I have been reading these GPS threads with great interest. Only last week I interfaced my Magellan GPS 315 with my computer using a freeware program called GPS TrackMaker (www.gpstm.com). This program allows importation of any map image (or 'any' image for that matter) and lets you give it the upper left coordinates and lower right coordinates for that image. I have found a number of sources of free maps since then... some in vector format and some in raster format. They all work great and most (all???) or the vector format maps have the coordinates included in the file.

For a neat list of maps of Canada go to toporama.cits.rncan.gc.ca Toporama... this site has topographic maps of all of canada in Gif format and at a fairly high resolution.

Another site with some great maps is ESRI at www.esri.com/data/online/esri/wobmselect.html. These are in vector format.

The last of these sites that I have found useful is at www.maproom.psu.edu/cgi-bin/dcw/dcwarea.cgi?North_America These are also in vector format. This link only shows the North America Maps available but I am sure that you can follow links to find worldwide data.

These images and datasets were all pulled into GPS TrackMaker without a problem and lets me have moving map software on my laptop... I don't think it would be too hard to emulate the way this software works in terms of moving map software on the empeg. (Please keep in mind that I am not a programmer... but to me it seems that all you need is a way to get these images into the gpsapp system)

Hope this stirs up some interest in this idea.

Rene

P.S. Please... someone come up with an easy way to install these apps on my empeg... I've played empacman... but only after running it over hyperterminal... then it's lost on reboot.