Newbie...Can I put a route from Google Maps into the TomTom One LE?

[wraith81]

I frequently travel to my parents house in Texas from Oklahoma. I take the route that Google Maps provides because it has proven to be the fastest. The TomTom is taking me on a longer route mileage-wise and time-wise. I've tried to use the "alternate route" option but it takes me several other flaky ways.

On another note, I used it last night to go to a Circuit City in my town. I took it off route on purpose to see how it handled the re-routing. It was terrible. When I has literally right across the street from the place it was telling me to turn up another road and take a longer route to the store.

 

[Three3]

Yes, you can create an itinerary on google maps and transfer it to your TomTom. It's a great way to plot out a route your way rather than TomTom's.

A TomTom user in Europe has set up a great script at http://houghi.org/tomtom that talks you through the process. English is clearly his second or third language, so it's just a bit hard to follow, but once you figure it out it works great.

Summarized, you first go to google maps at http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d. Create a route the way you want it to be, which is pretty easy with google's drag and drop facility. Then, and this is important, you have to zoom in close to the start and end points and move them just the very slightest bit. An inch or so (on the ground) is sufficient. This apparently causes google to record their lat/long in the proper form. Then click "Link to this page," copy the resulting link, paste it into the box at houghi.org, and click Make ITN.

This will produce an ASCII readable .ITN file. You could further edit it in Notepad if you wish, perhaps to modify the names of the various points along the way. Then copy the resulting file into the itn folder on your TomTom. You can do this simply through the normal Windows file handling facilities. No need to fire up TomTom Home.

One caution. Google and TomTom use different routing algorithms. Just because you set up a bunch of waypoints with google that product the route you want to take, TomTom might have its own idea regarding how to navigate between them. If this happens, go back to google and drop in a few more points along the way to force TomTom to do it your way.

 

[Three3]

After you get this under control, you might want to look at the Reverse Itinerary script at http://www.webazar.org/tomtom/reverseitn.php?lang=uk. Another great piece of third party work by a TomTom user in Europe. You give it an itinerary that you've sweated over till it's just the way you want it to be, and it flips it around backwards so that you can drive home the same way.

 

[wraith81]

Thank you very much for your recommendations. I'll give it a shot when I get home tonight and see how it does. Is this just a problem with the TomTom map system or would I possibly have this problem with other GPS units? I'm not very educated on the different brands yet and I'm not sure if they all pretty much use the same systems or what.

In general though, I'm happy with the features and ease of use of the system.

 

[Three3]

Is this just a problem with the TomTom map system or would I possibly have this problem with other GPS units?

Anybody's routing algorithm will route you their way, not yours. These won't necessarily be the same. TomTom for example seems to love to have people drive across the George Washington Bridge, even if they don't want to cross the Hudson River!

What could be different among different units is how they let you modify the route. TomTom restricts you to one alternate, and if that's not enough then you have to build an itinerary. Others might handle this differently. But regardless of how they handle this, making fine graphic adjustments on a small screen with a fat finger is never a satisfying process. That's why I prefer to do it with something like google maps that allows for much simpler and more precise interaction.

 

[lec510]

You can also do it with Tyre Google Maps or Google Earth.

 

[wraith81]

So, in the $300 range of GPS units, would you personally still buy the tom tom or would you go with another brand? I realize this is a tom tom forum, but in your personal experience, which units have performed the best for you?

 

[VetteMemphis]

I've been following this thread and, after a few goof-ups, managed to get our European friend's site to creat an .itn file which I saved to a folder (pc).

I have an early version of XP and can't figure out how to open the folder.

Suggestions? Thanks.

 

[Three3]

If your TomTom is properly connected to your PC (i.e. if you are able to run TomTom Home), then clicking My Computer should show TomTom as a removable drive, most probably with the next available drive letter on your machine. Click into that and then into the folder called itn.

One thing I failed to mention about the on-line script--I found that it seems to add a bit of garbage after the final line. So I usually open the file in Notepad and delete anything beyond the carriage return that ends the actual last line of the itinerary.

There is a long thread about this procedure, started by the guy who wrote the script. You might find more info there. https://www.tomtomforums.com/showthread.php?t=2743

 

[VetteMemphis]

Thank you.

I've been able to use tt/home but I don't speak programming language (am barely a user) and all this is rather confusing.

I'll take your suggestion regarding the "my computer" method.

After having built a good route with lots of intermediate points in google maps, I copied the 'url' into word but it is WAY beyond anything I recognize.

It doesn't resemble the tidy table that our friend constructed. (I was all primed to do the 4, 1, 3 exercise and be on my way.

Having said all of that...I'll keep trying to make sense of it. As they say, even a blind squirrel finds an acorn now and then.

 

[Three3]

You copy the URL into the houghi.org Web page. It then produces the .itn file for you.

And when you get the .itn file you might then need to tidy it up in Notepad, not Word.

 

[VetteMemphis]

You copy the URL into the houghi.org Web page. It then produces the .itn file for you.

And when you get the .itn file you might then need to tidy it up in Notepad, not Word.

Thanks again for your response.

I had copied the url into the houghi.org page and did come up with the .itn file.

It's just that I don't recognize any of the data except to say that I think if I print the "tidied up" example that houghi provides and copy the .itn result from my route into notepad, then do a side-by-side comparison, I may be able to construct something that I can blow into tomtom and get somewhere.

...and we press on.

 

[Three3]

Each line is formatted: Long|Lat|Name|x (see below for x)

Lats and longs are 7 digits long (at least in our part of the world) with an implied 5 decimal digits. No decimal point. West long is negative.

Values of x:
Start (first line) ends with 4
Destination (last line) ends with 3
All waypoints (in between) end with 1

There should be a carriage return at the end of each line, including the final one. And nothing beyond that.

"Tidying up" generally consists of eliminating any garbage after that final CR, along with making "Name" say what you want it to say.

This file is in totally readable ASCII format. (It would be so very nice if TomTom's other files were the same!). You can edit it in Notepad. Don't use Word unless you're comfortable with saving stuff as text vs. in Word format.

If some of these places show up frequently in your travels, you can save their .itn lines and use them to construct your own files.

Here's an example that will take you from Boston to DC via the Tappan Zee Bridge and the Ft. McHenry tunnel (which is not TomTom's preferred route).

-7106383|4235873|Boston, MA|4
-7386702|4106729|Tappan Zee Bridge|1
-7657673|3926026|Ft McHenry Tunnel|1
-7703200|3888951|Washington, DC|3

 

[VetteMemphis]

Three3, this helps greatly. I'll look forward to working this out when I get in from the office this evening. (I may squeeze in a little time on there, actually)

Thanks for taking the trouble to explain.

Will keep you updated.

 

[Three3]

Glad to help, and it's always nice to get feedback. Thanks.

One thing that I and others have said before needs repeating: When you move a Google maps itinerary into TomTom you're assured that TomTom will take you to each of the places that appears in the resulting .itn file. But that's your only guarantee. Other than those that you specify, Google only records the waypoints it considers necessary to defeat its own chosen route, and TomTom makes its own decisions about how to navigate between those waypoints. You might have to go back and forth a few times adding more waypoints till you jerk TomTom into doing it Google's way.

 

[VetteMemphis]

Glad to help, and it's always nice to get feedback. Thanks.

One thing that I and others have said before needs repeating: When you move a Google maps itinerary into TomTom you're assured that TomTom will take you to each of the places that appears in the resulting .itn file. But that's your only guarantee. Other than those that you specify, Google only records the waypoints it considers necessary to defeat its own chosen route, and TomTom makes its own decisions about how to navigate between those waypoints. You might have to go back and forth a few times adding more waypoints till you jerk TomTom into doing it Google's way.

col...will keep you posted.

 

[Smokiewolf]

Glad to help, and it's always nice to get feedback. Thanks.

One thing that I and others have said before needs repeating: When you move a Google maps itinerary into TomTom you're assured that TomTom will take you to each of the places that appears in the resulting .itn file. But that's your only guarantee. Other than those that you specify, Google only records the waypoints it considers necessary to defeat its own chosen route, and TomTom makes its own decisions about how to navigate between those waypoints. You might have to go back and forth a few times adding more waypoints till you jerk TomTom into doing it Google's way.

Hmmm, I was not aware of that, thanks!

 

[theshack1990]

Excellent thread, I've been following it and i was able to convert the file to .itn, put it into the itn folder. Now what? instructions say "select Itinerary planning from the main menu" problem is I don't have an Itinerary Planning device because I have a tomtom ONE THRIRD EDTION. Will this not work for me??? Anyway around it?? Do i need the 720 or 2nd edition to make this function work? Apparently i have Navcore 7 "lite", so i'm told

Any thougths would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!

 

[Three3]

It's been reported elsewhere here that the Third Edition will handle .itn OK once you get the most recent update from TomTom Home. I don't have a Third Edition so I can't verify this.

 

[theshack1990]

cool. thanks for the reply. I just got the most recent update from tomtom home but not sure what to do next.. what the steps are for transferring this itn file to the tomtom. Obviously i hook it to the usb cable... now what?

Thanks!