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useful android driving app

18 posts & 13 voices | Started 1 year ago by joemarshall | Latest reply from dave360

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joemarshall - Member

I just wrote a little app for use with the Android / Google navigation, basically just a much quicker / more dashboard friendly way of entering addresses or postcodes into the sat nav. A big keyboard, with numbers on for postcodes etc. and once you type the address, it just goes straight into navigation.

Basically it is just a fix for something that annoys me which I guess might be useful to some other people. Oh and it is free.

It is called quickgo, just search for 'quickgo' on the market to get it.

It appears to work on mine and my mates phones, but do let me know if you use it / if it crashes all the time or whatever. Should work on Android 1.6 and later (i don't think 1.5 had navigation).

Joe

Posted 1 year ago #
iDave - Member

can you write an app that makes my GPS work again on my Desire? thanks.

your app would have been handy when it worked.

Posted 1 year ago #
joemarshall - Member

can you write an app that makes my GPS work again on my Desire? thanks.

Weird. Was it after a software update (like this one below? )
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=752632

Have you tried sitting it outside for ages to get a first fix? Mine never needed that, but on other phones they've needed half an hour with a good view of the sky the first time I ever used them / after software updates.

Personally, assuming it is out of warranty, I'd try installing custom firmware on it, but I am the kind of sad person who enjoys fiddling with technology. It is quite easy to root a desire and upload new firmware, although a bit of messing around needed to get your apps back.

Posted 1 year ago #
Stoner - Member

nice one Joe. Seems simple enough.

Will test it out sometime.

I agree the android/google nav is a bit odd the way you have to search first, then nav and repeat the destination. seems odd that there isnt a "quick go" button in the original app.

Posted 1 year ago #
soma_rich - Member

Oooh that bugged me too! Thanks

Posted 1 year ago #
fbk - Member

Downloaded thanks - I'll try it later. SD compatible too, even though it is only 48Kb

I'm not sure what people are referring to with the double search - I just load up navigator then type or speak the destination. The simple keyboard on this does seem a good idea though.

Tip - you can set destination short cuts on your home pages too (to your place of work, home (I use a rough area) etc etc) - one click and it takes you there

Posted 1 year ago #
retro83 - Member

Great idea, cheers Joe.

Posted 1 year ago #
GrahamS - Member

on other phones they've needed half an hour with a good view of the sky the first time I ever used them / after software updates.

IIRC then in theory it should take around 12.5 minutes to download the Almanac and Ephemeris - and it should only need to do that the first time you use it, when the clock has been reset, or if you move a couple of hundred miles with it switched off.

Posted 1 year ago #
Del - Member

warranty on the desire is 2 years, no?

Posted 1 year ago #
joemarshall - Member

IIRC then in theory it should take around 12.5 minutes to download the Almanac and Ephemeris -and it should only need to do that the first time you use it, when the clock has been reset, or if you move a couple of hundred miles with it switched off.

Yup, and on anything sensible with a data connection it should take next to no time. But it did sometimes on my rubbish old Nokia. I've never had more than 30 seconds or so on my desire, and that was with no data connection at all (foreign country) .

Posted 1 year ago #
joemarshall - Member

I'm not sure what people are referring to with the double search -I just load up navigator then type or speak the destination.

Me neither, on mine if I search in maps, I can just do menu, navigate. I am running very up to date versions of everything though, may have been more hassle in earlier versions.

I do find it fiddly in the car though, having to select to type a destination, then the keyboard is dead fiddly to enter postcodes on, whereas in this, I just click the quickgo icon in car home, and straight away I can enter the postcode.

Posted 1 year ago #
GrahamS - Member

Yup, and on anything sensible with a data connection it should take next to no time.

Only on Assisted-GPS units where it can download the almanac and ephemeris from some third-party ground source. Most (non-phone) GPS units don't have a WiFi/3G connection and get their almanac/ephemeris as part of the signal from the satellites which is obviously transmitted at a fixed rate regardless of your device.

I've never had more than 30 seconds or so on my desire, and that was with no data connection at all (foreign country) .

Either it had valid almanac data already and just needed ephemeris (which is quick), or the GPS chip in the Desire can scan sufficiently quickly that it doesn't require almanac data to find a fix.

Posted 1 year ago #
stumpy01 - Member

fbk - Member
Tip - you can set destination short cuts on your home pages too (to your place of work, home (I use a rough area) etc etc) - one click and it takes you there

How do you do this?? Could be useful.

I just go straight to Navigation>type destination>go

Tried speak navigation the other week when trying to get to Bakewell & it worked perfectly.

Posted 1 year ago #
joemarshall - Member

How do you do this?? Could be useful

add widget -> add shortcut -> navigation

or something like that.

I just go straight to Navigation>type destination>go

Yup, that is what I used to do, although that is still an extra step, and you still have to type it on a silly keyboard where numbers (for postcodes etc.) are on a separate screen or a long press away.

I find voice search is a bit erratic for me, especially for things like postcodes or full addresses, might just be my voice though.

Joe

Posted 1 year ago #
jp-t853 - Member

Hi Joe it works very well and is useful thank you.

If you could tart up the appearance it would be a better all round experience.

Samsung Galaxy running 2.2

Posted 1 year ago #
neilsonwheels - Member

Installed it and off to the shops to give it a go. Not that I don't know where the shops are.

Posted 1 year ago #
bassspine - Member

thanks joe I'll give it a go

Posted 1 year ago #
dave360 - Member

Thanks Joe, it works a treat. Good to see letters and numbers on the same keypad unlike my Garmin where you have to turn a page to enter numbers and then back again for the letters. Gets on my nerves that does.

Posted 1 year ago #

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