LightListManager User Guide

Basic Stuff - Exporting Light List Data

Light List Data Selected for Export — Fig. 1, A Filtered Light List Subset

The contents of a Light List file can be exported to either a GPX or KML file for import into a chart plotter or Google Earth, respectively. Normally the export is of a subset of one or more of the Light List files. The subset can be specified through one or more filters described in the Filter the Lists section. In Fig 1, on the right, I have filtered a subset of the V2D05 Light List that covers the Lockwoods Folly Inlet in North Carolina. Lockwoods Folly is one of several inlets for which NOAA does not plot the channel marks on the navigation charts. These channels are subject to frequent shoaling and shifting of the channel. The GPX export can be used to plot the latest location of the channel marks on the NOAA electronic charts (RNC and ENC).

Export to a GPX File

Light List Data Exported to GPX File — Fig. 2, Nine Lights Exported to a GPX File

To export the Lockwoods Folly channel marks I first click the "Select All" button on the left side of the form, and then the "Save to GPX" button. Fig. 2 shows that nine (9) marks were saved to the GPX file. The name and path of the export file is shown in the message box; however, it is normally not necessary to record this information as this file can be found as the latest file in the GPX/V2D05 folder under the Light List folder (in this case "F:Navigation/LightList/GPX/V2D05/").

Import GPX File

Import Light List Entries as Waypoints — Fig. 3, Importing GPX File Into OpenCPN

Now the GPX file can be imported into a chart plotter. Fig. 3 shows the file being imported into OpenCPN on my PC. Most other chart plotting software and hardware have the ability to import GPX files. All of the GPX files created from the V02D05 Light List can be found under the GPX/V2D05 folder. In this case the file has Lockwoods Folly Inlet as part of the name because the subset of the Light List was created using a saved filter. The use of filters is discussed in detail in a separate section of this User Guide.

Display Lights as Waypoints

Light List Entries Displayed as Waypoints — Fig. 4, Lights Displayed as Waypoints

Fig. 4 is a screen capture from OpenCPN displaying the ENC chart representation of Lockwoods Folly with the Light List entries displayed as waypoints showing the inlet channel. Now the channel through the shoals is marked. I have right-clicked on one of the waypoints to display its properties, which were imported with the GPX file.

Display Lights as an OpenCPN Layer

Save as OpenCPN Layer — Fig 4a, Saving GPX File as OpenCPN Layer

OpenCPN provides a Layer feature that can be used to maintain a permanent set of waypoints in the GPX file without cluttering up the active waypoints list. The feature is implmented by copying a GPX file containing a set of waypoints to the layers folder under the OpenCPN program data folder. I use the layer feature to maintain a display of the navaids for uncharted inlets on the U.S. east coast. In Figure 4a I have created a filtered list of navaids for the St. Augustine, FL inlet (red ellilpse). With a recent upgrade to the LightList Manager I have added a button to the GPX export controls to directly save the GPX file to the OpenCPN layers folder. Previously I would have to save the GPX file to the default LightList Manager GPX folder, then copy the file to the OpenCPN folder. The "Save to OpenCPN" button (green ellipse) accomplishes that task in one step.

Refer to the OpenCPN User Guide for more information on using the Layer Feature

Export to a KML File

Light List Data Exported to KML File — Fig. 5, Nine Lights Exported to KML File

The other export capability is to a KML or Google Earth placemark file. In Fig. 5 I have used the same filered subset of the V2D05 Light List. Clicking on the "Save to KML" button the program created a KML file with the nine Light List entries. This file can be found under the KML/V2D05 folder similar to the location of the GPX file.

Google Earth can import GPX files, the principal benefit of using a KML file is to be able to display color-coded icons for the lights.

Import KML File in Google Earth

Import Light List Entries as KML Placemarks — Fig. 6, Importing KML File Into Google Earth

Using the File/Open menu item in Google Earth, in Fig. 6, I have selected the KML file created by LightListManager.

Display Lights as Placemarks

Light LIst Entries Displayed as Placemarks — Fig. 7, Lights Displayed as Placemarks in Google Earth

Fig. 7 is a screen capture of the Google Earth image of the Lockwoods Folly Inlet. The Light List entries are visible as placemark paddles. The paddles are color-coded to match the color of the mark. The solid paddle represent a lit mark and the hollow paddle a day mark. I clicked on one of the lighted marks and Google Earth display the information on this light.