Hi,
I would like to incorporate waypoints, destinations, and if possible "courses" into a datafield or app. I have three questions.
-First question-
In the SDK, "Activity->Info":
- distanceToDestination attribute
- distanceToNextPoint attribute
- offCourseDistance attribute
What steps would I need to take, to see these attributes populate accurately in an app? i.e., Would I need to load a waypoint into memory, or load a route? Would I call the "Waypoint->toIntent" function? Is there a sample around somewhere that does this, so I can examine it? Please send me the link to a thread if there is one :)
-Second question-
In the SDK, "PersistedContent":
- Route member class
- Track member class
- Waypoint member class
What steps would I have to take, to have my app create/save a route, populated by a list of waypoints, which the user would have to go to? Is there a sample around that I can examine? Has anyone used these pre-existing GPS functions before?
My initial guess would be to create a Widget which iterates waypoints and routes, and see if by selecting a certain waypoint, if it will automatically show me the "distance and direction arrow" (aka "return to start") screen to that waypoint. I guess I will test these things if I can't get any answers, so any answers would be appreciated.
-Third question-
What watches/platforms support waypoints, and routes? I see one answer is https://forums.garmin.com/showthread.php?356513-How-to-access-course-waypoints&highlight=waypoint
I need to know, so I can determine what watch to buy as a second connectIQ-compatible watch, so I can create an app for multiple users (think about the popular European sport orienteering http://orienteering.org/ , or another idea is geocaching competitions).
According to the SDK, the saving waypoint functionality in "PersistedLocations" is "only available on devices that support waypoints". It goes on to list the supported devices as fenix 2 and epix. It also says "PersistedLocations" module will be replaced by "PersistedContent" in ConnectIQ 4.0.0, but PersistedContent module does not show any list of "supported devices".
I THINK I have been able to save waypoints to my FR630 in an app I wrote. I am thankful for this, because the FR630 was one of the top watches Garmin offered at the time I purchased it, and I should hope it had these core GPS functionalities! I honestly would hope all of Garmin's watches have this capability, and not just the "top tier" fitness watches...
I also own an old Garmin Foretrex 101 and also an old Garmin Rino. The MOST USEFUL FEATURES on these devices in my opinion was the ABILITY TO SAVE AND LOAD WAYPOINTS, to find one's way through the woods. I was surprised that these "core" GPS functionalities are left "unimplemented" or "hidden" in many of Garmin's watches today. I think these standard GPS features like saving and loading waypoints are very important and are the "killer" functionalities that make customers want to buy a Garmin over another mobile technology like fitbit or apple iwatch. I hope Garmin would leave these important GPS functionalities accessible to most/all of its watches in the future. I request that Garmin make these functionalities more transparent and accessible for programmers - so that apps for the iwatch and iphone don't start quickly replacing Garmin's capabilities :)