Passage PLANNER PLUS - Quick Tour

The full manual is installed in the Help File and a Word version with the Outline Passage Plan will be found in the program group on your hard disk.

The program is designed to be as intuitive as possible, most of the program options are available from the Menu Bar on the top of the screen.
Above the Menu Bar is the Screen Banner that displays Date and Time and the Route Distance. Below the chart displays the Mode, Chart in Use,
Waypoint File and Route Distance.

The left mouse button is used for most of the work and selections, the right mouse button is normally used for editing the route.

Pan by mouse hold down the left mouse button and move the mouse (the cursor changes to 4 way cross)
OR use the vertical and horizontal scroll bars.
Pan by keyboard arrow keys ‘I’ for in ’O’ for out (+ and – keys also have the same function)
Zoom by keyboard using keys 1 to 9 (1 = lowest zoom).

FUNCTION KEYS

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

Create Route
Shift+Click is used to lay down a route point (or set zero if the dividers are in use).
There is no need to finish the route if a simple calculation is required, just selecting the
Route menu and pressing Calculate Course for Route ends the route creation process.

Calculations on a Route
After creating a route, Calculate Course for Route and Calculate Optimum Route Time are active
on the Route menu.

Course for Route brings up a window that allows editing of details such as Leg Speed, Waypoints,
Latitudes, Longitudes and Time.

If Wind is pressed, a screen appears allowing you to set the wind speed and direction.

The Tack button will calculate if the wind is coming from port or starboard and once this is set leeway
can be applied. Click an entry for further editing and then click Accept for any changes made.  Select
Departure Time and finally click Calculate.

Results of Multi-leg Calculations
A window appears at the end of the calculation showing the expected waypoint to waypoint departure and
arrival times, Course to Steer and distances. Note that the Copy button copies the results of this window
to the clipboard for pasting into other applications such as the Neptune Outline Passage Plan that is found
under the Neptune Planner PLUS Program Group.

When the results box is cleared the COG points are displayed as a series of half hourly waypoints, look at these
waypoints for any bunching that may occur, this indicates where vessel is losing ground against the tidal stream.

Effect of varying Departure Times on the Course Over Ground
On the Menu are the Tide Roll buttons.
Pressing Tides>> will advance the time to the next half hour and recalculate the Tidal Streams.
To decrease the departure time press <<Tides item.
When the cursor is placed over a 'T within a diamond icon' press F1 and this will display the tidal height predictions.

Wind Menu
The program allows the use of manually entered wind or wind predictions from forecasts via SmartMet Weather Information Service
(see main manual for details). If SmartMet wind is used then the program must be configured for this option. Please note that
SmartMet is available only as an annual subscription and is independent from Neptune.

Wind Conditions & Calculations
Allows the wind speed and direction to be set up, it can be changed at any time and the last settings
are retained for the next session.
NOTE : Using SmartMet he wind is viewable as a grid at 1/2 degree intervals. This view is toggled on and off  by pressing the
keyboard ' # ' (hash) key and the wind speed and direction is displayed as 'Wind Barbs', the tail of the wind vector being marked
with barbs each long barb represents 10 kn of wind and each small barb is 5 knots, the direction of wind is shown blowing in
towards the centre of a circle.

Display Wind
Shows the wind direction and no sail area on the screen whenever a leg or route waypoint is entered.

True and Apparent
Given true wind calculates apparent and vice versa.

Wind Entry
Select the appropriate Sail Plan and then either click on a wind direction and speed or manually type in a
direction and speed in the appropriate boxes.
If this screen has been reached from the single leg calculation the boat heading field will contain an entry,
pressing the Estimate Boat Speed button causes the software to read the Polar Plot, estimate the boat
speed and enter this into the leg calculation set-up screen.
(Polar plots are described in the manual).

Display Wind
Check the Configure Menu > General Settings item this will display the wind direction with the no sail area,
this is drawn in as a red triangle either side of the wind arrow. It becomes obvious using this visual guide
if your proposed passage cannot be sailed for the wind conditions anticipated. In the illustration below sailing
between waypoint 2 and 3 is not possible.

Editing Route Waypoints
To edit a route using the keyboard > Route menu > Keyboard Edit Route Points menu.
To edit a route using the mouse.

        Enter Route Edit Mode by selecting ‘Mouse Edit Route Point’ from the Route menu.

        Mark the point by positioning the mouse over the point and press the ’M’ key, a circle
        appears around the ‘Marked’ point.

        Hold the RIGHT mouse button down and SLOWLY drag the point to the required location.
        (Note the status bar at the bottom of the screen displays the route distance).

        To remove the mark from the point move the mouse to a free section of the screen and press ‘M’ key again.

        If a route point is marked then press ‘Delete’ key to delete the point.  Pressing the ‘Insert’ key will
        insert a route point AFTER the marked position at the current location).

Vessel speed from Polar Plots
Once a route has been created select the Calculate menu and press the Wind button to display the
Wind Calculation Screen, you will note that the route details panel is now filled in.  To make the software
read the Polar Plot and estimate the boat speed, you must select the appropriate leg speed entry in the
list and double click. The vessel speed will be updated.

If a change in wind conditions is expected enter the new wind speed and direction prior to double clicking
the leg. Closing this screen will return to the Route set-up box. On exiting this screen the Route will be
redrawn on the screen with the appropriate wind directions on each waypoint.

SOLAS Passage Plans & Neptune
Production of a passage plan prior to departure is a legal requirement.
Neptune Planner PLUS assists in the preparation of passage plans by allowing you to copy results
and route setups to the clipboard.  These results can subsequently be pasted into a  plan that may be
under preparation within Word, WordPad or Excel.

Neptune also provide a blank passage plan document, this is easily found from the Windows desktop
using Start then Programs - Neptune Planner PLUS - Outline Passage Plan. This Word document 
can be edited and modified as desired for your own use but cannot be distributed as it is the copyright
of Neptune Navigation.

Points to Note
Neptune’s software is a secondary navigation tool relying on predicted tidal information and data entered
by the user.  Bearings, soundings and other normal navigational procedures should always be used
together with tools of this nature.  Courses presented are intended to be used as a check on the navigators
manual calculations and if they are used in their own right as a primary calculation then this is done entirely
 at the navigators own risk.

The authors acknowledge and the user accepts that programs such as this may produce errors from time
to time. It is the users responsibility to validate results before use. 

The authors (Neptune) and their agents accept no responsibility whatsoever for any damage arising from
the use of its products no warranties are made and Neptune disclaim any implied warranties as to the
merchantability, quality or fitness of its products and documentation for any particular purpose.  Please
read the additional documentation within this package

NEPTUNE Navigation Software
PO Box 5106
Riseley
Berkshire
RG7 1FD 
Telephone 0118 988 5309  Fax 0870 0567329
e-mail sales@neptunenavigation.co.uk

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