How do I drop GPS anchors at the push of a button?
August 16, 2015 1:36 PM Subscribe
I'd like a simple device that allows me, at the push of a physical button, to mark a location or coordinates on a map.
I scour neighborhoods for abandoned fruit trees. I'm up to making a couple dozen gallons of wine and brandy out of plums, blackberries and cherries every year. I'm able to do this almost entirely for free off of fruit on public property, or hanging over the street (and sometimes in people's yards, who I have permission to pick at).
When I'm out biking around, I notice lots of trees, most notably plum trees of desirable ilk. I oftentimes note these plants early in the season, or just past their prime that i'd like to get at the year following, and would like to have an ongoing catalog of my neighborhood somewhere of all the different places I can go to glean some free goodies. Pulling out my phone and typing in the address or intersection closest by is an unwieldily solution for something that kind of needs to happen sorta quickly. I'd really like to just have a pushbutton of some sort that reminds me "A THING IS HERE." It doesn't have to tell me what is there, just that something is there. Ideally, it would be small enough to clip onto my backpack strap.
I'm not sure if its a lack of search terms for the Thing I'm looking for, or if a solution for this will need to be homebrew (I have zero programing experience, and limited hardware building experience). I'm willing to pay a couple bucks more for a non-homebrew solution, but DIY suggestions are welcome as well.
-Bonus points for something that actually does integrate with iOS.
-Double bonus points for something that works with Google maps.
I scour neighborhoods for abandoned fruit trees. I'm up to making a couple dozen gallons of wine and brandy out of plums, blackberries and cherries every year. I'm able to do this almost entirely for free off of fruit on public property, or hanging over the street (and sometimes in people's yards, who I have permission to pick at).
When I'm out biking around, I notice lots of trees, most notably plum trees of desirable ilk. I oftentimes note these plants early in the season, or just past their prime that i'd like to get at the year following, and would like to have an ongoing catalog of my neighborhood somewhere of all the different places I can go to glean some free goodies. Pulling out my phone and typing in the address or intersection closest by is an unwieldily solution for something that kind of needs to happen sorta quickly. I'd really like to just have a pushbutton of some sort that reminds me "A THING IS HERE." It doesn't have to tell me what is there, just that something is there. Ideally, it would be small enough to clip onto my backpack strap.
I'm not sure if its a lack of search terms for the Thing I'm looking for, or if a solution for this will need to be homebrew (I have zero programing experience, and limited hardware building experience). I'm willing to pay a couple bucks more for a non-homebrew solution, but DIY suggestions are welcome as well.
-Bonus points for something that actually does integrate with iOS.
-Double bonus points for something that works with Google maps.
For instance, something like this ?
Do you expect to have cell reception where you will be? Or does it need to be GPS-only that saves the coordinates on-device, and syncs them up when you closer to civilization?
posted by misterbrandt at 2:22 PM on August 16, 2015
Do you expect to have cell reception where you will be? Or does it need to be GPS-only that saves the coordinates on-device, and syncs them up when you closer to civilization?
posted by misterbrandt at 2:22 PM on August 16, 2015
What is your budget?
I've been foraging just recently, too. I use Geotracker on Android, which reasonably quickly lets me add details of where I am and what is there. The steps I take are as follows: unlock phone, click the add waypoint button, type the name of the tree and click save. It takes less than 10 seconds total. It includes a Google maps view, but I prefer the Yandex option. I'd be surprised to find there isn't an ios app that will let you do this.
Geotracker will output a .gpx file, which is the closest thing to a standard that exists for this sort of thing. A waypoint is a point that is specifically added by yourself to say that something is there. For example, I can upload the .gpx file from my phone, that has details of the exact route I took while out meandering earlier today, to gpsvisualiser.com, and it will show me a red line of my route with icons highlighting the waypoints. Or I can leave it loaded in the app on my phone, and it will do the same thing. A bonus is that it shows your exact location, not just the nearest junction.
You might find a gps watch to be to your liking, but they're very basic and quite expensive. It will also probably need some kind of internet connection to show you Google Maps on the device. Perhaps the Iwatch (or whatever it's called) can do this?
posted by Solomon at 2:45 PM on August 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
I've been foraging just recently, too. I use Geotracker on Android, which reasonably quickly lets me add details of where I am and what is there. The steps I take are as follows: unlock phone, click the add waypoint button, type the name of the tree and click save. It takes less than 10 seconds total. It includes a Google maps view, but I prefer the Yandex option. I'd be surprised to find there isn't an ios app that will let you do this.
Geotracker will output a .gpx file, which is the closest thing to a standard that exists for this sort of thing. A waypoint is a point that is specifically added by yourself to say that something is there. For example, I can upload the .gpx file from my phone, that has details of the exact route I took while out meandering earlier today, to gpsvisualiser.com, and it will show me a red line of my route with icons highlighting the waypoints. Or I can leave it loaded in the app on my phone, and it will do the same thing. A bonus is that it shows your exact location, not just the nearest junction.
You might find a gps watch to be to your liking, but they're very basic and quite expensive. It will also probably need some kind of internet connection to show you Google Maps on the device. Perhaps the Iwatch (or whatever it's called) can do this?
posted by Solomon at 2:45 PM on August 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: If you take photos of the trees, depending on your smartphone settings you may have location information already embedded in the photo’s EXIF data.
posted by migurski at 3:53 PM on August 16, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by migurski at 3:53 PM on August 16, 2015 [3 favorites]
Best answer: migurski has it. Take photos of each, and then place them into an album. I've been doing this for mushrooming.
Pre-iOS 7 there was a map view in Photos, but that's been removed. There was a map view in iPhoto, but it seems to have been removed in the new Photos Mac app, as far as I can tell.
There are a handful of photo map iOS apps: PictureMap, Photo Footprint and MapPhotos Pro.
posted by tomierna at 5:24 PM on August 16, 2015
Pre-iOS 7 there was a map view in Photos, but that's been removed. There was a map view in iPhoto, but it seems to have been removed in the new Photos Mac app, as far as I can tell.
There are a handful of photo map iOS apps: PictureMap, Photo Footprint and MapPhotos Pro.
posted by tomierna at 5:24 PM on August 16, 2015
I can't answer your technical question, but do you know about the LA group Fallen Fruit and their public fruit maps?
posted by Mngo at 1:10 AM on August 17, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Mngo at 1:10 AM on August 17, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: IFTTT has a new product called "Do", which allows you to press a button on your phone and then have their services "Do" something, such as save your current location to a spreadsheet.
You could then use fusion tables to map data from that spreadsheet into Google Maps.
If you're looking for an excuse to get some new toys, Do also has a nice Apple Watch app, so you just have to pull the thing up and then tap your wrist instead of pulling your phone.
posted by daniel striped tiger at 1:18 PM on August 17, 2015
You could then use fusion tables to map data from that spreadsheet into Google Maps.
If you're looking for an excuse to get some new toys, Do also has a nice Apple Watch app, so you just have to pull the thing up and then tap your wrist instead of pulling your phone.
posted by daniel striped tiger at 1:18 PM on August 17, 2015
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Oh, you are asking for a physical button? I wonder if there is some hardware that is IFTTT enabled?
posted by misterbrandt at 2:12 PM on August 16, 2015 [1 favorite]