Using Map Packages

As of 4.8 and later, you have the opportunity to save maps in something called a Map Package.

You are under no obligation to use Map Packages. If you like how downloads work now, keep using the Main Tile Cache. This is still the right answer if you want to cache map tiles and don't really care where they go, just that you have them when you need them. 

You will now see this choice when you are starting a download.

This choice is made after you have selected an area for download and before the download starts. This is the one and only time to start a new map package. 

If you choose Main Tile Cache, as always, the map tiles will be stored individually in a complex, incomprehensible file structure under bcnav/tiles. 

If you choose New Map Package, you will get a chance to name the folder. The map tiles will stored in a few large incomprehensible files under bcnav/archive/<the name you gave it>.

Why would anyone want to use Map Packages?

Here are some reasons why customers have requested this sort of thing:

• They care about keeping maps physically separate for different excursion, ie storing 'South Puget Sound" in a different place from "Mt Hood National Forest", and both physically separate from files that may be cached during preview.  
• Some like to know how much space a particular map takes up, and would like to be able to back it up or delete it with a few short steps. 
• They may be able to get more space out of their storage, where a bunch of small files may not be able to use spaces as efficiently. 
• Some devices react rather adversely to a large and complex directory structure with lots of files. The media scanner (which we do tell to leave us alone), checkdisk, or other system processes that we can't quite control are scanning files endlessly. There have been enough reports of this that we are recommending map packages for all large downloads. 

More Questions and Answers.

Can I download more than once to the same map package?

Yes, it will be added to the same package. 

Will there be redundancy if the same tile is downloaded in the same map package?

No. We will only download a tile once. We know if you already have it. 

Will there be redundancy if the same tile is downloaded to two different map packages?

Yes. 

Will the app automatically load the "right" map package when I am navigating?

No. If this is what you want, use the Main Tile Cache, or use one map package all the time. 

Do the areas in a map package have to be contiguous, I mean do they have to touch each other?

No, but they probably should be. If not, I expect to get a lot of messages about maps that have been lost. Friendly warning: please do not put together a bunch of map packages that you won't be able to decipher later or remember which download went into which package. Please keep it simple. 

When you download tiles to say a newly named map package, will those tiles also be automatically saved in the main 
cache?

No. That would defeat the whole purpose. You choose one or the other. 

What happens after a download. 

When a download is complete, the notification will point you to the newly downloaded map in a package. 

You can switch between using a map package or the Main Tile Cache on the Layers Menu:

When you are in a Map Package, the option to preview is unavailable. If you want to go back to prevewing, switch back to the main tile cache.

Likely Questions - With Answers.