RouteConverter

RouteConverter 2.16 is ready

2015-09-03T15:48:00.000+02:00

Release 2.16 from 3. September '15

adds an option to change the map view from Java FX back to Eclipse SWT
adds size and date columns and a context menu for the restart of downloads to the download dialog
adds an option to allow to start numbering at first position of current selection
adds top/up/down/bottom menu items to the position menu
adds a context menu to rename and delete routes to the browse tab
uses Weblate.org for the localization of RouteConverter so anyone can help
uses a new icon set with high resolution icons on Retina Macs
uses the Aster Global Digital Elevation Model V1 2009 first when queryingGeonames for elevation information
provides a new extended help which is derived from the website - simply press F1
reduces the number of interactions between the web browser and the application
removes the Earthtools elevation service as www.earthtools.org is down
fixes a bug where an empty file was reported as unreadable
fixes a bug where map links where not opened in the external browser but locked up the program
fixes a bug where the Java FX-based map view didn't use the complete available space after the program start
fixes a bug where inserting positions automatically zoomed
fixes a bug where iGO8 Route (*.kml) files could not be converted from route to track
fixes a bug where Google Earth 5 (*.kmz) files with PNG images could not be read
fixes a bug where creating a new file and exiting did not bring up the save as dialog

Downloads for Release 2.16

RouteConverter 2.15 is ready

2015-07-15T10:34:00.000+02:00

Release 2.15 from 15. July '15

adds an option to disable "show all positions" after loading and after switching position lists
provides elevation service that tries to select the best possible elevation service
shows the URLs of routes in the catalog as a tooltip
uses JavaFX on Windows for the map view which requires Oracle Java 7 Update 40 or later to work
uses the system-wide proxy configuration as documented by Oracle
removes the faulty Outdoor Active maps integration
fixes a bunch of bugs during the startup phase which make the map, routing and elevation unusable
fixes a bug where routes where just rendered partially and inaccurately
fixes a bug where elevation information was erased when trying to complete it
fixes a bug where downloads where slowed down, performed twice and reported failures
fixes a bug where the conversion of long routes to tracks did not render an accurate track afterwards
fixes a bug where gpsbabel did not work on 64 Bit operation systems
fixes a bug where Google Maps URLs where not parsed correctly
fixes a bug where the rename of a category in the local route catalog had no visible effect
fixes a bug where the route length is doubled each time the position list is switched

RouteConverter 2.14 is ready

2015-04-27T10:30:00.000+02:00

Release 2.14 from 27. April '15

adds the OSM-based OpenTopoMap
adds Portuguese localization
adds notifications in the lower right corner to display download progress
requires at least Java 7
uses a single JAR for 32 and 64 Bit support, which internally selected the correct version
uses the Apple key as an accelerator instead of Ctrl
uses JavaFX on Mac OS X for the map view which requires Oracle Java 7 Update 40 or later to work
uses version 3.18 of the Google Maps API which introduces fading of map tiles and supports the avoid ferries routing option
supports the Garmin TrackPointExtension v1 and v2 for GPX 1.1 (.gpx) files
renders a red line if a routing request to Googles servers did not return any results
completes elevation data when inserting positions only if the data is already locally available
creates trips for Garmin zümo 590LM with more than 29 waypoints
makes route color configurable
fixes reading CoPilot 9 (.trp) files which are UTF-16LE encoded
fixes a bug when loading the Hikemap
fixes a bug where the Outdoor Active Maps showed missing tiles
fixes a bug where the profile didn't use all the horizontally available space
fixes a bug in undo for completion after insertion of intermediate positions
fixes a bug in undo for removing positions
fixes a bug that WPL sentences might have no checksum
fixes an int overrun bug in the track duration calculation
fixes a bug to make value conversion for Statute and Nautic unit system commutative

RouteConverter 2.13 is ready

2014-07-19T12:29:00.002+02:00

Release 2.13 from 18. July '14

reads CoPilot 9.5 (.trp) files
reads GoPal 7 Route (.xml) files
reads new Google Maps URLs starting with /dir/
offers a new time column as suggested in the forum
allows to configure where to store NASA SRTM1, SRTM3 and Jonathan de Ferranti DEM 1, DEM 3 elevation data
uses Google Maps API 3.16
uses DJNative Swing 1.0.2 and Eclipse SWT 4.3 which enables the map on the Linux distributions again
fixes a bug where printing was disabled until a position was selected
fixes a bug where coordinates at the mouse position where printed
fixes a bug when routing was slow

RouteConverter 2.12 is ready

2014-04-04T12:20:00.000+02:00

Release 2.12 from 4. April '14

allows to choose between NASA SRTM1, SRTM3 and Jonathan de Ferranti DEM 1, DEM 3 when completing elevation data
allows to keep the option dialog open all the time
offers a downloads dialog to show the previously hidden downloads of elevation data
adds a column to the positions table that shows the elevation difference from a position to its predecessor
is signed with a certificate from Certum which enables Webstart with Java 1.7.0_51 again
uses version 3.15 of the Google Maps API which enables the mouse wheel with Internet Explorer 11 again
fixes a bug when the sort menu entries are not activated directly after loading a file

RouteConverter 2.11 is ready

2013-10-30T16:05:00.001+01:00

Release 2.11 from 30. October '13

reads Columbus TimeAlbum (.csv) files
reads and writes MotoPlaner URLs
reads SRTM1 and SRTM3 files when completing elevation data
allows to switch between speed and elevation in the context menu of the profile graph
uses the Glopus (*.tk) format with latitude,longitude,comment when pasting to the clipboard
uses a single instance when calling the Webstart API and passing it an URL to open
uses integer tick units for the profile graph to avoid fraction number
is more robust when reading NMEA 0183 Sentences (*.nmea) files
allows to use zoom level 19 of Mapnik maps
fixes the performance issues when deleting large number of positions in tracks with lots of positions
fixes a bug when converting routes to tracks that inserted new positions in unpredictable order
fixes a bug when reading NMEA 0183 Sentences (*.nmea) files where the ZDA year is encoded with 4 digits
fixes a bug when writing Garmin POI (*.gpi) files with spaces in the position list name
fixes a bug when writing Google Earth 5 (*.kml) speed bars with wrong speed segments
fixes a bug when writing WebPage (*.html) files which failed to display positions
fixes a bug when registering at the RouteConverter service that allowed empty first and last names

This is how it looks like:

OnlinePC über RouteConverter

2013-07-18T11:24:00.001+02:00

Gerade habe ich einen schönen Bericht über RouteConverter 2.10 bei OnlinePC entdeckt. Besonders gefreut hat mich, daß die einfache Bedienung und die automatische Erkennung geschätzt werden:

Der Clou an RouteConverter ist einfache Bedienung sowie die automatische Erkennung des jeweiligen Datenformats. Es genügt, eine GPS-Datei ins Programmfenster zu ziehen, und die Software ermittelt die passende Dateibehandlungsroutine. Anschliessend erscheinen die Wegpunkte rechts im Fenster, während links eine Vorschau der Strecke in Google Maps zu sehen ist. Die Kartenansicht lässt sich umstellen, verschieben und zoomen. Einzelne Wegpunkte kann der Nutzer bearbeiten, löschen, verschieben oder hinzufügen. Die jeweilige Position wird direkt auf der Karte markiert.

Danke.

RouteConverter 2.10 is ready

2013-07-12T17:16:00.000+02:00

Release 2.10 from 12. July '13

reads ape@map (.trk) files
reads broken Columbus V990 (.csv) files as reported here
reads Google's MultiTrack extension for Google Earth 5 (*.kml) files
extracts Google Earth 5 (*.kml) from Google Maps My Places URLs starting with http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?...
adds Polish and Russian localization
allows for floating point input to the position deletion dialog
solves speed problems when rendering lots of markers with and without descriptions
fixes a bug when Extras/Options... preferences where not loaded from the place where they were saved
fixes a bug when writing GoPal Route (.xml) files with wrong ISO-8859-1 character set definition
fixes a bug when writing Training Center Database (.tcx) files that were missing the heartbeat information
fixes a bug when starting GPSBabel with spaces in the path due to changes to Runtime.exec in Java 1.7.0_21 for Windows

RouteConverter 2.9 is ready

2013-05-27T21:13:00.000+02:00

Release 2.9 from 27. May '13

reads Garmin Fit (.fit) files
extracts speed from Sports Tracker (*.gpx) files
is optimized for large tracks with several hundred thousand positions
allows to display coordinates as decimal degrees, degrees and decimal minutes, degrees minutes and seconds
allows to display coordinates at current mouse position
allows to display the waypoint description next to the waypoint
allows to add time to positions interpolated from existing time information
allows to add new positions not only for one but for all selected positions
stores position list name and description for waypoints in of GPX files
gives routes nicer names when splitting them
works with Java 7 and Mac OS X 10.8
notifies about Java updates
fixes a bug when the Google Maps Directions API throwed OVER_QUERY_LIMIT exception since more than one request was active at a given time
fixes a bug stopping threads when shutting down to fix Java 1.7.0_07 on OpenSUSE problems
fixes a bug when selecting and moving positions failed
fixes a bug when displaying large number of waypoints
fixes a bug that route names in Training Center Database(.tcx) files should be unique and not exceed 15 characters
fixes a bug when writing Google Maps URLs (*.url)
fixes a bug when reading i-Blue 747 (.csv) and Qstarz BT-Q1000 (*.csv) files without timestamps
fixes a bug when reading Columbus V900 Standard (.csv) files with 'G' fix indicator
fixes a bug when writing GPX 1.1 (.gpx) files with speed as m/s
fixes a bug that SRTM data files were deleted upon program completion
fixes a bug that required to select a position to be allowed to print
fixes a bug that null values for elevation where ignored during complete or edit operations
fixes a bug to bring up the help window when started via Webstart

Quick Look Video from FindMySoft

2013-01-09T11:56:00.000+01:00

FindMySoft created a Quick Look Video about RouteConverter which is worth looking at if you're thinking of using RouteConverter. Check here

RouteConverter 2.8 is ready

2012-08-17T23:18:00.000+02:00

Release 2.8 from 17. August '12

reads and writes GoRiderGPS (*.rt) files
reads Google Maps URLs without coordinates as Google dropped the KML support
follows Windows Shortcuts (*.lnk) in the local RouteCatalog
opens all files from a directory when a directory is dropped on RouteConverter
adds relief and symbols to the Hike map
adds the OutdoorActive maps Topographic, Austria and Swiss
remembers the map bounds and zoom when it is closed and uses them for the next start
shortens paths in the reopen menu like the Microsoft Office programs
moves Google Maps API calls from Java to JavaScript to make support for OpenLayers and OpenRouteService easier
allows to print only if there is a position
allows to print route descriptions only if the position list is of the type route
shows an increased stability of the map module when extensively used
fixes a bug when reading Google Earth 6.2 (*.kml) files with Track extension and non-UTC timezones
fixes a bug when writing Navigon Mobile Navigator (*.route) files
fixes a bug when reading TomTom firmware version 9 files
fixes a bug when reading Garmin POI (*.gpi) files with umlauts
fixes a bug when splitting iGO8 Route (*.kml) files
fixes a bug which scrambled the position order when opening multiple files at once
fixes a bug which made saving a converted file besides the original file very difficult
fixes a bug did not hide map controls during printing
fixes a bug to avoid 'null' output when printing
fixes a bug which allowed to rename or delete the root node of the RouteCatalog

Windows-Verknüpfungen (aka Shortcuts aka .lnk-Dateien) werden unter "Eigene Routen" verfolgt

2012-07-30T15:26:00.003+02:00

Für die Vorabversion, die ich gerade hochgeladen habe, habe ich ein Feature für mich selbst implementiert, das für die Windows-Nutzer unter Euch auch interessant sein könnte: Windows-Verknüpfungen (aka Shortcuts aka .lnk-Dateien) werden unter "Eigene Routen" verfolgt.

Das heißt, man kann seine Ordner oder Dateien mit interessanten Routen, Tracks und Wegpunktlisten dort belassen, wo sie sind und legt im Dateisystem unter %USERPROFILE%\Eigene Routen eine Verknüpfung auf diese Dateien oder Ordner an und kann sie bequem in RouteConverter durchstöbern.

Gefällt Euch das genauso gut wie mir?

Eigene Routen schnell zugreifen

2012-06-20T15:30:00.000+02:00

Vor einer Weile schrieb @kumo

Ich sehe durchaus einen Bedarf für eine Möglichkeit, Ordner auf dem lokalen PC des jeweiligen Users über das Tab 'Durchstöbern' verwalten zu können. Jeder User wäre für seine private Dateistruktur selbst verantwortlich, ich könnte den User nicht mehr durch Verschieben und Löschen verärgern und auf Deinen Server würden (hoffentlich) nur noch finale Versionen geladen, die dann wie gewohnt allen anderen Usern zur Verfügung stünden.

Inzwischen gibt es einen lokalen Routenkatalog, der das Dateisystem unterhalb von $HOME/Eigene Routen zeigt.

RouteConverter 2.7 is ready

2012-05-28T08:00:00.000+02:00

Release 2.7 from 28. May '12

allows to browse in the local file system like in the remote RouteCatalog for faster access to routes, tracks and waypoint lists
supports undo and redo on all actions when browsing
reads all the files from ZIP Archives (*.zip)
reads files referred to by URL Reference (*.url) and KML NetworkLink
reads and writes Garmin Flight Plan (.fpl) files
reads Map & Guide Intranet 2009 (*.bcr) files
reads Google Earth 6.2 (*.kml) files with FlyTo extension
reads Tripmaster 3.1 (*.itn) files
writes Flight Recorder Data (*.igc) files
reduces decimal places to reasonable precision by default
starts with the last displayed region on the map
makes distance display more reliable by moving code to JavaScript
removes the Tiles@home server for maps as it has been shut down
fixes memory leaks when reading XML files and when opening new files
fixes a bug which prevented that the directions for routes were printed completely
fixes a bug which completed the wrong elevation information if the coordianates were close to zero degree longitude or latitude
fixes a bug where the program was locked up or the map was unuseable under Mac OS X (-XstartOnFirstThread)
fixes bugs when reading Navigon Mobile Navigator (*.route) files
fixes performance issues by using the stable Google Maps API v3.7
fixes a bug where the confirmation to drop changes was missing when dragging and dropping a file
fixes a bug when reading HTTPS Google Maps URLs
fixes opening a search dialog when pressing ctrl+f on the map

Wie bringt man Routen aus Google Maps aufs Navigationsgerät?

2012-05-11T08:34:00.001+02:00

Mit RouteConverter übernimmt man Routen von Google Maps per Drag-and-drop oder wie im folgenden YouTube-Video von Valentin Müller gezeigt über die Speicherung auf Googles Servern:

Dabei wird von Google Maps eine KML-Datei erzeugt mit einer Route und einer Wegpunktliste erzeugt, die von RouteConverter wieder eingelesen wird und für das Navigationsgerät konvertiert werden kann.

RouteConverter 2.6 is ready

2012-02-25T08:39:00.000+01:00

The latest version 2.6 from 25. February '12 offers a lot of new features and improvements. It

reads and writes iGO8 Route (*.kml) files
allows to export the current position list to a file
moves all selected positions when dragging a position on the map
displays elevation or speed in the profile view at the bottom of the window
displays elevation, distances and speed in metric, nautic and statute measurement system
displays copyright messages for OpenStreetMap and OutdoorActive maps
uses the routing instructions from Google Maps Directions API when adding positions
uses Google Maps Elevation API first when completing elevation information
uses the latest Eclipse SWT 3.8M3 library to show a map again on Windows XP
fixes reading Navigating POI-Warner (*.asc) files containing control characters
fixes reading Tom Tom POI (*.ov2) files containing control characters
fixes writing Training Center Database 1 (*.tcx) and Training Center Database 2 (*.tcx) files
fixes a bug when tracks were not painted anymore after scrolling the map
fixes a bug localizing the map display and controles
fixes a bug when routes over water were not painted
fixes a bug omitting the username required for geonames.org
fixes a bug when reading ZIP archives containing file names with umlauts

RouteConverter 2.5 is ready

2011-11-06T13:06:00.000+01:00

The latest version 2.5 from 6. November '11 offers a lot of new features and improvements.

First the website: The new tour tries to visually show highlights of RouteConverter while the completely rewritten features section aims at describing all features in detail.

Then the software:

reads and writes Navigon Mobile Navigator (*.route) files
reads broken Navilink (*.sbp) files without a header and with sometimes 31 bytes instead of 32 for a position
reads NMEA 0183 Sentences (*.nmea) even if the coordinates contain spaces
writes Google Earth 5 (*.kml) files with kilometer marks and a speed bar
writes the track extensions for Google Earth 5 (*.kml) files supporting timestamps for tracks
supports undo and redo when adding, removing, renaming position lists
displays elevation, distances and speed in miles and feet (Statute) or meters (Metric)
displays date and time in a timezone selected by the user with the machines timezone as a default
allows naming pattern for new or completed positions: Description only, Number only, Number directly followed by description and Number, a space then description
offers a feedback functionality which allows to send error reports and broken files from the help menu
uses Google Maps API V3 bringing a lot of features from maps.google.com to RouteConverter
allows to drag at routes to define waypoints
allows to avoid toll roads when routing
allows experimental routing for bicycles in the United States
allows to scroll the map with cursor keys
offers a context menu to the map view
offers a new selection model for the map: a mouse click selects nearby positions, shift + mouse click extends the current selection, ctrl + mouse click adds a position, ctrl + alt + mouse click removes a position
offers a new interactive zoom model for the map: pressing 'z' or clicking the new zoom symbol on the left side allow to define a map area to zoom in
offers a new interactive selection model for the map: pressing 's' or clicking the new selection control on the left side allow to define a map area where all positions are selected
extracts speed and heading from Qstarz BT-Q1000 (*.gpx) files
uses the latest Eclipse SWT 3.7 library making setup on recent Linux distributions easier
removes file upload to various online services as it was actually never used
tries to initialize the map forever if the Internet connection is temporarily unavailable
allows to use the Outdoor Active Map
uses tile.opencyclemap.org for the popular Cycle map
allows to configure alternative server URLs other than maps.google.com
fixes a bug that CompeGPS Data cannot be loaded into a MagicMaps2Go position list
fixes a timezone display bug for XML-based formats
fixes a bug that shortened file names after the user has typed them
fixes a bug that grew the selection when positions were inserted
fixes a bug when changes on different positions lists where undone on the currently visible position list
fixes a bug when not copying positions before putting them into the clipboard
fixes a bug when file extensions where removed twice when writing files
fixes a bug when copying positions between RouteConverter instances failed

Track ausdünnen

2011-05-24T14:18:00.003+02:00

Eine interessante Methode, einen Track auszudünnen, hat Lorenz im MeinTomTom-Forum beschrieben:

Zunächst lade ich die mitgeloggte Datei mit den vielen hundert Wegpunkten in RouteConverter. Dann starte ich den RuteConverter ein zweites Mal. Dabei schalte ich immer hin und her zwischen den beiden RouteConverter-Fenstern. Im ersten Fenster schaue ich mir die Tour mit den vielen Punkten an und im zweiten Fenster setze ich neue Wegpunkte entlang der Tour nach den bekannten Regeln. Dazu klicke ich auf die gewünschte Stelle mit der rechten Maustaste und wähle 'insert' im Menü. Wenn die Tour fertig 'übertragen' ist in das zweite Fenster platziere ich die neuen Punkte bei hoher Zoomstufe exat auf die Straße. Alles in allen dauert die Punktereduzierung auf max. 48 ca. 10 Minuten. Die Wegpunkte sind dann genau da wo ich sie haben will.

Wenn ich das Programm die überflüssigen Wegpunkte entfernen lasse bleiben Punkte an Positionen stehen, die ich da gar nicht haben will. Also muss ich nach der automatischen Entfern-Arbeit von RouteConverter 'per Hand' weiterarbeiten. Alles in allem ist meine Methode wesentlich schneller.

Auch wenn ich die Methode interessant finde, komme ich mit dem automatischen Entfernen von RouteConverter besser klar. Wie geht es Euch?

RouteConverter 2.4 is ready

2011-05-22T12:36:00.004+02:00

The latest version 2.4 from 21. Mai '11

reads and writes CoPilot 8 (*.trp) files
reads and writes Opel Navi 600/900 (*.poi) files
adds Czech and Slovakian localization
allows to drag and drop positions in the position list
displays time data in the default time zone of the users machine

and much more...

This is how RouteConverter looks like:

RouteConverter 2.3 is ready

2011-03-01T23:42:00.003+01:00

The latest version 2.3 from 27. February '11

reads and writes CompeGPS Data (.trk) files
reads FAI/IGC Flight Recorder Data (.igc) files
reads and writes groundtrack vom SondenMonitor (*.txt) files
uses the WebKit browser first on Linux and if that fails XULRunner to make RouteConverter run on Ubuntu 10.x systems again

and much more...

RouteConverter 2.2 is ready

2011-01-18T18:24:00.001+01:00

The latest version 2.2 from 18. January '11

reads and writes Navigon Mobile Navigator URL (*.url) from iPhone and iPad
reads and writes Qstarz BT-Q1000 (*.csv) files
reads and writes iBlue 747 (*.csv) files
renames the 'Tools' menu to 'Position'
adds new 'Position list' menu for addition, conversion, deletion, renaming and reversion of position lists

and much more...

RouteConverter 2.1 is ready

2010-11-20T10:30:00.000+01:00

The latest release 2.1 from 20. November '10

reads and writes GoPal Route 5 (*.xml) files
reads time and elevation from Google Earth (*.kml) files written by Navigon 6310 devices
adds Spanish localization
adds a menu with recently opened files
always displays times in GMT/UTC timezone
solves the menu performance problems on Mac OS X
avoids the browser polling most of the time on Linux and Mac OS X
complements comments, elevation and time of manually inserted positions
speeds up reading of files by first trying most likely candidates
speeds up writing of files by not reloading them if the format didn't change
contains a workaround for GPST(racker) which stores m/s instead of Km/h in GPX 1.1 (*.gpx) files
fixes a bug introduced in 2.0 where selected positions where not centered on the map
fixes a problem with routes that could not be selected in the position list chooser
fixes wrong time when reading GoPal Route 3 (*.xml) files
fixes wrong order of positions when writing Falk Navigator (.tour) files
fixes the find populated place lookup by using http://ws.geonames.org/ as a default

How to plan routes with Google Maps and use them on TomTom devices

2010-11-09T11:56:00.003+01:00

Most RouteConverter users wonder, until they figure out that routes planned with Google Maps on the PC sometimes do not match the route that a TomTom device displays them after they have transferred the route to the device.

The reason is that the TomTom device uses different map data plus a different routing algorithm when compared to Google Maps. Thus its a good idea to set more waypoints and doublecheck on your TomTom device that the routing of the TomTom device matches your desired route.

You have to learn where to set these waypoints. I always put them on streets I want to pass by in all cases - and always in the middle between road intersections. This ensures a rather predictable routing on the Tom Tom device for routes planed with Google Maps.

RouteConverter 2.0 is ready

2010-10-17T11:53:00.003+02:00

The long awaited release 2.0 of RouteConverter from 17. October '10

introduces a completely redesigned user interface with a menu bar, popup menus and cleaned up tabs and dialogs
introduces unlimited undo/redo for all operations on position lists
displays the elevation profile prominently at the bottom of the window
adds Arabic, Chinese, Croatian, Serbian localizations
offers 64-bit versions for 64-bit Java VMs
is optimized for reading large data files
reads routes from ZIP archives
reads and writes routes from the system clipboard
reads and writes Training Center Database 2 (*.tcx) files
reads Google Earth (*.kml and *.kmz) files with GX extensions
writes Web Page (*.html) files
natively implemented Nokia Landmark (*.lmx) format
speeds up the addition of elevation information by using HGT files from the NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission
speeds up the loading of the categories from the browse panel
uses the selected file format from file chooser as the first one to use to allow reading of Glopus (*.tk) files that look like Garmin POI Database (*.xcsv) files
shows distances below 10 Kilometers in Meter and above 200 Kilometers without decimals
contains a more Word-like dialog for unsaved changes
adds a category for Garmin POI Database (*.xcsv) files
adds a time for Training Center Database (*.tcx) files to ensure Garmin Training Center displays tracks
fixes a bug when reading Google Maps URLs by adding &output=kml to the URL
fixes a bug where the local timezone was used instead of GMT
fixes a map repaint bug when zooming out of the map
fixes a bug which sets the time of inserted positions to the previous position
fixes a bug where the inserting of waypoints failed when the routing is optimized for pedestrians
fixes a bug with a wrong ordering when reading Falk Navigator (*.tour) files
fixes a bug while reading very small Wintec WBT-202 (*.tes) files
fixes a bug while reading strange NMEA files
fixes a bug where the waypoint encoding of Tom Tom Route files was wrong
fixes a bug with optional elevation information in Google Earth (*.kml and *.kmz) files
fixes width problems for the distance column under Linux
and lots and lots of small fixes...

Automatische Formaterkennung

2010-05-30T12:06:00.006+02:00

Warum werden trotzdem alle Formate "durchprobiert" (durchblättern oben rechts bei "Format: xxxxxx" ), auch wenn das Format aufgrund der Dateiendung bereits Rückschluss auf das konkrete Format liefern würde?

Diese Frage wurde gerade im Forum gestellt und ich glaube, daß die Antwort auch andere Nutzer interessiert.

Sei beim Lesen von Daten möglichst lax und beim Schreiben möglichst strikt.

so lautet stark verkürzt ein Informatikprinzip, um Programme robust zu implementieren. Daraus folgt, daß sich der Programmcode beim Lesen der Daten auf die Dateiendung sowieso nicht verlassen dürfte und stur versucht die internen Strukturen mit den gelesenen Daten zu füllen. Stattdessen rechnet guter Programmcode immer damit, kaputte oder falsche Daten vorgesetzt zu bekommen. Diese Robustheit sieht der Nutzer nicht direkt, sie kostet aber viel Aufwand bei der Programmierung.

Also habe ich da aus der Not eine Tugend, d.h. ein Feature, gemacht: RouteConverter erkennt ohne Zutun des Benutzers das Dateiformat und liest die Datei ein.

Dafür kommen alle Formate an die Reihe und dürfen versuchen, die Daten zu lesen. Zu "vorsichtige" Formate lehnen Dateien ab, die eigentlich für sie bestimmt wären - bei den XML-basierten Formaten wie dem Google Earth (*.kml) Format passiert das häufiger. Zu "gierige" Formate interpretieren auch Daten, die sie gar nicht verstehen können, und liefern dann Müll zurück - Garmins POI DB (*.xcsv) ist ein Kandidat dafür.

Treten solche Fehler auf, dann bekomme ich die ziemlich schnell von Nutzern berichtet und behebe sie so schnell es geht. Denn nach etwa 250000 Downloads und mit zehntausenden regelmäßigen Nutzern muß ich aufpassen, daß ich in Supportanfragen nicht untergehe.