dualsportmaps.com - Android App

[abhibeckert]

Originally Posted by sandalscout

Capacitive touchscreens (as I understand it) rely on the electrical current in the human body to trigger the input, restive relies on the physical shorting out of layers in the screen by pressure.

I don't think (but I'm not sure) that Android devices are standardized across the board as the iPhone is.

There are no modern phones with resistive touch screens. They were standard once, but are not very good everyone has switched to capacitive. There are some very old or very very cheap devices that still go for resistive, but no good phone is using it.

It seems there are different techniques to make a capacitive touch screen though. Some of them require an electrical contact on the surface of the screen, while others allow you to have (for example) a thick sheet of plexiglass your finger and the capacitance grid, so it may well depend what phone you have.

The internet is full of people complaining you can't use an iPhone with gloves on. I think they're either full of s**t, or are repeating other people's s**t without verifying it, or they have different gloves to any I've ever had a chance to test, and I've tested plenty.

As a test I covered my finger in electrical tape, and my phone's touch screen still works. I had to wrap the tape six or seven layers thick to stop the touch screen from working (there wasn't really a fixed thickness where it stopped working, it just got progressively more difficult. Two or three layers was as if the tape wasn't even there).

I'm sure there are android devices made/sold in china for $50 that have bad touch screens, but I would expect any of the popular models to be at least similar in quality to what I have on my iPhone. Having a grid of capacitance sensors on the outside of the display doesn't sound feasible at all, one tiny scratch and your touchscreen is ruined. I'm willing to bet all android phones are either resistive, or use a capacitive touch technology that allows a layer of protective glass or plastic between your finger and the sensor. If they have that, then you're just making it a bit thicker by adding a clear plastic screen protector or wearing gloves.

[beechum1]

Originally Posted by beechum1

On My evo, when I was designing a custom waterproof case, I was going to use the standard 7 mil laminating plastic from Staples. Even with a piece of paper in it, I could still use the touch screen, and IIRC, with my leather gloves as well.

Combined with the 7mil protective adhesive plastic cover that is already on there I should mention......

[craftycoder]

http://store.androidcentral.com/over...A104A7226A.htm

[Yossarian™]

Originally Posted by craftycoder

http://store.androidcentral.com/over...A104A7226A.htm

Not until you posted it. Looks good!

[sandalscout]

I'd looked at that case, or one VERY similar. The only thing about it that I wasn't real sure of, how do you mount it to your bike in that case???

[pngaudioguy]

www.drycase.com has another one that I think looks intriguing, but aside from how to mount it, there's the question of how to get USB in and out. I think these are a good starting point for a waterproof case idea, though.

[craftycoder]

I built up the remote control prototype this evening. I'll write the firmware to interface with the phone and then I'll write the software for the phone to interface with the joystick. Once I am happy with all that. I'll figure out how small and cheap I can build it and see if I can get a billet case machined to hold the controls. The computer and charger (the white circuit board under the red control board) will live under the seat or in the weather proof phone case (yet to be designed) and will plug into both the phone and the controls.

[duoderf]

I use my Tmobile Mytouch 4g (HTC Sense) in a RAM mount Aqua box, and I can still use the touchscreen. Its not great, and I need to move really slow and press on it pretty good, but it does work.

I also have a 12v cig outlet on my dash, I run a 12 outlet to USB converter and a simple usb cord to the phone inside the aqua box



Also I would love to try this app, I'm waiting very impatiently

[craftycoder]

That surprises me, but it is welcome news. I guess I need to get one of those and try it out. Is there any space in the case for something as big as a pair of USB memory sticks side by side underneath the phone? Is the screen soft plastic, I had assumed it was hard plastic.

Originally Posted by duoderf

I use my Tmobile Mytouch 4g (HTC Sense) in a RAM mount Aqua box, and I can still use the touchscreen. Its not great, and I need to move really slow and press on it pretty good, but it does work.

[Mr Head]

Looks like the lens is flexible and replaceable.



http://www.ram-mount.com/Products/Aq...5/Default.aspx

Originally Posted by craftycoder

That surprises me, but it is welcome news. I guess I need to get one of those and try it out. Is there any space in the case for something as big as a pair of USB memory sticks side by side underneath the phone? Is the screen soft plastic, I had assumed it was hard plastic.

[craftycoder]

This is the prototype of the remote control that will clamp to the bar near the left grip. I will shrink it down of course now that I know what I need and what I don't.

We are about to enter territory I am unfamiliar with. Fabricating the case will be a bear for me.

[beechum1]

Friggin awesome. I couldn't tell exactly what was going on, i'm on the road right now, but idea:

have the L3 be a toggle from pan to zoom. Keep the frequent controls to the stick and the waypoints and menus to the buttons.

[Mr Head]

My first generation Verizon Motorola Droid is going to crap now. Last night it froze up again while a call was coming in. I couldn't un-freeze it even after the call was lost/quit calling. I couldn't get the thing to enter any application, even the phone. Rendered basically useless.
I pulled the battery since even the on/off switch was no longer responding.

It worked OK, by the time I get back home but it had re-fired up in airplane mode??

I'm about ready to ditch the thing. I'm none too thrilled about another new phone. The battery life has definitely changed in the past 6 months from all day to a few hours.

[craftycoder]

I'm loving my Nexus S. If you want to be able to run the remote control you will need the latest Gingerbread (android 2.3.4).

As for battery life, that is just criminal. That isn't because the cells are bad. They put software in the battery pack that tells them to last less time after so many cycles. They do that so your batteries will die and will not be replaceable because they stopped making that model when the new phone came out. Grr...

[Mr Head]

I was wondering where the poison pill was.
I had more faith in Motorola would last, but I found after I got into this thread my phone we set to never be updated to the later Ginger and MaryAnne thing.
Here's an odd thing; my wife is still using an old NV2 that is about 4 years old with the original battery no less. The one I had the battery began dying after half a day.

This "old" Droid won't last for the flight from OC to Seattle if I listen to music in-flight in airplane mode.
It is going to be replaced, and probably with a newer Droid. I still don't trust the phone anymore.
When we were on vacation last summer, using the phone for navigation, following routes my daughter had created in Goggle Maps, We lost the GPS function when I made a phone call, (hit Bambi and needed to make a report so insurance could fight with us about replacing our obsolete car...), no more GPS after that, cell service dropped to zero bars too.
Once we re-established cell service the GPS came back after cycling power.
Made me think the maps and GPS were only useful with cell service not so useful out and away. I don't depend on it anymore for directions.
I don't know if this is unique to my phone but from your demos and the discussions I tend to think it is just the older phone.

I will likely get this taken care of this weekend since I have a trip into the big empty to take here in a bit. I'd prefer a phone that at least worked as a phone if I needed it.

Originally Posted by craftycoder

I'm loving my Nexus S. If you want to be able to run the remote control you will need the latest Gingerbread (android 2.3.4).

As for battery life, that is just criminal. That isn't because the cells are bad. They put software in the battery pack that tells them to last less time after so many cycles. They do that so your batteries will die and will not be replaceable because they stopped making that model when the new phone came out. Grr...