Trying to be Positive

[etters]

Well everybody I have been giving my VM software a good try out.
I must say that I like the speed cams that I downloaded and they work very well, even had the cam's that have just been fitted a few weeks ago.
However I have just done a journey of 500 kms, and was a bit worried about some of the voice directions I was given, traveling along the auto route at 130kph I was suddenly told to turn left, and then leave the roundabout, followed a few minutes later by a command to do a u turn.
As I was on the auto route there was no way that I could follow that so I took no notice.
Can anybody tell me what is up with this software, it is VM 3.2. I have noticed that a lot of people are not very happy with this but what are you doing about it can you please tell me, because I am at my wits end with it.
Now apart from the obvious which I am sure that metroace would tell me, I would like to try and stick with this if I can. and iron out the problems I have with it.
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Takara GP56 igo primo 1.1
Dont rely on them use your brain as well

[martike]

I’ve found that this happens on motorways when there’s another road running parallel and quite close, even if it’s a very minor road, even a rough track.. The software thinks you’re on the other road (just how it thinks you got there is a mystery) and tries to direct you back to the motorway.

It’s one of the reasons I never use the voice prompts, it can be unnerving when travelling at high speed to be told to immediately do a U-turn.

[etters]

Thanks for that but how do you turn off the voice but still keep the speed cam's sound working
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Takara GP56 igo primo 1.1
Dont rely on them use your brain as well

[metroace]

I'm sure you can switch the voice off but keep the speed cams working but that will take someone who has gone into the workings of the software to help you with. Fingers crossed that someone knows which files to play with.

As for what Martike say about parallel roads causing problems, in my patch of West London, there are plenty of slow roads parallel to fast roads and I don't get that problem so it does seem to be particular to geographical areas rather than simply being a software problem.

There is a stretch of journey that I often have to do on my way home where the software would like to take me down a farm track that leads to a service access to the M25. Obviously I choose not to follow that advice (not least becasue there is a big gate at the end of it!). However, for the following mile or so, the software continues to try to tell me to do U-turns, do left, left and left, or whatever to take me back to that damned farm track.

This brings me back to a piece of advice I have had myself in the past. You don't have to do what it says. Always have a glance down at the display and if it looks stupid, don't do it. It will always try to recalculate.

If you switch the voice off, you won't know when she is trying to take you donw that "farm track" ... or is that what you want to achieve?
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TomTom XL Europe
Apple iPhone 3GS

[etters]

Thanks for that, I can only say that I hope that VM know about the problems, have they corrected them in the next version, and is it worth upgrading to it ??.
As you say the commands are very strange, when I was getting near to where I live and going round a hairpin bend to the right, I was told to turn slightly left, well that really was good, these commands just seem to be random and have no meaning at all.
Do VM have a place where we can complain about the problems and do they listen to us or not.
regards geoff
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Takara GP56 igo primo 1.1
Dont rely on them use your brain as well

[elan2s]

My experience of the "parallel road" problem has been shown to be caused by the number of visible satellites being 3 or fewer. At this point the software loses it ability to create a 3d fix and thus the accuracy of the positioning becomes an issue. This problem can be caused by a number of conditions including atmospheric interference, location of the GPS receiver and local physical factors such as buildings, hills and radio interference.

There is no easy fix to the problem other than trying to find a better location for the GPS receiver. I have mine right against the bottom edge of the windscreen and this seems to reduce the number of instances of a problem. Seeing that you are in the South of France and knowing that both Renault and Peugeot (amongst others) often fit heat reducing windscreens in their cars, does your car have o ne of these? If so, and your GPS receiver is mounted in the front of the car, it will be reduce the ability of the GPS to detect satellites.

Hope this helps

[etters]

That is very interesting what you say about the position of the GPS but I can assure you that it cannot be the problem with mine as it is on the top of the roof of my car and is in full view all the time, I know that I should not say this but when I had my yakumo with Marco Polo I did not have the same problems as I do now, and it did not give all these funny commands.
I think that it must be a built in problem with the software, is it tele atlas or Navteq I dont know.(based maps) or is it VM with no help from any other software company.
regards
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Takara GP56 igo primo 1.1
Dont rely on them use your brain as well

[martike]

That’s interesting, that the parallel road problem occurs when the number of satellites being received is three or fewer. I’d never noticed this, but I’ll look out for it in future. Of course, because I don’t have the sound enabled, this situation usually goes unnoticed.

The whole sequence (you’re on the wrong road, turn around and put it right, turn around and put it right, turn around and put it right, oh OK I’ll recalculate the route) goes by in a few seconds and I usually don’t see it, unless I just happen to be looking at the screen at that moment for another reason.

Does this also mean that it’s more likely to occur in town and cities ? That’s when you have far more parallel roads, and also a reduced window because of the height of surrounding buildings.

Incidentally I had another confusing situation a couple of weeks ago. I plotted a route to a location which, purely by chance, was on top of a road tunnel (approaching Antwerp from the south). VM absolutely refused to go there, directing me instead into the tunnel and then proclaiming I’d arrived when I was directly under my destination !

[etters]

This is very strange because I have never had less that 6 sat's and am still getting that problem. As I dont live in a built up area I dont know about high buildings, I live in the country half way up a mountain and get a fix in about one second when I switch on, and the fix stays good all the time where ever I am, the voice commands just seem to go off at random, and comes out with the most amazing things. I have just done a little trip to my local bar and switched it on set the destination and off I went after about 2 Kms I was told to make a U turn,( I really was going the right way) it's not like that sometimes when I come back Lol.
regards
_________________
Takara GP56 igo primo 1.1
Dont rely on them use your brain as well

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