Gaia GPS graphic changes.

[PeterB]

 

It looks like Gaia GPS is changing over to the new digital  NOAA chart templates , and I loathe the new  chart graphics as much as I love the old ones. I think Joe Berkovitz  mentioned an inquiry into  restoring or retaining “ antique” NOAA chart settings on Gaia,  but don’t remember the outcome, and can’t locate the thread  on the message board. 

Curiously, My Ipad has retained the old NOAA chart templates, probably because I haven’t signed into my account on the Ipad  since the change. But my Iphone and computer are now afflicted with the new graphics. 

Any  updates on the prospect of restoring/ retaining the good old NOAA  chart templates , or  otherwise  improving the look/ aesthetics of the current chart templates, ( playing with the settings,whatever); to make using the new Gaia  remotely tolerable ? 

 

Edited September 15, 2022 by PeterB

[mhabich]

Email from Gaia, 30 Dec 2021:

We’re writing to let you know about a change to a map source that might affect the way you use Gaia GPS.  Our systems tell us that you may have viewed our “NOAA Charts” map layer at least once during the past year. Beginning January 1, 2022, the government source that Gaia GPS relies upon to produce this map layer will no longer be available. As a temporary replacement, the information underlying the “NOAA Charts” map has been replaced with the “Electronic Navigational Charts” map, produced by the same U.S. government source. When you activate the “NOAA Charts” map layer on Gaia GPS, you will notice that the appearance of the map is different from what you might expect.  To learn more about this change, and how we plan to address nautical charts in the future, please refer to the FAQ listed below. If you have any questions, you can reply to this email.  Thank you for using Gaia GPS!   Why has the “NOAA Charts” map changed? On January 1, 2022 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Coast Survey will shut down the service that provides Gaia GPS with the traditional nautical charts we display in the “NOAA Charts” map. This is part of a plan announced by NOAA in November 2019 to stop the production and maintenance of traditional paper and raster nautical charts by January 2025. The traditional charts are being replaced by the newer Electronic Navigational Charts. You can read more about this change at this link: https://nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/charts/farewell-to-traditional-nautical-charts.html. As a temporary replacement for the traditional nautical charts, Gaia GPS has substituted them with the Electronic Navigational Charts, also produced by NOAA. Will traditional nautical charts be returning to Gaia GPS? We are considering several options to support the adventures of folks who are exploring on or near water. One approach is to follow NOAA’s lead and incorporate some of the new, frequently-updating Electronic Navigational Chart data that NOAA is releasing into our flagship map, Gaia Topo. We are also looking into creating an “archival” map which could contain all of the raster nautical charts created prior to January 1, 2022. These sources will not be considered up to date, and will eventually contain inaccuracies. This would make these archival maps less useful for safe navigation. We will continue to provide updates as we decide which path to take. Where can I find the traditional nautical charts now? You can access individual PDF versions of the NOAA Raster Nautical Charts until January 2025 by visiting this link: https://nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/charts/noaa-raster-charts.html

[gyork]

I still use GAIA for tracking, though less frequently, as I, too, prefer the traditional charting format. In lieu of that, USGS topo layer in GAIA, surprisingly affords a decent representation of topography (duh!) and bathymetry, which is better than my cell phone GPS back-up, offline Google maps (see images below).

     

 

 

     

 

 

In a pinch, within cell service, Apple Maps will get you out of the woods/fog:

 

 

[Joseph Berkovitz]

You can get all the traditional NOAA charts from MA to ME on my site coastalpaddling.com (as well as the new ones) along with printable PDFs, weather, tides and basic route planning. 

I have long since given up on Gaia and use the Navionics app for GPS tracking. Its charts are not pretty but they work, unlike Gaia’s which simply don’t show sufficient detail.

In the long run though: the old charts will eventually become nonviable due to inaccuracy so don’t get too emotionally attached to them. Hopefully NOAA will improve the new electronic ones before that happens. 

[EEL]

Joe:

This may constitute hijacking, but in theory couldn't a chart be created from the ENC data which displays "legacy" symbols?  At least for on water details?

Ed Lawson

[Jim Snyder]

I keep SEAiq on my phone because it has the old charts, for now at least. It doesn't do tracking, although it has some other features that are kind of unique.

[Joseph Berkovitz]

Eel- In theory one could legally make electronic charts from that data that look like anything at all. But noaa doesn’t have a big incentive to preserve the legacy symbols. What they are doing is to make the new charts look like the electronic displays used in  commercial nav equipment around the world. 
 

So it wouldn’t be hijacking to use a different symbol set but it would be a large effort with uncertain reward since paper charts aren’t used by “big maritime” anymore. 

[Dan Foster]

Ed and Joe: See option 2 here: U.S. Office of Coast Survey GIS Data 

The NOAA Chart Display Service renders NOAA ENC data with "traditional paper chart" symbols, labels, and color schemes familiar to those who have used NOAA paper nautical charts or the NOAA Custom Chart application.

It's not the same as the old raster charts, but it's a bit more familiar looking than the global ENC symbology. Unfortunately, it's really only useful for those of us writing mapping apps - it's not designed for end users. But it does sound like NOAA is listening to feedback.

[Joseph Berkovitz]

Yes, that’s the ENC version coastalpaddling already uses. However it’s still quite different from the raster charts in many smaller details - I assumed perhaps wrongly that these were the differences that Ed was referring to. 

either way, in the long run, we’re not getting the old charts back, folks! But at least the data is still free, not like in many countries.