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Android devs, some ideas for you.

Hey all
I hadn't been on these boards for sometime, but you all know how it goes.... get a new phone, void the warranty right away by doing neat tricks you pick up in xda-dev forums.... or is that just me?
Well anyways, I've got 2 request for those devs that need ideas for some apps (I know there's at least 2 threads started by others that deal with this, but my requests don't fit either of the threads I've seen). First off a GPS data logger would be terrific, the camera on this phone is not bad at all, so it would be cool to be able to tag pictures with geographical data, better yet is to be able to tag any picture by using time/date of creation. This way you can take pictures with you're regular camera and still tag them (we all know the g1's battery isn't exactly going to be winning any marathons just yet).
The other idea centers around voice dialing. I'm loving this phone, but everytime I need to dial a # I miss my wizard; why you ask? well because anytime I would dial one of my contacts I would use voice command to dial the #. Now I've tried the voice dialer on the g1... not impressed, I mean it's like WAY OFF. How does "call home" translate to "call cheche"???, worst still is a cough get's translated into dialing "732 277 2222". Still I know that with some practice I'll figure it out. What's the problem you ask? well the whole point of having voice dialing is having the least amount of physical interaction with your phone to dial, at least that's what I think. As those of you that have tried it know, you either have to long press the call button, or worst still go in to the menu to start the voice dialer. On BT headsets the voice dial button doesn't do anything at all (tried 4 different ones), and the wired headset the button pauses music if tapped, while long presses start up the music player, and maybe it FF tracks while playing, not sure. Anyways without further ado, either a voice dialing app (unlikely I know), or an app that can change the assignment of hardware buttons. Can I actually make this change with AnyCut?.... if so I just feel I've type so much in vain
Anywho, recap:
1) GPS data logger.
2) Voice dialing app, or more realistically app to change hardware button assigments.

1. tried the "gps tracker" on the market?

cmavr8 said:
1. tried the "gps tracker" on the market?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
GPSTracker dont allow Geo Tagging of Photos

I know, but I though he just needed to track his position so he would manually add the tags to the photos when home.
He mentioned "just a regular camera"... He would just use the timestamps on the pictures and the tracker data...

It has logging capabilities? I think I must have read the description wrong then. That's very possible since I had just gotten home after a grueling 14 hr shift. Well I'll give it a try then. Still some options wouldn't be bad.

Yes, it takes a sample of your coordinates and speed every xx seconds and uploads it to a site. xx is configurable.
You can visit the site and see all your positions and velocities on a map.

cmavr8 said:
Yes, it takes a sample of your coordinates and speed every xx seconds and uploads it to a site. xx is configurable.
You can visit the site and see all your positions and velocities on a map.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I tried it last night, this can definitely work. I wouldn't mind if there was some way to tag them on the phone itself..... yes I know humans are impossible to please.

Umm it tags your location data already... when in camera app hit menu settings and store location in pictures. Which records location in the picture data.
For anyone that wants to set it up to store location for other cameras... I would say take a pic with the g1 where you take a pic with another camera. For right now that is.

neoobs said:
Umm it tags your location data already... when in camera app hit menu settings and store location in pictures. Which records location in the picture data.
For anyone that wants to set it up to store location for other cameras... I would say take a pic with the g1 where you take a pic with another camera. For right now that is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Get the f*ck outta here!!!! LOL! Truth be told I just took a sample pic with the camera to check out the quality. As you can tell I didn't bother to press the menu button. As far as other cameras goes, I think GPS Tracker is a better choice, well for me it is. It can export to the travel log, so it's much easier. This way I just need my G1 to be on me, and with the app running in the background. I think I better think about getting an extra battery before that though.

Request??
Now that we have root and bb linked to the system. Is somebody working on an application with a gui to first list services and applications running. Then to stop/kill services and applications. Possibly with safe guardiing the specific kernal process' that will cause headaches? Could be usefull while running programs such as myspace, steel, pacman and the many other applications that never fully close once run and slow the G1 to intolera
Intolerable speed. My two cents

Well memory up professional might help out; although, the process is automated, so it's not like you can choose what to close. Still, for what I've heard Android supposedly does a good job of making memory available. Try it out though, it might help you.

masr1979 said:
Well memory up professional might help out; although, the process is automated, so it's not like you can choose what to close. Still, for what I've heard Android supposedly does a good job of making memory available. Try it out though, it might help you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
$15 i think not. Way too much money for a memory manager!

[APP] Task Identifier [Android 2.1 and up!!!]

!!!If you have Android 2.1 the app now is in the market!!!
Android 2.2 and higher are also still supported
This is not another Auto Task Killer, no.
Thanks for all the help from everyone! We've moved into a lite and full version now on Android 2.2 and 2.3 phones.This is a new program which allows the user to specify alert levels to phone tasks and give you insight into what your phone is really doing. Make a call, ever wonder what apps may be listening? What's going on when you phone is in standby? In creating this, I will say that I've been surprised a few times at what is really going on. I want any and all feedback as well as we are trying to make this into something special. I am the actual developer of this app.
The full version has:
-Common Names and Actual Application Icons
-No Ads
-Access to all App Settings
-Ability to change alert level from List Tasks
-Removed Internet and Location Permissions
And we have a slew of other features planned for only the full version, but we don't want to spill the beans on those quite yet, but they will enhance the tool greatly!
Both versions now have the new UI as well.
Anyone who had the beta should be notified to upgrade to the lite version now.
Download Task Identifier Lite from your phone:
market://search?q=pname:com.task.identifier
Download Task Identifier Full from your phone:
market://search?q=pname:com.task.identifier.full
I've also attached a QR Code to scan for both versions. Or just search for Task Identifier in the market.
I hope you all find this useful and enjoy!!

smart work

notowork said:
smart work
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks!
10

Hehe, I like how the only comment for the app (5 stars and "awesome" as comment) is currently by a user named 'x2k'. Hmmm.
I've just installed it and it's been less than a minute and I got an alert from an app that no longer needs to sync...So I disabled it (every little bit of non-sync means longer battery life!).
So far it's looking very promising! I'll definitely report back on my experiences!

Okay, first big thing...
Can you please resolve the cryptic app names to their more friendly name variants?
It's hard to read and make out the com.blah designations.
Thanks!

So far it seems like a cool app. I've been using WatchDog for ages to alert me when an app misbehaves.
But I'm confused about this app. When would you want to be using this? Can you give an example?
I'll keep it installed and see how it goes. Thanks.

Paul22000 said:
So far it seems like a cool app. I've been using WatchDog for ages to alert me when an app misbehaves.
But I'm confused about this app. When would you want to be using this? Can you give an example?
I'll keep it installed and see how it goes. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for trying. This is more of an app to alert you as to what your phone is doing, ie what loads at a given point in time on your phone.

x2kjosh said:
Thanks for trying. This is more of an app to alert you as to what your phone is doing, ie what loads at a given point in time on your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I'm playing around with it and actively trying to make notifications pop up I opened Facebook and Google Reader started, as did Maps. Weird.
Which brings me to a question: how do we know whether the task started was CAUSED by the current app I'm using, or Android just randomly started it?
For example, it's possible Facebook opened Maps in order to try to get my location, but I don't see the connection between Facebook and Google Reader. Which is why I ask if it's random, or the app I'm using is causing other tasks to run.

Paul22000 said:
Thanks. I'm playing around with it and actively trying to make notifications pop up I opened Facebook and Google Reader started, as did Maps. Weird.
Which brings me to a question: how do we know whether the task started was CAUSED by the current app I'm using, or Android just randomly started it?
For example, it's possible Facebook opened Maps in order to try to get my location, but I don't see the connection between Facebook and Google Reader. Which is why I ask if it's random, or the app I'm using is causing other tasks to run.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've found when you start doing things you see patterns. On my old Eris while I was testing this, every time I made a phone call, ebay would start! Glad it seems to be working for you! Thanks!

Great thanks

wael0x said:
Great thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're welcome.

Sounds like a great troubleshooting tool. Nice work!

I'm liking this app more and more. A few more comments and requests.
Comments
* I like the main app window. Large fonts, long-press to get quick-help or short press to go to the item. Nice
* Screen off app start notification, nice!
Requests
1. Possible to get more detail about why or how an app was triggered? Like, was it triggered by a service? another app? etc. And did the triggered app take any actions? Like sending network traffic or queried the GPS and such?
2. The 'Setup Alerts' window is hard to read through, could you maybe add color so all the status 'Green' items have the word 'Green' in green font and so on?
Just added a 5 star rating on Market, keep up the good work!

Namuna said:
I'm liking this app more and more. A few more comments and requests.
Comments
* I like the main app window. Large fonts, long-press to get quick-help or short press to go to the item. Nice
* Screen off app start notification, nice!
Requests
1. Possible to get more detail about why or how an app was triggered? Like, was it triggered by a service? another app? etc. And did the triggered app take any actions? Like sending network traffic or queried the GPS and such?
2. The 'Setup Alerts' window is hard to read through, could you maybe add color so all the status 'Green' items have the word 'Green' in green font and so on?
Just added a 5 star rating on Market, keep up the good work!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestions. Those are features we truly will consider adding as it will just make the tool even better. Thanks!

There will probably be updates from time to time through the market
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App

First of all, thanks for a great app.
I really like the fact that it reports on tasks/processes started while the screen was off!
I have some suggestions though:
1: When I click the icon in the app list to open the menu, it just shows the "Starting monitor" message and nothing else. I have to open an app to get the message in the pull down bar and click on that to start the application it self.
2: On my Samsung Galaxy S i9000 the layout of the application is just a bit to long for a full screen. We are talking about 1 cm or something.
3: I would very much like a log, so that I can check back, what applications started during screen off, and at what time/date.
4: The way the Android memory management works, I guess it's normal for Android to start and application/process to memory by itself from time to time. Is it possible to show this somehow? For what is interesting here is when an application is launching another application or process, and not when Android memory management is putting an application in memory.
Thanks for your great work, I'm looking forward to further updates to the application!

Just saw this on the front page and thought it looked pretty interesting. Installed a few minutes ago, but so far I like it. Not too intrusive with the pop-up.
As Namuna posted though it would be nice to get more detail.
Also to have the actual app name rather than com.xxx.
Really good work.

Installed.
I like the idea that we can see what tasks are really doing in the background. But as noted by some above, the notifications are a bit cryptic at the moment.
After installing and running the app, I started updating some of my other apps in App Market and my phone crashed. This has not happened before and I seems from my layman eyes that too many things might have been running in the background.
When the phone restarted, it too forever for anything to be displayed and the 3 widgets I had on the homescreen refused to load up. Again it seems to me that this app is popping up too many notifications - I have now stopped the app from starting up and running on start up.
I don't know whether this is unique to me or not though. I am running the app on Samsung Galaxy S (international) on stock Froyo with LauncherPro.
Still, I like this app and will use it more. Keep up the great work and many thanks.
Edit : just checked app settings again, and although I explicit unchecked app running on phone startup, the box is checked again. I unchecked the box and pressed save again. Re-entered app settings and the box is checked again. Am I missing something?

This looks very interesting.. So it's installed and ready for testing

Thank you very much for that app, it's awesome. I agree with the recent posters that the name of the app in addition to the com.blah.blubb would be a great help to identify the task. Also I'd like to see a possibility for a logfile.
Keep up the good work!
EDIT: I can hardly read the small, dark font when setting task levels since I use almost the very darkest display settings to save battery. So being able to chose the font color would be great but has absolutely no priority. Again: great app!Using it all day long now and I am surprised what tasks are being started!

[APP] Zlaunchy for Android 1.3

Hi,
Version 1.3 was released and also published on Android Market on 2011-07-03 - you can grab it here or from links below. The main change is fixing UpdateEntriesService which stayed running in certain cases and used up memory.
ZLaunchy was written mainly for those who like the way HTC and other third party dialers allows searching for contacts in a T9-like way - so that finding Adam means choosing 2326 in the phone application. ZLaunchy uses the same idea to run programs on your device. What it does is gives you a dialer keypad and when you type in a series of digits, it searches for all programs that match - for example to start Internet, start typing 4683 - Internet should show up in the result list.
In order to search for a particular text as beginning of words, type the specified digits - for example 4683 to find Internet. In order to search for specified letter(s) not only at beginning of words, add "1" at the end - for example 7371 will find Opera.
This application is free.
Changes in 1.3 release:
Fixed bug that caused UpdateEntriesService service not to stop after a successful update
This bug caused service to remain in memory and consume memory. Happened when "refresh items when inactive" was disabled/enabled.
Reworked logging mechanism
Reworked logging and cleaned up some of internals related to troubleshooting; should speed up the application a bit
Changes in 1.2 release:
Changes in contact handling to improve handling for certain devices
We have changed how ZLaunchy retrieves contacts, which should help support for some devices - users who had issues with contacts should try out the new version
Added option to always show menu when selecting a contact from list
It is now possible to choose whether ZLaunchy will open contact details or show a menu to select commonly used actions
As usual, you can download ZLaunchy from Android Market and our website.
Changes in 1.1 release:
Search in contacts' email address and telephone numbers and application's package name
QWERTY search for devices with physical keyboard
Ability to dial number
"0" button added on the on-screen keypad
Application details can now be shown on all Android versions
Preferences for global settings and profiles - you can now configure searching only for contacts, applications or both
Better APK install/uninstall integration
Download link: https://market.android.com/details?id=org.endorser.zlaunchy and http://www.endorser.org/en/downloads/android/zlaunchy

The idea is great, the app works well and faster then I expected 10/10
Sent from my GT-I5700 using XDA Premium App

Just an update - the main feature of 1.0 is ability to search contacts and bind to long press search button.

wow i used to have this feature in some old keyocera phone i had and i missed that feature since..
thanks alotttt

I like it better then go contacts nice work bro
Sent from my Ginger Chrome MR2 using Tapatalk

Simple and Good
Great application, and really fast.
If they can find also phone numbers will be great
6277 Will show you Maps and also all contacts with a 6277XXXXX phone number.
Good work, 5 stars for you!

Recognized the name straight away good to see is now available for android, cooked into WM ROM i'll have to test later, thx again

hamsterkiller said:
Great application, and really fast.
If they can find also phone numbers will be great
6277 Will show you Maps and also all contacts with a 6277XXXXX phone number.
Good work, 5 stars for you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ditto...would be great to include contacts in the search.

morgej said:
Ditto...would be great to include contacts in the search.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It does - searches both phone numbers and names. If you want to search for part of phone number (i.e. 6277 in +486277XXXXX) - just add 1 at the end.

great app! works fast, looks simplistic and clean, and definitely useful...
although i wonder where to find the 0... searching for numbers could get tricky without being able to type the zero.
and i couldn't figure out what the prev and next buttons do. since i have a desire s without any trackball i can just assume that's sort of a trackball-action, but in my case not functioning. any hint on that?

szallah said:
great app! works fast, looks simplistic and clean, and definitely useful...
although i wonder where to find the 0... searching for numbers could get tricky without being able to type the zero.
and i couldn't figure out what the prev and next buttons do. since i have a desire s without any trackball i can just assume that's sort of a trackball-action, but in my case not functioning. any hint on that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Initially it was only meant for searching apps - so I didn't think of 0. I also want it to allow dialing a number in 1.1 so 0 will be added for sure.
As for next/prev, it was meant to choose profiles (i.e. apps, contacts, specific folders, combination of these), but it's not done yet. So maybe it'll be changed to 0 and profiles button.
Sent from my Milestone using XDA App

I have some force close like 20 seconds after searching for an app.
Otherwise I am very happy to find this program, I loved it in Wm!

Nice! Just what I've been looking for. I use Launchy on windows and linux and this is just perfect.
Oh and I have an idea for improvement:
Apps/Contacts launched more often should get an increased weight so they show up on top. Like when you type at least X % of the App name, but there are like 10 others that match the searchstring, the results should be sorted based on their weight.

Sichroteph said:
I have some force close like 20 seconds after searching for an app.
Otherwise I am very happy to find this program, I loved it in Wm!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you send a report about it? Then I'll see the stack trace and hopefully know more about it.
Thanks.

wojciechka said:
Can you send a report about it? Then I'll see the stack trace and hopefully know more about it.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I apologize. It was related to my android rom, not your software.

Very snappy program, I am highly impressed!
As a long time user of Find and Run Robot, I would be using ZLauncher all the time if you were to implement filtering by typing with the physical keyboard. That would make this an absoultely killer app for me. I totally understand if you prefer to keep this T9 only though
Oh and it doesn't seem to respect the fact that I disabled auto-rotate (Desire Z running CM7)

This is an awesome program, love it. Finding myself using this more that the App Draw. Great stuff!

I can;t find any contacts using this app, it only displays applications

Hi,
First of all - good news - 1.1 should be out next week. There are still some bugs to clean up, but it is progressing really good.
Here's some text about it:
http://www.endorser.org/blog/mobile/android/50-zlaunchy-1-1
Also, be sure to follow us on Twitter - @EndorserOrg.
And Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/endorserorg/243303242940
KeauHou said:
Oh and I have an idea for improvement:
Apps/Contacts launched more often should get an increased weight so they show up on top. Like when you type at least X % of the App name, but there are like 10 others that match the searchstring, the results should be sorted based on their weight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would be cool, definitely want to do this, but not in 1.1. Who knows - maybe 1.2...
Pickx said:
Very snappy program, I am highly impressed!
As a long time user of Find and Run Robot, I would be using ZLauncher all the time if you were to implement filtering by typing with the physical keyboard. That would make this an absoultely killer app for me. I totally understand if you prefer to keep this T9 only though
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it's also on my radar. Will be done for 1.1.
Pickx said:
Oh and it doesn't seem to respect the fact that I disabled auto-rotate (Desire Z running CM7)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, a bug in layout - also will be fixed in 1.1.

I am very stoked for this new release, it sounds like it'll be really great. Thank you for making this.
As for the feature KeauHou suggested, the previously-mentioned FARR implements this very well so you could take a look at the kind of algorithms it uses if you feel like it.

Best cross country GPS navigation app for my car?

Google Navigation works pretty well, but I'm wondering if there is a better app out there for GPS navigation in the car?
I'll be taking a cross country trip in a few months and want the best app available. Even if I have to pay for it.

I've used Telenav for a long time on several trips across the country. It's been very reliable and accurate for me. You can get the 6.2 version free from a thread int eh Captivate forum. Just follow the steps and you'll have the free basic version. You can opt in for advanced features but I've never had a need. Voice nav is great.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=11790542&postcount=1

Uncle Irish said:
I've used Telenav for a long time on several trips across the country. It's been very reliable and accurate for me. You can get the 6.2 version free from a thread int eh Captivate forum. Just follow the steps and you'll have the free basic version. You can opt in for advanced features but I've never had a need. Voice nav is great.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=11790542&postcount=1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This app is incompatible with all of your devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://market.android.com/details?...sImNvbS50ZWxlbmF2LmFwcC5hbmRyb2lkLnNwcmludCJd

I downloaded the free one you mentioned and its pretty cool so far!
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using xda premium

Good deal Glad you're liking it. It's a hungry app, so keep your phone on the charger when using it. Works like a champ tho. Took me from my driveway to a tiny 10' x 15' cabin on the side of a mountain in North Carolina.

It seems to have some cool features. Several that I didn't see in Google Maps but will probably end up using all the time. Like the favorites.
So far I love the fact that I can go into my contacts and press the navigation icon next to a friends address and it automatically pulls up the GPS navigation.
Google maps could do this also, but I could never figure out how to get to the navigation without first clicking this, then that, then this, etc. Google Maps took a lot more clicks to start navigating.

The favs are a bonus I think. You're right about the easy launch. Maps took just too many pokes. It works with voice command also, just select it as default and it'll pop up and start getting a route.

I must be missing something, when I click T-Mobile->Samsung the only thing listed is Roxy & Other...

AWiseMonkey said:
I must be missing something, when I click T-Mobile->Samsung the only thing listed is Roxy & Other...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too. ???

You guys have to read the thread. One of the posts has the file attached.
I used it a couple times yesterday.
1) The map is not as smooth as Google maps (moves studder-step).
2) The "real human voice" that tells you to turn left, right, etc. is interrupted by the PICO generated voice which says the street name. This takes some getting used to.
3) The voice says "make a left turn TO elm street" instead of saying "make a left turn ON elm street". Which is annoying.
4) It talks more than Google maps does. Such as, it says the "recalculating route" thing, which I don't like.
5) When I listen to talk radio and navigate at the same time, it's harder to hear the nav's "human voice" over the radio. The PICO voice was a little higher pitched and easier to pick out over other talking voices on the radio.
But the interface is still better than Google, IMO. And there are a lot more options.
I will continue to use it instead of Google Navigation, but will also keep my eyes open for other GPS navigation apps.

CZ Eddie said:
You guys have to read the thread. One of the posts has the file attached.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, found it HERE

Not super happy with Navigon, the Garmin Navigation app.

So, on blind faith I paid $40 to download Navigon because they don't offer a trial version. I figured for $40 it must be the best navigation app ever.
Am I wrong?!?
Can anyone help me with these annoying issues?
When I start navigation to somewhere and then hit the home button to bring up some other app, there is no way to go directly back to navigation. I have to start all over again. What am I doing wrong?
The voice says "Smith B.L.V.D." instead of "Smith Boulevard". Or "Main S.T." instead of "Main Street".
The voice does not cut out the streaming music when it announces anything. It just talks over whatever is currently playing. So it's hard to understand it when I'm listening to streaming talk radio. I wish it would either cut out the current music or offer a separate volume for navigation voice so I can make it louder than everything else.
When navigation starts, it shows me three different potential routes. But it only waits like 20 seconds for me to choose one. Then it auto selects one for me. This isn't enough time to choose a route. Is there a way to make it wait for me to examine the different routes and manually choose one?
The choice for voices is kind of limited and while they are clear sounding, most of them kinda suck.

I tried co pilot and it was also garbage. Some of the same problems plus old outdated maps and pretty much featureless if you don't want to pay out the ass. I've learned to just stick with Google maps and nav.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk

i like att navigation aka Telenav, it has live traffic and lane assist. att gives you 30 days free trial. if you like it, you can get 4 years prepaid service for 249$, that' only 5.19$ a months! (from telenav.com)

netnerd said:
i like att navigation aka Telenav, it has live traffic and lane assist. att gives you 30 days free trial. if you like it, you can get 4 years prepaid service for 249$, that' only 5.19$ a months! (from telenav.com)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or...... search the captivate forums and you'll get a link to the free version from telenav that works great. Its a very old thread but search telenav and you'll find it
<insert witty signature here>

CZ Eddie said:
Can anyone help me with these annoying issues?
When I start navigation to somewhere and then hit the home button to bring up some other app, there is no way to go directly back to navigation. I have to start all over again. What am I doing wrong?
The voice says "Smith B.L.V.D." instead of "Smith Boulevard". Or "Main S.T." instead of "Main Street".
The voice does not cut out the streaming music when it announces anything. It just talks over whatever is currently playing. So it's hard to understand it when I'm listening to streaming talk radio. I wish it would either cut out the current music or offer a separate volume for navigation voice so I can make it louder than everything else.
When navigation starts, it shows me three different potential routes. But it only waits like 20 seconds for me to choose one. Then it auto selects one for me. This isn't enough time to choose a route. Is there a way to make it wait for me to examine the different routes and manually choose one?
The choice for voices is kind of limited and while they are clear sounding, most of them kinda suck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone?

CZ Eddie said:
So, on blind faith I paid $40 to download Navigon because they don't offer a trial version. I figured for $40 it must be the best navigation app ever.
Am I wrong?!?
Can anyone help me with these annoying issues?
When I start navigation to somewhere and then hit the home button to bring up some other app, there is no way to go directly back to navigation. I have to start all over again. What am I doing wrong?
The voice says "Smith B.L.V.D." instead of "Smith Boulevard". Or "Main S.T." instead of "Main Street".
The voice does not cut out the streaming music when it announces anything. It just talks over whatever is currently playing. So it's hard to understand it when I'm listening to streaming talk radio. I wish it would either cut out the current music or offer a separate volume for navigation voice so I can make it louder than everything else.
When navigation starts, it shows me three different potential routes. But it only waits like 20 seconds for me to choose one. Then it auto selects one for me. This isn't enough time to choose a route. Is there a way to make it wait for me to examine the different routes and manually choose one?
The choice for voices is kind of limited and while they are clear sounding, most of them kinda suck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tinkered with Navigon, but I've realized that the best GPS navigation is actually Navigation provided by Googled Maps. Just get Ivona text to speech, and suddenly it feels like a sophisticated navigation app. I pretty much stopped using my trusted Garmin Nuvi 360 that I paid $650 for more than 5 years ago. It's on par.
Only gripe is it is too persistent on trying to get you back on the route it thinks it is best rather than figuring out that you have a different route.

in case anyone is interested, here is the .apk posted in the Captivate forum and referred to above. I tested it and am happy to report that it works.

Does Telenav require a data connection? Google Nav is the best option imo however I travel out of cell range a lot and need something that doesn't require to have a signal to reroute me.

I have been using Navigon for a couple of weeks now and as far as off line navigation goes it is by far the best out there (that i have used). Sure there are some quirks but the maps are up to date, it has lane assist, speed warnings, route planning and a good POI database. The lane assist and speed warnings do not work in Canada, but worked very well on my 20 min drive to the Olive Garden on Van Dyke on Sunday If you are looking to use online navigation i do prefer Google Maps.
Sent from my SGH-I727R using xda premium

ironcrotch said:
Does Telenav require a data connection? Google Nav is the best option imo however I travel out of cell range a lot and need something that doesn't require to have a signal to reroute me.
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unfortunately, it does appear to need a data connection. I haven't played around with it enough yet to see if it has the option or ability to cache maps.

htc0101 said:
I have been using Navigon for a couple of weeks now and as far as off line navigation goes it is by far the best out there (that i have used). Sure there are some quirks but the maps are up to date, it has lane assist, speed warnings, route planning and a good POI database. The lane assist and speed warnings do not work in Canada, but worked very well on my 20 min drive to the Olive Garden on Van Dyke on Sunday If you are looking to use online navigation i do prefer Google Maps.
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Do you have any of the issues I mentioned in my OP?
Like you, I want a Navigation app that uses offline maps for when there is no data connection. That's where Navigon works.
Google maps and Telenav and most of the others don't offer this.

oops double post.

1. When you close the app, there is nothing in the drop down to show it is still running, but if you hold the home button to bring up recent apps it will be in there and it opens in last used state.(not as nice as google in the status bar)
2. The whole av / avenue thing i found hit and miss with different voices some pronounced the abbr, and some read it as long form.
3. I have not tried it with other audio playing.
4. I agree I hate that and don't know how to change it, I just go back and reselect destination and look really fast at the options.
5. Have not tried to find other voices yet, on my to do list.
Even with those problems still the best i have tried.

htc0101 said:
1. When you close the app, there is nothing in the drop down to show it is still running, but if you hold the home button to bring up recent apps it will be in there and it opens in last used state.(not as nice as google in the status bar)
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Excellent work-around, thanks!
This is hard to do when the phone is in a dock on the top of my dash, but it's a lot better than pressing multiple buttons and re-starting navigation.
htc0101 said:
2. The whole av / avenue thing i found hit and miss with different voices some pronounced the abbr, and some read it as long form.
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I'm noticing that also. The voice I liked best (australian chick) NEVER does say "ST" or "AV", etc. in long form.
But the default male voice will sometimes do it. And sometimes not.
htc0101 said:
4. I agree I hate that and don't know how to change it, I just go back and reselect destination and look really fast at the options.
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Yep, kind of annoying.
I guess for some folks who don't care which route they take, then it's nice that they don't have to click another button to start their route.
But I'm still new in my area and like seeing the multiple routes. It should maybe have a setting that lets it auto-select or wait for you to select a route.

SYGIC is the best GPS hands down for android. OFFLINE works great. When you first install the app you download your base files and any maps you will need and then it works perfectly anywhere using only GPS and no wifi/data connection is required.

bluntman420 said:
SYGIC is the best GPS hands down for android. OFFLINE works great. When you first install the app you download your base files and any maps you will need and then it works perfectly anywhere using only GPS and no wifi/data connection is required.
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I would agree that it COULD be the greatest, but it is not there yet. It's implementation of POIs is abysmal. The Vehicle arrow is so large on a skyrocket screen that it covers everything you might need to see. The routing algorithm is questionable. Sygic has a lot of potential, but it is not there yet; I can't recommend it.
Hopefully the developers are listening to the comments on their forum. They seem to have given up answering questions from frustrated users. Perhaps it's because they are working full time on fixing all of Sygic's problems.
GPS app developers all seem intent on having the latest flashy features while ignoring basic Navigational function. This includes Google maps BTW. For that matter, stand alone Garmin GPS units have less basic functionality than their 5 year old devices. Garmin Mobile XT for Windows Mobile was a great program; if only they would port it to Android. It didn't have the extras, but it did the basics well. It needed better hardware though. A Skyrocket running windows mobile and Garmin Mobile XT would likely be the best GPS Navigation device on the market, period.
Basic Navigation Function:
1. Good Maps.
2. Easy and quickly understandable 2D Navigation display.
3. A strong routing ability with accurate ETA capability.
4. Clearly understandable Basic Voice instructions. (TTS nice, but belongs in the "extras" category.)
5. Good POIs and an easy useful search function.
6. The ability to create, import and use personal POIs.
7. Some customizable preferences. i.e. route: shortest distance or shortest time? Avoidances. etc...
8. Quick and accurate position lock on.
Garmin Mobile XT excelled at all of the above. Of course, #2 and #8 are device dependent as well.
Without basic navigation functions, a GPS is a toy and not a tool. Some of the way current apps and devices fail:
Epic Fail: New Garmins: "autozoom" zooms out immediately after a turn point is reached. If another turn point is immediately afterword, you are sometimes left with no guidance. Autozoom should either wait longer to zoom out, or be user selectable to "off".
Fail: Google Maps. Routing algorithm works, most of the time. Sometimes it takes you 3 blocks past your destination and then back?
Fail: Google Maps. Horrible personal POI capability.
Epic Fail: Sygic. Abysmal POI search capability.
Fail: Sygic: Difficult POI import capability.
Fail: Sygic. Vehicle cursor WAY too large on Skyrocket.
Epic Fail: CoPilot. Maps are ridiculously inaccurate.
It amazes me how good the GPS hardware is on the Skyrocket. Cold booting over the middle of the Pacific at 500mph it locks on consistently in less than a minute; often in 15 seconds or less. No other handheld GPS device I've ever used has come anywhere close to that. It locks on to a 3D position in places that other GPS devices can't even maintain an already acquired lock. Given the right app, the Skyrocket could be the ultimate GPS.