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Some very basic questions

Former Member
Former Member
I've had a Garmin nuvi 2475, my first GPS, for 1 day and am deeply confused by many things. I've searched the internet for explanations, but all the discussions assume that you already have a lot of knowledge that a rank beginner like me doesn't have. I would appreciate help.

I'm going to use the gps for road navigation. But I would also like to be able to add other maps, especially for traveling overseas. I'm not going to use it for orienteering or anything like that.

1. The Garmin file format is IMG. What is a GPX file then?

2. Despite a zillion articles on the net, I've still no idea how to put a KMZ file on the Garmin? Do I have to convert it to IMG? How?

3. If I put a kmz file on the Garmin, will I be able to use GPS navigation like with the native maps? Example. I downloaded a London kmz file. Now what?

4. What is the basecamp program supposed to do? (Gramin has far too many different helper programs and I've no idea what they all do. They should have only 1.)

5. Can I just drag and drop maps into a device directory? (This is how it should be done.)
  • I've had a Garmin nuvi 2475, my first GPS, for 1 day and am deeply confused by many things. I've searched the internet for explanations, but all the discussions assume that you already have a lot of knowledge that a rank beginner like me doesn't have. I would appreciate help.

    I'm going to use the gps for road navigation. But I would also like to be able to add other maps, especially for traveling overseas. I'm not going to use it for orienteering or anything like that.

    1. The Garmin file format is IMG. What is a GPX file then?


    Why do you say that? Garmin uses IMG, but it's hardly the "Garmin file format". A GPX file is a text file in XML format that contains a time series of locations (latitude/longitude/elevation). They're text files, so you can view one if you want. GPX is how you pass around "tracks" and "routes".

    2. Despite a zillion articles on the net, I've still no idea how to put a KMZ file on the Garmin? Do I have to convert it to IMG? How?



    kmz files are what Google Earth uses, but BaseCamp can read them. From there you can send them to your Nuvi, if they contain anything worth sending to your Nuvi.

    3. If I put a kmz file on the Garmin, will I be able to use GPS navigation like with the native maps? Example. I downloaded a London kmz file. Now what?



    Depends on what the file has in it? What are you trying to do?

    Since you bought a Nuvi, I assume you want to drive places. For that, what you really want on your Nuvi is 1) maps that cover the place you're going, and 2) waypoints that you might want to visit. Google isn't going to give you maps. If you have both maps and waypoints on your Nuvi, it's far easier to just choose a waypoint and let the Nuvi figure out how to get there from where you are currently. Maps you can buy from Garmin, but that's not the only way (openstreetmap.org is a good place to get free maps).

    4. What is the basecamp program supposed to do? (Gramin has far too many different helper programs and I've no idea what they all do. They should have only 1.)



    That's exactly what Garmin is trying to do with BaseCamp, have only one. BaseCamp is basically a routing tool, but it also does other things. But with a Nuvi, the only time I use BaseCamp is when I want to go a different route than the Nuvi is going to navigate on its own, and that happens only rarely. You set up the route using BaseCamp and then send it to the Nuvi.

    5. Can I just drag and drop maps into a device directory? (This is how it should be done.)


    Provided you have them in the proper format and know where to put them you can. Much easier just to use MapInstall.