Článek Navigieren vom Handgelenk aus mit dem brandneuen Wear für Locus Map se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

Sie kennen das Problem. Wenn Sie an Ihrem Reiseziel sind erhalten Sie jede Menge Unterlagen wie Folder oder Touristenführer von Ihrem Quartiergeber oder am Informationsstand. Diese enthalten in der Regel, neben den üblichen Infos über Gastronomie und Ausflugszielen, auch .... eine Karte. Wunderbar, nur wie finde ich die Restaurants, historische Stätten und sonstige Sehenswürdigkeiten? Sie haben doch Locus auf Ihrem Smartphone, warum nicht das verwenden? Nur - wie bekomme ich die Karte auf das Gerät? Es ist sicher kein Problem die Karte mit dem Smartphone zu Fotographieren - nur was dann?

Machen sie ein hochqualitatives Foto

Selbstverständlich haben Sie im Urlaub keinen Scanner mit dabei, wahrscheinlich aber eine gute Kamera. Und selbst wenn eine solche nicht vorhanden ist so sind die Kameras der modernen Smartphones von nahezu der gleichen Qualität. Wie auch immer, machen Sie ein Foto mit der höchstmöglichen Qualität - hochauflösend, vermeiden Sie Reflexionen von Fenstern oder Sonneneinstrahlung, ohne Blitz etc und in perfekter Draufsicht - so gut wie nur irgendwie möglich. Wenn Sie Zugang zum Internet haben werden Sie wahrscheinlich die gleiche Karte wie im Folder auch auf der Webseite Ihres Urlaubsziels finden. Wenn dies so ist dann verwenden Sie vorzugsweise diese. Speichern Sie dann die Karte in Ihrer Dropbox oder direkt im Gerätespeicher. Als Beispiel verwenden wir das Bild einer Karte von einer kleinen Inselgruppe nahe Stockholm.

Kalibrieren Sie die Karte

Kalibr.... was ist das? Kalibrieren heißt das Bild auf einer georeferenzierten Karte an mehreren Punkten "anzupinnen" um das Bild genau in Deckung mit der Karte zu bringen. Zu diesen Zweck gibt es ein Kalibrierwerkzeug in Locus. Sie finden dieses in Menü > Weitere Funktionen > On-Board Karten Kalibrator:

1. Wählen Sie eine beliebige Karte aus dem Fundus von Locus. Wir haben in unseren Beispiel die Classic MapQuest online Karte gewählt. Starten Sie die Karten-Kalibrierung.
2. Wählen Sie ein Bild aus dem Gerätespeicher oder der Dropbox oder schießen Sie direkt ein Foto.

   

3. Beginnen Sie nun Kalibrierpunkte hinzuzufügen - setzen Sie Punkte deckungsgleich sowohl auf der Karte als auch auf dem Bild. Wir empfehlen vorzugsweise markante Punkte wie Straßenkreuzungen, Hausecken oder wie hier Landzungen zu wählen. Es sind mindestens 4 Punkte - möglichst nahe an den Ecken des Bildes - zu setzten. Je mehr Punkte desto genauer wird die Kalibrierung.
4. 
   

Wenn Sie fertig sind tippen Sie rechts unten auf "Erstellen" - es erscheint ein Fenster mit einer Auflistung Ihren Kalibrierpunkte und deren Abweichungen.

Wenn Sie mit der Kalibrierung zufrieden sind dann geben Sie der Karte einen Namen und tippen nochmals auf "Erstellen". Die Karte wird gespeichert und Sie finden diese dann im "Elemente" Tab des Daten-Managers.

Und wie sieht das dann aus?

Ihr Kalibriertes Bild wird als Layer über jeder beliebigen Hintergrund-Karte dargestellt. Ab jetzt können Sie mit dieser Karte alles anstellen was Sie auch sonst in Locus vorzugsweise machen - Tracks aufnehmen, Punkte setzten, zu Zielen Navigieren etc. Also all jene Dinge die mit einer normalen Papierkarte nicht möglich sind.

Článek Wie importiert man eine Karte aus einem Touristenführer in Locus? se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

Two months ago a new topic emerged on our helpdesk. It wasn't a bugreport nor an idea how to improve our app. It appeared in our "Thanks" section:

Hi !

Emilie & Romain

Hm, Karoutcho Team? We asked Romain for a little more information and he sent a short introduction of their travel, experiences, and of course, connection with Locus:

The Karoutcho team, it’s Emilie & Romain, mid-thirties, and their two bicycles. Not really cyclists, not really campers, without any sense of direction, and with a dramatically different logic… On these solid foundations, we decided in april 2014 to prepare our first bike trip with our home packed in small bags: a 45 000 km journey around Europe and Asia! From scratch, we prepared everything in ten months before we mounted our mechanic horses.

Now, it's been more than 6000km, and Locus is a part of the Karoutcho crew !!

We answered immediately. There are not many options what map to choose in Russia in our Locus Store but one - vector Locus Maps! OSM based, covering the whole planned route of the adventurous French couple. Well, OSM data may not be always detailed much but when there are some, they can be reliable as they are drawn by local enthusiasts. And this is what came after the recommendation:

I was really more than happy with Locus for now.
Then, you made me discover the "Vector maps".

Thanks for the app, and for those incredible vector maps.

That really brought smiles on our faces, thanks too! We know that Locus Map with our vector maps can be a reliable partner on such a tremendous travel.

Since then, Emilie and Romain have made it to Khabarovsk so far - across almost whole Russia! Partly on their bikes, partly on trains, as can be seen on their website Karoutcho.fr.
[caption id="attachment_8719" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Emilie & Romain in Finland[/caption]
We admire their courage and commitment and wish them good luck!

Článek 45 000 kilometers with Locus Map se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

Summer vacations are merrily passing by and so Locus Map Team doesn't hesitate and maps another one of a few Czech bike resorts - Singltrek pod Smrkem. The resort is placed in the Northern part of Jizerske Mountains on the slopes of the highest peak Smrk and its neighboring ridges. The major part of the trails is winding on the Czech land, several paths are situated in Poland. According to the information on the web the trail network totals about 80 kms and individual trails are sorted by their difficulty and marked in relevant colors. The green trail is the most simple, the path is wide and bikers ride it in both directions. All other sections are one-way due to riders safety. The blue ones are a bit more playful and ascending/descending the Jindrichovice ridge. Red trails are declared intermediate and demanding certain riding skills - the trail is full of twists and swings and unexpected obstacles that, however, can be easily handled. The black sections are marked as the most demanding - the trail offers bare roots, rocks and occasional jumps. Nevertheless, all of them can be avoided or carefully handled - we managed to ride the black trails with the youngest member of our crew strapped in a suspended kids seat - all without need to get off the bike.

How to prepare your Locus Map for the trails?

First of all the right map is essential. Of course vector Locus Maps or biking maps by SHOCart contain Singltrek trails but they're without the color distinguishing, the section names and the entrance points. Smart Maps offer their own application with a map of the Singltrek, however, the app is nowhere near the span of functionality of Locus Map. The ideal solution is to download the map from the Internet here or here and calibrate it directly in Locus Map. The calibration is a quite simple process that can be tackled in a couple of minutes the evening before the trip. Detailed description of the on-board calibrator can be found in our User Guide >>.

Utilization of other Locus Map features on the trails is up to you. The track recording is basic, the dashboard displays speed, distance, elevation gain, heart rate etc. during the ride. If you had planned a particular trail route in advance, don't forget to turn on the navigation or guidance. Well and before you set out, don't forget to check the weather forecast!

Where to enter the trails?

There are plenty of the trails access points for sure. Here we're gonna mention only those nearest the settled areas or those which offer more than the entrance signpost.

Singltrek Centrum

It declares itself as the "main" Singltrek entrance point. The simple green trail begins here and the Jindrichovice blue ridge trail ends here. The point is situated north of the town of Nove Mesto pod Smrkem nearby a pond with a camp. The Center offers simple refreshment, possibility to wash your bike for a fee and test Author bikes. Expect, however, a fee for parking. An option of wider choice of refreshment in a few other kiosks in the camp can be an advantage.

Centrum "U Kyselky"

You'll find this spot south of Nove Mesto in the Kyselka valley with mineral water springs. A cosy wooden cabin offers a variety of refreshment including grilled sausages or a warm soup. Then there's an option to wash your bike or try new bikes made by Trek. The local serviceman can handle minor repairs or adjustments. The parking is charged as well. The cabin is placed nearby the red trail "Novomestska" but you can also ascend through the valley up to the Libverda bridge to the intersection of a black trail and traversing forest road.

U Obřího sudu (At the Giant Cask)

The access point above the northern part of Lazne Libverda. The red section from the Hubertka cabin finishes here and the red "Ludvikovsky" traverse begins. The pub Obří Sud offers a standard Czech cuisine assortment but don't expect any extra services for bikers. The parking is charged again.

Hejnicke Madony viewpoint

The least frequent entrance point with no services. It's placed near Libverda cemetery north of Hejnice. An attractive black section turns here and you can easily climb along it towards Hubertka cabin or further on deeper to Jizerske mountains if you wish to explore more its beauties than just this bike resort.

Článek Singltrek pod Smrkem – another hot Czech bike resort se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

I fell in love at first sight with the mountain bike in a perfumed shopping mall in Vienna some time before Christmas 1989. I was 14 then and thanks to my parents who had always been too proud to stand in a queue from 4 a.m. in front of a bikeshop when a rumor brought news of a few decent bicycles to come (there used to be shortage of everything in that time in the Czech republic) I was doomed to ride my father's battered ladies street bike. Two years later, when I got together a few bucks by helping at construction sites or washing windows in a factory and parents finally donated another few bucks, I could celebrate purchase of my first real mountain bike. It was no racer but it had its 21 gears, gear shifts on the steering bar, solid frame of CrMo steel and terrain tires. However, it was enough to drive me completely exhausted when I rode back home to a neighboring town along a huge detour across woods and meadows.

[caption id="attachment_8556" align="aligncenter" width="426"] from my biking history...[/caption]

A lot of water and many kilometers across mountains and forests have passed by since then. Even my first bike, may God give it eternal glory in MTB heaven.

Calm down, I'm not gonna write a novel about my other bikes or trips. Anyway, I'm still faithful to MTB and still enjoy my bike trips all the same. During last couple of years with Locus Map on my steering bar of course. Nevertheless, Locus didn't come to me out of the blue - at first I made my own "discovery" of the GPS technology. In the beginning it was a huge brick with a fat antenna and tiny display showing just some digits, later the brick got smaller, the display bigger and the map came. From the first one I put my hands on the GPSies could tracks my activities. I. e. record the traveled track that I could export and view on my PC. That way a man could remind of one's trip and travel it, at least virtually, again.

[caption id="attachment_8557" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Somewhere in Jeseniky, CZ[/caption]

The real revolution came with the smartphone. Souped up thing with loads of sensors monitoring position and movement, all displaying on a map. And one could even make phone calls or photos with it or browse the Internet. A real magic for us who remember solid telephones with circular dial-up or PC XTs. People started to take their smartphones away with them everywhere - to their bike rides with family, to their morning run workouts, to their backpack wanderings in the mountains. Loads of apps that were able to monitor, record and share those activities on the Internet swarmed in appstores - sports trackers. Endomondo, Runkeeper, Runtastic, Strava... Running with voice notifications of tempo, distance or average heart rate directly into earphones became standard among active people. What's more, loads of apps that could display map and navigate along a route appeared, and Locus Map among them.

Locus Map was beefed up with features since the very beginning. It contained lots of maps including my favorite SHOCart bikemaps. Even track recording was a piece of cake for it. However, I used other apps for sport tracking - I swapped Endomondo and Runkeeper, depending on which of them was more stable at the time. Both apps were connected to community websites where many of my friends had signed up and we could share our workouts and bike rides. All was cool but one thing - I had to use three apps for one activity!

[caption id="attachment_8558" align="aligncenter" width="500"] settings of tracking profiles[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_8562" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Strava biking heatmap of Canadian Whistler MTB resort in Locus Map[/caption]

Until recently - since the version 3.8.0. Locus Map can audio coach too. It allows to define various tracking profiles for different sports and fine-tune them exactly to my needs. It can export my workouts automatically to Runkeeper or other services. It even displays Strava's heatmap! Add Locus's awesome outdoor navigation features and my mountainbiking's got other unexpected dimensions. Remaining issue, syncing my activities across web communities, was tackled by open source project Tapiriik.com. What's more to wish? "Just" more free time and nice weather...

-ms-

Článek Why is Locus my most favorite sports tracker? se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

Článek se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.

Shading, vector world map and bunch of improvements

It's been more then month since previous Locus version. I'm anyway very very glad to introduce a new version that brings many interesting features. I'm sure you'll like it. And what are the most interesting features?

Map shading (feature of Locus PRO)

The most interesting news are ability to enable shading for all Online (since Android 3.0+) and Vector maps. Shading is completely without the need of an internet and it's based on downloaded elevation files.

Currently you have to download them (HGT files) manually (or thanks to Fill altitude feature at specific place). Later, these files will be available for download in Locus Store.

Support for Personal maps is also planned, don't worry.

Speed of vector maps & world map

[caption id="attachment_7363" align="alignright" width="216"] Vector world map[/caption]

We're also aware of speed of vector maps. In a new version will be another improvements in vector maps speed mainly between levels 10 - 14. Hope these critical levels will be now much more usable.

Also, because levels 1 - 8 are usually very empty and mainly very slow, we prepared a small surprise. In Locus Store > Maps is now for Free download, overview map of whole world. The map has around 15 MB, so we really suggest to download it. This map will cover really whole World and will be automatically used without the need to do anything from you. Everytime you zoom out to level 8 and below, the World map will appear to give you a nice and fast overview of mother Earth.

Satellite and Compass screen

How often you search with compass and need to check what the he** is wrong with GPS? Or just need to enable GPS in Locus and also check an orientation etc? It will be very easy now.

We took both screens, and placed them into the screen with two tabs. Simple right? There is of course more improvements on both screens, but point is simple. You may work with Compass screen and also with Satellite screen at once, without need to crazy tapping ...

Automatic turn On of the screen (feature of Locus PRO)

Saving battery is our highest priority. Battery is crucial when hiking in the wild. For this purpose we prepared a new feature that allows automatically turn On screen, when you're near waypoint you guide on or during navigation when some turn come closer. This is especially useful on bike during a ride.

As a small bonus, we created ability to turn On/Off screen by two swipes gesture before top proximity sensor of your device.

Improved Text-to-speech system

Using Text-to-speech for navigation is very useful. It gives freedom to say whatever is needed and usually exists TTS Engines for every language. Problem is that they usually do not speak correctly.

Because of this, we prepared a new system that will be automatically used when you'll use TTS for navigation. The system is actually available only for English, German, Czech and Japan TTS. If you want to know more, follow this link . Same if you want to contribute another language.

Is that all?

Sure not, there is much more ...

• points that change at zoom level 12 and below to small dots are now much better visible
• switching of vector maps is now more simple (mainly for external themes)
• login over OAuth is now directly in Locus (to prevent problems on various web browsers)
• you may enable low or high contrast style on maps
• added support to choose what value will be visible above and below of guiding line
• fixed many problems like incorrect sorting of vector maps in Quick map switch, export of whole track folder, incorrect hiding points from folder after import, thanks to hard work of a few users, improved translation in whole application and much more
• and yes, one small sad news on the end. Since this version, Locus do not support Android version 2.1

Článek News in version 2.14.0 se nejdříve objevil na Locus Map - Outdoor-Navigations-App.