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Hello

The official up to date Spanish vector marine charts are now available for viewing as WMS services.
See "http://ideihm.covam.es/servicios_en.html".
It is possible to use either their own WMS viewer, or Locus.
Other non commercial options are presented in their site.

In Locus, just add the following 4 WMS services:
for scales 1:350.000 - 1:500.000
http://ideihm.covam.es/wms/cartaENCp2?service=WMS&request=Getcapabilities
for scales 1:90.000 - 1:350.000
http://ideihm.covam.es/wms/cartaENCp3?service=WMS&request=Getcapabilities
for scales 1:22.000 - 1:90.000
http://ideihm.covam.es/wms/cartaENCp4?service=WMS&request=Getcapabilities
for scales 1:4.000 - 1:22.000
http://ideihm.covam.es/wms/cartaENCp5?service=WMS&request=Getcapabilities

The 3 first ones cover all of Spain including Baleares and Canary island
The last one covers some spots.

In the parameters, little to do:
- keep the CRS as the default one proposed by Locus (EPSG 3857) which is WGS 84 and allows to see in Locus the information concerning lights and wrecks
- select the top layer: this will select all the other ones
You are done.

Once the map opened, in the upper left corner, two buttons, one allowing to modify the parameters (you just need to modify the opacity if needed, the rest has to stay the same), the other allowing to view the information concerning the light (photo and light characteristics) or wreck located at the screen center.

I tried this using Locus 3.30.2 on a rather slow Internet connection on an antique PC using Remix Android clone: it worked perfectly and quickly.
As for other WMS maps, no offline use possible with Locus.

I didn't know where to share this information in case it could be of use to anybody, so I decided that this forum section could be the less misguided location.
I use Locus on my phones, all with small screens as my outdoor activities will not allow a large screen phone to survive longer than a few days!
I wanted to have the benefits of Locus at home on a much larger screen, preferably on my Windows PC.
I could not find any Windows application that could compete with Locus (GMapCatcher is quite good , but definitively less user friendly and with less possibilities than Locus).
I have been using for several months Bluestacks (several versions with several Locus versions) with success. The only complain being a rather sluggish Locus on my rather old dual core 2GHz Windows PC (windows 7 at first and now 10).
I came today across Remix, an Android based operating system for PC.
I gave it a try and I was nicely surprised. Locus runs very smoothly.
Comparison of Bluestacks (version 2.5.90.6347) and Remix (version  3.0.207):
- Installation: both very easy
- Performance: Remix much better on an old PC, on all applications, including Locus.
- Interface: both are OK, but Remix has a better compatibility with AZERTY keyboards.
- Usage: Bluestacks runs within Windows, and therefore the user can work on Android applications and Windows applications within the same session: Bluestacks in just an other application window. Remix is an independent OS, the user must decide to boot to Windows or to Remix (the choice is available on the Windows 10 startup screen once Remix has been installed) and therefore can only work with Android or with Windows applications, not simultaneously on both.
- Access to the PC files: although Bluestacks has significantly improved the access to Windows files, it is still necessary to modify Windows registry to personalize the Windows folder that can be accessed by Bluestacks. Remix being and independent OS has complete access to all Windows directories.
- Update: I never had a problem when installing a newer version of Bluestacks atop an old one: applications, network parameters and Google credentials were kept. Remix being an independent OS, I believe that installing a newer version of Remix will imply to reinstall all Android elements, similar to changing a phone.
If anybody has questions, don't hesitate, I will perhaps be able to answer.

Hello

Please, what is the origin of the magnetic declination shown by Locus in the compass window?
Does Locus uses (for example) the latest World Magnetic Model (WMM2015) to establish the declination?
Is the magnetic declination data stored on the phone for offline use ?
Does it update the model automatically (for example in 2020 with WMM 2020) when the Android device is online ?


Thanks for your help and best regards

Alf

Hello
One of the topics of the forum viewtopic.php?f=10&t=503&p=5441&hilit=BSB#p5441 (see the PDF link at the bottom of the discussion) mentions the possibility to use marine BSB calibrated raster files within Locus through a complicated process involving a CPN utility, an Oruxmaps utility and Ozi Explorer (ouf !).
This issue is also mentioned in the forum topic viewtopic.php?f=10&t=244&p=930&hilit=BSB#p930 (see last 2 posts in the topic).
It will be nice to be able to import BSB charts directly to Locus.

Thanks

Hello

It would be nice if Locus could read marine vector charts in the format CM93 ed 2.

Thanks

Hello

Presently the waypoint notification settings allow to use a sound or a frequency.

It will be useful to add a text to speech option when the "Notify on distance" option is selected.
The spoken text will be the name of the waypoint.

Example of use:
Can be used to improve the guidance notification when following a complicated or dangerous track.
The user can give as name of the way point the text he wants to hear when approaching this way point.

Thanks and regards

Hello

In navigation mode it is possible to select one of the voices obtained through one of the topics of the knowledge base.
This works very well in navigation mode.

In guiding mode, I could not find a way to select one of these voices. I am stuck with the only option, text to speach.
Even if in the navigation setting an other voice is selected, I get the "text to speach" voice in guiding mode.
It is also the only option that appears in in the guiding settings.

Am I missing something, or is this a feature ?
In the last case it could be nice to have access to the same voices in guiding mode and in navigation mode, with for example a "choose voice" option available in the "notification settings" of the guiding settings.

Thanks and regards.

Hello

Not sure if I have to put this as a wish or as a technical discussion.

Is there any way, within Locus, or using an external application on a PC, to merge 2 SQL database maps ?

Example:
I have offline maps A and B as SQL databases within Locus.
They come from the same source, but cover different areas and/or zoom levels.
I want to combine them in a single map, without having to download on line again all the data.


Thanks and regards

Hello

Could it be possible to add the IGN Spain maps (server www.idee.es)?
I can have them through MOBAC but it will be useful to have them directly on Locus.

The XML file used in MOBAC to get the Spanish IGN maps is below:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<customWmsMapSource>
 
<name>IGN - Spain</name>
<minZoom>6</minZoom>
<maxZoom>16</maxZoom>
<tileType>JPG</tileType>
<version>1.1.1</version>
<layers>mtn_rasterizado</layers>
<url>http://www.idee.es/wms/MTN-Raster/MTN-Raster?</url>
<coordinatesystem>EPSG:4326</coordinatesystem>
<aditionalparameters>&amp;EXCEPTIONS=BLANK&amp;Styles=</aditionalparameters>
<backgroundColor>#000000</backgroundColor>
 
</customWmsMapSource>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks and regards