Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

I'm going to be abroad for a couple of weeks, and it would be nice to use Ovi Maps but it's not really practical because, well because the Maemo version can't search offline even with all the maps on board and furthermore has a habit of downloading chunks of data without warning and I don't want to come home and find I've got a bill for a zillion pounds of data charges.

I've had a look at Sygic maps and it's ok but seems to be mainly aimed at car drivers. And of course it's not free.

So my question is: is it worth trying to load some maps onto the phone for using Mappero offline or is this just going to be a painful experience? Is there a decent search function?

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

I used mappero in offline mode successfully while rafting this summer (for 10 days, using external battery pack called AcmePower UC-5 and custom-soldered USB cable with middle wires shortened to recharge). It was in Karelian taiga and GSM coverage was, well, not very dense :) I used python scripts written by vadp to upload maps that were created for Ozi Explorer. I think it must be possible to pre-cache some data from say Google maps, but I didn't try it myself.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

Hmm, I don't really understand what anything on that thread is on about so it would come under the "painful experience" category for me. Thanks anyway though.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

Mappero (formerly Maemo Mapper)... incredibly painful to use. I agree. x.x

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

It's just so frustrating that Ovi Maps is 99% perfectly good but Nokia just don't care enough to do the 1% that would actually make it usable.

I just want to be able to search the *%^*^** maps offline - just like I could on my N95 several years ago... is that really too much to ask?

Aarrghh!

The Sygic maps aren't anywhere near as good as the ones Ovi Maps uses in terms of detail. Not too useful as a pedestrian. Otherwise I'd just pay for Sygic.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

You might consider buying a prepaid sim overseas and using Mappero online.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

yeah, i'll be in several different countries though so I don't think that would work.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

Well, it wasn't too painful given that I've managed to convert map data intended for Ozi Explorer to Mappero-compatible format (I didn't think this is possible at all). Pre-downloaded google or yandex maps for that places didn't suit me. What disappointed me about mappero is that it was destroying recorded GPX tracks from time to time (seems like this bug is already fixed) and it seems to be leaking memory so if you leave it running for a long time everything tends to become very sluggish. Other than that, it was tolerable. As of custom-soldered cable, it's the only way to charge devices that support modern USB charge standard from older chargers that don't support it.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

I'm rather careful about possible memory leaks when coding, and at least in my experience this does not happen with Mappero (at least, not in an easily measurable amount), even after 6-7 hours of GPS tracking.
But indeed I've also noticed some slugginess, and it seems to me it's happening more often when you have been using the N900 for some days (especially if browsing). It could be due to the kernel being busy swapping processes in and out; and since Mappero is a memory hungry application, it's easier to encounter this behaviour when using it.
I recommend rebooting the N900 once every 3-4 days -- but it depends on how and how much you use it.

Re: Using Mappero offline - is it worth even trying?
 

Suggestions on how to improve it are always welcome! :)