GPS RocketLocator offline map

[ksaves2]

Fantastic, That'll make all the gyrations I did to get a portable map going obsolete: https://www.rocketryforum.com/showt...-Mapping-Program-Update&p=1584109#post1584109
Fine by me as I have a nexus 7 that works fine and dandy and the cheap Chinese tablets I've used in that link above are dual boot Windows/Android. Only thing to consider is the caching protocol/map selection for off grid use
and stability. Tackle that and it would be the tour de force for NMEA trackers. Economical, simple and easy to use will be achieved so the only thing one has to worry about is a rocket that ends up in an inaccessible place.

Folks that would take the cost of tracking on a map of which Ham Radio/APRS was the only game in town at $1000.00 ten years ago to the cost of an Eggfinder (or TRS) setup at roughly $130.00 to include an HC-06 B/T module.
(Doesn't include a fancier case, antenna or batteries but you get the point.) Yeah, there were a couple of 900Mhz options ten years ago I recall but they were going for more cost than a Ham Radio APRS tracking setup.

Also ten years ago, Ham Radio was indeed a cheaper alternative to any kind of tracking APRS or RDF and was my impetus to get a license. I'm am very happy to see that is not necessarily the case anymore and sport fliers are
not likely going to miss any of the advantages that tracking on other bands have.

Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

I just wanted to say that I'm still developping the offline mode. I'm doing it in my spare time and apparently I don't have that much.
Up to now, I can download an area of the map with up to 5 level of zoom. What it remains to be done is a progress bar and some internal logic.

 

[ksaves2]

I just wanted to say that I'm still developping the offline mode. I'm doing it in my spare time and apparently I don't have that much.
Up to now, I can download an area of the map with up to 5 level of zoom. What it remains to be done is a progress bar and some internal logic.

That's nice. You should download (if you already haven't) the Altus Metrum AltOS to see how their scheme is for offline mapping. If you have an Android device
you can use the AltusDroid program. It is also configured to use other open source maps that don't have as much a storage overhead as photomaps.

The watermarked offline Google photomap is very usable. Kurt

 

[warnerr]

donation sent! thanks for your efforts👍

 

[fantasiiio]

That's nice. You should download (if you already haven't) the Altus Metrum AltOS to see how their scheme is for offline mapping. If you have an Android device
you can use the AltusDroid program. It is also configured to use other open source maps that don't have as much a storage overhead as photomaps.

The watermarked offline Google photomap is very usable. Kurt

Hi, thanks for the answer.
I already checked the source code of AltosDroid. I decided to use another algorithm to download maps. First, I don't want to make my source GPL, second the AltosDroid code is mathematical intense and I found a realy easy way to implement tile downloading without latitude/longitude maths.

Also, my google satellite offline map doesn't have watermarks.

p.s. AltosDroid source code is very well designed and I was impressed by the work done

 

[ksaves2]

Hi, thanks for the answer.
I already checked the source code of AltosDroid. I decided to use another algorithm to download maps. First, I don't want to make my source GPL, second the AltosDroid code is mathematical intense and I found a realy easy way to implement tile downloading without latitude/longitude maths.

Also, my google satellite offline map doesn't have watermarks.

p.s. AltosDroid source code is very well designed and I was impressed by the work done

The only thing you might have to worry about is copyright issues. I've seen where another APRS app was locked out of some online maps due to issues with the map purveyor some years ago.

 

[fantasiiio]

The only thing you might have to worry about is copyright issues. I've seen where another APRS app was locked out of some online maps due to issues with the map purveyor some years ago.

Yeah, I'm aware about the copyright issues... But I'm not using a map api.

 

[ksaves2]

Yeah, I'm aware about the copyright issues... But I'm not using a map api.

Great, I admire those with programming skills. I came from the age in the middle 70's where a bootstrap tape
had to be run through a tape reader to "orient" the minicomputer after setting by hand the octal starting address
in the front panel. Then one could take the OS tape, Basic, Assembler or Fortran and run that through to see
"Ready" typed on the teletype paper and the OS was up. Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

Great, I admire those with programming skills. I came from the age in the middle 70's where a bootstrap tape
had to be run through a tape reader to "orient" the minicomputer after setting by hand the octal starting address
in the front panel. Then one could take the OS tape, Basic, Assembler or Fortran and run that through to see
"Ready" typed on the teletype paper and the OS was up. Kurt

I started in the middle of 80's where computers read data from audio tape... that was cool

 

[cerving]

Remember this?

 

[fantasiiio]

Nope.. I was on trs-80 / comodore 64
but anyways..

by the way, I worked on rocket locator yesterday. The progress bar for download is functional. I'm almost there.
There is still a couple of details to be done, like canceling the download and some configurable parameters.
And probably people may like to have a list of Flight site with their gps coordinate.

 

[Steve Shannon]

Remember this?

View attachment 295386

I never used a keypunch. I learned BASIC using a DECwriter and acoustic modem in about 1975 or 76 and FORTRAN on a minicomputer the next semester, then never touched either one till I went back to school to become an engineer.


[emoji1010] Steve Shannon [emoji1010]

 

[Rob702Martinez]

Nope.. I was on trs-80 / comodore 64
but anyways..

by the way, I worked on rocket locator yesterday. The progress bar for download is functional. I'm almost there.
There is still a couple of details to be done, like canceling the download and some configurable parameters.
And probably people may like to have a list of Flight site with their gps coordinate.

My prayers have been answered!

 

[fantasiiio]

Hi,

I published a version of rocket locator with a functional offline map. It may takes several hours for googlePlay before you can update / download it so, tomorrow it's supposed to be updated.

Take care with the download button. I have over 10 000 tiles (90 mb) in my cache folder, because I tested it a lot...

So, to use it, you have to:
- Go to the flying zone
- Zoom out
- Go in the menu and press download.
- Wait for download finished
- Enjoy

All visible tiles and 4 zoom(max) under will be downloaded. It's approximately 768 tiles to download.
Also, The map is always downloading tiles in the cache folder. So it's always more fast.

Give me feedbacks for the new download function.

 

[ksaves2]

Hi,

I published a version of rocket locator with a functional offline map. It may takes several hours for googlePlay before you can update / download it so, tomorrow it's supposed to be updated.

Take care with the download button. I have over 10 000 tiles (90 mb) in my cache folder, because I tested it a lot...

So, to use it, you have to:
- Go to the flying zone
- Zoom out
- Go in the menu and press download.
- Wait for download finished
- Enjoy

All visible tiles and 4 zoom(max) under will be downloaded. It's approximately 768 tiles to download.
Also, The map is always downloading tiles in the cache folder. So it's always more fast.

Give me feedbacks for the new download function.

Okay Dokee, I'll give it a whirl tonight. What kind of map? I generally go to my workplace after hours so I can get maps downloaded quickly for storage. Also one should be cognizant of the device they are using. Can quickly fill up storage with maptiles
if using a photomap. Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

Okay Dokee, I'll give it a whirl tonight. What kind of map? I generally go to my workplace after hours so I can get maps downloaded quickly for storage. Also one should be cognizant of the device they are using. Can quickly fill up storage with maptiles
if using a photomap. Kurt

The map used is satellite for google, and road for open street map. Each photo tile is approximately 2k or 4k.
I don't think the space used by the downloaded map is a problem. You will probably never exceed 100 mb of space disk.

 

[ksaves2]

Hi,

I published a version of rocket locator with a functional offline map. It may takes several hours for googlePlay before you can update / download it so, tomorrow it's supposed to be updated.

Take care with the download button. I have over 10 000 tiles (90 mb) in my cache folder, because I tested it a lot...

So, to use it, you have to:
- Go to the flying zone
- Zoom out
- Go in the menu and press download.
- Wait for download finished
- Enjoy

All visible tiles and 4 zoom(max) under will be downloaded. It's approximately 768 tiles to download.
Also, The map is always downloading tiles in the cache folder. So it's always more fast.

Give me feedbacks for the new download function.

O.K., I gave it a shot on the Nexus 7 2013 with Cyanogen Mod ROM. Downloaded some maptiles allegedly to cache and closed down the program. I shut off the internet connection, opened the program again and no map. I get the blue GPS dot but none of the maptiles are seen. I tried both Google and OSM.

The program states it's going off line but no map is pulled up from cache. Tried Android 5.1.1 on this multiROM Nexus 7 2013 device and it also failed. Now tried on a generic dual boot Chinese tablet Windows/Android 4.4.4 and it too will not pull up the offline map. The Chinese dual boot is a stock 4.4.4 ROM and the Nexus 7 2013 is rooted and unlocked so I can do whatever I want with it. Sorry, nothing seen. I tried downloading a variety of tiles and also followed the instructions above.
Zoomed out, downloaded the tiles, closed the program, shut off the internet wifi, restarted the program and no map. Again, the program said it was going off line but the screen in all three instances remained bare. Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

O.K., I gave it a shot on the Nexus 7 2013 with Cyanogen Mod ROM. Downloaded some maptiles allegedly to cache and closed down the program. I shut off the internet connection, opened the program again and no map. I get the blue GPS dot but none of the maptiles are seen. I tried both Google and OSM.

The program states it's going off line but no map is pulled up from cache. Tried Android 5.1.1 on this multiROM Nexus 7 2013 device and it also failed. Now tried on a generic dual boot Chinese tablet Windows/Android 4.4.4 and it too will not pull up the offline map. The Chinese dual boot is a stock 4.4.4 ROM and the Nexus 7 2013 is rooted and unlocked so I can do whatever I want with it. Sorry, nothing seen. I tried downloading a variety of tiles and also followed the instructions above.
Zoomed out, downloaded the tiles, closed the program, shut off the internet wifi, restarted the program and no map. Again, the program said it was going off line but the screen in all three instances remained bare. Kurt

Hi, I'm sorry for this problem.
Is the map visible when you are online ?

 

[ksaves2]

Hi, I'm sorry for this problem.
Is the map visible when you are online ?

Oh, yes. The maps are always visible when online. The problem is to be able to download maps to cache when an online link is easily had, ultimately shut the device down, go out to the launchsite, turn the device on, activate GPS Rocket Locator and use
the cached map without having a live internet link. This would allow any Android device to be used. It seems like GPS RL would download the map but with no internet link could not pull it up for display. Have you tried caching with your own device, shutting it down, turning off all internet access and pulled up a map on the program after rebooting?

The APRSISCE/32 program allowed one to download the MapQuest tiles by scrolling around the map online and one would see an ever expanding yellow circle as the tiles were saved. One simply turned off "tile purge" in the program and the maps
were permanently saved. Only trouble now with that program is the MapQuest phototiles are going away.

The desired goal is a portable self contained map without the need for a continuous online connection. Yes one is hampered by the amount of storage they have but by just saving what they need for their immediate launchsite it should be possible to pull off.

Interestingly when I tried to save/process the state of Illinois Open Source Map which is something like 279mb with the tracking app YAAC it rapidly filled up a the 32Gb internal memory and locked up my Windows tablet. I had to put YAAC and its directories onto a 128Gb microSD card in order to pull off the processing. To convert and install the map data YAAC required a ton of temporary storage which was automatically freed up after the program was done.

 

[fantasiiio]

Ummm....could you use a file browser and go to folder 'mapcache' . tell me if there is files there ?

 

[ksaves2]

Ummm....could you use a file browser and go to folder 'mapcache' . tell me if there is files there ?

I was trying to find a mapcache folder but couldn't find where it was at. I have the device unlocked so everything shows up in a file manager.

I'll give it another go tonight. I sometimes see "Nan" when I make an attempt to download a maptile. I presume that means it's already in the cache?

Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

I was trying to find a mapcache folder but couldn't find where it was at. I have the device unlocked so everything shows up in a file manager.

I'll give it another go tonight. I sometimes see "Nan" when I make an attempt to download a maptile. I presume that means it's already in the cache?

Kurt

Nan stands for not a number. It mean there is a problem and the map is not saved. The folder is supposed to be at root of the internal storage. I will contact you by email today.

 

[ksaves2]

Nan stands for not a number. It mean there is a problem and the map is not saved. The folder is supposed to be at root of the internal storage. I will contact you by email today.

I tried looking in the various folders and I can't even find the executable. I have it rooted and unlocked too. It's a Nexus 7 2013 and I tried on a generic
dual boot Chinese tablet that's Android 4.4.4 and is not rooted/unlocked. I don't mess with the imported Chinese dual boots as I don't have any idea where I can get an image to restore it if I whack them playing in the "nether" levels. I couldn't get the caching to work on any of the 2 devices (one of which is dual boot Cyanogenmod 12.1/Android 5.1.1 on the Nexus 2013 of which I tried both firmwares. Anyone else report any trouble? GPS rocket locator seems to go through the motions of downloading the tiles but just can't pull them up. Oh, I don't see Nan all that often. It sometimes comes up if I try to re-download the same field. Kurt

 

[fantasiiio]

I'm curious to know if someone else have this problem...

 

[Wayco]

Reading Kurt's comments, I'm not even going to try to add maps to my Android phone. There are probably plenty of others here that feel the same.
Fantasiio, if you are having some trouble understanding the technical comments ksaves2 posts up, you are not alone.
I'm just glad my Rocket Locator app works, and I appreciate all the effort you have put into this product. Changing the altitude from meters to feet is a great idea, now if you could change the letters on the screen from white to black, I might be able to read them while walking across the desert in the AZ sunshine....

 

[Leo]

I'm curious to know if someone else have this problem...

I have the problem as well.

 

[fantasiiio]

I have the problem as well.

I see. Thanks.

So there is a problem with writing on disk (or internal storage)... That I don't have on my phone..
But, the application is working with internet connection, like before. Isn't it ?

 

[Leo]

Yes. Online it works fine.

When I select an map area and then click on download it seems to be downloading something.

When I go offline and then go to the same map area I see nothing.

 

[Titan II]

Same here. When I push Download Map, the map disappears, a graph appears showing the % load, and the tiles come back during the load, completing the map at the end. After shutting off the WiFi and rebooting the tablet, I am unable to find any maps. Where would one look for them? It works when connected to WiFi. Thanks for your work in this area.

 

[ksaves2]

Yes. Online it works fine.

When I select an map area and then click on download it seems to be downloading something.

When I go offline and then go to the same map area I see nothing.

Good, I'm glad I'm not the only one because then I'm trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong. Online, GPS Rocket Locator works impeccably well. For those who have cell phone/internet access Wayne, you're in the catbird seat. Works perfectly. For those with no internet access or wish to use it on a non-cellphone Android device we're out of luck. For now.:wink:

The thing about a Wifi only Android device is many times there is a heck of a lot more storage available for off line maps so that is not a problem. Not having monthly fees is also a plus.
I've had a taste of that with Altos Droid and a Tele-GPS. Works very nicely with the Altus Metrum products and off line photo maps can be saved to a Wifi only device in a variety of ways.

Francois is just about there for the EggFinders. I've tried with Ham Radio apps especially APRSISCE/32, https://aprsisce.wikidot.com/ and Xastir, https://xastir.org/index.php/Main_Page.
Can give some real nice real time graphical presentations of a flight but doggone it, they're too darned hard for anyone to use! This script kiddie pounded hard on them by trial and error.
I still have my real time mapping solutions but Francois' would be a fantastic solution for you all.

Francois, the key to testing is to download the map tiles, shut off the internet access, be it WiFi or cellphone and then fire up GPS Rocket Locator and see if it will write the map from cache.
What I get is an indication from GPSRL that it is attempting to write from cache but it isn't successful. If you are doing your testing on a device that still has internet access, it might still
be pulling maps from the internet. I've also shut off my Wi-Fi so it would stay off when I re-booted the device and tried to get GPS Rocket Locator to write from cache. Again, it makes
an attempt by giving the indication but no map.

In it's blank state it will give one's local position, the rocket's position and a datum line. It's usable but boy oh boy, I wished I had the map on one flight as I had to cross many obstacles to get to
a rocket when I could have seen I could have driven to an easy spot to park and could have seen the rocket from the road's shoulder!:bangpan: Kurt Savegnago