Finding Your Way

It used to be that you grabbed a stack of maps and struck out for what you hoped wouldn’t be the great unknown but usually was.

But today, you can use a variety of software, some of which employs the network of navigational satellites known as the Global Positioning System, to help you get where you’re going.

Though an improvement over the old way, it’s not foolproof. When you get directions, the system will tell you the number of miles and the minutes it should take to drive the route. There are sometimes inaccuracies in the data, which can throw off the mileage, and the time doesn’t factor in problems such as accidents that can affect traffic and slow you down.

Then, too, the technology itself can sometimes complicate the trip-planning process. You might fight less with your partner over directions, but that’s only because you’ll be too busy babying parallel ports, control panels and PCMCIA slots, which allow computers to interact with the GPS.

I tested several systems to see how well they worked, and they varied widely in price and performance.

A slew of software, starting at $130, offers GPS tracking, determining your map location with positioning information from several satellites. The software allows computer users to indicate a starting point, stopovers and destination, and it then lays out the route, along with information about restaurants and other points of interest.

The interactive program takes the drudgery out of trip planning, and the software offers key information, including distances and sometimes even construction notices.

But the setup on some packages could challenge even a techie. Sometimes I could install the software smoothly, but it misbehaved later. Techno-phobic, type A travelers should stick to the simpler, non-GPS software, which is also less expensive.

If you don’t bring a guidebook or lug along a laptop to use the software for directions, you can print out information in advance from any PC.

Rand McNally TripMaker Deluxe 1999

TripMaker or StreetFinder Deluxe 1999 Edition: $49.95 each

TripMaker or StreetFinder 1999 Edition: $29.95 each

Rand McNally GPS Satellite Receiver: $79

Internet: https://www.randmcnally.com

TripMaker offers well-organized, intuitive screens, welcoming travel planners with voice instructions and an excellent tutorial. The setup of the GPS receiver was simple.

Rand McNally packs lots of information into its trip planners, including the Mobil Travel Guide with restaurant and lodging information. TripMaker also includes photos and videos, and links to Rand McNally’s home page, which handles reservations for rental cars, hotels and flights.

But the highway and street maps are in two separate software packages, at $49.95 each. StreetFinder has detailed street information and can map routes only when connected to the Rand McNally Internet site. The TripMaker CD can map routes on its own, but lacks detailed street information. Both work with GPS.

The GPS interface was good but could be better. One night while I was driving, the GPS didn’t track my position. I fiddled with the system for a while, then discovered it had become unplugged from the back of the laptop, although the software offered no warning that it had stopped receiving input from the GPS receiver. A warning signal is an easy-to-add feature that should be included.

That same night, I encountered an accident, and all traffic was diverted onto a nearby exit. I roamed around the neighborhood for more than half an hour, unable to figure out how to reset the software to continue my trip.

In another test, the software showed my path as north of the expressway when I was actually on the expressway itself.

Etak SkyMap Pro

$299 with GPS

Internet: https://www.etak.com

SkyMap Pro, now made by Sony, was the easiest GPS system to set up because one connection handles the flow of the data and power to the GPS receiver. (Other systems used a separate cable or batteries to power the GPS.) The package also includes a nifty remote control to let you zoom in and out and scroll around the map.

SkyMap includes detailed street maps, which can be installed on the hard drive, freeing up the CD-ROM drive.

But the elegance stops there. For the most part, SkyMap Pro has a clunky interface. In most mapping software, zooming in closer on an area merely requires creating a rectangle around the section to be highlighted. Do that with SkyMap Pro, and it zooms out instead.

To choose starting points, stopovers and the destination, users must drag icons onto a map, forcing you to scroll all over the map. I couldn’t figure out how to type an address as a destination, which would have been simpler and more precise.

The route is visible only on the overview map, which shows only major roads. And it’s difficult to read the “bread crumbs,” tiny dots on the screen that indicate completed parts of the trip.

Worst of all--and dangerous for people who try to use this software while driving alone--the directions are in small type, and the software doesn’t announce turns. So it’s tempting--but risky--to try to read the small print while driving.

The software wasn’t the only problem. Occasionally my laptop would buzz loudly. The easy-to-install GPS hardware, it turns out, conflicted with my sound card. So I had to disable one function of my computer to accommodate the GPS hardware. SkyMap Pro is one reason I discourage non-techies from thinking of installing GPS.

TravRoute CoPilot 2000

$399 with GPS

Internet: https://www.travroute.com

CoPilot 2000 was an ornery co-pilot at first, forcing me to fiddle with it for several hours over two days to set it up. Maybe it was my fault, or perhaps there was a problem with the computer or software.

Eventually it was worth the hassle. CoPilot is the most sophisticated--and expensive--GPS-enabled travel software package of all I tested.

CoPilot has the most accurate GPS tracking, even noting once that I was on an access ramp. But a few times the software reported that I was on a side street or service road when I was on a highway.

On Sept. 1, TravRoute announced a $50 version of its software, Door-to-Door 2000 Deluxe, which does not offer voice navigation and does not come with a GPS receiver. The company guarantees the accuracy with a $20 rebate to buyers who cannot find their house using the software.

CoPilot squeezes detailed U.S. maps into one CD and offers top-notch directions, even finding a shortcut to my house it had taken me months to discover. Other software packages either required two CDs or had one CD but lacked route planning. And CoPilot 2000 also will generate a new route automatically if you diverge from the original plans because of construction, accident or unplanned stopover.

CoPilot displays directions in large, easy-to-read letters, but the software also reads the directions aloud, indicating turns, saying “left” or “right”--which is easier than compass directions. It also displays the maps if you indicate a passenger is present. One of the most useful--and amusing--features was its speech recognition, which was excellent even though I used the laptop’s built-in microphone.

One time, I said, “Thank you,” and CoPilot replied, “You’re welcome.” When I would say, “Where am I?” it would respond with the street or highway but, unfortunately, not the town. It could tell me my speed and direction.

CoPilot 2000 has the best speech-reading of all and is the only one to recognize speech.

AAA Map ‘n’ Go

Map ‘n’ Go: $29

Street Atlas USA: $45

Earthmate GPS Receiver: $159

Internet: https://www.delorme .com/mapngo/

For the leisure traveler, AAA Map ‘n’ Go is the best GPS system for the price and a top-notch package even without the optional GPS receiver.

One of the main reasons: It offers voice navigation, which should be a requirement for any GPS system but somehow is lacking in some of the GPS software packages.

Map ‘n’ Go not only announces the turns but also describes the streets in so many ways they would be impossible to miss. When the software told me to turn off the parkway I was on, it mentioned the exit number and told me the road I was turning onto, using its route number and the name of the turnpike. That’s a helpful improvement.

Map ‘n’ Go also offers a fun interface: a colorful cartoon drawing of the highway and dashboard that serves as a menu to launch various parts of the program. The software also allows travelers to easily produce slide shows by associating digital photos with customized maps.

As with Rand McNally’s offering, a detailed street map--Street Atlas USA--is sold separately.

One problem with the GPS software was that the announcements were too quiet: I couldn’t turn up the volume enough, it seemed, even though I had turned off the car stereo. Sometimes the pronunciation was difficult to understand.

Map ‘n’ Go comes with the 1999 AAA TourBook, which includes accommodations, restaurants, campgrounds and points of interest. It offers online links to events, construction and weather.

The routing also took the long way home, taking me a couple of miles out of the way.

Microsoft Streets & Trips 2000

$44.95 minus $20 rebate

No GPS

Internet: https://expedia.msn.com

Microsoft Streets & Trips prints out wonderful color street and highway maps, but be sure to take an atlas. If you hit traffic or have to reroute for construction, you’ll find the maps don’t provide detail for surrounding roads.

For some highways, the maps lack exit numbers, and the routing directions provide only the distances. You’ll have to keep a close eye on the odometer.

If you print out turn-by-turn maps, you can engage the kids in a game of “guess the rest of the directions” because each turn includes only three lines. If the directions are longer, the software prints an ellipsis, which isn’t useful.

The reasonably priced package includes mounds of hotel and restaurant information, downloadable construction data and great Internet links, which are available at https://www.links.expedia.com and directly accessible from the software.

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For those unwilling to pay for trip-planning software, the Internet offers numerous free options that allow you to print directions.

In fact, the most popular travel Internet site is a mapping site, https://www.mapquest.com, beating out No. 2 Travelocity and No. 3 Expedia, according to PC Data, a Reston, Va., software and Internet market research company.

Other popular sites: https://www .mapsonus.com; https://www.freetrip.com; https://www.delorme.com (click on “cybermaps,” then “cyberrouter”); and https://www.mapblast.com. Most major Internet directories, including Yahoo! and Excite, also offer maps and routing.