Locus Map 4, discussion (alpha)

[Menion]

Hi,
third alpha version. Base changes are described in the news after the app start.

I've added a new option to insert "Toggle settings" directly into the function panel. Every item has to be exactly specified and prepared in the code, so now it's only about missing "Magnifier" and "Scale lock".

I'm also sure that it will be similar like with presets ... everyone needs a different option in the function panel, otherwise, the app is useless . Fine, I got it. So please, don't ask me to add this and this setting, I won't do it (at least not now). I made this to test usage of such option and also try to solve two missing functions that does not have its space in default easy-to-use layout. Thanks for understanding.

Known problems to solve (not yet always sure how or "if")

• Unreliable drag & drop in the main menu
• Configurable position of zoom buttons?

Download here.

[balloni55]

v 3.42.0.6
1.
- in the top bar i miss the option "title"
- the icon for SS SR is the "weather icon" (also in the PRO)

2.
my settings of  right panel "always on", top and bottom panel "autohide
- why must there be at least one function in the bottom panel?
- the right panel should automatically move up when the bottom panel appears.
- when sorting the function panel you can move functions above the "bottom panel headline" as well
- Auto Hide options are always grayed

EDIT:
-sorting function panel, restart locus > sorting is furthermore ok
- change to any preset and back to new sorted > old sorting is back

[john_percy]

1. Notification center shows a red zero when there are no notifications. Better to show nothing.
2. "Notification center" looks as if it is the title of the main menu. Why not hide it completely if there are no notifications?


Sent from my moto g(6) plus using Tapatalk

[Menion]

@balloni55
1.
- why you miss the "title" option?
- and what is SS SR?

2. nice observation, thanks. Understand your attempt, only the right panel visible. Quite a correct use-case mainly because I believe that the main menu is not a lot more useful than before.
- limitation to one function in bottom panel removed
- move of the right panel >
- the problem in sorting (above label) > solved
- auto-hide option always grayed > do not understand, sorry
- added: option to set bottom panel also to "hidden", to have "RIght panel only" solution complete
- ad EDIT: no matter what I do, I still see the same content of functions. Maybe you have defined own content for function panels?

@john_percy
Just today I was also looking on notification with "0", for the first time . For now, updated, thanks.

[john_percy]

In "set functions panels" the pipe character "|" should be black not red, not least because it can ready be read as a "1".


Sent from my moto g(6) plus using Tapatalk

[luxcalor]

- auto-hide option always grayed > do not understand, sorry
- added: option to set bottom panel also to "hidden", to have "RIght panel only" solution complete

- balloni probably means that in Panels&Buttons screen at the bottom the auto-hide and time out options are greyed out and uneditable
- option to completely hide the right panel would be nice too
- it also seems to be more intuitive if the order of buttons for the right panel in the panels edit screen would be the same as it appears on the panel itself, not reversed.

[Menion]

@john_percy
with my low brightness, I never noticed this. All values in bracers that indicate current value, should be drawn in red. So generally the problem is not the vertical line, but images. Anyway, to make it more readable, let's try it with the black vertical line, thanks.

@luxcalor
- ah you are correct. "auto-hide" values were checking if any panel is set to auto-hide, but were still checking old settings from public version. Fixed.

- completely hide the right panel, why? Maybe even hiding of bottom panel is not necessary and it should be done automatically in case, panel has no items attached.

- order of items > hmm, my imagination was that buttons "flow" from the main menu to the right and then up. Will have to think about it. You are not the first who mention this ...

Thanks

[luxcalor]

- completely hide the right panel, why? Maybe even hiding of bottom panel is not necessary.
- order of items > hmm, my imagination was that buttons "flow" from the main menu to the right and then up.

- it is useful to be able to hide the panel without removing everything from it. My example - when going on multiday kayak trips I use only top panel with essential functions on the water to keep the screen uncluttered, and then off kayak scouting new places I use functions from the side panel (adding points, notes etc). I have it in auto-hide now, but that would be great to hide it completely, and than unhide on location (to not clutter the screen on the water for multiple days). Same for the bottom panel now. İf the design stays like lt is now, I will probably use right panel as my main panel and bottom as auxiliary one.

- order of items - I've always saw the panels as separate entities. And it is definetely more convinient if the order is as it is on the actual panel. Also, in the panel edit screen the Bottom panel should probably be at the bottom

[luxcalor]

While track recording
- the green rec badge gets lost on the green background.
- bottom recording panel does not appear

[Andrew Heard]

3.42.0.6:
1) Map rotation bug after magnifier enabled - compass rotates very smoothly on GPS/ Compass screen but main menu > More functions > Magnifier > back - now map is very jerky, unusable, like CPU being 100%. Still OK on GPS/ Compass screen. Disable magnifier, same issue for long time then fixed again. Also fixed on restart.

2) Function buttons on bottom panel are now tiny - attached. I reset preferences, and function buttons on bottom panel are now OK. PS. it seems related to Presets.

3) Show view - now tested (1st time) in Locus Pro - pointing 180 degrees wrong way, maybe because southern hemisphere? BTW another Pro bug here - assume Show View enabled > long tap Rotate/ Show View button > select Rotate map > back - but the Show View icon is still displayed on map screen until the function is disabled.

4) # main menu rows - not sure location in Map-screen content > Panels & buttons is best place for this setting. Is unrelated to panels or main screen buttons. BTW I have set to 5 but why even limit to 5 rows? Maybe drag & drop is going to be even worse to code?

I like allowing the Magnifier & Scale lock as function panel buttons. Integrates with Presets too. Now if you allow Zoom in & out buttons by exact same mechanism as function panel buttons, then we have full range of options for new, old & fussy users. Are there other buttons that can be handled in same way?

It appears all functions in main menu > More functions list can be added to the map screen, but at least some of those functions in the main menu can't. Maybe add all main menu functions to the function list so can access "..." menu > More info & Add menu items?

[Tapio]

When using the "main menu" - or whatever we call it...

Some functions (eg altitude manager, live chat) on exit return to the main menu,
Some finish the main menu as well.

[Menion]

@luxcalor
- for hiding the right panel exists "Presets", so suggest to use them to modify the style of the main screen. Later, once the style of the main screen will be +- confirmed, I'll add settings regards hiding of panels to Presets as well.
- green badge > it's future is not yet confirmed, but most probably it will be removed. Anyway, the current style is used in LM Pro for years and I believe this is a well-tested style.
- bottom recording panel does not (and will not) exists in LM4

@Andrew Heard
1) sure, magnifier cause map to be draw twice, so it require 2x CPU to draw map ... it may be slow with more content or slower devices.
2) interesting íssue I never noticed.
3) just to be sure ... where is pointing red part of arrow?
4) I'm also not sure it's the best place, current no better come to my mind. And limit to 5 ... just my expectation that more is not needed.

There is a lot more functions that may be added to the main menu and mainly to function panels, that are not visible in menu > more. It is because most of them are some kind of advanced features or they are simply a shortcuts that make sense only in function panels.

@tapio
thanks, I have to unite this system in the end. It is currently "attached" on the only main menu system.

[Tapio]

@luxcalor
- for hiding the right panel exists "Presets", so suggest to use them to modify the style of the main screen.

Hmmm, like Lux I also think it would be logical and flexible to just let the user fully hide each panel he wishes. Why should there be exceptions?
The only "problem" I see is, if all are set to hidden, double tap will do nothing.

[freischneider]

2) Function buttons on bottom panel are now tiny - attached. I reset preferences, and function buttons on bottom panel are now OK. PS. it seems related to Presets.

I also had the small symbols in the Pro this week. Top bar and side bar. After restart, everything was fine again.

[Andrew Heard]

1) sure, magnifier cause map to be draw twice, so it require 2x CPU to draw map ... it may be slow with more content or slower devices.

@menion - no - not 2x CPU, its was going from nice to near unusable, but most important point - even after magnifier is turned back off. PS. tested again right now (4 hours later) & working OK, so I can't explain.

It looks like map rotation only works when the GPS is enabled right? Should the compass be hidden or grayed out if GPS is off. It is a bit confusing when the compass is displayed but the map is not rotating.

3) just to be sure ... where is pointing red part of arrow?

red arrow? that is just a map cursor & has nothing to do with the tiny icons in bottom panel which occur after I invoke a Preset. Attached is another screen cap as soon as Locus4 is run. Note the compass is right outside it's white circle background. Next time I restarted it was OK though.

I don't normally do this amount of Locus testing in months but is it my imagination - Locus4 seems more sensitive to satellites than Pro - in my testing Locus4 displays satellites while I'm seated inside house whereas Pro finds nothing.