During the pandemic at night and on weekends, I designed and programmed an app for the iPhone and iPad to compile and prepare observation logs. Primary because filling paper logs just sucks and trying to keep all of the equipment straight is always a challenge. A big part of my job is doing static GPS observations, and I do a lot of them. My thought was, if I could make it easy, I would never have to fill out a paper log again. I realize I probably spent more time programming than I ever will filling out logs, but that is the nature of someone with a coding addiction. Besides creating a working app was a lot of the challenge. Learning a new programming language was tough, but I got through it.?ÿ
So after 15 months of programming and a year of Beta testing, and hundreds of observations, Apple accepted my app and is available to download for free on the App Store. No, it doesn??t have ads and no, you don??t have to create an account or subscribe to anything. It works for me and my coworkers and we use it every day, so if you do static GPS, try it out.
If you do download it, the user manual can be found under help on the settings page. If you have any questions, post them here. If it works for you, leave a good review, if not, let me know what needs to be fixed.
I??m not a software engineer, I??m a surveyor that can code. Be gentle.?ÿ
Here is a link to the app on the app store.
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/gnss-log-app/id1554968869
edit: full disclosure, even though I work in field ops at NGS, this is not an official NOAA product, hence the programming nights and weekends.?ÿ
Congratulations on your hard work. I make the following comments that you can take with however many grains of salt you wish.
1. Shouldn??t the first screen users see when starting be either your ??ADD A NEW PROJECT? or a new option ??OPEN AN EXISTING PROJECT??
2. I found it more logical to build data from options on the Library page.
3. Shouldn??t many of your fields have drop-down selections consistent with those used by NGS? By this I mean: Observing Agency, receiver model and name, antenna model and name, state and county?
4. I would not want a default for an antenna height.?ÿ
5. Your page ??Enter New Site Details? seems to refer to points that are in the NGSIDB and not points to be positioned during the project.
6. I note use of ??4CID? meaning I guess ??Four-character identifier.? You also refer to SSN ??station serial number.? Personally, I would prefer to see a ??serfil? created on the ??New Project? page containing the SSN and 4-charID. Editing the values would be linked from the project page.
7. I note that there are neither a JSIN nor a JSAN are included. Have these fields been dropped from the NGS B-file?
8. I see that geodetic coordinates lat and lon can only be N and W. You also ask for h, N and H. Then the page wants the datum. Is this the horizontal or vertical datum? Will this support projects in US territories like Guam or American Samoa or even Puerto Rico?
At one time, I advocated for the creation of a digital log form in order to insure the collection of data needed to complete the RINEX header. I argued that with the supplemented log form data most of the B-file elements could be retrieved from the edited RINEX file.
When considering my comments keep in mind that I have not been involved in submitting projects in over a decade. My understanding of the process might be completely outdated.
In closing, I note that your post is inconsistent with your help file.
In the section ??Installing the App? you write ??The app will start with a one-week trial. After a week, a subscription is required. You can purchase a subscription in the setting page.?
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?ÿCongratulations on your hard work. I make the following comments that you can take with however many grains of salt you wish.
1. Shouldn??t the first screen users see when starting be either your ??ADD A NEW PROJECT? or a new option ??OPEN AN EXISTING PROJECT??
Right at the top of the first page is add observation
2. I found it more logical to build data from options on the Library page.
The Library is where you keep the reusable elements of an observation log. That way I only have to punch in the details once, then I am picking them from lists.
3. Shouldn??t many of your fields have drop-down selections consistent with those used by NGS? By this I mean: Observing Agency, receiver model and name, antenna model and name, state and county?
I am not sure if you are talking about fields in the library or when you are building a new log. I have to say they are consistent with what NGS uses these days.
4. I would not want a default for an antenna height.?ÿ
All antennas should have a height. I should note, that we only use fixed height tripods, both two meter and colaspible. We do not use slip leg tripods for GNSS observations, so I did not build that into the app. Might be something I do in the future.
5. Your page ??Enter New Site Details? seems to refer to points that are in the NGSIDB and not points to be positioned during the project.
Well, yes and no. The app is geared for points in the IDB and OPUS Share. Most of the work I do are benchmarks associated with Tide Stations, so under site details, if a site ID is a tide station, you can load the benchmark set from the COOPS database. Some points are in the IDB, but most are not. You can add monuments that are not in any of the databases with a local ID that you give it.
6. I note use of ??4CID? meaning I guess ??Four-character identifier.? You also refer to SSN ??station serial number.? Personally, I would prefer to see a ??serfil? created on the ??New Project? page containing the SSN and 4-charID. Editing the values would be linked from the project page.
That was more about space and layout. I had not thought about generating the serfil
7. I note that there are neither a JSIN nor a JSAN are included. Have these fields been dropped from the NGS B-file?
8. I see that geodetic coordinates lat and lon can only be N and W. You also ask for h, N and H. Then the page wants the datum. Is this the horizontal or vertical datum? Will this support projects in US territories like Guam or American Samoa or even Puerto Rico?
I need to look at that again and clarify the datums. It should work in the US and territories. I guess I'll find out, I have someone in Guam using it.
At one time, I advocated for the creation of a digital log form in order to insure the collection of data needed to complete the RINEX header. I argued that with the supplemented log form data most of the B-file elements could be retrieved from the edited RINEX file.
When considering my comments keep in mind that I have not been involved in submitting projects in over a decade. My understanding of the process might be completely outdated.
The process is definitely going through a lot of changes with the newer versions of OPUS Projects.?ÿ
In closing, I note that your post is inconsistent with your help file.
In the section ??Installing the App? you write ??The app will start with a one-week trial. After a week, a subscription is required. You can purchase a subscription in the setting page.?
?ÿ
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Yep, a seven day trial was in one version of the beta testing. I really kicked around the thought of charging a subscription fee. But it creates a whole new set of issues. It would have been worth it if I expected a million downloads, but as you know, we are in a pretty specialized industry. ?ÿLooks like I need to change the help file on the next update.
I am sure may not be all encompassing. It really is driven by what's on my plate. I was really thinking I would get a lot of "What about an android version" questions. I don't know kotlin very well, but it may be something I do.
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Again, I do appreciate the time you took to look at it and type in your questions and concerns.