EDITOR'S NOTE: The End Of The Series

Whenever we attend a boat show, or give an electronic charting presentation, somebody always asks the inevitable question: which navigation packages do we recommend?

After all, we reviewed 15 major pieces of software in the last year, interviewed dozens of boaters and software developers, and then wrote roughly 80,000 words on the topic. We must have drawn some larger conclusions, right?

Well, the answer is yes – and we're happy to share them. Over the next four days, we'll walk you through the lessons we learned and how you can apply them to the question dogging most boaters who want to get started in electronic charting: what should I buy?

We will discuss topics such as the out-of-box experience, the user interface and feature set for different packages, and offer a detailed Feature Comparison Table (see link). Together, we believe these will provide a framework you can use to navigate a confusing marketplace. And on Sunday, we'll cut to the chase and offer you some outright recommendations in several price ranges.

LESSONS LEARNED

When we started to work on this series back in August, we naively thought we would conclude by recommending the perfect e-charting package for each type of boater. The goal seemed simple: recommend "Brand X" for weekend sailors, "Brand Y" for coastal cruisers and "Brand Z" for long-distance voyagers.

But as authors, we learned quite a bit on this project – including the realization that boaters, their boats and the software market all blend to make simplistic recommendations impractical, and perhaps even downright irresponsible. Instead, our final task is not only to summarize the packages and make some recommendations, but to discuss various boating e-needs as well.

TIKITIKI Navigator is a newcomer in a competitive software market, with dozens of programs.

Every boater values different features in different ways. For some, cost is the controlling factor in a purchasing decision. For others, ease-of-use may be more important. Many also have what could be called "e-charting baggage," meaning you already have hardware aboard your boat, a collection of cartography or some other issue that will influence your decision.

The goal here is to help you pinpoint your needs. Do you value waypoint management, buddy boat tracking or a fuel calculator? Can you live without an engine room video monitor, sea temperature display or Great Circle route planning? Once you decide what matters to you, the menu of options will start to narrow and the right package – the one that adds capabilities to your boat and increases the safety margin, without breaking the bank – will become apparent.

THE E-CHARTING MARKET

Unfortunately, the industry doesn't make it easy for a boater to decide which e-charting package to purchase. It's a crowded and confusing marketplace.

We reviewed 15 packages for this series: CARIS Easy View, SeaClear II, MacENC, NavimaQ, Fugawi Marine ENC, Raytech RNS, Coastal Explorer, Nobeltec VNS, Maptech Chart Navigator Pro, DigiBOAT Software-On-Board, TIKI Navigator Pro, NavSim BoatCruiser, The Capn, Nobeltec Admiral and MaxSea Explorer.

And still, there are other contenders hoping to gain traction in the U.S. market, such as Deckman, Expedition, Global Navigation, GPSy, Henry Navigation System, MacGPS Pro, NavGator, OziExplorer, Seatrack, and Tridentnav.

Among the packages we reviewed, the choices range from one-person shops distributing their software for free (SeaClear II) to Boeing subsidiaries (Nobeltec VNS and Admiral). Unlike buying a car, where everyone understands the choices and brands, the e-charting market has not yet presented the consumer with a well-established map of options.

But a crowded marketplace can also be good news for boaters – who benefit as many companies chase each other's capabilities. This "keep up with the Jones" product cycle has created an assortment of packages with incredibly advanced features. Weather downloads, AIS support, annotated charts with linked image files and transit calculators are fast becoming standard features.

Today, you don't need to go with one of the "big guys" for a professional or full-featured product. Even SeaClear II, the free option, includes support for GPS, autopilot, AIS, wind, depth, water temperature and radar! In fact, in many cases, small companies such as DigiBOAT, TIKI Navigator, GPSNavX and NavSim have more high-level features and are on a more rapid development cycle than larger companies.

This crowded and competitive marketplace is also good for pricing. Consider how much Nobeltec VNS (currently at $490) would cost if Fugawi Marine ENC (at $279.95) wasn't also in the market. Besides a bona fide free option (SeaClear II), there are PC e-charting packages ranging in price from less than $100 (Software-On-Board) to several thousand dollars (Admiral and MaxSea). Boaters with Macintosh computers also now have several feasible options, such as NavimaQ, GPSNavX or MacENC.

However, marine software has not quite caught up with the general software industry in terms of pricing, packaging, and user experience. Like everything else on your boat, expect a marine surcharge. Unlike general consumer software, which often costs $29.95 or $49.95, commercial e-charting packages start at $53 and quickly run into the hundreds – or even thousands – of dollars. So before you start comparing prices, realize that a $200 e-charting package is relatively inexpensive.

Conspiracy theories aside, the additional charge is not because you're a boater with a surplus of disposable income. Rather, you are a victim of low-volume sales. E-charting vendors simply cannot cover their costs without charging more because marine software does not attract hundreds of thousands of users.

Marine software is also immature in other areas, such as packaging, documentation, automated updating and stability. For example, though many low-cost packages take advantage of fast and efficient delivery via download, many e-charting packages still must be purchased as boxed sets of physical media – and that often means the charts they include are out of date.

Other standard software services, such as integrated help files or automatic updates, also tend to be lacking. Only two of the applications we reviewed, Fugawi Marine ENC and MaxSea, have video tutorials, which are now a standard demo and educational tool in the general computing market.

Perhaps most telling of a software industry still in its infancy is this: almost half the applications we tested regularly crashed or locked up.

MAKING A DECISION

To make a decision among all these choices, your best resource is the company's demoware. These free downloads, available from a company's website, give you something unique: the opportunity to try out the product before you buy. Many limit functionality, such as restricting the number of waypoints or routes, or expire after a set period of time. But they all afford a hands-on preview.

Nearly all the packages we tested, with the exception of Nobeltec VNS and Admiral, provide some sort of trial. (Although Maptech does not provide a trial version of Chart Navigator Pro, the trial for Coastal Explorer is comparable because the base software is the same).

Unfortunately, many boaters ultimately buy an e-charting package based on a word-of-mouth recommendation. But before you go out and buy that software, consider the source of the recommendation. What if your trawler buddy – who never leaves the dock – recommends an e-charting application, but you're taking a sailboat to the Bahamas? Is it still a good choice for you? Or perhaps you read a magazine article by a reviewer who spends much of his free time fiddling with computers and e-charting, and he really likes the software. Is it appropriate for your level of comfort with computers?

We hope we reviewed each e-charting choice in sufficient detail – devoting several thousand words to each – so you can get an accurate picture. But ultimately, the best way to make a final decision is to download the trial software, install charts for your home port, and give it a real-world sea trial.

OUT OF BOX EXPERIENCE

Of course, you will want to narrow the field of products first by doing some research, so let's dig in. Although most of us look forward to a newly-purchased software package, many dread the nuts-and-bolts of getting started. After being wowed by a colorful box and the prospect of an exciting new nautical toy, often, nothing seems to work as it should. Software installation, chart loading, GPS and instrument connections, learning new features, transferring files – it can all be too frustrating to classify as recreation. So let's look at the specific components that combine to create a trouble-free or even pleasant out-of-box experience.

The good news is that none of the e-charting applications we reviewed were beyond the abilities of an average computer user, or inappropriate or over-featured for a recreational boater. In fact, despite features such as AIS tracking, bathymetric recording or polar optimization, they are all relatively easy to use. You don't need to be a computer scientist or marine engineer to use even the most advanced features on any of these applications.

But you should consider your own abilities.

If you are completely new to computing and don't even own a laptop, consider a Macintosh. Although Macs cost more and your software choices are more limited, the Mac operating system is significantly easier to set up and use compared to dealing with wizards and ports on a PC that is running Windows.

If you are uncomfortable on computers or are simply impatient learning new software, then a trouble-free getting-started experience is important. Software should have packaging that make its features easy to understand. It must have well-written documentation. Software, charts and supplemental data should install effortlessly. External devices should connect easily. And finally, if you do need help, there should be strong technical support.

Many boaters like to purchase a packaged set, including data discs, documentation, and sometimes even hardware extras such as multimedia card readers. Several companies provide very nice retail packages. Most notable is The Capn's professional-looking zippered portfolio. Nobeltec, Maptech, and MaxSea also provide upscale out-of-box experiences. Fugawi Marine ENC, Coastal Explorer, and NavSim do a fine job, and SeaClear II, Software-On-Board, MacENC and TIKI Navigator are available only via download.

Whether the software application is delivered on discs in a boxed case or via download on the Internet, what really matters is the ease of set-up. Throughout this series we have been hard on companies that have not provided thorough, accurate and easy-to-read user manuals. Although one can muddle through any of these applications without a manual, reading the documentation makes the learning process much smoother.

DOCUMENTATION

Traditional printed manuals are going the way of the abacus. Because of printing costs and frequent software updates, most e-charting packages do not include a printed manual. In fact, Nobeltec charges an additional $30 for its User's Guide. The truth is, although a glossy color manual is impressive at first, we found it is more important that the overall documentation be well-organized, accurate and current.

To avoid the constraints of printed documentation, most e-charting applications include some combination of integrated help menus and PDF files. For example, TIKI Navigator does not have a current English manual, instead relying on tutorials and integrated help. Coastal Explorer and Chart Navigator Pro also rely on hot-linked chapters through a help menu.

Although help files are useful for troubleshooting particular issues, we found they were a tough way to understand a package overall. Going through help menus screen-by-screen is a bit like reading an e-book. We often resorted to printing the help files, which is a slow and tedious way to put together a manual.

Our conclusion is that the most practical form of documentation is a PDF file included with the software. This format saves printing costs, is easy to keep up-to-date, saves weight aboard, can be printed section-by-section as needed and, most importantly, it is searchable.

Software-On-Board, Fugawi Marine ENC, and MaxSea have the best documentation in PDF format. MaxSea covered all the angles, combining three excellent documents, video tutorials and an advanced integrated help system.

PROBLEMS AND TECH SUPPORT

Getting started with an e-charting application requires overcoming three main hurdles: loading the charts, loading the supplemental data and connecting instruments.

The most pleasant installations included setup wizards that managed the chart installation and then scanned and assigned ports for the GPS and other devices. Our most difficult getting-started experience was NavSim BoatCruiser, followed by Fugawi Marine ENC and SeaClear II. Many of the other packages also had isolated problems, requiring guesswork to locate the GPS port, multiple attempts to load certain chart formats, or calls to tech support to locate missing drivers.

In contrast, Coastal Explorer, The Capn, Chart Navigator Pro and MaxSea easily loaded all our cartography. Coastal Explorer, The Capn, and Chart Navigator Pro also loaded an extensive collection of supplemental data without difficulty. And we found Coastal Explorer and Chart Navigator Pro, both based on the same basic software program, to have the best port detector, making it easy to connect a GPS.

Naturally, the next question is about the quality of technical support. Understandably, the delivery of service varies considerably with the price. The very small companies must focus on web-based support such as FAQs, forums, a knowledge base and email inquiries. However, this doesn't imply the service is substandard – just that the mode of communication is limited. For example, DigiBOAT, MacENC, and TIKI Navigator all rely on email technical support (with TIKI Navigator returning your email by telephone) and we found them to be very responsive.

SeaClear II, a free non-commercial product, cannot reasonably provide any technical support, but it has developed an extensive self-help forum community among its users. Chart Navigator Pro, Raytech RNS and MaxSea all have top-rate technical support, supplemented by robust forums, knowledge bases and/or FAQs. In contrast, Nobeltec offers "premium" technical support for an annual membership fee.

USER INTERFACE

Although all of the e-charting applications we reviewed are appropriate for anyone with an average level of computer literacy, some do have a steeper learning curve. We've already mentioned the importance of documentation and extras such as tutorials and FAQs to help you get started.

Another aspect that will impact your learning curve is the user interface, in particular whether an application offers a familiar format or a new approach. Although traditional interfaces are easier to learn right out of the box, non-traditional approaches can also be easy to learn. The reason companies redesign their graphical user interface (GUI) is to make it easier to use and better suited to a marine environment. Their success, of course, depends on specifics, such as the design of the menus, icons and data windows.

The software we tested contained four types of graphical user interface: non-traditional interfaces, traditional Macintosh interfaces, traditional Windows interfaces and those styled like a chartplotter.

Non-traditional interfaces were more common among lower-priced start-up contenders. In all three instances – SeaClear II, Software-On-Board, and TIKI Navigator – the interface was designed afresh as a way to make the laptop more compatible with marine use. For example, SeaClear II emphasizes efficient right-click mousing rather than pull-down menus. Intended eventually for a touch screen, Software-On-Board has no menus and few actions that require dragging a mouse. Surprisingly, each of these three pioneering approaches are not unreasonably difficult to learn. SeaClear's simple interface could be self-taught despite its lack of documentation, and the other two provided documentation or tutorials that made learning painless.

The two Macintosh programs, NavimaQ and MacENC, both chose a traditional Mac interface. In fact, we criticized both applications for minor inconsistencies with well-established Mac conventions, such as the use of pull-out drawers and standard shortcuts. Some of these quirks, such as NavimaQ's eight-character naming limitation, have been remedied since our reviews. (For a story on changes since our reviews, see link.)

Understandably, most PC-based e-charting applications choose a traditional Windows interface based on pull-down menus and toolbars filled with icons. Fugawi Marine ENC and The Capn both would benefit from some streamlining and updating of their menus and icons. The best Windows implementation – no surprise given the founder is an ex-Microsoft employee – goes to Coastal Explorer (and by extension, Chart Navigator Pro). These two programs get high marks for their clean and consistent Windows interface, designed for the seasonal or weekend boater who doesn't want to remember new shortcuts and menu choices each time they open their boating software.

One company, Raymarine, chose a chartplotter interface, designed to turn your PC into an on-screen version of a keypad. Boaters who are more comfortable with chartplotters than computers may prefer this interface, but if you are used to PCs, then it may feel cumbersome and constrained.

SCREEN SPACE

The most important side-effect of the user interface is what we called "screen real estate," which is the amount of screen space available for viewing the most important window: the nautical chart. Laptop screens are limited, and nautical charts can be notoriously small and hard to read, so any program that maximizes screen real estate by reducing menu, window and icon clutter scores high points.

Raytech's chart plotter interface, with large soft keys and databoxes, creates an incredibly small chart display area. Similarly, Fugawi Marine ENC's extensive menus, toolbars and library windows also obscure the chart display. SeaClear II, Software-On-Board, TIKI Navigator, and MaxSea have the cleanest and largest chart display areas.

With today's powerful laptops, all of the applications were reasonably quick to open, display and pan over charts. However, Software-On-Board, MacENC, Fugawi Marine ENC and Nobeltec VNS and Admiral experienced delays. SeaClear II and TIKI Navigator were surprisingly responsive. However, with its DirectX graphics acceleration, MaxSea easily takes the checkered flag.

The applications also differ widely in their chart display quality – even when displaying the same chart files, such as NOAA's free raster charts. Unfortunately, the "average" score wasn't very impressive. Applications achieve varying levels of image clarity by using different programming methods and technologies. Surprisingly, Coastal Explorer's and Chart Navigator Pro's chart displays were not particularly sharp. The Capn's chart rendering is the least impressive, exhibiting broken letters and pixelization.

SEACLEARScreen real estate is important. SeaClear's uncluttered display features a Dashboard (right) and a right-click popup menu. The result is more space for charts.

In contrast, MacENC achieves superior image quality by using Mac OS X's built-in Quartz technology. Nobeltec VNS and Admiral make efforts with a technology they call CrystalView, which improves – but doesn't make stunning – their chart displays. TIKI Navigator achieves excellent image quality without either of these technologies.

On a related note, both NavimaQ's Spyglass Tool and TIKI Navigator's Digital Magnifier were impressive features for quickly zooming in for more chart detail.

CUSTOMIZATION

Because all boaters' needs are different, applications work best when their interface and metrics can be customized. Customization is important for usability (such as larger fonts for far-sighted users), safety (such as twilight or night displays), and convenience (such as statute miles for Intracoastal Waterway travelers). Many customizations are also nice extras, such as personalized icons, display colors or toolbars.

Raytech RNS has the most rigid user interface, constrained by their choice of a chartplotter look-and-feel. SeaClear II, NavimaQ, and TIKI Navigator also have interfaces that are essentially pre-set. BoatCruiser, The Capn and MaxSea allow for quite a bit of customization, but Nobeltec VNS and Admiral, with their customizable Toolbar and Console, are exceptionally flexible. In fact, a Nobeltec user can even save separate customized work spaces for different activities, such as fishing, cruising or racing.

Not surprisingly, many of the most flexible interfaces also allow for the most customization when it comes to metrics, including Software-On-Board, BoatCruiser, The Capn, Nobeltec VNS, Nobeltec Admiral and MaxSea.

In order to display multiple chart images, instrument windows, and position data, each e-charting application must shovel the proverbial 10 pounds of navigation information into a five-pound screen display. Two features help them accomplish this trick: split windows and a tabbed interface.

Split windows partition a single display window into multiple panes, often displaying one for the main chart and one for something else, such as an aerial photo or depth sounder data. A tabbed interface stacks separate displays of information in layers, which can be called to the foreground using tabbed buttons at the bottom of the screen.

About half of the e-charting applications – generally those in the higher price range – use some form of split window display. Raytech RNS has the most elaborate functionality, allowing for up to four simultaneous split window panes (plus a tabbed interface).

Tabs were less common, although we found them to be a more effective solution because they allow larger single windows to be customized and sequenced, rather than relying on a collection of tiny windows. This Microsoft Excel-like trick is used by BoatCruiser, Raytech RNS and MaxSea.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, if you value a first-rate out-of-box experience, then MaxSea, The Capn, Coastal Explorer and Chart Navigator Pro will certainly please you. The fusion of packaging, installation, documentation, device hookup and technical support was exemplary.

But MaxSea's approach to an admittedly complex product easily put it over the top. The company offered numerous options to help get you started, including video tutorials. Once you are up and running, MaxSea also has an excellent and highly-customizable interface, with good implementation of split screen and tabbed displays, and sharp and responsive chart images.

At the lower price end, NavSim is also very responsive and highly customizable. And, if you like the idea of an innovative interface, TIKI Navigator performed very well with its streamlined operation, chart display quality and overall speed.

TOMORROW: Features both basic and advanced

Capt. Mark Doyle and Capt. Diana Doyle are authors of the Managing the Waterway cruising guide series, and their work has appeared in numerous publications. They also produce CDs and DVDs of NOAA and USACE charts.