Field Notes / Field Triangulate – Currently Free

I wrote these mainly for my own use, but took the time to productize them, so charge for them. That said, I like them being used and doing good, so if their price is a barrier, here is an opportunity to try them for free…

Timestamped Field Notes:

I use this myself for Raptor Monitoring taking timestamped notes when trying to keep binoculars on Peregrine Falcons, Prairie Falcons and Golden Eagles. Some use ethograms with primates, spiders, and more. It has been used for observation notes for everything from humans to whales and many more. Some use it for taking health log notes. The application is iOS only, but it is free for the month:

https://www.neukadye.com/mobile-applications/timestamped-field-notes/

Since this application is iOS only, I made Notes Collector free for the week on Android:

https://www.neukadye.com/mobile-applications/notes-collector/

Field Triangulate:

I wrote this for wildland firefighting (locating smoke columns in the mountains) but a number of wildlife biologists use it for radio telemetry triangulations. Take two points plus compass bearings to a destination point and it calculates the latitude/longitude estimate for that point: iOS and Android, and free on IOS for the month, on Android for the next week:

https://www.neukadye.com/mobile-applications/field-triangulate/

Android Triangulation and PI

Performing triangulation calculations involves more than a little interaction with PI. Amusing that the Google Play Store rating might come out as PI … 🙂

That said, more seriously … some old one star ratings are dragging things down a little. Old ratings that have not been updated when the application has been improved. New features of using the device compass to allow the application to get a bearing, offline support, persistent database, multiple events. Hopefully the application is higher than a three…

If you have the application and find value in it, a rating / review would be greatly appreciated.

Persistence in Android Field Triangulate

Android Field Triangulate has historically stored events (collections of readings comprising a triangulation) in memory. The intention was to create a few readings (in a relatively limited timeframe) and create a triangulation. Job done, triangulation shared. In actuality this isn’t how things always work, and wasn’t always sufficiently reliable.

Despite attempts to save these readings to instance state, in memory storage could lead to lost data … say if the application is unloaded (e.g. by a battery saver killing applications.) Lost data is never good, and this was never the intention.

Android Field Triangulate 1.3 now utilizes a persistent database in order to store readings. Sign up for a Beta Testing version, if you are interested in checking it out.

Note: The reason for network connectivity at first setup is because the persistent store utilized is a cloud synchronized database. In theory (given a named account) this could be used to synchronize events (readings and triangulations) between devices. Please contact me if that seems of interest.

BTW: If/when asked for location permissions, Android Field Triangulate doesn’t need more than “Allow only while using the app”.

Share Triangulation Android

After considering offline sharing (to offline capable maps) of the triangulation on iOS, I realized the same should be possible on Android.

The share coordinate button on the beta version of the Triangulation application, now offers a chooser to allow any installed applications that support the geo:{LATITUDE},{LONGITUDE} scheme to be opened to that location.

Please join the open beta for Field Triangulation and check it out…

Some application that support this scheme are:

Topo GPS
Google Earth
Google Maps
Backcounty Navigator
… and others …

Triangulation & Offline Maps

Be it a wild-land firefighter locating smoke or a wildlife biologist tracking subjects, or one of many other users, Field Triangulate is often used in the back country, away from cellular networks. Field Triangulate works offline (to accept locations and bearings and generate a triangulated location) but it cannot show maps offline. I often get asked about adding “offline maps” support to Field Triangulate, but that is not on the product development roadmap at this time.

Topo Maps+ from Glacier Peak Studios is an excellent offline topographic map solution for iOS (iPhone and iPad.) It provides access to a wide variety of offline downloadable maps, and offers GPS features.

Field Triangulate for iOS version 1.1.2 will allow a triangulation (latitude / longitude) to be sent to Topo Maps+ (even when fully offline) in order for Topo Maps+ to display the map for that location. Topo Maps+ will use the current map, and current zoom to present that location.

Use Topo Maps+ to survey the terrain at the location, and between you and that location.

Topo Maps+ will even allow you to use that triangulation as a waypoint, allowing you to easily navigate to it.

Do you use other Topo Mapping Apps?

Let me know what application you use for offline-capable topographic maps on Android devices, and I’ll look to integrating Field Triangulate to that on Android.

Field Triangulate launching Topo Maps+ on iOS

Android Triangulate Rebuilt

Triangulate-Rebuild

I’ve been working to update Triangulate on Android, and that include porting it to Kotlin (Google / Android replacement for Java.) In sort, I’ve changed every line.

Further I’ve worked to improve handling for offline (it was not as simple as I’d first considered, and testing did not uncover that.) Finally I’ve added a first attempt at allowing the devices sensors to help determine a (rough) bearing, enabling some usage even without the (more accurate) handheld compass.

I would appreciate some help checking it out before I overwrite the existing application with this version. Please check it out at:

https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.neukadye.triangulation