First Points no more ...

When Garmin moved from the 660 to the 590, Nav V and Nav VI (and I assume XT), i.e. you had to use the trip planner app; it became necessary to have a "First" waypoint in the route.
The device would ask you where to go first, and if this was a waypoint too far away from your start point, it would take you there according to the device settings, ignoring any shaping points you might have inserted.
Only Waypoints, not shaping points, would be available for this purpose.

I've seen many a planned route wrecked by this.

It now seems that the Nav V and later devices will allow shaping points as "First" points and so as long as your first shaping point is reasonably close to your starting point, all will be well.

Unfortunately, they have not seen fit to apply this change to the 590 so users of this device will still need to use a waypoint.

Note to self - read the Garmin firmware update release notes

software version 5.8, Firmware 6.50.01

Thank you for the news, appreciated.

I have just been told by someone with the same Nav at the same firmware revision that he still can’t select a shaping point so please proceed with caution.

After following a few routes and cogitating a bit, I think that what has changed is that shaping points now go into the route as announced “waypoints”*. This means any recalculation doesn’t strip them out and if the first one is reasonably close, one doesn’t need a “First” point.

*I wondered if this is a feature of basecamp or the guy building the routes but I notice that when initiating the route, I’m not offered the choice of any shaping point “waypoints”; only proper Waypoints that are created prior to putting them in the route. (IYSWIM).

As far as I know, shaping points are still only shaping points, unannounced and not offered up as a choice of destination when firing up a route.

Similarly, as far as I know, the only two sorts of announced points (and therefore points that are offered up as a choice of destination when firing up a route) remain as:

i. via points

ii. way points

Though I’d be delighted to be proved wrong.