This page may not render properly in the Apple's Safari browser. We suggest using Mozilla Firefox.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is part four of a weekly series on computer-based navigation software and electronic charting. For more about this series and why we wrote it, please see our Room 13 blog.
Until recently, if you were a member of the small club who owned a Macintosh computer, your choices for electronic charting were slim. The questions that dogged Apple stalled efforts to develop full-featured navigation software.
But with Apple now solidly in place and the Mac growing ever more popular, choices have stabilized in the form of two programs - NavimaQ and MacENC - that offer strong options at affordable prices.
Though neither of the Macintosh packages are as full-featured as long-established PC programs, coastal cruisers and weekend sailors will find more than enough capability to do basic planning and navigation. Together, the two programs are a strong indicator that navigation software for the Macintosh has come a long way since the days when Apple's future was in question and its operating system changed with the winds.
For those who favor the Mac's stability and ease of use - 18 percent of all laptops sold in the U.S. are now Apples - taking an Apple aboard is now a viable option. In fact, because most Macs now have an Intel processor, you can even use a Mac to power a PC-based navigation application (for a story on how to do this, see link below).
We focused on software whose primary capability is reading common U.S. chart formats, but it is worth mentioning that there are Macintosh applications that serve other geographic locations. The most notable is PassagePlus, which works with UK Admiralty or New Zealand raster charts and can be downloaded for $70 (see link below).
NAVIMAQ
NavimaQ (pronounced NAV-EH-MAC) was originally written in the mid-1980s by husband-and-wife software development team Barb and Larry Bauer. When Apple launched OS X 10.0 in 2001, requiring a complete revamping of all applications, the Bauers decided not to update NavimaQ. In 2004, it was purchased by Barco Software, which began the arduaous task of making NavimaQ OS X compatible. The latest version of NavimaQ (3.4.8) runs on older PowerPC Macs as well as newer Macs with Intel processors.
NavimaQ is available online through its website (see link below) and through a small number of retailers such as Landfalll Navigation and Celestaire. The boxed version sells for $99.95 direct from Barco, while the same offering costs $195 retail, a discrepancy created by the retailers' margin requirements. Alternatively, you can opt for a software-only download from Barco for $75.
Be warned: do not expect an Apple-out-of-the-box experience with this purchase. The product clearly was not conceived by Apple's packaging team in Cupertino. The slimcase contains an installation CD and a 32-page Getting Started Guide that looks like it was photocopied and hand-trimmed at the local copy shop.
An HTML manual, accessed through Help on the main menu, is your most important resource when working with NavimaQ. This detailed manual, with 20 hot-linked chapters, is much more helpful than the pamphlet included with the CD. We suggest immediately printing the Help chapters to create a manual.
Barco also provides customer support. NavimaQ includes unlimited email support for the life of the product and telephone support for the first 30 days to help with installation. You can purchase a support contract for priority email and extended telephone support. Barco also has an online community site with FAQ's and forums for discussion (see link below).
SETTING UP
In order to get up and running, you need raster charts in BSB/KAP or GEO/NOS (formerly SoftChart) formats. You can purchase BSB charts on CD or DVD from several commercial sources, or download them free from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (for a story on how to do this, see link below).
You'll also need a copy of NOAA's Catalog of Charts & Publications, which displays all the chart regions and their numbers. This color fold-out brochure lets you choose the chart files you wish to view and, more importantly, helps you identify which charts are adjacent as you move through a region. These free brochures are available at any marine store that sells NOAA paper charts.
