Navigating POI-Warner (.asc)
A .asc file from POI-Warner is a plain-text list of custom points of interest — coordinates plus a description — used to warn a driver on approach in navigation systems that don't have their own POI-alert feature.
At a glance
| Extension | .asc |
| Encoding | text |
| By | Markus Schwarzkopf (Navigating.de) |
History
POI-Warner was created by Markus Schwarzkopf under the name Navigating.de as an add-on for GPS navigation systems, adding proximity-warning POI overlays. No specific release date is documented.
Where it is used
POI-Warner ran alongside navigation software from several vendors — TomTom, GoPal and Medion Navigator among them — letting a driver load overlay categories such as speed cameras, danger zones or petrol stations and be warned acoustically and visually on approach; overlays installed into a POIWarner folder as matched .asc/.bmp file pairs, one category per pair.
Structure
A plain-text file, one point per line: longitude, latitude, then a quoted description, comma-separated — for example 8.6180900,50.2175100,"[61352] AH Kreissl GmbH; Benzstrasse 7 [Bad Homburg]". A line starting with ; is a comment and is skipped.
How widespread
A PC/PND-era add-on tied to now-superseded standalone navigation hardware and software; anyone converting a .asc file today is working with an old POI-Warner overlay export rather than a currently maintained product.
RouteConverter support
| Reads | Navigating POI-Warner |
| Writes | Navigating POI-Warner |
RouteConverter reads and writes POI-Warner .asc files as a single, non-multi-route file.
Specifications and documentation
FAQ
What is a .asc file?
A .asc file from POI-Warner is a plain-text list of custom points of interest — coordinates plus a description — used to warn a driver on approach in navigation systems that don't have their own POI-alert feature.
How do I open a .asc file?
RouteConverter, the free converter for Windows, macOS and Linux, opens Navigating POI-Warner files: start the app, load the file, then view it on the map or save it in another format.
What can I convert .asc to?
RouteConverter opens .asc files and saves them as GPX, KML or any other format it can write. More: GPX, KML, all formats.