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Online Help > Placemarks > How to import and export placemarks?

How to import and export placemarks?


The import and export placemarks support allows you to import placemarks (waypoints, tracks, routes, etc.) from various files created by external softwares, or export them for external use.

Due to the vast number of existing formats and important differences among them, the application will need to import them in its own optimized format before displaying or modifying them, this is the import process. In order to use them again in an external application, you'll need to export them in the desired format, this is the export process.

This feature requires an in-app purchase.

Which placemark file formats are supported by the application?


Here is the list of all supported file formats.

Please check the notes and requirements for each format.

Supported file formats and types of placemarks Import Export
GPX (GPS Exchange Format) (*.gpx)
Waypoints, routes, tracks
Common GPS data format for software applications.
Yes, see here Yes, see here
KML/KMZ (*.kml, *.kmz)
Waypoints, routes, tracks, areas
Common GPS data format for expressing geographic annotation
and visualization within Internet-based two-dimensional maps.
Yes1, see here Yes, see here
CSV/TSV (*.csv, *.tsv)
Waypoints, routes, tracks, areas
Delimited text file that uses a comma to separate tabular data
(numbers and text) in plain text. Each line of the file is a data record.
Each record consists of one or more fields, separated by commas.
Yes, see here Yes, see here
Shapefile SHP (*.shp)
Waypoints, routes, tracks, areas
Popular geospatial vector data format developed by Esri
for geographic information system (GIS) software.
Yes, see here No
OziExplorer PLT (*.plt)
Tracks
Yes, see here No
OziExplorer WPT (*.wpt)
Waypoints
Yes, see here No
Geocaching LOC (*.loc)
Waypoints
Yes, see here No
AutoCAD DXF (*.dxf)
Waypoints, routes, tracks, areas
CAD data file format developed by Autodesk for enabling data
interoperability between AutoCAD and other programs.
No Yes, see here

1. Includes few icons and style elements. To import image overlays, see here

How to import placemarks?


To import placemarks from external files:

  • Tap on the Placemarks menu icon and on Explore placemarks . The default placemark folder is listed;
  • Select the folder in which the file to import is located. If needed, tap on the top left menu to list the main folders of your device. For example, tap on My downloads to select the folder /storage/emulated/0/Download/.

import-gen-1.jpg


  • Once the file to import is displayed , tap on it to start the import;
  • Wait some time for the file to be imported (which depends on the file size);
  • When the file is imported, you can either:
    • Choose Browse to list the content of the imported file, for example to display only few items;
    • Choose Display to display the entire file content on the map.

import-gen-2.jpg


Import with options


By default, the application will import files to the import folder and use the device charset. In order to choose something different:

  • Long-press the file to import or tap on its icon ;
  • In the menu, choose Import… ;
  • If needed, change the import Folder to choose the current one;
  • If needed, change the Elevations to choose the unit used in the file (either WGS84 for GPS elevations, or EGM96 for geoid elevations);
  • If needed, change the Charset to choose the one of the file;
  • If needed, check Download external content so the application will try to download content stored on Internet (like icons and pictures, depending on the file format);
  • Tap Ok to start the import using the chosen settings.

import-gen-options.jpg


How to export placemarks?


To export a placemark in another format and use it in an external application:

  • Tap on a displayed placemark on the map (here for example a track) and on its name ;
  • Choose Export as… ;

In the list of available export formats, choose the one that best fits the external application you want to use, for example GPX which offers a great compatibility.

export-gen-1.jpg


  • Alternatively, to export a placemark from the placemarks explorer, long-tap it or tap on its icon to display a similar menu;

Once the placemark has been exported, the full path of the exported file is displayed.

  • Tap Share to share the file (send it as email, upload it on Dropbox, etc.), available actions depend on the applications installed on your device;
  • Tap Open to open the file with a compatible application installed on your device;
  • Tap Ok to close the dialog.

Be careful when trying to access the exported file from a computer using an USB cable, Android takes time to update the file list of your device, and newly created ones may not be immediately visible.

To export multiple waypoints at the same time, you can group them in a set of waypoints. You can also use the multi-selection of the placemarks explorer to export multiple items.

export-gen-2.jpg