Review: AutoRoute 2002

Whether you take the low road or the high road, Dave Cook should still get there afore ye - with a little help from Microsoft's latest route-planning software.

Product	Autoroute 2002
Company	Microsoft
Web	www.microsoft.com/autoroute
Price	£59.99
We like
We don't like
Rating	9/10
Requirements

Imagine, for moment, it's the rush hour. You're in a strange neighbourhood a hundred miles from home. Visibility is poor, and yet everyone seems to know exactly where they're going. Everyone, that is, except you, because you're as lost as a penguin searching the North Pole for its mate.

The fact is, if you've been driving for any length of time then you're bound to have lost your way on numerous occasions. Fear not, though, because a solution is available via Microsoft's AutoRoute 2002.

Actually, AutoRoute has been a around in one shape or form for quite some time. Most old hands appreciate that AutoRoute is arguably not the most detailed route-planning software available for the PC. It is, however, one of the most fully-featured. Thus, it comes as no surprise to discover that AutoRoute 2002 provides a veritable bus-load of features, all designed to assist the typical traveller or tourist.

Easier To Use

Finding a place in AutoRoute is now easier than ever. Once launched, you would simply type in the name of a street, town, or postcode, for example, and AutoRoute will locate it quickly on its map. If more than one place exists with the same name, then AutoRoute will ask you to narrow the search. You can then select your entry from a list, enter a postcode, latitude/longitude numbers, or an OS grid reference. In addition, a Find Nearby feature allows you to see any points of interest in the designated area.

While AutoRoute 2002 allows you to locate cities and towns all over the world, globe trotters should note that the program's route-planning engine only covers Western Europe. Street-level mapping is included, although this is narrowed down to only 11 countries.

The program's level of detail is somewhat patchy. Major cities in the UK and abroad are covered fairly comprehensively, with points of interest as diverse as listings of restaurants, museums and hotels, to police stations, shopping malls, sports facilities, railway stations, ferry terminals, airports, and ski resorts. Other areas fair not so well, though, especially areas that are not so well populated. But if you're planning to leave the UK, then additional features such as a Euro converter and 11-language phrasebook will no doubt come in handy.

Changing Plans

Planning a route is a doddle. You simply click the Toolbar icon, and enter start and end points, including any stop off points you wish to make during the journey. Pushpins can also be used as waypoints. Altering the journey is just as easy, and you can manually or automatically optimise the order of places to be visited.

With the route planned to your satisfaction, you can print the map in a choice of five different styles. This includes turn-by-turn maps, maps showing key junctions, and strip maps, which prints your route map alongside text directions.

Users of handheld PCs, meanwhile, are catered for via the supplied Pocket Streets application. So assuming you're handheld is running Windows CE 2.0 or later, you can download maps from the computer onto your handheld for convenient access to directions and local information.

Verdict

With our public transport system in a right old mess, it's hardly surprising that the majority of us still rate the car as the most convenient form of transport. Thanks to some key features, though, it's not just motorists that will benefit from AutoRoute 2002 - far from it! So whether you're touring this country, or further afield, AutoRoute 2002 should make an ideal travelling companion.

 

Dave Cook