Gpxsonar V1.2

February 21, 2004

To all GpxSonar Users:

I'm about to start working on the next release of GpxSonar but I'm having a hard time gathering the fragmented input that I've received through this forum over the course of the past 3 months.

So for the sake of efficiency, I'd like to try a different approach: If you have a request for a feature or a bug fix for v1.2 of GpxSonar, please log it here. Anything entered in this thread will be considered for the next release. Anything outside of this thread will not be considered.

This thread will be closed once I have enough things on my plate for v1.2.

Please stay on topic.

Thank you,

Fabien.

February 21, 2004

Is there a way for the reports to list finds/notes sorted by time of entry? This would be of great assistance when posting the logs. Also, is there a way to change the order of the columns of the display? If I could be able to "click & drag" the columns in the order needed, that would be another improvement. Just changing which ones display and which ones do not does not allow me to keep all the fields I need.

Is there a way to save my files directly to my SD? Right now, I am having to copy from my main memory to storage.

This one is either operator error or a bug. I have several files on my PPC, some of which are in each file. Whenever I log a note, that cache disappears from the list I am using, I have to close and then re-open in order to see it.

BTW, this is a great product and one I thoroughly enjoy using while caching. Others have asked and are impressed by its capabilities. Thanks for all your hard work in developing this tool.

February 21, 2004

2LuknF8...

Is there a way to save my files directly to my SD?

GpxSonar does not care where it starts from or where your files are. Sounds like something else is going on here.

Whenever I log a note, that cache disappears from the list

Sounds like your Cache Attributes filter needs to be changed.

Thanks for the feedback.

Fabien.

February 21, 2004

Fabien, is there a chance of having GPXSonar to upload way-points to the Garmin, and Magellan GPSr ??

Thanks

Jim W

February 21, 2004

Jim W...

Fabien, do you have any plans on upgrading GPXSonar to upload way-points to the Garmin, and Magellan GPSr ??

I've been considering porting GPSBabel to the Pocket PC and embedding it in GPXSonar. That would take care of uploads and conversions in many formats at the same time.

So, the short answer is: YES...Eventually

Regards,

Fabien.

February 21, 2004

Thanks Fabien, you're the greatest.

Jim W

February 21, 2004

Feature Request

1) True ppc menu system

2) Show whether cache is archived

3) More filters (cache size etc)

Thanks for a great program

February 21, 2004

I recall trying to enter my coordinates for a cache on the notes page. The bug that I ran into there was that it would drop leading or trailing zeros in each part of the coordinates, thus changing their values.

February 21, 2004

Lone Duck ...

it would drop leading or trailing zeros in each part of the coordinates

Hue!?!

I'll check it out but this is very odd... I can't test this right now, but I do not believe that leading zeros are dropped. Trailing ones can be dropped w/o loosing any precision.

1. Identical: 42 47.0280 = 42 47.028

2. Not Identical: 42 47.028 != 42 47.28

So, if GpxSonar actually does #2, there's a problem. Otherwise, it's fine.

Regards,

Fabien.

February 21, 2004

I'd love to see a small search bar at the top of the screen to quickly find a waypoint or cache name in a long list....

February 22, 2004

Fabien,

This is something I wrote to you about some time back and others may have a desire or idea on..........

I'd like to see the "my caches" re-worked in this manner.

1. Open the "my caches" and your choice is "New Cache or Edit Existing"

2. If "Edit Existing" was clicked then the list of your caches would come up to edit, delete or view as needed.

3. If "New Cache" was selected, then "How Many Way Points" box would come up. This would be for setting up a multiple. If answer is "1" then only one area for coordinates would come up in the window. If answer was "3" for example then there would be three coordinates entry places in the edit window.

4. As is now, there is too much info in the entry area. When setting up a cache all you need to enter is the Type, Size, Name, Coordinates (posted or the others for your multi reference), Difficulty/Terrain, Short Description and possibly the hints. The long stuff can be imported later from your PQ from what you post on the web.

5. When you post your cache on the web you get your GC# right then. If you fill that into the GC# box in GPXSonar, that would identify your new cache to Sonar. By importing that cache from your PQ it would fill in the rest of the blanks in the "my caches" area leaving the notes or other info you have put in.

Between myself and the other "team" member I am working with I use the "my caches" a lot but there are times when it's just not as easy as I think it could be.

I hope that all makes sence.

Thanks

February 22, 2004

I would like to see the keyboard screen of the ppc pop up when you go to enter a field note.

February 23, 2004

I would like the field notes to not be buried 3 levels deep in the menu. :smile:

Jim

24.7k · February 23, 2004

How about exporting to MS S&T on the PDA. Other PDA map exports would be nice also. :smile:

2.6k · February 23, 2004

Unless it's already there, and another feature I didn't bother learning about.

I'd like there to be a small, three or five, center-home coordinates list. So you can click on them like the "set as center" feature.

When I generate queries, I don't use an actual cache location. I use a location that gives me the most waypoints. I currently have three queries, so a list of three would be fine.

February 23, 2004

leatherman...

I'd like there to be a small, three or five, center-home coordinates list.

It's already there.

February 23, 2004

Hi - just subscribed as premium member last week, and used Gpxsonar this weekend. Worked great!

Only suggestions I have is to second the request about being able to reorder columns, as well as hide/unhide. Also, when hitting the "OK" button in the top left, it'd be nice to keep the program running in the background. Add a close program function to the menu system. This is the way most other PPC programs work, and I find myself reloading Sonar and the gpx file a lot because I keep forgetting.

February 23, 2004

How about exporting to MS S&T on the PDA. Other PDA map exports would be nice also.

I'll second that!!!!

February 23, 2004

NSMB...

being able to reorder columns, as well as hide/unhide

You can already hide/unhide columns.

February 23, 2004

Thanks for the excellent program - my wish list, in no particular order is:-

1. the ability to have the notes uploaded to the gc.com site, especially if marked as found or not found. Maybe not necessarily posting, but entering the data into the webpage ready for the button to be saved (or spelling corrected!)

2. notes automatically saved when they are closed - alternatively moving the save buttons from the bottom of the dialog. When the keyboard is popped up on the ppc this hides the save button so you have to keep toggling the keyboard on and off to use.

3. Ability to choose what tapping on a cache does, from opening it to opening field notes etc. Tapping and holding *still* takes me a while to get used to doing.

4. Synch the notes from gpxsonar with GSAK would be GREAT.

February 23, 2004

DomHeknows...

1. the ability to have the notes uploaded to the gc.com site

That one has been on my To Do list for over 6 months. I may implement it through the WAP interface to the site even though a web service is planned for this purpose (rumor).

4. Synch the notes from gpxsonar with GSAK would be GREAT.

I've offered ClydeE to integrate with GSAK a while back. The ball is in his court now. You may want to post this request in the GSAK thread.

Regards,

Fabien.

February 23, 2004

NSMB...

being able to reorder columns, as well as hide/unhide

You can already hide/unhide columns.

sorry - I knew that... should have said "in addition to"

2.8k · February 24, 2004

Synch the notes from gpxsonar with GSAK would be GREAT.

GSAK already allows for notes to be imported from an plain text file. The import file being a TAB delimited text file comprising of 2 fields:

1. Waypoint name (ie gc.com cache code)

2. Note text

If there are any carriage return line feeds embeded in the notes, then these should be converted to the HTML code of <br>

February 24, 2004

ClydeE...

GSAK already allows for notes to be imported from an plain text file.

Ok, that's a good start.

The import file being a TAB delimited text file comprising of 2 fields:
1. Waypoint name (ie gc.com cache code)

2. Note text

The notes in GpxSonar also include actual cache coordinates and a status field (found, not found, note, archive).

If we want to pursue a tighter integration of the 2 apps, I suggest we take that discussion offline.

Regards,

Fabien.

February 24, 2004

Hey -=(GEO)=-, long time no see... I think I might have mentioned this once before, I don't what your thoughts on it are but here goes: Taking all of the terrain and difficulty ratings for caches you have found / placed and playing with those numbers a little bit. Like averages, ratios, etc. Its not a particularly useful feature, I know, but it could be fun.

Another thing I though of recently could be a bit more exciting. I recently ordered a Royaltek BlueGPS and one standout feature this unit has is an independant logger built right into the GPS itself. It comes with a PPC utility to download the data. It all appears to be standards based too. What I was thinking was you could download the data log for each cache you do and store it in some fashion like the field notes. Optimally GPXSonar would do this natively, but I suppose a file import routine would work as well. This would allow you to go back to each cache and replay your exact path taken. I know this would have helped me on a couple of toughies where I had to go back a for a second look.

February 25, 2004

new Menus - tap and hold for everything sucks

single tap for cache page

allow to minimize, and get back to Today screen

difficulty & terrain filters

TB filter

thanks for he great program!!!!!

2.6k · February 25, 2004

single tap for cache page

I agree with this. The PPC default is single tap and tap-n-hold. Double tapping take one to many brain cells.

February 25, 2004

1) Let me specify the GPX file I always like to open on the program shortcut.

2) Let me get to my Today screen.

3) When sorting the "Name" column, do a case in-sensitive sort.

4) Give it menus at the bottom (but keep the click-n-holds, too).

5) Let me filter the cache list to a subset... give me a dropdown that lets me choose a column (waypoint or name or owner), then enter in a word or partial wapoint num, etc., hit 'apply', then have the list strip down to only those caches that match. i.e., I might remember a couple caches that had 'swamp' or 'fort' in the name somewhere, but I forget what the name begins with.

6) let me search for a particular waypoint (case-insensitve)

7) Change the 'OK' button to an 'X' and let the application minimize.

February 25, 2004

single tap for cache page

Double tapping take one to many brain cells.

lol. actually for me, double tapping takes too much 'precision aiming' when bouncing around as a passenger in a jeep, or walking along through the woods.

February 25, 2004

That one has been on my To Do list for over 6 months. I may implement it through the WAP interface to the site even though a web service is planned for this purpose (rumor).

Not a rumor. In another thread, Jeremy himself said that this was a planned feature, hoping for a summer release date.

February 26, 2004

All-

I did not post the reply stating

Not a rumor. In another thread, Jeremy himself said that this was a planned feature, hoping for a summer release date. -

Somehow the posters and responses got mixed up on this thread. I posted a new thread in the Geocaching.com Web site forum titled Forums Getting Threads Mixed Up? to bring it to someone's attention

February 26, 2004

Jeeters...

5) Let me filter the cache list to a subset... give me a dropdown that lets me choose a column (waypoint or name or owner)

You can already do this using the Search Filter

leatherman... & Jeeters...

lol. actually for me, double tapping takes too much 'precision aiming' when bouncing around as a passenger in a jeep, or walking along through the woods.

Have you ever used the 'joystick' and 'button' at the bottom of your PDA? They replace the stylus and the double-tapping and take the need for 'precision' out of the equation.

You could try stopping to read the cache page :huh: :huh:

February 27, 2004

have the Dist include N.N Miles instead of nnnnn.nn no mater which miles I choose in prefs. Also include grid lines and add more color thanks

February 27, 2004

haywyre ...

Thanks for the feedback, however, you need to be more specific.

Thanks,

Fabien.

February 28, 2004

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but when you make a note, does it save anywhere? Notes that sync to the my documents folder would be great if they're not already there.

February 28, 2004

Genoist...

when you make a note, does it save anywhere?

Yes. Notes are saved (along with everything else) in the GpxSonar.dat file located under \Config.

Notes that sync to the my documents folder would be great if they're not already there.

Ok. In what format? Xml, Excel, CSV, ...

Regards,

Fabien.

2.6k · February 28, 2004

lol. actually for me, double tapping takes too much 'precision aiming' when bouncing around as a passenger in a jeep, or walking along through the woods.

Have you ever used the 'joystick' and 'button' at the bottom of your PDA? They replace the stylus and the double-tapping and take the need for 'precision' out of the equation.

I can scroll up and down with the scroll button. However when I click the button it closes Sonar.

So I have to scroll up and down, then double tap the cache name anyway.

February 29, 2004

leatherman...

So I have to scroll up and down, then double tap the cache name anyway.

Click & Hold the button instead.

2.6k · March 1, 2004

leatherman...

So I have to scroll up and down, then double tap the cache name anyway.

Click & Hold the button instead.

Same result. It just pauses for a moment before Sonar shuts down. I'll look to see if I can change something in the OS settings.

March 1, 2004

Lone Duck ...

it would drop leading or trailing zeros in each part of the coordinates

Hue!?!

I'll check it out but this is very odd... I can't test this right now, but I do not believe that leading zeros are dropped. Trailing ones can be dropped w/o loosing any precision.

1. Identical: 42 47.0280 = 42 47.028

2. Not Identical: 42 47.028 != 42 47.28

I just went through this again today. While the coordinates might read clear to some who are thoroughly familiar with the datum, it can cause confusion for other.

For instance, 40 04.887 becomes 40 4.887

Likewise, 083 09.3331 becomes 83 9.3331

It's the middle set of digits that are really confusing because the place holding zeros aren't there.

March 1, 2004

When I open a file and center the cords. I noticed it uses these cords. for all the files. Is it me ore is this something that can be fixed.

March 1, 2004

artvandelay...

When I open a file and center the cords. I noticed it uses these cords. for all the files. Is it me ore is this something that can be fixed.

It's not a defect: there's no association between whatever file you open and center coords.

Now, is it do-able? Certainly, as long as the filenames don't change all the time, I could see how this could be useful.

Regards,

Fabien.

March 1, 2004

For some reason my Distance Issue is fixed. I seen your reply and went to go look again at my Dell and they were all correct. Listing 5.2 mi. They did have like a 52345.01 number. Only Suggestion I have is adding more color. like possibly grid lines. Like in Pocket money.

March 1, 2004

haywyre...

For some reason my Distance Issue is fixed.

There should be no mystery there.

The distances will be accurate if any of the following actions occur:

1. You set a particular cache as the current center.

2. You set arbitrary center coordinates.

3. You recall one of the coordinate bookmarks.

For further details, check out the following links:

Center Coords. & Cache Options

Regards,

Fabien.

March 2, 2004

Extensibility in GPXSonar:

So far, I haven't seen anyone mentioning this so I'll ask :rolleyes:

If GPXSonar were scriptable or extensible, would you write and share custom extensions?

If GPXSonar were extensible, what kind of extensions / plugins would you like to see?

Thanks,

Fabien.

Edited March 2, 2004 by -=(GEO)=-

March 3, 2004

If GPXSonar were extensible, what kind of extensions / plugins would you like to see?

A stand alone program tied to GPXSonar (of course) called "Cache Control" (catchy huh) for creating and maintaining your own caches. Similar to the operation I mentioned in a previous post........With all kinds of bells and whistles for different types of caches especially multiple. Then when you get your gpx file it would intergrate into what you have entered and saved.

Thanks again Fabien

P.S. Are there any limits to the amount of data that can be user entered into the program other than disk (memory) space?

March 3, 2004

Rosco...

A stand alone program tied to GPXSonar (of course) called "Cache Control" (catchy huh) for creating and maintaining your own caches.

2 things:

1. This feature already exists in GPXSonar and while I'll improve it over time, I don't see the point of making it a stand-alone app.

2. What you're proposing in not an extension to GPXSonar in the way that I understand it, but a separate executable.

I guess I need to be more specific about what an 'extension' means here.

An 'extension' for GPXSonar could be a script written in some interpreted language or a module such as a .DLL written in C or C++ running within the GPXSonar process. Alternative names for such extensions would be 'plug-ins' or 'snap-ins'.

Such extensions would not necessarily provide their own User Interface. Instead they would augment the functionality of existing features. For example: exporting waypoints to a variety of formats, custom cache filters, serial communication with GPSrs, etc. could be implemented as extensions.

The benefits of this approach are:

1. People other than myself can now write specialized 'handlers' for GPXSonar to share with the community. This also means that I become more scalable as a developer.

2. If the interface between the application hosting the extensions (GPXSonar in this case) and the extensions themselves is simple and if the code of the extensions is publicly available then other GeoCaching apps can reuse the same framework and (most of) the functionality of the extensions.

3. With this modular approach to application extensions, it becomes possible to strip unused features from the app. For instance, you could keep the extensions exporting the data that you care about, removing all of the others.

Note: If extensions are implemented using an interpreted language such as Python or Perl, etc., extensions become extremely portable and can leverage a wealth of libraries freely available on the internet.

I hope that this clarifies things a bit.

Regards,

Fabien.

Edited March 3, 2004 by -=(GEO)=-

March 5, 2004

I think that for syncable notes, html would be great. In the same format as when you generate a report. Perhaps have it save the last report you generated, in html format, in the my documents folder.

March 6, 2004

Genoist...

Perhaps have it save the last report you generated, in html format, in the my documents folder.

That works

March 6, 2004

There's enough stuff in this thread to keep me busy working on v1.2 for a while.

I'm planning on closing this thread by tomorrow night. So if you have things to add, please do it now.

Thanks to all for your input.

Regards,

Fabien.

Gpxsonar V1.2

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