc) are now set by a default button their properties dialogs.
• Now loads OziCE track and waypoint files correctly.
• Waypoint projectiion now does in UTM projection to simulate the same method used if you were projecting the points manually on a UTM map.
• Waypoint projection also allows you to project a new trackpoint from the last trackpoint.
• DRG import can now use the georeference information from geotiff files, you need the Ozigeotiff.dll file
• The Track Hints (turned on in the Track Control) now include Date, Time, Distance, Speed, Heading.
• If there is room in the map image palette of your map images then the standard Oziexplorer palette is added into the palette of the images, for TIFF, BSB  and JPG images. The saving and printing of the Map Image should now get the colors correct.
• TIF and BSB maps/charts can be fully loaded into RAM (instead of paged from disk) by including control files in the Oziexplorer folder, see Special Keys and Stuff help.
• More command line options, see Special Keys and Stuff help.
• The Hook for Moving Map position to be sent from other 3rd party programs has been modified to allow the position to be sent to OziExplorer via the clipboard, this is to stop the disk drive from being continually accessed on laptops. There is a new example mmFile program to demonstrate the technique.
• Holding the Shift key down and using the Arrow keys moves the nouse cursor by pixels, this allows the cursor to be positioned accurately for setting of waypoints etc.
• If the Toolbar is hidden it now remains hidden the next time Oziexplorer is started.
• Regional Map window improved slightly, can be changed in size, right click on the regional map window for menu..
• The size waypoints,map features and events can be specified when being printed on a map.
• Zoom window can now be activated from the Calibration window.
• The display of corner markers for the map neat line can now be turned on on the main calibration screen instead of having to go into the options dialog.
• Whwn creating new waypoint on the map, the automatic name generation will make sure a name is not selected which is already used by the loaded waypoints.
• The route selected in the route editor is now plotted on top of the other routes and in a wider pen
• The track selected in the Track Control is now plotted on top of the other tracks and has each track point position highlighted.
• Map comments are now resized when zooming.
• There have been many other minor changes.

Beta 3.81.c

Bugs

• The PCX5 file exporting (which has only been done for exporting to Mapsource, PCX5 is too strict on file version numbers) had a problem with altitude. Also Mapsource seems to have a problem with reading the file unless the altitude is -9999, so the altitude is now always written as -9999 into the file. Anyway it should work better now.

Changes

• Many users have had problems with the new html help system with the help components being out of date, a link has been provided to the the help file component upgrade from Microsoft.
• The html help system of course requires the engine of Internet Explorer be installed, some users have removed IE from their systems so the help will not function. The "old" Oziexplorer help system has now been compiled into a separate program which can now be downloaded and installed into the directory where you installed Oziexplorer. Version 3.81.c of Oziexplorer will detect it and automatically use it instead. Of course you do not get the searching, index, or better printing of the new html help.

Beta 3.81.b

Bugs

• Using the Route Editor buttons, deleting or moving a waypoint in a route calculated the distances between the waypoints incorrectly, now fixed.
• The track move had a problem moving a track when the map was zoomed, an oversight now corrected.
• The date reading code on file import has been slightly adjusted, this may remove a problem with the dates when importing waypoint files.
• The upload of routes to the Magellan NAV6000 has been modified so it may now work.

Changes

• The help system has been moved into windows html help (the standard system), this allows the usual help functions including full text search. The help system will be further improved in the near future.
• There is now a new feature which allows you to assign functions to the function keys (F2-F12), the option is on the File menu just below configuration.
• There are now save buttons for all the major file types on the main screen, there is also a button to save all the files as well.
• Options have been included to write PCX5 data files for waypoints and tracks, these options are on the Garmin menu.
• There is now an option on the active track point right click menu to delete a track point and split the track at the same time.
• Deleting marked active trackpoints using the button on the track control now splits the track instead of joining the remaining track point sections together.

Beta 3.81.a

Bugs

• A bug in the mmFile hook has been removed.
• A bug in PCX5 import not getting the descriptions has been fixed.
• Getting routes from the Magellan NAV6000 has been adjusted, notice I didn't say fixed, need to test this one.
• minor fixes

Changes

• Track Replay has been extensively enhanced, can now track the movement, load next map, replay any track number etc.
• More windows now remember their positions (track replay, zoom, mapview, route editor, track control and NMEA Simulator). On some of the windows you need to open the window and close it to get it to remember the position.
• Waypoint export has been changed slightly, there is a new format exclusively for Waypoint+, the datum is fixed to WGS84. This exports in the same way as the Text File option on the Garmin menu.
• It is now possible to export tracks, this needs to be enhanced a bit more yet. The format for Waypoint+ also applies here.
• It is now possible to open many tracks at once, simply select multiple files in the file open dialog. The tracks are opened into tracks 1 to 30 (a max of 30).
• New Datums have been added to the list. Pulkovo 1942 (there a 2 datums for this one (1) & (2) as there are 2 different formats available). Pulkovo 1942 (1) is used for QuoVadis maps. S42, Israeli and Rijksdriehoeksmeting (Dutch) datums have also been added.
• Altitude is now included in the Waypoint properties editor.
• There is now a Track Moving feature. You can move a track around pixel by pixel to position it correctly and then save it. You can move by the complete track or just "active" track points. See "Track Move Control" option on the View Menu or the Track Control.
• There is now the ability to include input (depth) from an echo sounder (depth sounder) using the DBT sentence. There is a "hook" program OziSounder.exe which reads the input from a serial port and transfers the sentence to OziExplorer using a file hook. The OziSounder program can be downloaded from the web site. To use this you need a sounder which outputs NMEA and 2 serial ports, 1 for GPS and one for sounder.
• The Save to Bitmap option has been enhanced to also include the png format. ... About time, no more 50Mbyte BMP's...
• The display waypoint with comment has been changed from just the first 16 characters to the full description.
• It is now possible to specify the position a map automatically opens to, see the "Save Map Position" option on the map menu.
• A selection of User Grids have been added to the User Grid (Transverse Mercator) dialogs. Select the grid from the combo box and it fills in the parameters for you.

Version 3.80.4

Changes

• The zoom window could cause GPF's (crash) in certain Graphics Cards (Savage (S3 chip set), Asus 3400, Asus 3800 (possibly certain other TNT2 chip set cards) and others) , this was actually caused by bugs in the graphics card drivers but by recoding the zoom window the particular circimstance which caused the crash could be avoided.
• When using large images (usually in PNG format) the mapview window would be blank. This problem should now be fixed. A similar problem exists on the main map when zooming to say 10% (same cause), I don't intend to fix this as I don't feel it is important enough to change the main map code.
• A problem has been fixed where loading waypoints which have negative latitudes less than 1 degree on the blank map would not be displayed (calibration was calculated incorrectly).

Version 3.80.3

Changes

• Fixed very minor bug where trying to print a selected area of the map if you had not actually selected an area gave a program error, it now generates a suitable message.

Version 3.80.2

Changes

• Fixed bug where lat/longs which were between 0 and -1 were not exported correctly.

Version 3.80.1

Changes

• Minor fix to mapfind search to locate small maps closer to current map, that is immediately adjacent. There was a possibility these small maps could be skipped over in the search.

Version 3.80

Changes

• One minor change to the Grid Display setup, The save button wording becomes red when changes are made indicating that you need to save the changes and the dialog displayed when the save button was pressed has been removed.
• Added ability to use comm ports 5 and 6.

Beta 3.73h.5

Bug Fixes

• Major bug fixed in OziMC multipolygon editing for World maps. The regions are much larger than smartmaps and caused a variable overflow in the IntersectLine function which caused the check to see if the track was in the polygon not to be correct. As usual with these types of bugs only some regions are affected.

Changes

• In Grid Setup window changing the AutoScale checkbox now redraws the grid so you can see the changes if you have the map zoomed when changing the grid spacings.

Beta 3.73h.4

Bug Fixes

• Minor problem with new track point button in the track control not deactivating correctly
• Grid labels not displaying the degrees correctly ( 17 degrees being displayed as 15 degrees etc) was found to be in my rounding logic and only happened for negative degree values.
• Minor problem with comma as decimal separator fixed for grid label display.
• Route properties adding waypoints in reverse order, it took a lot of skill for me to do that, has been fixed (I hope).

Changes

• GPS Fix Data form, Distance Display form now remember their last position.
• Arrows added to route properties form to allow waypoints to be moved up and down in a route.
• ^M (moving map control), ^N (navigation control), Alt S (nmea simulator) now display and remove the forms.

Beta 3.73h.3

Bug Fixes

• Importing of Albers projection maps required a UTM zone to be entered even though it was not required, now fixed.
• Minor problem with grid line colors being incorrect in some circumstances, fixed.
• Scrolling with the left and right arrows caused the grid labels not to draw correctly, fixed.
• Fixed problems with "saving maps to bitmap", some colors wrong, labels not drawn for grids etc.

Changes

• When importing Map Features and Map Comments, the positions are translated from the datum in the .map file to the datum of the map currently loaded as indeed they should be.
• Waypoints can now be projected with a True or Magnetic Bearing.
• When in moving map mode the screen is redrawn continuously causing the objects especially the grid to be redrawn. This really cannot be avoided, but changes have been made to only redraw the screen when the position on the map has changed, this may eliminate some of the redrawing. This change was actually in 3.73h.2 as well.

Beta 3.73h.2

Bug Fixes

• minor fix in grid refresh after check calibration of map.

Changes

• Changed the palette handling for screen drawing back to the old method as the default.
• Changed grids so there will be a maximum of 200 drid lines drawn vertically and horizontally, this is to prevent an excess number of lines being drawn (screen gets filled with color) and control being lost. This still allows grids to be placed very close if desired.
• Changed Oziexplorer .map import so the image file does not have to be with the map file, the image file is now searched for but it naturally must be on the same CD (or disk).

Beta 3.73h.1

Notes

The new features added have required code changes to some "core" functions, this may introduce bugs into these functions which have been working ok. Please report any bugs you find in this version.

Bug Fixes

• MapView when loading B&W tifs with CCITT compression were distorted, now fixed. Had to change code in the general tiff loading area, hope it hasn't affected anything else. CCITT is not a good compression to use, change to huffman and you will see a performance boost (B&W images only).
• The route printout now includes the name of the route file and the waypoint file instead of the waypoint file in the wrong place.
• The lockup if deleting the only event from the event list is fixed.
• The date entry has been fixed and should now work with all date formats in regional settings.
• The logging of track data (to file mmTrack.plt) was logging the positions in the map datum but WGS84 in the file header, this caused the data to be incorrectly translated when loaded, now fixed, all positions are saved in WGS84.
• Importing waypoints did not work if the format string (in the file) was not in uppercase, now fixed.
• many more minor things.

Changes

• New map printing options - print a selected area, print a specific number of pages wide/deep. The help has been updated with the changes.
• The Grid display option is in this version, it was very complicated to code, see the help for the details.
• There is now the ability to import OziExplorer .map files from a CD to a Hard Drive, the image file path is changed to the path where the original map file was located and the files are changed from read only. This option is on the File/Import menu.
• DRG import options - Other image formats can now be used not just TIF, recurses through the subdirectories and finds all maps, can import Albers projection maps, default Datum and Zone can be specified. Default datum, default zone and the Albers projection only applies to maps which only have the TFW file.
• Changes to the way the map screen is redrawn to try and get around bugs in some graphics card drivers. If this causes problems there is a way to get the screen redrawn using the old method.
• Map Comments can now have size, colors etc saved as the default, this is done using the new button on the map comment properties dialog.
• You can now import Map Features and map Comments from another Oziexplorer map onto the currently loaded map, this option is on the File/Import menu. Its a bit basic at the moment. It will reject them if they are not actually on the map so it is safe to import form a map which covers a larger extent.
• There is now an option to close the comm port on all the GPS model menus. This allows you to close the port so you can use the port with other software without having to close Oziexplorer.
• Route Editor in Route Properties now has enhanced features for adding waypoints to the route, add selected, insert selected etc.
• In the waypoint list the delete key can be used to delete waypoints.
• The finding of new Maps when in moving map mode can now be restricted to just the directory where the currently loaded map is stored. The default setting can be set in Moving map configuration and there is a new button on the Moving map control to change the option "on the fly".
• A new waypoint can now be created by projecting from an existing waypoint, distance and bearing are required, option is on waypoint right click menu.

Old History