iPhone app to track where I've been
August 3, 2010 1:48 PM Subscribe
I'm looking for an iPhone app that lets me 'check in' wherever I go. I don't want something like FourSquare, or Gowalla that makes all that information public, but instead something that allows me to see on a map all the places I've been over time. Does such a thing exist?
I guess I'm looking for something a bit like Momento, but with maps.
To clarify, not a GPS tracking app for runs, biking, etc, but something more long term, where I can run the app and log the fact that I've been to certain locations.
Do FourSquare and Gowalla not have privacy options? It seems like it would be easiest to use an established system like that, and just make your account private.
posted by ripley_ at 2:01 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by ripley_ at 2:01 PM on August 3, 2010
On Foursquare you can opt not to share your check-ins with anyone. It will show you as "Off the Grid". I think you have to select this option each time you check in somewhere, though.
posted by naju at 2:07 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by naju at 2:07 PM on August 3, 2010
Foursquare's option for "Don't show my friends" is sticky, so you'd just set it once and your app would remember that as the default until you changed it again. If you're mostly going to actual venues (home, office, a restaurant, a bar), as opposed to arbitrary coordinates, they've already got a lot of data that you might find useful.
posted by tantivy at 2:09 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by tantivy at 2:09 PM on August 3, 2010
I don't know about Gowalla, but FourSquare lets you check in privately. It doesn't have built in map plotting, but you can mash up FourSquare data with Google Maps (link). But I'm not sure how nicely that plays with privacy setting.
I'm assuming you want something at the level of I went to this restaurant, then this park. Not I've been to this city and that country?
posted by thisisnotbruce at 2:09 PM on August 3, 2010
I'm assuming you want something at the level of I went to this restaurant, then this park. Not I've been to this city and that country?
posted by thisisnotbruce at 2:09 PM on August 3, 2010
www.yelp.com
posted by AltReality at 2:10 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by AltReality at 2:10 PM on August 3, 2010
I've been doing what you're looking for using Google Latitude and its optional ability to keep a history of your locations (link). I have a bookmark on my iPhone that I open whenever I'm somewhere useful that I want to record.
posted by Tu13es at 2:16 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by Tu13es at 2:16 PM on August 3, 2010
A different way of doing this would be just to take a photo in each place you wish to 'check into'. The iPhone's built in GPS records into the photo's EXIF data the location it was taken if you allow it.
This can then be viewed in the iPhone photo viewer, in iPhoto, or exported to Picasa if you wish to make the map public.
It also has the bonus of recording an interesting image to go alongside the fact that you were there - doubling as a memory hook, an opportunity to take at interesting photo, and far more compelling visual proof you actually visited there, and what was happening at that time.
posted by Simon_ at 2:41 PM on August 3, 2010 [2 favorites]
This can then be viewed in the iPhone photo viewer, in iPhoto, or exported to Picasa if you wish to make the map public.
It also has the bonus of recording an interesting image to go alongside the fact that you were there - doubling as a memory hook, an opportunity to take at interesting photo, and far more compelling visual proof you actually visited there, and what was happening at that time.
posted by Simon_ at 2:41 PM on August 3, 2010 [2 favorites]
Google Maps with account login and location saved to "My Maps" does this on my phone. I use this to find where I've parked all the time.
posted by meehawl at 3:17 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by meehawl at 3:17 PM on August 3, 2010
Plazes has an iphone app and they have a deal where only your contacts can see where you are. Add no contacts. Easy peasy.
posted by jessamyn at 3:59 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by jessamyn at 3:59 PM on August 3, 2010
I use very simple app called SendLocation that just sends coordinates to a server, then wrote up a little app to hook that into a database and show it on a Google Map. Works fairly well, but when it's in the background under iOS4 it seems to only give the coordinates of the cell towers that the phone associates with, not GPS coordinates (not sure if that's a limitation of the app or of iOS4's multitasking APIs). But when run in the foreground it works quite well. Certainly be willing to share my code if interested.
posted by eafarris at 5:37 PM on August 3, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by eafarris at 5:37 PM on August 3, 2010 [1 favorite]
Evernote allows you to create a note with location info as well as text and a photo. You can view previous notes on a map on your phone or through the website. All private.
posted by itstheclamsname at 6:45 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by itstheclamsname at 6:45 PM on August 3, 2010
Similar to what Jessamyn said, if you don't add any contacts on foursquare, nobody will see where you are. I have my fsq checkins as an RSS feed in my Gcal that shows me everywhere I've been in the last year, and it's super handy.
posted by alicetiara at 6:54 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by alicetiara at 6:54 PM on August 3, 2010
Also Latitudie will now log your location to Google Latitude automatically in the background for you, without having to do anything explicit.
posted by Morbuto at 7:44 AM on August 4, 2010
posted by Morbuto at 7:44 AM on August 4, 2010
Of course, telling Google where you are is probably creepier than telling a smaller more focused company.
As noted above, you can check-in to Foursquare 'off the grid'. You can also have no friends on Foursquare.
posted by chunking express at 8:51 AM on August 4, 2010
As noted above, you can check-in to Foursquare 'off the grid'. You can also have no friends on Foursquare.
posted by chunking express at 8:51 AM on August 4, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by gregjones at 1:55 PM on August 3, 2010