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  {block name=title}GPSBabel development:The Problem: Too many incompatible GPS file formats{/block}
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  <div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="navheader"><table width="100%" summary="Navigation header"><tr><th colspan="3" align="center">The Problem: Too many incompatible GPS file formats</th></tr><tr><td width="20%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="Introduction.html">Prev</a> </td><th width="60%" align="center">Introduction to GPSBabel</th><td width="20%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="The_Solution.html">Next</a></td></tr></table><hr /></div><div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="section"><div class="titlepage"><div><div><h2 class="title" ><a id="The_Problem"></a>The Problem: Too many incompatible GPS file formats</h2></div></div></div><p> There are simply too many gratuitously different file formats
to hold waypoint, track, and route information in various programs
used by computers and GPS receivers.  
<a class="ulink" href="http://www.topografix.com/gpx.asp" target="_top">GPX</a>  defines a
standard in XML to contain all the data, but there are too many
programs that don't understand it yet and too much data in 
alternate formats.
</p><p>
Perhaps you have an <a class="link" href="fmt_magellanx.html" title="Magellan SD files (as for eXplorist) (magellanx)">Explorist 600</a> and your friend has a <a class="link" href="fmt_garmin.html" title="Garmin serial/USB protocol (garmin)">StreetPilot 2720</a>.
You've collected a list of your favorite locations as waypoints and you'd
like to be able to share them.  Unfortunately, his copy of <a class="link" href="fmt_gdb.html" title="Garmin MapSource - gdb (gdb)">Garmin Mapsource</a>
won't read data created by your copy of <a class="link" href="fmt_mapsend.html" title="Magellan Mapsend (mapsend)">Magellan Mapsend DirectRoute</a>.  What you need
is a program that converts data bewteen the two programs.
</p><p>
GPSBabel actually solves that problem for you and much more...
</p></div><div xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" class="navfooter"><hr /><table width="100%" summary="Navigation footer"><tr><td width="40%" align="left"><a accesskey="p" href="Introduction.html">Prev</a> </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="u" href="Introduction.html">Up</a></td><td width="40%" align="right"> <a accesskey="n" href="The_Solution.html">Next</a></td></tr><tr><td width="40%" align="left" valign="top">Introduction to GPSBabel </td><td width="20%" align="center"><a accesskey="h" href="index.html">Home</a></td><td width="40%" align="right" valign="top"> The Solution</td></tr></table></div>
  
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