Apps to Document a Trip

[Metacom]

I did a quick search and couldn't find anything similar to this thread. I am taking a four day train trip across the country (The US) in August and I was wondering what apps would be best to document this?

My ideal goal would be to have my route tracked, perhaps Google Maps Integration somehow, and also have pictures/text messages from along the way put onto the map wherever they were taken/written. I would like this to be viewable by friends/family online as the trip is happening.

If I can't get the route tracked, that's fine, but I would like someway to display the pictures/texts from along the trip.

What App or combination of apps would you guys recommend I use to accomplish this?

I am familiar with WordPress and have used the Android Wordpress App a bit, but not too in depth. Would I be able to use this? Or is there a better way?

Thank you ahead of time for taking the time to read this, and I welcome and appreciate any ideas you might have!


Oh, and one more thing, unrelated. I noticed some apps (Google Voice for example) listed "Services that cost you money" as one thing they have access too. What exactly does this mean?

 

[lexluthor]

I think there was a similar thread last week.

HTC Footprints might be good for you. If you don't have an HTC device, you can probably find it by searching for footprints .apk

 

[Metacom]

Hi Lex,
Thanks for the reply! I am looking into HTC Footprints and have read a few reviews. I don't have an HTC phone however, so I am wondering if there is an app (or a few apps) that would accomplish this which I could just easily download and run.

I will continue to look into Footprints though, and if these seems like the best route to go I will definitely give it a shot!

 

[clintiepoo]

I understand what you're looking for, not sure how to do it. Here's a couple of things that may or may not be useful:

Google latitude now has history tracking, so if you enable it and enable history tracking, it will tell you when you were in what place.

The droid camera has GPS (not sure if it's on by default) tagging of the pictures as you take them. It embeds them into the picture. If you use Picasa on the desktop, it throws all the pictures you took up on a nice map.

Have a safe trip!

 

[lexluthor]

Looks like the .apk for HTC footprints can be downloaded here
Footprints- APK/Widget inside for those who want it - xda-developers

Might want to see if anyone else has tried it on your phone though.

 

[saecrow]

i've used a program called glympse, which may meet your needs. you can provide real time tracking of your location or just do "static" check-ins along the way. you can upload pictures which will put the location on a map. you can email out to whichever contacts you want to see your location, or you can integrate it with twitter and facebook. check it out (it's free).

official site: Glympse - Share Your Where
appbrain: Glympse - Android app on AppBrain

 

[stevieo526]

Check out My Tracks. I used it to track my ride to work one day and it maps it on google maps. It's pretty sweet.

My Tracks - Android app on AppBrain

 

[Metacom]

Thanks again for the responses! I noticed someone posted a similar thread today: http://androidforums.com/android-applications/102386-gps-mapping-app.html

clintiepoo - Latitude and Picasa sound like a good combo. I did turn on GPS for my camera, and it does GeoTag my photos. I have not used Picasa in the past, does it allow exporting etc? For example, could I use Picasa data on a website? (I know, I really should have checked out Picasa by now)

lexluthor - Thank you for the link! I'm downloading now, and will definitely be giving it a look. Good think my trip isn't until August, haha, I have time to try different options.

saecrow - Glympse looks like it is right on the idea I am looking for. I'll have to read more reviews, but can you embed pictures along the route?

steveio - The same goes for MyTracks, can I embed pictures along the route?


Another concern of mine is battery drain. I will be on the train, and I can have my phone plugged in the majority of the time, but for those times that I can't, I will need to preserve battery as best as possible. I know, this will be difficult but thankfully I don't think I'll need to unplug my phone that often or for prolonged periods of time.


I definitely have a lot of good information to check out, thanks guys. I am wondering, if I don't find everything I need in an app, do you think it would be difficult to develop a new app that does? I am just starting to develop for Android, but I do have a background in Web Design and Development. Any input is appreciated.

 

[lexluthor]

Metacom, please post after your evaluation. I have a trip in August too.

Footprints looks good for me. Seems like it'll let me take a picture at various locations, it'll geotag it, show it on a map and then allow me to make some notes about it.

They can be categorized as shopping, dining, leisure and other.

I can also export it to a .kmz file, but I'm not quite sure what to do with that.

One thing I don't see is a way to set up trip folders, so that I can have footprints for trip a separate from footprints for trip b. I'd think that'd be an important thing, but I don't see it.

EDIT: I was able to open the .kmz file in google earth. Also, inside the .kmz file (using 7-zip), there's a .kml file. I was able to put that file online, then put the url to the file into google maps and all of the locations and notes added in via footprints appeared on the map.

Still, I wish there was a way to separate multiple trips.

 

[clintiepoo]

Thanks again for the responses! I noticed someone posted a similar thread today: http://androidforums.com/android-applications/102386-gps-mapping-app.html

clintiepoo - Latitude and Picasa sound like a good combo. I did turn on GPS for my camera, and it does GeoTag my photos. I have not used Picasa in the past, does it allow exporting etc? For example, could I use Picasa data on a website? (I know, I really should have checked out Picasa by now)

I don't know the answer to your specific question, but I know you can embed pictures and slideshows in blogger at least using picasa web albums. This picture source comes from picasa, and it shows a trip I took to California last winter. It's really good software, even if it's not what you decide to use on your trip.

 

[zartemis]

In one of the posts it was asked if you can embed pictures in a Google My Maps track (from My Tracks, say). The answer is yes!

You need the pictures to be geotagged first (best done by the camera/phone if it has that ability, but you can do it manually later or if you have your camera time synced accurately, there are tools which will geotag photos based on a gps tracklog).

Then, a relatively easy way to get them in to a My Maps track is to load the photos into a Picasa Web album, it will recognize the geotagging and give you a geoRSS feed. Go to the album on the web, right-click the RSS link and save the URL. Then open your track on Google My Maps. Click "Edit" on the left pane, then the "Import" link also in the left pane, right at the top, and paste in the RSS URL. It will then add placemarks on your map at each location with the photos embedded. It only gives you a tiny screen to edit and add add'l text, but once you click 'done', clicking on any placemarks will expand with the full photo and any title/description you've added.

 

[zartemis]

Another option for trip logging is everytrail.com. I used this on the first part of my 5 week roadtrip. It's more heavy duty and the website can load slowly, but you can add gps and photos, I think it will do time syncing of photos for you if you don't have geotagging or you can place them. You can add all sorts of descriptions, etc.

Here is an example

 

[Metacom]

Has anyone used Trip Journal before?
Trip Journal: Iphone and Android Application

There are mixed reviews, but it might be worth a shot.