ADDING NEW POINTS-OF-INTEREST DATABASES TO TOMTOM NAVIGATOR
It is possible to add new Points of Interest (POI) to TomTom Navigator. On this page, we provide details about the following subjects:


Where to find POI databases made by other users
Make sure you have TomTom Navigator version 1.50 or higher.
You can download POI databases made by other users here.

How to add a POI database to a TomTom Navigator map
A POI database consists of
  • a file with extension OV2 (e.g. Hilton_Hotels.OV2)
  • optionally, a companion file with extension BMP (e.g. Hilton_Hotels.BMP)
To make such databases visible on a TomTom Navigator map, make sure of the following:
  • You have TomTom Navigator version 1.50 or higher.
  • The file(s) are stored in the same directory on your Pocket PC where the map data are located.
  • TomTom Navigator (re)opened the map after the OV2 file was put there (if necessary, restart TomTom Navigator).
  • In the POI tab of your TomTom Navigator preferences, make sure "Display POI" option is checkmarked, as well as the POI themselves.
Example: to use the database Hilton_Hotels.OV2 in the Germany map, you might do the following: Connect your Pocket PC to the PC and start Microsoft ActiveSync®. Use the menu option File ---> Explore to explore the directories on your Pocket PC. Browse to the directory
    \My Documents\Germany
 or to
    \Storage Card\Germany
 if the map was installed on a storage card. (Usually, the Explore option will start in "My Documents" anyway, so you will immediately see the "Germany" directory.) Copy the file Hilton_Hotels.OV2 (and optionally the file Hilton_Hotels.BMP) to this directory.

Next, on your Pocket PC, re-open the Germany map in TomTom Navigator. If necessary, re-start the TomTom Navigator application (using the TomTom Navigator menu option "Exit").

Finally, in the POI tab of your TomTom Navigator Preferences, make sure "Hilton Hotels" has a checkmark - otherwise the hotels will not be displayed on your screen. Even if you do not display them on your screen, you can now "navigate to" a Hilton Hotel, find the Hilton Hotels near your location etc. If you experience problems, here are some possibilities:
  • the OV2 file is not in the same directory as the map
  • the OV2 file does not contain any POI, or at least no POI within the borders of the map
  • you are using a TomTom Navigator version older than version 1.50
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How to make your own POI databases
POI databases can be created in two ways:
  • Manually, from within TomTom Navigator, by using the "add as Point of Interest" options (e.g. in the map view, tap & hold your pen on a particular place on the map).
  • On a PC, by converting whole databases into TomTom Navigator format (see below)


How to convert POI databases to TomTom Navigator format
We provide a set of easy tools to generate POI databases. These tools are delivered "as is", free of charge. You can download them here:


Download ov2tools.zip version 1.22 (58 kb)
The first tool, MAKEOV2, can be used to convert a simple text file containing the coordinates and names of locations into a ready-to-use OV2 file.
The second tool, DUMPOV2, can dump the content of POI databases into text format (yes, text that can be used by the MAKEOV2 tool).

The use of DUMPOV2.EXE is simple and straightforward:

    DUMPOV2 [inputfilename] [outputfilename]

Where "inputfilename" must be a valid TomTom Navigator POI file (with extension OV2) or a valid Route Planner or Citymaps OVERLAY file (with extension OVR). It is recommended to provide an outputfilename with extension ASC. If you do not specify any parameters, all OV2 and OVR files in the current directory will be converted (but existing ASC files will not be overwritten).

The use of MAKEOV2.EXE is as follows:

    MAKEOV2 inputfilename [outputfilename]

The input file should be a text file (extension ASC is recommended) that should simply contain lines of text. Any line starting with a semi-colon will be ignored. Empty lines will also be ignored. All other lines are expected to represent points of interest. Such a line should specify a longitude, a latitude and a name, seperated by commas. It is recommended that the name is put between double quotes. A name should not contain double quotes. Longitudes and latitudes may be specified either as degrees and fractions of degrees, or in degrees, minutes and seconds. Both colons and single-quote/double-quote notation may be used for minutes and seconds. So, all the following lines are all equivalent:

53.5 , 4 , "Truckers Restaurant La Bamba"
53.5000000 , 4.00000000 , "Truckers Restaurant La Bamba"
53'30"00 , 4'00"00 , "Truckers Restaurant La Bamba"
53'30 , 4'0 , "Truckers Restaurant La Bamba"
53:30:0 , 4 , "Truckers Restaurant La Bamba"
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How to publish POI databases you have created
If you have made a POI database that you wish to share with others, and the POI database does not contain copyrighted or offensive material, you can send us an E-mail at

    overlays@tomtom.com

with the following content:
  • a brief description (in English please) explaining the POI database (example: "a database of all Hilton hotels in Germany"). Make sure you clearly state which city, province or country your database covers.
  • OPTIONALLY: an E-mail address where people who download your database can contact you with fan-mail, requests and other remarks
  • As an attachment, the OV2 file
  • Optionally, as an attachment, provide a BMP file with an appropriate symbol
  • Optionally, as an attachment, provide a TXT file with any text you wish to share with people who will download the POI database.
DO NOT submit copyrighted or offensive material; TomTom BV retains the right to refuse or postpone publication of POI databases on their web site, to remove POI databases from their web site, without notice.

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