Waypoints
Waypoints are used in Cumulus to support the navigation. When used in
tasks they also serve as turnpoints. Waypoints can be created or edited
inside cumulus or by using KFLog on the Linux desktop, where you can more
easily maintain the waypoint list.
- Waypoint file remarks
-
Cumulus works with only one global waypoint file in two different formats.
This file is installed under your selected
Data Directory.
The global waypoint file name is hardcoded and its extension depends on
the used format. The format is defined in
Pre-Fight Settings - Waypoints Import.
The name for binary storage is cumulus.kwp, for XML storage
cumulus.kflogwp is used.
- Waypoint import
-
Under
Pre-Fight Settings - Waypoints you have the possibility to import
waypoint data from other data files into Cumulus. That is the best way
for your waypoint management. Alternatively you can use KFLog to prepare
a global Cumulus waypoint file.
- Waypoint file transfer
-
You can transfer the global Cumlus waypoint file between your desktop PC and
your PDA but notice, that Cumulus is not running during the file transfer.
That can cause a corrupted file.
- Waypoint list display
-
To open the waypoint list tipp at the waypoint display, located at the left
upper corner on the map screen. Now you can
see all your known waypoints sorted in alphabetically order. With different
buttons in the window you can modify the waypoint list or do other things.
- Press one of the filter buttons above the list to navigate to
a certain waypoint.
- Press the plus button to create a new waypoint.
- Press the pencil button to edit the selected waypoint. The button
works only, if one waypoint is selected.
- Press the trash button to remove one or more selected waypoints.
- Press the cross button to remove all waypoints.
- Press the house button to set the selected waypoint as your
new home position.
- Press the Info button to get displayed the details
of the selected waypoint. The info screen for a waypoint will close
automatically after some seconds. Press the Stop
button to prevent this. The Home button sets this waypoint
as your new home position.
- Press the Select button to make the selected waypoint
to your new target.
You may want to use V after selecting a
waypoint to ensure it is visible on the map.
- Press the Show ... button to toggle the waypoint
display according to the waypoint priorities low, normal and high
or to display all.
- Waypoint list filters
-
You can narrow down the list of waypoints using the buttons above the
list. These act as a filter. In only a few steps, you can reduce a list
of thousands of items to only a few, making it much easier to find the
waypoint you are looking for.
- Creating a waypoint from the current position
-
At any time you can tipp on the baering icon
on the map to remember the current position. A waypoint with the name
WPx-HH:MM will be generated that contains the current coordinates
and altitude, where HH:MM is derived from the current time.
The new waypoint is shown in the map display and can be edited in
the waypoint screen as any other waypoint.
- Waypoint management
-
If you want to add, modify or delete waypoints use the buttons at the right
side of the waypoint list.
For security reason it is not recommended to do that in flight!
If you press the plus sign or the pencil button an editor is opened
with entry fields for the waypoint properties.
- Waypoint priority
-
The priority property deserves some explanation. To prevent
overcrowding the map with waypoints if you zoom out far, not all waypoints
are drawn at all zoom factors. You can control which waypoints are to draw by
selecting the priority.
If you select high the waypoint will always be drawn. This would
be appropriate for your home site and other important sites.
If you select normal the waypoint will be drawn in normal zoom
modes but not if you zoom out too much and the low prioritized
waypoints are only drawn if you zoom in far enough. The currently
selected waypoint is always visible. In the configuration setup of Map
Objects you can the define the scale borders for every priority
property.
See here
for more information.
- Waypoint runway directions
-
In the wayoint editor you have two combo boxes for runway directions. The
handling of runway directions is a little bit tricky and derived from the
Welt2000 handling. The following possibilities do exist:
- 09/27 means there is one runway with two useable directions.
Note! The difference between the two directions must be
always 18.
- 09/09 means there is one runway with only one useable direction.
- 09/18 means there are two runways 09/27 and 18/36 with two
useable directions.
Note! The difference between the two
directions must not be equal 18.
- Waypoint names and extra information
-
Via the menu bar entries
Toggels/Waypoint lables and Toggels/Extra labels info
you can switch on the display of the waypoint names and their
reachability (distance and arrival altitude) besides their icons,
if a glider is selected.
The text labels are drawn at a white background with black letters.
The currently selected waypoint is drawn revers. If a waypoint
is land- and reachable the text is drawn bold. The extra information
distance and arrival altitude are only displayed, if the landable attribute
of the waypoint is set. If the waypoint is below your safety altitude,
the text box frame is drawn in red color.
The same is valid for airfields, outlandings and task points.
- Final glide calculations
-
Waypoints are also used for final glide calculations. If you
plan to use this feature of cumulus, please make sure that you
correctly enter the position and the elevation of the
waypoints! Otherwise you will get unpredictable results.