Most nav programs will give you a projected course line. Some of them are infinite and some have controls for time or miles ahead. These are incredibly useful, you get your actual COG including leeway and current, not which direction the bow is pointed. OpenCPN also gives you range rings, I usually have two at ¼ and ½ miles.
This stuff is not unique to Navionics, all my programs do this one way or the other. I can set up routes with their various displays too and feed an autopilot if I had one from this century, but I kind of like staying in the loop more and adjusting things based on eyeballing the chart display and the actual environment. That isn’t to say I never use a route, but I am not addicted to them like a couple of people I know that basically can’t get to the fuel dock without one. Why a “real plotter” is still worthwhile: Leaving my slip Saturday the computer decided for some random reason not to recognize the USB>Serial port and the iPad decided not to feed UDP data to Aquamap. A restart fixed the iPad and a little screwing around fixed the laptop. Meanwhile the old and primitive plotter at the helm fired right up with a waterproof sunlight readable screen and I can operate it with saltwater soaked fingers no problem. Meanwhile I deleted Navionics off my devices, the company changeover made it so I couldn’t even get past the account screen and see old charts, I needed to set up a new account online. THAT would have been a nasty surprise if it was the only tool I had and I was offshore! Joe Della Barba Coquina C&C 35 MK I Kent Island MD USA
