Wow ... great rant AND right on point. I bagged nobeltec for an earlier version of capn for many of the reasons you mentioned plus the idiotic registration scheme that was new in rev. 6. Gripes me to spend money and be dis-satisfied. I'm not going to vector charts for many of the same reasons. On my (2) win 2k based laptops nobeltec 4.1.400 and/or capn 6.1 are stable and reliable. I've spent too many years on the "bleeding" edge in other software environnments to want it in my nav setup. I really can't see where the newer releases enhance basic navigation in any necessary manner. I don't need 3-d or other fluff I just want to see where the gps thinks I am. Jim Slocomb M/V Sea Ottter 40' Skookum San Juan Islands, WA --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.445 / Virus Database: 250 - Release Date: 1/21/2003