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Release Notes (Wherigo® iOS app) - January 6, 2021

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Geocaching HQ

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Release Notes (Wherigo® iOS app) - January 6, 2021

 

A new Wherigo® iOS app is now available in the App Store.

 

The updates to the app required submitting a new application to the store. If you have the previous Wherigo® iOS app, you will need to download this new application to receive future updates. 

 

Updates included migrating to the new Geocaching API, along with improved search functionality.

 

Annie, Senior Business Development Manager, is watching this thread to answer questions whenever possible.

 

Any posts in this thread should relate to features in this release. Comments unrelated to the release may be removed. Please direct unrelated comments to other appropriate threads. Thanks!

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Forest-Ghost

+Forest-Ghost

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The new app looks so beautiful!!! I can’t say how happy we are right now. We LOVE the new api that allows you to directly download cartridges!!!! So cool. I hope this app will be brought to android as well. This is by far and away the easiest experience with downloading wherigos I have had. Thank you so much!! Heading out to play a wig right now!! 

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1 hour ago, yxza said:

Something must be a misconfigured. The new version can not be found in Appstore (not at least in Sweden). It has to be downlowded on the iPhone using the link above.
But thanks for the new version!

 

It should be searchable in the store now. I believe there was just a temporary delay between the app going live to being able to be found via search.

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hydnsek

+hydnsek

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Yay! A long-time wish granted for this iPhone user. I've had so many cartridges crash and be unplayable over the past few years....one Wherigo in Utah even says on its cache page "not playable under iOS." Android users had 3P apps, but this is our only option on iOS. Love the new map/list interface, and hope issues with crashing within cartridges (due to some features being incompatible with current iOS) are fixed.

 

But please, please add an option to hide completed Wherigos from the long scrolly list. Thanks!

Edited by hydnsek
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terratin

+terratin

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Posted

That's brilliant! First quick look at it: It took me seconds to find and download the reverse Wherigo cartridge. Perfect. Downloading cartridges on the old app was just super tedious. So far massive improvement. Now it needs a proper test. Which might take a while.

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terratin

+terratin

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Posted

Anyone found a reason not to use this app? With the new one I'm considering ditching the old one, but if I do I'll have lost it. Anything that doesn't work? Any integration into the official geocaching app that I should know about (I only use cachly)?

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capoaira

+capoaira

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hello,

I am not an iOS user and therefore cannot test the app myself. But a beta tester of my new WIG found a bug. It is not possible to calculate with distance objects. The following code caused a crash: 

local dist = 75 -- Just an example number to simplify the code 
dist = Wherigo.Distance(dist, 'm')
dist = dist/2

I know that this is not a "beautiful" coding and can be easily fixed with ´dist = Wherigo.Distance (dist / 2, 'm') ´, but in all other apps (old iOS, WhereYouGo and the simulator from urwigo) the code works.

 

PS.: It would be nice if iOS could also show the zones with outlines and not just as a point ;)

Edited by capoaira
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Ranger Fox

Ranger Fox

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Posted
On 1/7/2021 at 8:54 AM, capoaira said:

PS.: It would be nice if iOS could also show the zones with outlines and not just as a point ;)

 

Yes, I agree that there are times when a zone's geometry is important.  Also, the map does not automatically update when zone states change (e.g. zones from Whack-A-Lackey aren't updated automatically; you have to reload the map).  The app still shows an error message when the lua print() statement is called.  The reskin looks nice, but still minimalistic.  Fortunately, at least, I can still sideload cartridges from my NAS or other sources, especially when I'm testing and writing in the field.  I'm difficult to please.

 

Those with spaces in their user names will have a "+" instead when a cartridge is downloaded.  It makes me what will happen with people with ampersands and apostrophes.  (Apostrophes are the worst due to some phones' automatic replacement.  I've had to get creative for people to be able to log into the Geocaching Adventures app, too.  I don't know about this one.)

 

The map and improved download capability are finally nice to have.

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The Jester

+The Jester

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3 hours ago, brendan714 said:

Any plan to stop the Reverse Wherigo scourge?

My city hasn't had a 'real' Wherigo since May of 2016... but there have been 29 Reverse Wherigos placed since then.

(this should go without saying, but Reverse Wherigos are easily solved online using "Reverse Wherigo Solvers" and as such aren't 'real' Wherigos to the majority of players)

Hmm, I guess I'm in the minority then, I enjoy the reverse Wherigo's and don't cheat by using a solver.  I can generally get them in 2 or 3 'readings'.

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thebruce0

+thebruce0

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Posted
5 hours ago, TeamVanKlei said:

Still not possible to migrate unfinished  Wherigo cartridges from the old Wherigo app to the new one. If you download then you have to start from scratch

 

Though really if you've got the old app running still and unfinished cartridges, may as well finish them off in that app. Don't start new ones. Once they're done, then delete the old app. No harm

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isaac7437

+isaac7437

Posted
Posted
On 1/16/2021 at 2:43 AM, SpiritGuide said:

 

What does it have that the Android players don't?

I find most of the Android Wherigo apps buggy for me. I think that the iPhone app is more reliable as it was made by Groundspeak and not some authorised developer.

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Desert Rats B&V

+Desert Rats B&V

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Posted
On 1/6/2021 at 11:37 AM, Geocaching HQ said:

Release Notes (Wherigo® iOS app) - January 6, 2021

 

A new Wherigo® iOS app is now available in the App Store.

 

The updates to the app required submitting a new application to the store. If you have the previous Wherigo® iOS app, you will need to download this new application to receive future updates. 

 

Updates included migrating to the new Geocaching API, along with improved search functionality.

 

Annie, Senior Business Development Manager, is watching this thread to answer questions whenever possible.

 

Any posts in this thread should relate to features in this release. Comments unrelated to the release may be removed. Please direct unrelated comments to other appropriate threads. Thanks!

When will the app be available for Android?  Thank you.

 

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SpiritGuide

+SpiritGuide

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Posted
5 hours ago, isaac7437 said:

I find most of the Android Wherigo apps buggy for me. I think that the iPhone app is more reliable as it was made by Groundspeak and not some authorised developer.

 

What apps have you tried? Usually it's the cartridges that are buggy. What does the iPhone app do differently?

 

Are you aware that the iPhone app was contracted out to an authorized developer? It wasn't rebuilt or made by Groundspeak. The Cachly developer worked on it.

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SpiritGuide

+SpiritGuide

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Posted
6 hours ago, KMacneal said:

WhereYouGo works pretty well.  You have to download cartridges and install them in the App so it helps to plan ahead.

 

Geooh GO doesn't have to... download from the cache description and then it immediately runs in its built-in Wherigo player. Actually, you don't even have to view the description or locate the cartridge link as Geooh does that for you... download while viewing a list of caches even.

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terratin

+terratin

Posted
Posted
On 1/20/2021 at 2:19 AM, SpiritGuide said:

 

What apps have you tried? Usually it's the cartridges that are buggy. What does the iPhone app do differently?

 

Are you aware that the iPhone app was contracted out to an authorized developer? It wasn't rebuilt or made by Groundspeak. The Cachly developer worked on it.

 

Oh, I didn't know. Sounds like a good quality app then.

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Forest-Ghost

+Forest-Ghost

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Posted

The new Wherigo IOS app currently downloads multiple copies of the same cartridge. There are a number of wherigos that use a single cartridge for lots of caches like the reverse cache, Wherigo geoarts, and some play anywhere cartridges. Is there any possibility of changing the app so that it does not show multiple copies of the same cartridge? The old app did not have this problem since the wherigos were always downloaded directly from the cartridges page. It is pretty confusing to have multiple instances of the same cartridge loaded. I realize players could just delete the duplicate copies of a cartridge, but this will become confusing if they don't know which cartridge is connected to which cache.

thumbnail_IMG_5502.png

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MrCachly

+MrCachly

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19 hours ago, Forest-Ghost said:

The new Wherigo IOS app currently downloads multiple copies of the same cartridge. There are a number of wherigos that use a single cartridge for lots of caches like the reverse cache, Wherigo geoarts, and some play anywhere cartridges. Is there any possibility of changing the app so that it does not show multiple copies of the same cartridge? The old app did not have this problem since the wherigos were always downloaded directly from the cartridges page. It is pretty confusing to have multiple instances of the same cartridge loaded. I realize players could just delete the duplicate copies of a cartridge, but this will become confusing if they don't know which cartridge is connected to which cache.

 

Are these cartridges the same exact thing?

 

In an upcoming version, there will be an association between the cache and the cartridge.

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HoochDog

+HoochDog

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I'm not sure if this is an issue with the app, or just a limitation of the iphone.  But I felt inspired to build a new cartridge for the revamped Wherigo app.
The problem I'm running into is that the Wherigo app doesn't seem to function in the background while the screen is locked.  
There doesn't seem to be a way to allow it to continue to function.
When I go to Settings --> General --> Background App Refresh
While the geocaching app and adventure labs app are listed there, The Wherigo app is not listed there.
Is there any way that Wherigo can continue to work while the phone is locked, and if not, why this limitation?

(Note to moderator:  this is not a duplicate post.  The question in the hardware forum is a question about the hardware (iphone), this is a question about the software (Wherigo app) )

Edited by HoochDog
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HoochDog

+HoochDog

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2 hours ago, HoochDog said:

I'm not sure if this is an issue with the app, or just a limitation of the iphone. 

 

After getting an answer in the hardware forum, I think it turns out to be an app limitation.

See the attached screenshot of Cachly VS Wherigo.  One allows background usage, the other does not.

Why the limitation?  Background functionality is available and works on Android/Whereyougo.

 

with.jpg

 

 

without.jpg

Edited by HoochDog
spacing
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MrCachly

+MrCachly

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37 minutes ago, HoochDog said:

Why the limitation?  Background functionality is available and works on Android/Whereyougo.

 

Can you explain your use case for why you would need location services to still collect location, even when the screen is locked or the Wherigo app isn't currently the foreground app?

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HoochDog

+HoochDog

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12 minutes ago, MrCachly said:

 

Can you explain your use case for why you would need location services to still collect location, even when the screen is locked or the Wherigo app isn't currently the foreground app?

 

I recently completed a Wherigo cache on an android phone that involved going on a 5 mile hike.  It was very fun.  When you started the cartridge, it would tell you which trail to take.  As you progressed, the app would beep at you at regular intervals to let you know you were still going the right path.  If you arrived at a junction point, you would hear a different kind of beep that would tell you to look at your phone to see which way to go, or answer a field question.  Since this was a 1.5 to 2 hour affair, keeping your phone in your front pocket and relying on the audio cues was helpful.  I am trying to create a similar experience.  I spent a lot of time designing and testing the cartridge before realizing that the ability to provide audio cues while the phone is locked is currently an android-only experience.  Thanks for asking.

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Tungstène

+Tungstène

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3 hours ago, MrCachly said:

 

Can you explain your use case for why you would need location services to still collect location, even when the screen is locked or the Wherigo app isn't currently the foreground app?

 

I know of a Wherigo cache 40 km north to my location which asks players to start the cartridge and then to put the Wherigo player in a pocket of their jacket. Instructions are given by audio files played when you reach certain locations ("please turn left", "forward up to the tree then right", "wrong way, please go back to last crossing roads", and so on).

 

 

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terratin

+terratin

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Posted
On 1/28/2021 at 10:58 PM, Forest-Ghost said:

The new Wherigo IOS app currently downloads multiple copies of the same cartridge. There are a number of wherigos that use a single cartridge for lots of caches like the reverse cache, Wherigo geoarts, and some play anywhere cartridges. Is there any possibility of changing the app so that it does not show multiple copies of the same cartridge? The old app did not have this problem since the wherigos were always downloaded directly from the cartridges page. It is pretty confusing to have multiple instances of the same cartridge loaded. I realize players could just delete the duplicate copies of a cartridge, but this will become confusing if they don't know which cartridge is connected to which cache.

thumbnail_IMG_5502.png

i'm not sure I fully understand this problem. Why do you download the cartridge again and again? I downloaded it once and use it for all reverse wherigos. And once I get the message that there's a new version and the old one doesn't work anymore I delete it and download the new one.

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MrCachly

+MrCachly

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On 2/12/2021 at 1:33 PM, Tungstène said:

 

I know of a Wherigo cache 40 km north to my location which asks players to start the cartridge and then to put the Wherigo player in a pocket of their jacket. Instructions are given by audio files played when you reach certain locations ("please turn left", "forward up to the tree then right", "wrong way, please go back to last crossing roads", and so on).

 

What is the GC code for this?

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