MS Maps and trips

[FBS Agency]

Hello all - I am trying to become more efficient in a market that is relatively busy. I know I can be better at planning my route. I want a program that I can plug my addresses in and hit go - it will buld the most efficient route based on the addresses to help me save time and money. Someone recommended MS Maps and Trips. Does anyone use this? Is it is easy? Does it work for what I am trying to do? Is there something better?

Thank you all.

[April Green]

I really like MS Maps & Trips. I found it very easy to use and yes, it will give you the most efficient route.

[FBS Agency]

Thank you very much for the quick response.

[FBS Agency]

are there benefits to the GPS version or is the PC version sufficient?

[April Green]

I've only used the PC version and that was sufficient for me, but the GPS version may be better. I can't say.

[Dan Harris]

The lady on my phone tells me how to get to my locations :)

[April Green]

What I like about Maps & Trips is that you can put in stop times, so it's easier to schedule multiple appointments. If I was going to 8 or 10 buildings in a day, by mid-day, it was really helpful to be able to look at the schedule I had put into the program and keep on track.

[FBS Agency]

that's cool. do you then just plug in the addresses as they return them to you into a gos or just run their directions? What if i don't know the most economical route, will it supply based on a bunch of random access points with a start and stop?

[April Green]

that's cool. do you then just plug in the addresses as they return them to you into a gos or just run their directions? What if i don't know the most economical route, will it supply based on a bunch of random access points with a start and stop?

It will give you the best route with a start/stop. I just took the route it gave me and put it into my GPS, but like I said, I used the PC version, I assume the GPS version of the program does this for you automatically. I also used to print out a copy of the map just to have for visual reference (but I realize this may be a bit old fashioned).

[Jerry Peck]

Get the GPS version, that way you can see your progress as you are driving.

I've used Microsoft Streets and Trips since, oh, maybe sometime shortly after 2000 or whenever it was, that was the PC version, I went with the GPS version around 2006 or 2007.

I just purchased a nice new Garmin 2555 (with the 5" screen) and for some uses I like it better than the MS Streets and Trip GPS (quick, easy, convenient, smaller, etc,), however, it is easier to plan and save trips on MS Streets and Trips, so it depends on what you are using it for (meaning you many want both, I eventually broke down and bought the Garmin so now I have both).

[CHARLIE VAN FLEET]

APRIL

8-10 trips a day--are you a home inspector--wow

cvf

[April Green]

APRIL

8-10 trips a day--are you a home inspector--wow

cvf

No, I was a fire insurance inspector. On an average day I usually did about 6, but I sometimes had to go on trips to areas a few of hours away, so I would do 8-10 and stay overnight and do the same the next day on the way back. I was in Washington State at the time, there are a lot of rural and remote towns.

[Jerry Martin]

What I have is Streets and Trips 2011. I buy the update every other year. My route will have 10 to 12 pest control stops a day. I load all the addresses and the program's route planner sets the day up in route order. The gps does the rest. Also if I am in a town I am not as familiar with I can search for Golden Coral, Burger King or whatever and it will give me the closest location. It's really a great program and my 15 in screen is much easier to see. I have a stand bolted the the truck floor and my laptop is right where I can see it.:)

[Eric Barker]

Get the GPS version, that way you can see your progress as you are driving.

I have the GPS version but have found that the program lags in following your progress down the road. It'll follow fine for a while then for some reason the image on the screen stops moving while you're driving down the road. This is particularly annoying if a turn is coming up but the screen is still showing you as being 2 miles back from your current position. Since the truck and phone also have GPS I really haven't tried to figure out what the problem is.

[Ken Rowe]

I used Streets and Trips for years with a GPS antenna plugged in to my 11" laptop. I made a desk to set it on the passenger seat, angled toward me. It worked great. The biggest issue I had is even with the newest versions it would not show new addresses if they were less than 5 years old.

Now I use my android phone with a dash mount. Speak the address to the phone and it directs me there.

[FBS Agency]

I did buy streets and trips and just starting to get used to it. It is doing exactly what I wanted it to. I gives me the most economical route when I have a number of stops. I did not buy the GPS version for the following reason, it needs to shoot from the laptop and I've heard that can be unreliable. However, with the non gps version you can plug your garmin right into your laptop and push the route into your garmin and just go with all the addresses loaded in order. Thanks to all.