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Getting Started

1. Install the plugin​

Copy the built module into OpenCPN's user plugin directory and enable it in Options → Plugins:

# Linux
mkdir -p ~/.local/lib/opencpn
cp build/libtile57_pi.so ~/.local/lib/opencpn/

# macOS
mkdir -p ~/Library/Application\ Support/OpenCPN/Contents/PlugIns
cp build/libtile57_pi.dylib ~/Library/Application\ Support/OpenCPN/Contents/PlugIns/

The plugin appears as "tile57 Vector Chart (EXPERIMENTAL)".

2. Enable OpenGL​

The chart renders through the GPU. In Options → Display → Advanced, make sure OpenGL is enabled — on the non-GL canvas the chart draws nothing.

3. Add charts​

The plugin installs a real chart class, so you point OpenCPN at charts the same way you would any native chart. There are two ways to produce them.

Option A — the Build Charts dialog (recommended)​

Open the plugin's preferences (Options → Plugins → tile57 → Preferences) to get the Build Charts dialog. Point it at a folder of S-57 cells (an ENC root full of .000 files). The plugin bakes each cell — on background threads — to a PMTiles bundle in its cache directory (~/.cache/tile57/charts), then adds that directory to OpenCPN and refreshes the chart database for you. When baking finishes the charts appear in the chart bar.

Option B — bake with the tile57 CLI​

Bake a cell yourself with the tile57 CLI, then add the output folder as a chart directory:

# bake an unencrypted S-57 cell (or a whole ENC root) to a PMTiles bundle
tile57 bake CELL.000 -o /path/to/bundle
# -> /path/to/bundle/tiles/<CELL>.pmtiles

In OpenCPN: Options → Charts → Chart Files, add the folder containing the .pmtiles files, and Scan Charts / Prepare. (If OpenCPN doesn't pick up the new charts, it may prompt to update the chart database — accept it.)

The tile57 chart then appears in the chart bar. Navigate to its area and OpenCPN selects and draws it like a native chart, including quilting with adjacent cells.

4. Query a feature​

Double-click a feature to open an object-query panel — the S-57 attributes for whatever the plugin's charts cover under the cursor, the same information a native ENC "Object Query" gives you.

Baking feedback​

Baking happens up front, in the Build Charts dialog — it shows a progress bar as it works through the cells, then registers the chart directory when it finishes. Once charts are baked, OpenCPN opens the .pmtiles bundles directly and they render immediately; there is no per-view baking while you navigate.

Next​

  • Architecture — how the plugin plugs into OpenCPN and bakes charts.
  • Settings — the S-52 display options the plugin honors.