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V4 maps could be handled differently from V3 maps, like both differ from raster maps ...
And V3 is a zombie anyway - I suppose this is the next big thing for Locus to get sorted in 2022.

And once you have SAF mechanics in place, you can use /Android/media/maps and alike, which would  not be killed by de-install.
I think this is the mid/long term secure path, as the special permission is only temp ... but VERY useful for the LM4 community for now.

Those changes not in 2021 ...  ;-)))

@slarti76: I have been testing with c:geo with even its base folder on ext SD /Android/media/cgeo, with a lot of reads and writes.

I agree with your assessment that Google screwed up and did not repair for proper access to the private folders for file managers with the full privilege.

E.g. x-plore can create folders anywhere in any private structure. But cannot read or write a single file into the folders it created itself.

@Menion: start speed is fast as lightning - WOWWWW! And a big TXs.

Willi did test with Cruiser, and I tested with c:geo (see also my direct mail to you). Download of maps to this place do work. Even using below as a base folder does work.
A de-install did NOT delete /Android/media/cgeo (which is NOT the official app naming path!).

Not sure which access method they are using.

Without harm means that the app is not important to me.

I just checked /Android/media and found an app that puts a folder there and that I could dispose of without harm: the app specific folder in media will go with the deinstallation.

Maybe Menion can try to CREATE a folder /Android/media/maps by Locus, then uninstall Locus and tell the result.

@Andrew: Menion has extended the logging significantly. Long tap on the low left Hamburger menu, tap the logging option and switch on the first 3 of them.
You can see quite a bit yourself what is happening under the cover... And Menion will see even more ;-)

Wäre in der Tat einen Versuch wert - so denn eines existiert ...

@Menion: I moved the SRTMs out of the LocusMaps home on ext SD, so they are no longer holding things up.
But still the start takes 5 minutes or so.
Pls. see log attached.
Cheers
Michael

PS: once it comes up, all settings (world map, overlay, vector and other maps) are in the right place and working.

PS: re. Google's security argument: when it comes to media (images, videos, ...) such can be loaded with sequences that carry zero day exploits. To be safe, Google would have to remove all galleries, messengers and alike from the phones. Secure, but a bit boring maybe :-)

Well, maybe Google is not as obstructive as we feared  ;-)

So, private folder on int SD plus mass data folders on ext and/or int SD /Android/media/maps etc. could be a long term stable solution that survives uninstalls plus gives interoperability  with other geo apps without multiplying storage needs.

And your data saving feature for the base folder, which would not have massdata at all, except a potentially large database would secure the rest of uninstall plus new install needs without copying or moving GBs of data and running into capacity issues.

But maybe not in 2021 :-))

@Menion: different (Geo) apps CAN access /Android/media as reported by different people, also sub-folders of this upper level, without app specific path.
I would hope that a de-install of an app would not remove files and folders on upper /Android/media level, because such folders would not be part of the installation manifest, right?
Like /Android/media/maps and /Andoid/media/mapsVector or /Android/maps/SRTM. I.e. the usual suspects of multi-app usage.

Hello Menion,
a well deserved break is nearing ...
But I could  not resist some testing and looking into the logs
One observation is that the SRTM folder (as separate sub-folder on ext SD) is traversed multiple times in the startup process.
I'll have a deeper and more systematic look into the logs later.
Your hint re. external map folder was spot on: there were the pointers to the no longer existing folders. Maybe you can remove them from the internal "memory" once Locus knows they do not exist?

PS: only since yesterday Playstore offers to override the latest beta installs. What is happening here, pls.?

Well, those same 19k files were scanned fast as lightning before the API changes ... They did not move a bit on ext SD.

Is there a reason why /Andoid/media cannot be selected in the maps folder definitions? For SRTM, maps, mapsVector.

Weird indeed.
Here's the big one ...
23:23:47 - 23:24:52 is the first burning of time.
The many SRTMs are the only files that stayed in place on this device. Before the Android 11 changes scanning them did not burn so much time.
And then there are those "cannot draw map" errrors. They occur when the UI is functional (incl. map selection), but the screen stays empty. Trying online maps or a vector map goes nowhere.
Only after anothe rlong wait time the maps come up.