Frequently Asked Questions

Rand McNally has been in the commercial routing business for 70 years. We've been collecting transportation data since the inception of our company 140+ years ago. Our routing is specifically tuned for RVs of particular sizes - not simply an overlay of POIs on a car route. We have hundreds of thousands of miles of road attributes that are used to safely route large vehicles, such as RVs, and thousands of road restrictions that car GPS units don't have.

Rand McNally's POI content is also quite extensive vs. other units, and is researched by our own editors and GIS specialists for accuracy of placement and content. Any POI content that we procure from outside vendors is also carefully researched before we use it in our product.

Rand McNally also accepts feedback from customers to continually improve our POI content and routing.

Select "Choose Destination", then "New Location", then "Address". Begin typing the city name (or ZIP code entry) and a list of cities will be shown. Select the city/state you want from the list. Now start typing the street name. If the letters you need to type aren't available, it means that street name may be in a nearby city, so hit "Expand Search" located beside the "Enter Street Name" entry box. Select the street you need, then enter the address number.

Try the "Expand Search" option (described in previous FAQ) or you can use search by intersection or ZIP Code instead.

The TripMaker RVND is fully functional out of the box, but as a Rand McNally customer, you are entitled to exclusive Rand McNally updates. The frequency of updates varies from every month for free Rand McNally road construction updates, to quarterly for free software updates. Rand McNally also provides free RV restriction updates throughout the year based on feedback from Tell Rand, as well as our own ongoing research. The Tell Rand feedback requires research verification and updates are 2-4 times per year. Once per year, a full map update will be made available for a competitive price.

Once you find what you are looking for, select "Save to Address Book" on the screen with the "Begin New Route" button.

Select "Choose Destination", then "Address Book", then select the "Groups" tab at the top. Now select "New Group" at the bottom. You will also have the option to name your Group.

Hit "Choose Destination", then "Address Book", then the "Groups" tab at the top. Now select the name of the Group you have previously entered, such as "2010 Trip" or "August Trip". Now hit "New Location" at the bottom. You can either type a new location, or select one you have previously entered in History or your Address Book.

In the 7710 only, the Predictive Traffic feature can show typical traffic along your route for the date and time selected. The device can provide an alternate route. If "Now" is selected, traffic will automatically update every 15 minutes to show typical traffic where you are driving.

All TripMaker® RVND™ GPS units are real time traffic compatible with the addition of an external traffic antenna. This can be purchased at www.randmcnally.com/rvgps and includes free lifetime traffic.

Yes, custom locations can be added via the Rand McNally Dock (connecting your unit to a personal computer with an internet connection). Add information such as red light cameras, special shopping areas, and more. Once added through the Rand McNally Dock, they can be accessed from the POI feature. Look for the Custom Locations button. Any .csv format may be imported, such as those found at www.poi-factory.com or www.roadmapgps.com/poi/.

Yes. Simply find the point on the map, zoom in until the cross hairs highlight the road segment, and select "Via" or "Route To" at the bottom.

2 ways. Either drag it, or tap anywhere to re-center on that point. Tapping to re-center is often faster. Also, the closer you are zoomed in, the faster the map will move. Note: For better manipulation when using dragging option, tap the screen first, then drag.

Select "RV Tools", "RV Info", and scroll down. Select "ETA Adjustment".

You don't need to. The TripMaker RVND automatically determines your current time zone.

Select "RV Tools", "RV Info", and enter your details, or select from an RV Type. Rand McNally maintains the most up to date restriction data available.

From the main menu select "Choose Destination", select "Points of Interest", "My RV", "More Categories". Next select the sub category, such as "Hotels" and then "ALL". Select the "Spell" button at the bottom and type "Holiday". Note that this currently works for searches around your RV only.

You can control Audio vs. Visual warnings in "Preferences", "Device", "Warning/Alert Prompts" and "Auto Dismiss Prompts". The distance to be warned is in "RV Tools", "Warnings". To turn off a particular warning, continue to decrease the mileage until is says "Off".

"On, Auto Scale" means the map will automatically zoom to show your current position and the next turn, and keep automatically adjusting the zoom levels as you drive. The "Street, City, and County" options allow you to limit how far it zooms out. Note: For faster redraw performance, between turns, turn this setting to off.

RV POI Icons are RV Parks and Campgrounds, RV Service, Parking and Rest Areas, Travel Centers, and Rand McNally Editors' Picks. Turning these on means they will display on the map. RV POI icons display when zoomed out farther, since there are fewer of them. "POI Icons" controls the display of items found in "POI Category", "More", such as restaurants, hotels, etc. Since there are millions of these, they are only displayed when zoomed in to a local view. Note: the more POI Icons you display, the slower your map display speed. Categories of icons can be turned on or off by selecting "Preferences" from the main menu, and the map tab.

Rand McNally Trips are developed and researched by Rand McNally's editors and travel writers. The Best of the Road Trips are designed for a three to four day trip and showcase interesting things to see and do along the way that are lesser-known or off the beaten path, are unique or have a special character, are characteristic of the region, or somehow capture is essence, and would appeal to a broad range of people. Rand McNally Trips may include maps, photos and video. Scenic Tour Road Trips, Weekend Getaways, and Regional Trips provide additional pre-planned itineraries.

To record a breadcrumb trail as you drive, select RV Tools, RV Logs & Checklists, Trails and select New Trail. You will see an icon on the map screen indicating you are recording a trail. Tap that icon when you want to stop recording. To display a trail, select it from the Trails menu. The trails icon on the map can then be tapped to show either your trail on the map, or the trail and your current RV or car position. Using trails does decrease performance and uses storage space so its best used for trails under 50 miles.

While you're on the road, you can type and save notes for Rand McNally. You can send your comments via the Rand McNally Dock the next time you connect your RVND to a computer with Internet access. Click "Tell Rand" on the Dock to view saved comments, edit, and send.

When any RV POI is selected, for instance "State Parks", the POI will display on a navigation screen. Select the POI Rating button found on this screen. Select the number of circles that are shown in the RV-related POI lists, the bottom row will reflect your rating, and the top row will reflect the aggregated rating from fellow RVer's. You can also add comments.

The TripMaker RVND provides many different ways to customize your route. Each route takes into account the RV type you have selected, its length, height and weight, and estimated turning capability. For some RV's, left turns are easier than right turns, and for some the reverse is true. Rand uses its many years of routing expertise with large vehicles to tune the route differently based on these parameters. For larger RV's, the route will keep you on more major roads and fewer turns, and take into account large vehicle road attributes. If you find the route is taking you too far out of your way, you can select a smaller RV type to tune the route. If you find it is taking you on too many smaller roads and you would prefer a longer route on more major roads, than select a larger RV type, or select Freeway, Prefer Major or Prefer All, to further tune.

States and provinces have different regulations regarding total vehicle length, so that is what is used in routing. This should be the total length of your combined vehicle. Eg., if you have a 20-ft SUV with a 25-ft travel trailer, and a 3-ft tongue, your length is 48-ft. If you have a 20-ft pickup truck with a 20-ft fifth wheel, you do not have tongue length and your trailer mounting point is mid-bed, so your total length is more likely 40 feet.

This program provides map updates as they become available. If you participate in the Lifetime Map Program, you will receive notice that the maps are available, and the maps will be downloadable via the Rand McNally Dock. The first time a map update is available for a device, the registered owner will receive a notice describing the terms and the one-time fee (currently $89.99) for Lifetime Maps. We recommend that you register your device as soon as possible so as to be informed of any updates or new features available.