First alpha release of xGPS Maps Manager

Due to the large number of people reporting that they cannot download maps successfully on the iPhone (due to an Apple bug by the way, thanks Apple!), we have decided to already release the very very first version of the xGPS Maps Manager which allows to download maps from a computer to use it on the iPhone. So please be aware that this version is a really first version and not all the functionalities are implemented. It is reserved for advanced users as there is currently no option to directly transfer the maps to the iPhone, you have to do it manually.

To download a maps from the computer and then put it on the iPhone or iPod Touch use the following procedure:

  1. Be sure to have Java 1.5 or greater installed on your computer (installed by default on Mac OS X)
  2. Download the software xGPS Maps Manager
  3. Double-click on the downloaded file
  4. The program should now be opened
  5. Use the left scroller to adjust the zoom level to be able to select the right part of the map you want
  6. Then click on “Add region” and then click on the map to draw a closed polygon.
  7. Repeat the step 6 the number of time you want. Regions can also be overlapped. The software will not download two times the map.
  8. When you are ready with your map regions, select the zoom level at which you want to download the maps. To do so enter a number between 0 (the most detailed zoom level) and 17 (the less detailed one) in the text box right after “Download maps at zoom-level:”.
  9. Press “Download selected maps regions” to start the download.
  10. To download maps at multiple zoom level, just repeat the step 6 to 8 for a different zoom level.
  11. When it is finished, close the program.
  12. Go to the same directory where you have downloaded the software.
  13. A new file should have been created called “xGPS_map.db”
  14. You have to put this file in the iPhone at /var/mobile/Library (overwrite the current one if it exists). To do it you can use WinSCP or any other SFTP file transfer utility.
  15. Launch xGPS on your device and the new maps are here! Success!

As we said, it is reserved for advances users. A more simpler version will be available in the future.

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27 Responses to “First alpha release of xGPS Maps Manager”

  1. Chris2000 Says:

    Great!!!
    Keep it up.
    Tnx again for the beautiful work.

  2. Chris2000 Says:

    Can u make it to download maps from OSM amd add them to xGPS_map.db
    It would be great.
    Tnx

  3. Marco Senf Says:

    Large map areas at high detail levels wont load… . It just shows 0,0 MB and nothing happens…

  4. xGPS Maps Manager: Il nuovo software per scaricare le mappe Offline dal proprio computer | iSpazio - Il Blog sull'iPhone più letto in Italia e nel Mondo Says:

    [...] xWaves ha rilasciato una piccola applicazione in Java per Windows e Mac che permette il download delle mappe sul proprio computer per poi trasfrirle manualmente nell’iPhone, per navigare offline. Questo è dovuto ad una serie di email che i creatori di xGPS hanno ricevuto, dove veniva richiesto un software del genere, dato che il download delle mappe dall’iPhone stesso, non va sempre a buon fine. Il Team ci tiene a precisare che è una primissima versione che sarà migliorata in seguito e quindi per il momento il trasferimento delle mappe dal computer all’iPhone/iPod va eseguito manualmente. Per scaricare le mappe bisogna eseguire questi step: [...]

  5. TheCommander Says:

    hello there,
    what file i need to modify to get maps in hebrew lang?

  6. Friends of the Mac » xGPS Maps Manager: Il nuovo software per scaricare le mappe Offline dal proprio computer Says:

    [...] xWaves ha rilasciato una piccola applicazione in Java per Windows e Mac che permette il download delle mappe sul proprio computer per poi trasfrirle manualmente nell’iPhone, per navigare offline. Questo è dovuto ad una serie di email che i creatori di xGPS hanno ricevuto, dove veniva richiesto un software del genere, dato che il download delle mappe dall’iPhone stesso, non va sempre a buon fine. Il Team ci tiene a precisare che è una primissima versione che sarà migliorata in seguito e quindi per il momento il trasferimento delle mappe dal computer all’iPhone/iPod va eseguito manualmente. Per scaricare le mappe bisogna eseguire questi step: [...]

  7. Fab Says:

    Hi, how to load and view a downloaded map with xgps v.1.0.1-3?

  8. happyjam64 Says:

    Works perfectley so far, but there are some problems with rendering the maps, but nothing major. Marco Senf, i think the problem is for the download maps zoom level, 0 is most detailed, 17 is least detailed.

  9. Adriano BRAZIL Says:

    Hello I would like the translation of XGPS to Portuguese / Brazil. Can I help you?

  10. Kruisko Says:

    Thank you for the alpha.
    I started to download, but getting all germany in zoomlevel 4 takes some time.
    If it works on iPhone I can’t tell yet.

    Like Chris2000 mentioned, it would be nice to have osm-support.

    Go on, great work!
    kruisko

  11. xGPS Maps Manager: Il nuovo software per scaricare le mappe Offline dal proprio computer « GmG’s Weblog Says:

    [...] xWaves ha rilasciato una piccola applicazione in Java per Windows e Mac che permette il download delle mappe sul proprio computer per poi trasfrirle manualmente nell’iPhone, per navigare offline. Questo è dovuto ad una serie di email che i creatori di xGPS hanno ricevuto, dove veniva richiesto un software del genere, dato che il download delle mappe dall’iPhone stesso, non va sempre a buon fine. Il Team ci tiene a precisare che è una primissima versione che sarà migliorata in seguito e quindi per il momento il trasferimento delle mappe dal computer all’iPhone/iPod va eseguito manualmente. Per scaricare le mappe bisogna eseguire questi step: [...]

  12. xGPS Maps Manager: utilizzare le mappe sull’iPhone in modalità offline - iPhone Italia - Il blog italiano sull’Apple iPhone 3G Says:

    [...] momento xGPS Maps Manager è ancora in fase alfa, per questo va presa come un’applicazione ancora giovane e non esente [...]

  13. Bozzo Says:

    I have problems (Jar LAuncher closing after starting) but I’m able to launch the program by terminal:

    java -jar xgpsmanager.jar

    I hope I was usefull

  14. Galadriann Says:

    Hi … this works beautifully … maps on iphone works very smoothly…
    Next release, can you add support for setting a proxy server ?
    Tks a million for your apps … very useful and well made…

    Cheers

  15. koRnolio Says:

    Hi, I would like to know if there is any way I could change the Map to download, for example… this JAR soft uses Google Maps, is there a way I could download Microsoft Livemaps, since they are more accurate on my region.
    I’m from Argentina, that’s why I’m asking this… Google Maps are incomplete so far for my country.

    Thanks for your support and for developing this great soft!

  16. m4c Says:

    Hi guys, great job! I like this tool very much.

    I also thought about a new feature:
    Would it be possible to merge different map db files into one?

    I think of an online database, where everyone can upload created map files (and maybe also bookmark files for offline search) so they can be downloaded and merged together to individual maps.

    Think about it.
    m4c

  17. helyair Says:

    Ok, beautiful application, also if i prefer vector maps. that are smaller than raster maps.
    One problem: the “Upload maps to iPhone/iPod touch” doesn’t work, also i activate “Receive maps” on iPhone in the same WLAN.
    What is the protocol that xGPS Manager use to communicate with iPhone, it can be a firewall’s problem (on a Mac)?

  18. helyair Says:

    Ah, i forgot to say two things:
    1) please, use the same rule for scale number in xGPS Manager: in the zoom scrollbar on the left “0″ means “max zoom out” and “17 “max zoom in”, instead in “Download maps at zoom-level” textbox “0″ means “max zoom in” and “17″ means “max zoom out”.
    2) please, can you implement a range of values for “Download maps at zoom-level” textbox? Like “0-3″ to download maps of 0, 1th, 2nd and 3th zoom level.

  19. helyair Says:

    Another tip: in xGPS Manager you could adding a pre-configured set of red shapes, one for every country, to make easier the selections.
    Thanks very much!

  20. PocketFinder GPS en nieuwe xGPS voor de iPhone > Nieuws > iPhoneclub.nl Says:

    [...] die met xGPS Maps Manager zijn gemaakt staan nog wel op je iPhone. De eerste alfarelease van xGPS Maps Manager kwam een paar dagen geleden (26 oktober) uit. Meer info op de blog van Xwaves, de maker van [...]

  21. Rik Says:

    Is this for MAC OS only at the minute as i cant get it to run on windows vista. I can only open th efile with winrar

  22. Werner Says:

    I get many grey screens. Only a few zoom levels work. Can you let me know how to solve this. I have the same issue on my iPhone by the way.

  23. Elementix Says:

    Hmm…. it doesn’t seem to work for me. I get the app to open but I can’t see any maps or anything. Is this because google changed something? It might be time for another update to this as my ipod freezes when I try to download a map size around 100MB. Thanks!

  24. Mathieu Says:

    Yes it’s a known problem as you can read in the latest blog entries. It will be updated this weekend.

  25. hani Says:

    i wondering why the gps on iphone is so complicated. Can someone tell us what do do or how to use it after we transfer the map to the iphone to the library folder.

    since after that i get completely lost of what to do?

    Please guys make it simple for us???

  26. Fabio Says:

    Hello, I wonder if can I download maps for Brazil. Thank you!

  27. Joseph Says:

    Hi! i think there is a problem with your explanation.

    When you are ready with your map regions, select the zoom level at which you want to download the maps. To do so enter a number between 0 (the most detailed zoom level) and 17 (the less detailed one) in the text box right after “Download maps at zoom-level:”.

    17 is the most detailed and 0 is the less detailed. I can say this because 17 downloads the biggest file, then 16 a smaller one and so on. thanks!

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