Track Sorting Suggestion

If you use the data view, you can sort by the start time and date of each track.

RStanton - you just saved my heart from even more stress than Basecamp normally subjects it to! :rolleyes:

But this is really only half the story. The point is that all the data types (waypoints routes tracks etc) are in a big bucket and the limited sort options (the little gear wheel) can only handle what is common to ALL these items.

Garmin (if anyone is out there) would it be too much trouble to use conventional Windows approaches such as right-click context (sort by...) or perhaps columns you can click to sort by ... or headers you can sort by?

I get the feeling that devs are so familiar with Basecamp they can't empathise with any newbie who doesn't know every single feature.

While I admit the data being handled is complex, the point of software is to make it less complex and more intuitive for users. I do not think I am dumb (!?) but why have I only just discovered this feature?

One reason is that the very flexible 'folder - list - object' system (with virtual data that can be removed but not deleted) is too flexible: There is nowhere you can see 'all my tracks' or 'all my waypoints' etc - a permanent folder that is reserved for each of these things.

Or is there?? If not, perhaps Garmin will consider adding such a feature...?

I have to say in the year or more since using Basecamp it has been a barrier to my use and enjoyment of my satnav (and in many instances I have chosen to program the device via reference to a paper map... the discrepancy in logic between the device and Basecamp is too great).

The whole point of any software is to save time and so far for me it has cost time frustration and effort. Only now am I starting to get to know all the ways of handling the data - without fear of error or loss.

Conclusion - this is not modern software with effective UI design but carries the legacy of geekdom when satnav and especially sports tracking was a minority interest. Our activities - professional or hobby - are what we should be spending our time on, not figuring out how to make the software work!

Well as a converted fan of Basecamp having used Mapsource before perhaps you could explain just what you're struggling with? Basecamp developers are very active here and try to help where they can.

Sussamb - thanks for a quick response - I have been up since dawn (nice and quiet ;) and 3h later still wrestling with basics. Yes I love Basecamp too actually. But I have just commented on two related threads... this one and the other about DATE format (which started in 2013 and still not resolved!).

The specific albeit minor problem is this - attached screendump - A. even with tracks filtered no real 'date' sort option appears - and B. if you sort by filename it's not a real date sort.

So I may be ignorant of how to do this but is that really the point? If you look up 'obfuscation' in the dictionary I am sure there is a reference to Basecamp!

Many thanks if you have a solution!

Oops, forgot to mention my other post/thread was about the fact that US/UK dates get mixed up - so while this list sorting is a matter of convenience, if in fact the DATES ARE INCORRECT because Basecamp has reinterpretted 3/10 as 10 March instead of 3 OCT, I am in real trouble (and I guess a lot of other people too).

So you can see in my screen dump there is some JAN data sandwiched between two MARCH entries - These aren't obviously date errors (since any date above 12th can't be a month)... but since it is an anomaly I wouldn't rule anything out.

I am still using an older version of BaseCamp, so some of what I write may have changed. On the left side of the map window halfway up is a little tab. Clicking on the tab switches the map window with the list window on the lower left. Once the windows are switched, an object (Tracks, Routes etc) can be selected as a filter (i.e. only that particular object will be visible). That object can then be sorted (ascending/descending) using any of the column headers by clicking on them once or twice.

Most people will find the map window in the lower left too small to be much good. So, you will have to resize the three windows by moving the borders.

Alternatively, and this is rather odd behavior in my version, the following will work for reasons unknown. The filter function (looks like a funnel) in the lower left pain must be set to the entire list and closed (ie. the object types aren’t visible). Swap windows using the Tab as above, choose an object type and sort via column header. Swap windows again, select the same object type using the filter (funnel) in the lower left window.

As far as I know, this type of sorting will only work on a single object type.

So you can see in my screen dump there is some JAN data sandwiched between two MARCH entries - These aren't obviously date errors (since any date above 12th can't be a month)... but since it is an anomaly I wouldn't rule anything out.

I think there is no anomaly in the sort in your screen dump. It indicates the sort setting is by name, descending. Name sort will work left to right, and in descending order, 22 comes before 21. Within the "22" and, separately, the "21" entries, March comes before January (M before J) in descending order.

In any event, as BTLAAKE describes, once you are showing only tracks after switching data and map views, there is a "start time" column you can sort by clicking on the column header, this column also including the date as part of the "time". I think this is what you were looking for?