I have a question.

Garmin has come out with a software upgrade version 2.70 (April 7, 2004). My
Venture is version 2.34. I felt like upgrading the software, but is wary
with the process. Is there any real benefit in upgrading? I am wary because
of the disclaimer on the Garmin website:

"If attempts to upload software fail, you may need to return the device to
Garmin® for service."

And I do not understand the following statement:

"If MapSource data is loaded to this unit, this unit's preloaded Marine POI
database will be erased."

My Venture comes with factory-loaded Worldwide City Database, Dec 2000. What
will happen to this database if I upgrade? The upgrade page only mention
about Marine POI.

My experience with the version 2.34 since May 2003 has been quite okay.
There was a few glitches but on the whole (about 99%), I am quite satisfied.

Should I upgrade?

--
Ir. Hanafi
Oil, Gas & Petrochem Consulting Engineer

"IRHANS" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
news:c6s6c4$1pp$(E-Mail Removed):

> I have a question.
>
> Garmin has come out with a software upgrade version 2.70 (April 7,
> 2004). My Venture is version 2.34. I felt like upgrading the software,
> but is wary with the process. Is there any real benefit in upgrading?
> I am wary because of the disclaimer on the Garmin website:
>
> "If attempts to upload software fail, you may need to return the
> device to Garmin® for service."
>
> And I do not understand the following statement:
>
> "If MapSource data is loaded to this unit, this unit's preloaded
> Marine POI database will be erased."
>
> My Venture comes with factory-loaded Worldwide City Database, Dec
> 2000. What will happen to this database if I upgrade? The upgrade page
> only mention about Marine POI.
>
> My experience with the version 2.34 since May 2003 has been quite
> okay. There was a few glitches but on the whole (about 99%), I am
> quite satisfied.
>
> Should I upgrade?
>

http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-
8&newwindow=1&safe=off&q=upgrade+firmware+on+gps&s pell=1

Try this link and see what others have said about upgrades.

"IRHANS" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
news:c6s6c4$1pp$(E-Mail Removed):

> Garmin has come out with a software upgrade version 2.70 (April 7,
> 2004). My Venture is version 2.34. I felt like upgrading the software,
> but is wary with the process. Is there any real benefit in upgrading?

It's up to you. At a minimum, I'd suggest downloading the firmware
updates for your GPS as they become available, so you'll have
copies should you ever need them in the future. For example,
you may not have a copy of version 2.34, should you want to
re-install that version at some point, however, you can
get a copy here:
http://www.gpsinformation.org/perry/agree.html

> I am wary because of the disclaimer on the Garmin website:
>
> "If attempts to upload software fail, you may need to return the
> device to Garmin® for service."

True, but that's unlikely to happen.

> And I do not understand the following statement:
>
> "If MapSource data is loaded to this unit, this unit's preloaded
> Marine POI database will be erased."
>
> My Venture comes with factory-loaded Worldwide City Database, Dec
> 2000. What will happen to this database if I upgrade? The upgrade page
> only mention about Marine POI.

I've told Garmin about the incorrect wording on their webpage,
years ago, and although they said they would fix it, they never
have done so.

For more about the Venture, and the various databases you
can load into it, take a look at the GPS page on my website.

--
Dave Patton
Canadian Coordinator, Degree Confluence Project
http://www.confluence.org/
My website: http://members.shaw.ca/davepatton/

On Fri, 30 Apr 2004 08:24:28 +0800, "IRHANS" <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote :

>I have a question.
>
>Garmin has come out with a software upgrade version 2.70 (April 7, 2004). My
>Venture is version 2.34. I felt like upgrading the software, but is wary
>with the process. Is there any real benefit in upgrading? I am wary because
>of the disclaimer on the Garmin website:
>

Well, I suggest that you don't need to bother with 2.70, unless you
are not an English-speaker. 2.60 is pretty useless too. But go to the
Garmin site again and read the detail on what each upgrade did to see
if you need it - only you can decide.

I've done a fair bit of swapping of versions, including making my
Venture look like a Legend (newer models can't do it unfortunately)
and I've never had any problems - it's pretty straightforward as long
as you make sure you've got a good set of batteries in the Venture and
also turn your Venture to the GPS off mode, or else the demo mode,
before starting the upgrade: i.e. don't have it searching for
satellites during the upgrade.

Good luck.

--
Regards,
Peter Wilkins

Thanks to gpsmaps, Dave Patton and Peter Wilkins who have replied to my
post. I appreciate the information very much.

--
Ir. Hanafi
Oil, Gas & Petrochem Consulting Engineer