Thread: Updating TomTom - FAQ's

FAQ's
"Which navcore versions work on my TT?"
"What are SE navcores?"
"What are bootloaders?"
"How do SD Cards in my TT work?"
"My SD Card does not work"
"I cannot get Loquendo voices working on my TT."
"How to add the latest postcodes database"
"Quickfix GPS does not work"
"What are TTS, ALG, and ASR (C-speech), and Voice Control?"
"Can I preserve my Favorites when upgrading?"
"Can I capture my TT screen?"
"I cannot get my system running / I have Computer Voice problems."


"Which navcore versions work on my TT?": The official TomTom navcores guarantee a fully working system. With all other navcores you can experience reduced functionality.

The bugs for the ratings include:
TMC (jack/usb), BT (data-link/line-out/handsfree), TTS (Loquendo/Vocalizer), GSM Services, Brightness control (incl day/night), Volume control, Volume SPLmax, Power off, Keyboard, EPT, Line-out, and FM-out. (Until now, all TomTom navcores had bugs, and all SE-navcore / TT-model combinations had more bugs).

Asian navcores are not included (I know nothing about them).

Know that all models within one range are almost identical, e.g. GOx30: 530, 730 & 930 are almost the same: the differences are flash size and EPT in the 930 (the GO630 is the odd one out). The GOx30 is identical to GOx20 (and the GO7000). The GOx50 is like GOx40 (and the GO9000), the most most noticeable differences are FM & MP3, which are left out in the x50. "Live"-models have a GPRS module inside. The One series has differences within the series, as well as the XL series. The "Official" marks are based on the TomTom (UK) website: It is incomplete.

Minor increments are bug-fixes: 8.300 -> 8.301 -> 8.302.

"What are SE navcores?": TTuser makes hacked versions of the different navcores for special needs. The most important reason for using the SE navcores is getting new functionality. These navcores can be used on TT's that were not made to use them (e.g. the navcore for a GOx40 on a One). If you like to tweak and mod, you can use them. A TT One V1 will never become a TT GO950, but it can be fun seeing how far you can stretch the One's capabilities.
SE navcores do not require additional patching (they are already very heavily modified).
SE navcores can run in different 'modes': showing the screen of a specific TT model. Which modes are available depends on what TomTom includes in the navcore and the magic of TTuser.
A safe mode to start with is the native mode ('ori'): a navcore for GOx50 on a GOx20, running in x20 mode (colors, icons, etc.). This is generally more successful than running in other modes (x40/x50).

The basic process to install a SE navcore:
1. (check for backup)
2. delete all on internal flash except the map
3. in the map-directory, remove mapsettings.cfg
4. extract a SE basicpack onto flash (without basicpack, include step 8)
5. extract a SE ttsystem onto flash
6. make a file version.txt with in it the current official navcore version
for your TT (write in the root of your internal flash),
e.g. A:8351 B:9982 for a GOx30 (see readmenot.txt).
version.txt will magically transform into three ttgo.*'s when booting.
7. make a file model.txt with in it the TT model you want to see (mode),
e.g. x50, x40, x40light, x30, x20, ori (see readmenot.txt and this site)
Use 'ori' to get the original look for your device.
8. if you like, extract the original navcore-CAB file to internal flash,
but do not overwrite any file, and remove 'system' (use WinRAR)
Without basicpack, get the splashscreens (*.bmp) from your backup.
9. reset, boot, and configure
10. navigate, add voices, and start tweaking

DarkMireille makes ME navcores, comparable to SE navcores.

"What are bootloaders?": The bootloader starts the navcore of your TT.
The bootloader is hardware specific, not navcore specific. One function, apart from loading and running the navcore, is SD-Card support (to load the navcore from it). A second function is USB support, to get a navcore onto your TT. New, big SD-Cards may require a new bootloader. Using the incorrect bootloader can stop your TT from functioning. Installing a bootloader is a one-way upgrade. A downgrade is almost impossible. The bootloader is the file 'system' in the root of your TT. When you upgrade via HOME you will have a correct bootloader.
If you find a navcore with 'systemX.XXX' in it , you can rename it to 'system', and it will be installed on your TT if the version is higher than the one you already have. If you use a TomTom navcore-.cab file that has 'system' in it: remove it. In general, do not update your bootloader unless you know what you are doing.

"How do SD Cards in my TT work?"
The map is stored on flash memory in your TT. The fixed flash in your TT is limited to 0/512/1024/2048/4096MB, depending on the model (GO700 & GO910 models have a real hard-disk on board). To know how much you need is not very difficult. The navcore takes about 100MB, 220MB if you
use computer-voices etc. The size of your map is slightly larger than the download size. Add these two values, add 3%, and you have the minimum storage need.
You now must make a choice: do I use an SD card or not? (Some entry level models do not accept an SD card.) If you put an SD card in a One or XL, it will replace the internal flash memory. This means that you need to copy the content of your TT to this card, or do a completely clean install. On the GO, the SD card may be used alongside the internal flash. You can choose to leave the navcore on the internal flash or put it on the SD card, and put maps on internal flash or on SD. It will all work. On the GO, a working navcore on the SD card will be used. (N.B. navcore 9.xxx alongside navcore 8.xxx does not always work)

Hacking tip: Backup, clear internal flash, and run from SD cards only.

Unless you drive around the world or want to carry lots of media files and a media player a 4GB SDHC card will do. To the best of my knowledge, these cards require bootloader 5.5012 or later.

If you decide to buy a SD card, check that the size is supported by the navcore (more precise: the bootloader, more information in the item above). As far as I know, all modern navcores/bootloaders support 4GB+ SDHC cards. Also make sure it is a fast one. A Class 6 card is essentially required,
a read-speed of 133x works fine (if you want to know the difference, consult wikipedia). I recently had good results with navcore 8.410 & map 8.25-2157 on a 100x read-speed SD card.

TomTom info on SD cards:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

(this info is based on the original configuration)

"My SD Card does not work": You did buy a class 6 card, didn't you? Other cards are often too slow for the TT. You also need a recent bootloader (comes with a recent navcore). Some problems on the SD card make the TT refusing it. Flash can be corrected (and formatted) using the normal disk maintenance tools of your OS (FAT32). TomTom has its own tool, called "Clear Flash". It solves several smaller problems. See the TomTom site for details:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

These tools do not fix all problems. The most important problem is that the FAT file-system is not suited for flash memory, especially large ones (You cannot use another file-system). To fix more complex problems, format the flash with an external card reader using:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

"I cannot get Loquendo voices working on my TT.": You probably have a TT model One V1/V2/V3/V4, XL, XL-30, GO Classic, or GO300/500. They have 32MB RAM instead of 64MB in the other models. Loquendo TTS requires a lot of working memory, and 32MB is not enough in most situations. If you want N-American languages (English, French, and Spanish) you can
try Vocalizer TTS. They require less memory. TTS requires a rather powerfull CPU, which is not present in the older models. Do a search for URL's.
This may work:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]
Update: according to DarkMireille, Loquendo fails to work because of a lock based on the device hardware. Check for a hacked libLoqTTS7. SE navcores generally provide Loquendo too "out of the box".

"How to add the latest postcodes database" TomTom Home doesn't download the postcodes file automatically, so if you are starting from scratch with an SE Navcore, or your device is only accepting 3 character postcodes, see this FAQ for a download link and instructions:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

If the TomTom site link doesn't work, you can find the postcodes file here
[Postal_Codes][UK_NL]
Version 845
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ].
or directly from TT

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

and extract to produce a new "zip" fiolder.
Replace your old zip folder with this one (or replace the contents with the new contents).
...however please note that the version on the forums may be actually OLDER than the official TomTom version, so for now only use the TomTom link or your device will not be able to find postcodes for new properties. (Thanks to tt09 for this item)"

"Quickfix GPS does not work":
For Global Locate GPS chips get (One V3/V4, OneXL, XL30, ?? GOx40/x50, One IQ, XL IQ):

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

For SiRF StarIII GPS chip get (GOx00/x10/x20/x30, OneV1/V2):

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

Create (or clean) a directory ephem\ in the root of your TT. Extract Ephemeris.cab to ephem\
From now on, updates via Home should work now (~weekly).

"What are TTS, ALG, and ASR (C-speech), and Voice Control?":
TTS, Text to Speech, is a function where detailed driving instructions are provided using computer voices. The instructions include distances, road-names, directions to major cities, etc.

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

ALG is Advanced Lane Guidance. This comes in two parts. Part one are lane-use instructions for large intersections on screen, at the same location that is used for turn-left/right instructions. Part two are splash screens with a sort of very simple windscreen view.

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

ASR is Assisted Speech Recognition, where you can enter an address by talking to your TT.
C-speech are the files in the map needed for ASR.
Voice Control: TT control with one tap on the screen and your voice commands.

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

(Requires a working TTS voice)
IQ routes is a planning system using real average speeds instead of maximum speed on a road. For this the map contains tables with the average speeds for the 24 hours/day, 7 days/week.
Availability for all depends on TT model, navcore version, and map version.

"Can I preserve my Favorites when upgrading?":
Most of us love favorites. Tomtom has a flawed system for storing them which makes preserving when upgrading impossible. You can preserve when you make them POI's (Point of Interest).
The procedure is described on the TomTom website:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

If you want to know why POI's are preferred over Favorites:

Code:

Please Login or Register to see the links

"Can I capture my TT screen?": Sure, follow me (tip from yDdraigGoch).
1. create a directory "screen" in the root of your TT
2. in screen\, create an empty file "capture" (no extention!)
3. start your TT
4. capture by tapping the upper-left corner (notice the camera sound)
5. the screen-captures are stored in screen\

"I cannot get my system running / I have Computer Voice problems.":
Most of the times a full reinstall helps. These are the steps required.
1. Make a backup of your TT (check your backup!)
2. Clear the download directory of HOME
3. Remove the emulation directory of HOME (reinstall and patch later )
4. Format your TT (preferably using a special formatter for flash, see above: My SD Card does not work)
5. Put the backup back (or an old one if the system is really messed up)
6. Remove all single files from the root of your TT (leave the directories) BUT KEEP the .bmp-files (splash screens)
7. Remove the LoquendoTTS directory (or Vocalizer)
8. Connect your TT to HOME *
9. Renew your TT with HOME *
10. Exit HOME, and patch ttsystem
11. Reset
12. If you want Computer Voices: add voices using HOME *
13. Re-install emulation in HOME , and patch the .dll

It should run now. All configs are lost: Configure your system.
* Experienced users prefer to use WinRar to unpack the navcore .CAB-files and drop them directly on the TT (unpack LoquendoTTS CAB's in the LoquendoTTS directory).

All credits for this FAQ go to jarkita who wrote it on ****
bobby1607, terrytpot and so many unnamed