Hi to All:

Does anybody have experience on the Coastal Explorer navigator ? Is it

easy to work on it? Advantage and contras. Can you recommend that as a

primary navigator?

Thanks,

                         Jack

               Trawler Jade's Capt

             www.projetojade.com

It all depends on what else you have in your inventory, how you use it, and
where you want to go.

I have been running CE for the last 4 years along with my Garmin 32xx
systems.
CE is easy to use, but like any software or system there will be a learning
curve to take full advantage of the features.
I like the ease of routing on CE and plan and transfer my routes from CE to
the Garmin.  I also run the route on CE.
I love the terra data features of CE, but they are on the new chartplotters
as well.
In the Canadian waters of Lake Huron's North Channel, I shut off the garmin
and run CE since the Garmin mapping data is bad up there (may be updated
since I got mine).  When I did the Ten-Tom on the Great Loop, Garmin did not
have data - I used CE exclusively.
I like the radar overlay of the Garmin when out in the fog.  You can now
incorporate radar on CE as well.
I have a second Garmin on the fly bridge - are you a single station
operation?
I do not like my navigation based on PC operating systems from a
stability/reliability standpoint.  I also use my PC for ham radio position
reporting (like AIS) and sometimes, the GPS will be detected as a mouse.
There is no time to reboot systems when coming into a channel in the fog.
I like the backup that having both gives me (Garmin and CE).
I like to be able to bring up land based maps on my PC as well as the
waterway maps - i.e. on the Great Loop going down the Tenn=Tom to see cities
and roads near by.

Short answer - I cruise in remote areas, cruise in the fog - I really like
having both.

Vance B. Nelson

-----Original Message-----

Does anybody have experience on the Coastal Explorer navigator ? Is it

easy to work on it? Advantage and contras. Can you recommend that as a

primary navigator?

SNIP:"... Does anybody have experience on the Coastal Explorer navigator ?
Is it

easy to work on it? Advantage and contras. Can you recommend that as a

primary navigator?..."

The only draw backs to CE is that currently they don't have a license for
c-map cartography.  C-map vector charting is excellent particularly for the
Bahamas islands as they incorporated explorer charting.  The other draw back
is that it doesn't support multiple screens (radar can be shown on a
different screen with radar pack) to view two different chart scales or
display raster on one and vector on other.  That said there many many many
pluses as it is an excellent company great support and now supports Active
Captain.

Joe

Carolyn Ann GH N-37

On a mooring in Fernandina, Fl heading to Brunswick today.

We used CE (then sold under the label Chart Navigator Pro by C-Map) as a
back-up to our Raymarine gear when we started our Loop in 2007.  By the
end of the loop the Raymarine chartplotter was the back-up to the CNP.
We found CE easy to use, intuitive, accurate and easy to update the free
maps.  We also tied it into a wireless LAN on the boat so we could tap
into internet information right from CE.  Very easy to do and
worthwhile.  We ran it on a Panasonic Toughbook which had a daylight
viewable screen about the size of the 10" Raymarine Chartplotter.  I was
going to hook the CE up to the autopilot as it looked pretty straight
forward but we completed the loop and sold the boat before I could.  CE
used to have a free download that you could use to evaluate.  Don't know
if they still do.

Mike

Trawler Jade wrote:

Hi to All:

Does anybody have experience on the Coastal Explorer navigator ? Is it

easy to work on it? Advantage and contras. Can you recommend that as a

primary navigator?

Thanks,

                           Jack

                 Trawler Jade's Capt

                 www.projetojade.com  _______________________________________________  http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop  

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