julian
-
23 votescompleted ·
AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
Locale 1.3 now uses an XML format for backup files on Android 2.2 and later. The format of the files is really an internal implementation detail, and backup files are not considered a public interface to the app. In fact, the backup files contain the following warning: “WARNING: This file is not designed to be human-editable. Treat this file as if it were a swarm of angry bees: disturb it and you will get stung!”
With all of that said, it is possible to create a backup file, literally copy and paste a situation element, and then restore the backup file. I don’t recommend this solution, however it does implement this feature request for those feeling adventurous.
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
-
263 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
UPDATE:
Locale 1.4 includes significant improvements to the location detection system, reducing time to detect location changes by 20% while also improving battery usage by up to 50%.
The original goal of this request—reducing the delay of detecting location changes—has been met as Locale 1.4 detects location changes within an average of 4 minutes. We are therefore marking this request as completed.
Although this request is being marked as completed, we have ongoing research and development to keep improving the speed and efficiency of the location detection system further :).
(Original response)
By design, Locale has no user-configurable options. The goal is that Locale should “just work” without requiring users to fiddle with various options that could negatively impact the operation of the app. For example, asking Locale to check location every minute could cause the battery to drain within 2 hours at which point you might miss the… more
julian
gave this 3 votes
·
julian
commented
·
Carter, if this was a free app, I would have no problem with your statement. But if your app is 10$ (the most expensive app I bought) I like your ambition, but if you cannot deliver, please add an advanced option for users. Actually a lot of the requests sit here quite a while now and for a 10$ app I would expect a little more activity.
-
754 votesunder review ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
The original request here was for a logical NOT operator, although it doesn’t make sense to create a logical NOT operator in Locale. Most of the time, NOT isn’t the right way of thinking about a Condition. For example, NOT 9 am to 5 pm could be redefined as 5pm to 9am. NOT at work would simply be the Default situation. For the other conditions built-in to Locale, thinking about the problem in a different way usually means that NOT isn’t needed. If a Condition truly needs NOT logic, then that should probably be put into the individual Condition’s UI itself rather than as part of the Edit Situation screen in Locale.
Although this request is for a NOT operator, I believe the underlying request here is a way of detecting the transition between situations. The strongest use case would be detecting when you’ve left a particular Location. While Locale… more
julian
gave this 3 votes
·
-
494 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
Actually, I think there’s a better way to organize this:
I’m marking this feature request as complete, as there are two ways currently to detect when the phone is in a car: a car dock condition or a Bluetooth condition, both of which are available now as plug-ins on the Android Market.
In order to have the votes correctly tallied, created a new request for a speed condition. If you want a speed condition, vote here:
http://feedback.twofortyfouram.com/forums/5655-locale-feedback/suggestions/884809-speed-condition
julian
gave this 3 votes
·
-
2 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
Locale 1.0 does this already: it will not leave a location until it is sure that you’ve left a location.
(There are certain instances where this will fail, such as if Google says you’re in another state when you really aren’t. But such cases are rare)
julian
shared this idea and gave it 2 votes
·
-
1 votedeclined ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
This has significant security implications, as Android apps must normally request permission to get your location. Users are notified of this permission at install time. If Locale were to start handing location over to all plug-ins, then this security feature would be circumvented.
I think the solution taken by the Locale SMS position Plug-in is best, where the plug-in will determine location coordinates for itself when it is fired.
julian
shared this idea and gave it 1 vote
·
-
99 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
A 3rd party developer has created a plug-in called “Locale Lockscreen Plug-in” that implements this feature request.
This plug-in can be found by choosing the “Get Plug-ins” menu item within Locale.
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
-
77 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
There is a third party plug-in that accomplishes this. The “Locale Plug-in Appli Detection” is available on the Android Market in all countries that support paid apps.
julian
gave this 3 votes
·
-
79 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
This is now supported with the combination of Locale 1.0 and the “Locale Headphones Plug-in”, both of which are available on the Android Market in countries that support paid apps.
Locale 1.0 supports plug-in conditions, so many more exciting features are coming soon :)
A plug-in to control media volume will be released in the near future :).
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
-
51 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
The Locale Airplane Mode Plug-in 1.0 was released in the Android Market today, implementing this feature request. With the plug-in, it is easy to enable/disable Airplane mode automatically with Locale!
To find the plug-in, simply:
1. Open Locale
2. Press Menu
3. Tap Get Plug-ins
4. Look for the “Locale Airplane Mode Plug-in”(Note: Locale 0.67 beta is required)
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
-
71 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
This is implemented by two third party plug-ins:
1. Locale Ping.fm Plug-in
2. Locale GTalk Plug-inBoth of these are available on the Android Market.]
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
-
93 votescompleted ·AdminCarter
(Admin, two forty four a.m.) responded
The Locale Shortcut Plug-in 1.0 was released in the Android Market, implementing this feature request. With the Shortcut Plug-in, it is easy to launch another Android application automatically.
Note: Due to the limited availability of the Android Market, this plug-in may not be available in all regions.
For those interested in specifics, new plug-in can launch any “android.intent.action.MAIN” Activity automatically (including all apps that appear on the Home screen).
julian
gave this 1 vote
·
I still believe, you should make the frequency an option or situation dependent, but, I still want to provide an idea how to improve location detection without using too much battery.
Most of the time (except for driving), my phone does not change location, while it lies flat on a table. So, as long as it lies flat, you do not have to use WIFI/GPS/CELL for positioning. Just check the position of the phone more often and as soon as it is picked up, start the other methods of positioning again.