DIGIBOATLooking westward over the Canaveral Barge Canal, C-Map cartography displays a perspective view in which tides and currents, bottom conditions, soundings, chart boundaries, and other chart features can be toggled.C-Map charts can also be displayed in "perspective" view, allowing an aerial view of an inlet, channel, anchorage or port (see photo). Perspective charts can only be displayed at the scale they were digitized – in other words, you can't zoom continuously between scales. But they are digitized at several scales. We did occasionally get an error message when working with perspective views or other computer-intensive displays, warning us to "Close an unresponsive program." At this point the application must be restarted, losing any unsaved waypoints and routes.

WAYPOINTS AND ROUTES

Waypoints are easy to create in SOB. The Waypoint tool icon creates the mark, which easily can be moved by mouse-clicking at the old and new locations.

Unlike some other e-charting applications, SOB has waypoint management. You can move or copy waypoints to a new file, creating separate files for grouped waypoints. Although SOB certainly gets credit for including waypoint management, the implementation is a bit cumbersome. A more intuitive "transfer" or "drag-and-drop" interface would be a welcome improvement.

DIGIBOATUsing DigiBOAT's Auto-Search Route capability is an easy, three-step process. Step 1: From the All Routes menu [F11], choose Create AutoRoutes.

DIGIBOATStep 2: Define search parameters such as search area size, grid spacing and layout, and additional data such as last known position and set and drift.

DIGIBOATStep 3: Follow the waypoints on the search route, closely adhering to cross-track error (XTE) feedback.

When SOB creates a waypoint, it becomes a "temporary waypoint," which is unsaved until you assign it to a waypoint folder. When you quit the program, SOB doesn't warn you of these unsaved items, deleting them unless you pay attention and manage your waypoints carefully.

Although SOB does not have a designated search field, you can select a waypoint from the All Waypoints form (F10), double-click, and then choose the Centre icon on the Waypoint detail form. Although a combined search and Centre form would be more efficient, the current implementation provides a useful way to move around charts.

Creating routes is not quite as easy as creating waypoints. In order to create routes beyond the current chart display, Auto-panning must be turned on. Unfortunately, Auto-panning slows the program so severely that conventional "rubber-band" route creation is not feasible. The better approach when making a large route is to rough-in a route on a small-scale chart, then zoom in and make any necessary adjustments on a more detailed chart.

One particularly nice feature is SOB's one-touch range and bearing lines. With SOB you can set multiple bearing lines, which many other programs don't do. Using this tool makes it easy to sight bearings or even create parallel line routes to maintain a safe distance from a hazard.

SOB also creates automatic search routes, like you might use during a man overboard search and rescue. Waypoints and a corresponding route (in a circular or grid pattern) are instantly created over a pre-set search area (see photos).

Many SOB files, including default waypoints, tracks, AIS data, "buddy boats" and user-created messages, are stored using an innovative file naming trick. These files begin with an exclamation point ("!"), which sorts them to the top of the alphabetical listing, making them easy to locate.

Many of these files are created automatically by SOB, such as the data files !LastTrack and !PastTrack. The LastTrack file is a backup of the track currently displayed. PastTrack is an accumulation of all PastTrack data. About five times a minute, SOB drops a dot on the chart display to create a "bread crumb" trail. Each PastTrack point records all ship's data provided by any connected instruments. Voyage Replay Mode lets you replay NMEA data from your GPS, depth sounder or other instruments. This record is great for reviewing depth profiles or water temperatures for fishing. (Or if you ever happen to find yourself in Admiralty Court!)