Edit tracks to be used in Google Earth

Basecamp and MapSource work about the same as far as editing tracks and displaying them on Google Earth, or uploading cleaned tracks back to the GPS.

Both programs allow you to view tracks in Google Earth simply by selecting the track, then View->View in Google Earth. I have never gone to the trouble of using the GPS to do that.

Once in Google Earth, the tracks are NOT editable, but of course you can save them as *.KML or *.KMZ, or move them from "Temporary Places" to wherever.

For any of the older GPS's, MapSource works fine, but it does not utilize many of the features of newer units like the Montana. BaseCamp IS, however, quite a learning curve from MapSource, and often rather frustrating at first, since you must forget much of what you learned with MS.

If you do not plan on getting a new GPS, my advice would be to stay with MapSource.

Google Earth should already be running before you use the View in Google Earth command.

As Rocky said, in Mapsource after you have cleaned up the track just select the track, then select View > View in Google Earth.

The track(s), and anything else that is currently loaded in Mapsource, will be loaded into Google Earth's Temporary Places list and displayed in Google Earth.

...ken...

As others have noted, I don't know how to edit tracks directly in google Earth, but I have found that BaseCamp isn't that bad for a software to edit tracks. After a little digging around and relearning from MapSource I put together a tutorial on how to edit and clean up tracks. You might find it useful. You can find the tutorial here:

http://outdooroutlier.blogspot.com/2015/05/how-to-edit-gpx-data-to-make-useable.html

..... You might find it useful. You can find the tutorial here:

Yes, that's good. Here is another BaseCamp track editing trick that you might want to include if you update your tutorial: Whenever you wish to delete a whole bunch of track points, either at the beginning or at the end of the track, you click on the point to start the delete, then use Shift-Home or Shift-End to select all points from there to the beginning or the end. Nice when you have long tracks that you need to cut big sections out of. In the middle, you just use Click and Shift-Click. If you KEEP the shift key down, you can click to highlight various numbers of points until you get just the right amount. Then with a right click you can either delete, cut, or copy them. The selected portion of the track turns golden, so it's easy to see just what you are getting.

I don't think you can edit tracks in Google Earth...you have to delete them and start over.

Need Google Earth Track Editor

[QUOTE=Rocky TFS;591611]

I don't think you can edit tracks in Google Earth...you have to delete them and start over.

That is not good news! I have about 10 years of world traveling tracks in Google Earth and many need to be cleaned up.

Maybe I don't understand the problem but I edit my Google Earth tracks all the time (within Google Earth). :confused

--->

Do you mind giving us the steps to accomplish this? I've been trying to figure out how to do this for YEARS! That is, without manually editing the *.kml file.

EDIT: Well, apparently I never tried very hard....:( Just looked it up on guess who: Click the path, right click for Properties, the points will appear as squares. Left click and drag any of them to the new position. What I have yet to figure out is if there is a way to erase points in a path, like in BC.

Sure, happy to help.

The two most important things to know about editing tracks in GE are:

1. You must first select the track in My Places and then right click -> Properties (silly Google trick #1)

2. After (1) above edit mode is enabled and editing is done by first selecting a single existing anchor point (Google silly trick #2). See below.

The hard part is SEEING those anchor points. Google, in its wisdom, chose to hide them most of the time. Sometimes (very rarely) Google automagically displays all the anchor points, but most of the time it doesn't. But there is a way to find them: hover the mouse over the track line (don't touch it; don't click on it !!) and you will see, if you are careful, that the mouse pointer changes from an arrow to a hand. when it does (and only when it does) you found an anchor point and can then select it so it is used for editing. Why is selecting the right anchor important? Because all editing from then on is only relative to that particular anchor and the next (in other words, the segment between the selected anchor point and the other, either ahead or behind the selected anchor point.

Having done the above the rest is easy... add another anchor with a click anywhere within that segment and drag it anywhere, or extend the track, or delete one or many anchor points, whatever.

But no matter how expert you become at editing... do it with a copy and save often because with Google track editing is sooo easy to mess things up.

In the end, though, once you get that hang of it, it's easy as pie.

I'm not good at explaining things so if I managed to confuse you even more just tell me.

Thanks for the details. I have eventually previously found it the hard way and managed to edit tracks a point at a time. Unfortunately I have several different track types, some are just lines, some are lines plus lat/long points and some includes speed info.
The ones with track plus lat/lon are a pain. Moving the lat/lon point does not move the track. I can drag/delete the track but it is a long procedure to get rid of the /at/lon. Is there a way to delete a bunch of lines. For example after being indoors for a few hours it picked up many random points. Please see the picture.
Is there an option to delete all of the tracks lat/lon points and speed info?
(I tried to insert a picture without success. It is a small file. After uploading is shows a red exclamation point on the right side in the upload widow.)

...Is there a way to delete a bunch of lines...Is there an option to delete all of the tracks lat/lon points and speed info?...

You can delete all of the points and/or tracks at once by deleting or emptying the folder that contains them.