sat nav companion down

[klarky]

hi,

having noticed  the volkswagen sat nav companion is broken,is there any other way/app that can input poi's and speed cameras

 

[atki81]

Can anyone help with this please as I'm stuck too, got the POI, converted as advised on the Octavia group but it still doesn't work. Annoyed as paid for something I can't

get working.

[RGR_Dorset]

I assume you do not have Skoda Connect as the portal allows you to do this easily enough. It is much easier than the old VW site. I think you can also do this via an SD card or USB. See online owners manual p 187/188

[atki81]

Hi yes I do have Skoda Connect why is there another way of doing it online? I’ve managed to do it using the guide on the Octavia website and transferring it via usb.

[SBell]

9 hours ago, RGR_Dorset said:

I assume you do not have Skoda Connect as the portal allows you to do this easily enough. It is much easier than the old VW site. I think you can also do this via an SD card or USB. See online owners manual p 187/188

My understanding was that the old VW site let you easily convert the POI file to a format that the Skoda head unit recognized. Does the Skoda Connect portal do the conversion? I'm looking to upload speedcam data to my Columbus system in my Kodiaq but was under the impression that it's not possible without the old VW site (i.e. you can upload the POI file to the car easy enough but the file won't work because it needs to be converted first.)

[RGR_Dorset]

The Connect portal uploads files downloaded from something like PocketGPS world in a suitable format and does any necessary conversion. I have loaded and updated speed  camera info this way for several months now. You can download from the site in Garmin format and then read into the portal with an associated Picture file. When you get to your car the updated info will download to your sat nab.

 

i can see a USB method would work as well

 

[RGR_Dorset]

Actually just checked and you should download in CSV-other format from PocketGPS World nd them can then be read into the portal for conversion  and upload

 

the CsV file can also be edited in Excel 

 

 

[SBell]

Great. Thanks for the info. I’ll give it a try. 

[atki81]

Can you upload POI directly from the website? I didn’t see this option and used the poifix.py file listed on another post on the Octavia group. Ps it doesn’t make it clear but you also need an app called Python.exe 

 

Edited 2 July, 2018 by atki81

[RGR_Dorset]

Yes. I do nothing to the file downloaded in CSV format from source as noted about. It gets loaded to the Portal as a CSV file as well. I seem to remember the Portal will handle raw data in a range of formats from different Sat Nav suppliers but they all boil down to a CSV file

[atki81]

Thanks RGR_Dorset for the info but if I do it via the connect website how do I transfer the raw data to the car online? Sorry I’m just confused by that method after doing it the long way round. Ps. I’m using a Mac if that’s any different but would like to add other POI without interfering with the speed cams I’ve already uploaded via usb

[RGR_Dorset]

The Connect website and Portal is for Columbus systems with online infotainment. It has a manage POI section which allows you to upload multiple POI files. I have several sets such as NT sites, traffic lights. Each file is independent so you add each one from your MAC or PC and if it needs updating you delete it on the Portal and reload with same name. Every time you make a change on the Portal the next time you are in the car and the Sat Nav starts up you can pull down the files from the Portal to the sat nav (via Skoda Connect)

 

if you are happy with the USB camera data then as long as you don’t upload similar data via the Portal I can’t see an issue. Other POI data should load as outlined above. I update the camera data once a month anyway 

 

i have PC and MAC and it works fine on both. You may have some issues unzipping raw POI data on a MAC from some GPS sites but this is an Apple OS thing not Skoda. Good GpS sites warn you about it

[RGR_Dorset]

And finally....

 

this is may be an obvious point but just to avoid any confusion, you need to login to your Connect account through a Windows or MAC desktop to access the Manage my POI section. It won’t be seen if you login via the Phone or Tablet App version as they are stripped down versions- this is so you can load the data files from the MAC or PC I assume

[atki81]

Hi RGR_Dorset. Can I ask if you do it through the Skoda Connect website can you add sound to the speed cameras or do you have to download them with sound attached from PocketGPSWorld? And can I use the images provided by PocketGPSWorld? Thanks

Edited 2 July, 2018 by atki81

[RGR_Dorset]

Hi I can only partly answer this question.

 

Yes definitely the images can be used direct from PocketGPSW. Or you can use your own (I have replaced railway stations with the old red BR logo). I have not seen the problems reported by those using the SkodaMydestinations site and gfx files The Skoda Connect portal seems a lot simpler as far as I can see.

 

On sounds, I think you will have to download these as part of the PocketGPSW CSV file. I can't be certain as I don't use them as I have disabled all sat nav announcements from the Columbus system. Rather I have a Thinkware F800 dash cam hard wired and I get camera warnings from this instead (and nothing else). When I update the sat nav camera data I also update the dash cam database on its own SD card. Sorry I can't be more specific. You may have to experiment. If you do have success Let us know just in case!

[RGR_Dorset]

I have done a long trip in recent days and was able to investigate this a bit more. If I disable my voice announcements from my Thinkware Dash Cam and switch on sat nav announcements from the Columbus units, just by uploading the data via the portal as discussed a personal POI is acknowledged by a ping as you go by. You can stop this happening by switching it off/on under advanced settings as well.

 

All this sounds fine but it acknowledges all personal POIs as you go by. I cannot see a way to select some POIs and ignore others. So if you download anything other than speed camera locations these will be acknowledged as well which could be confusing (you may be tempted to look at the map for the visual signal). This is why I use my Thinkware as a source of speed camera data as it only reports speed cameras and provides a count down at 500 , 300 or 100 metres. However if you only have speed camera POIs this won't be problem.

 

i hope this helps

 

 

[Jfhuk]

Just downloaded speed camera data via the portal to the two bears and was surprised at just how easy and fast it was. I used CSV format files and some bmp icons for the fixed and mobile cameras.

[atki81]

On 07/07/2018 at 10:13, Jfhuk said:

Just downloaded speed camera data via the portal to the two bears and was surprised at just how easy and fast it was. I used CSV format files and some bmp icons for the fixed and mobile cameras.

Did you just use the CSV files from pocket gps world with the included bmp files all without conversion? Hopefully they’ve fixed the website now!!

[Jfhuk]

7 hours ago, atki81 said:

Did you just use the CSV files from pocket gps world with the included bmp files all without conversion? Hopefully they’ve fixed the website now!!

I downloaded the excel file format zip files from pocket GPS world

 

The zip file has the bmp images in it as separate files. There are separate zip files for fixed and mobile cameras.

 

 I then used Excel to save the spreadsheet in CSV format. Went to the portal, logged in uploaded the csv file and used the option the upload the bmp images.

 

The portal allows you to assign a name to each group of cameras you upload.

 

Once saved on the portal they are available for download on the car using the same option as you use for software updates.

 

 

[DonkeyKong]

I've hit a brick wall with attempting to add Speed Cameras as POI's to my late 2018 Kodiaq with the widescreen Columbus 2. I've downloaded the files from PocketGPS and zipped up together with the BMP files using the Skoda online app which is straightforward. However (and it might matter), I had to select a 'Other GPX' file format which the app says it will accept, as if I try to use CSV the Skoda online app just crashes with a string error. The files it creates look fine, with a complex file/folder structure and locations that can be seen on the online map, with over 18,000 cameras showing.

 

However, the car won't accept the files on an SD card or USB, no matter what I do. It ponders then comes back with an error. I've tried downloading the files (containing 2 sets of CSV or GPX files) and using without any modification, and also manually combining them into one large CSV using Excel. I've also tried using just one file with no BMP just to see if it works with minimal data but the same structure. I've removed the first zipped folder and tried with just the contents that were inside it.  I've also tried updating using the online option (the car has a large SIM card/data allowance of its own), but it says there are no updates available. The various Skoda Android/IOS apps don't seem to allow direct updating via the app, as far as I can see. Mind you, getting a structured data folder onto a IOS or Android device is a challenge in itself.

 

I also tried another set of data files (with another subscription) from POI Base, but the advice (albeit in German) says it won't work with more than 10 lines/groups of data, and that source presents each type of camera type separately, so you end up missing off ones you would want), but that doesn't work either. So I'm stuck. Am I missing something? 

 

I don't seem to be able to 'save on the portal' as mentioned above, because there is no option to log on and enter the VIN, account details or similar, that would allow reconciliation of the file(s) I've created and the vehicle. The Skoda webpage gives lots of detail, but the POI files can only be saved onto a file location or SD card, there is no 'OTA' option to update online. 

 

Any ideas?

Edited 7 November, 2018 by DonkeyKong
Spelling errors

[RGR_Dorset]

Hi just to clarify, it looks like you are downloading the data online but if you cannot login in to your Connect portal account on a desktop (windows or Mac) this online upload won't work. The portal in VIN specific.

 

if you are trying to download the data convert on the old offline Skoda POI conversion tool and then upload via SD or USB then this probably won't work. As mentioned by others the offline conversion tool is broken across all the VAG brands. Until last summer you could use the VW version in German but this is broken now.. you have to do it online either using the Skoda Connect or VW Car Net equivalent. My son and daughter have a VW Golf and a SEAT Arona and they have the same issue. My advice would be to sidestep the VAG offline portal and look at POInspect0r (see below) which is a donation based tool that does it for you.. Nice chap runs it very close to the Czk factory and he is very helpful if contacted. Also it is much better than the broken VAG site and updated regularly. I got this to work on data for the Golf and Arona and uploaded stuff via an SD card as they had no online access. You will probably need to use the MIb2 Navi High version on the Columbus like we have.

 

Or of course you could see why you don't have Skoda Connect online access....

 

let me know now if I have misinterpreted your problem as it is a bit of a nightmare.A group of SEAT Alteca users are very annoyed with SEAT the offline portal is broke - they currently don't have an online portal to use at all so are really stuffed and are trying to sue.

 

https://poinspect0r.blogspot.com/