Watchface: Countdown!

Hi!

A brand new, re-designed and highly configurable countdown watchface was released today!

Countdown! was inspired by my first countdown watchfaces, which eventually got pulled from the ConnectIQ store.

These older watchfaces were hard-coded in the sense that you couldn't configure your own event date.
It wasn't long before I found it impossible to keep up with requests for watchfaces for all sorts of events.
This forced me to stop any further development of countdown watchfaces.

For all the new Garmin owners, and those who wish to refresh their memory, the old thread can be found here: Watchface: CountDown 2 Event

Based on the short history lesson above, it is easy to understand and appreciate the need for user configurability.
With the advent of v1.2.1 SDK, Garmin provided developers with the capability to integrate user configurability into their apps.

And so Countdown! was born!

FEATURES:

Time in 12 / 24 format
Date
Battery level in %
Bluetooth indicator for mobile phone
Notifications icon and count
Alarm icon and count
Sleep mode icon
Step counter
Event count down
Fully configurable:
- Colors
- Time size (normal / bigger)
- Hide / display event date
- Hide / display Step counter!

IMPORTANT -- PLEASE READ !!
A few bugs exist in iOS and Android flavours of Garmin Connect Mobile app, specifically with regards to the setting of an event date.
These bugs have been reported to Garmin, but until a fix is available, you have to abide to some rules to ensure a hassle free experience.
Read through the section relevant to the platform of your mobile phone BEFORE YOU GIVE ANY BAD RATINGS / REVIEWS!
I am available on email ([email protected]) and will dedicate my time to provide assistance with any problems you may encounter with this watchface.

[----- iOS -----]
When opening the settings for this watchface, you will notice that the "Event Date" picker most of the times displays an empty value, or sometimes 1 Jan 1970.
Please ensure that you always pick your event date EVERY time you open settings, even if you only wish to change another setting like a color (valid date must be between current date and 18 Jan 2038).
Failure to set the Event Date will result in the counter on the watch to reset to "0 days".
If it gets reset accidentally, just enter settings again and pick the event date and save it again.

[----- ANDROID -----]
When opening the settings for this watchface, you will notice that the "Event Date" picker may display an old value, like "17 Jan 1970".
Please ensure that you pick an event date to override this old date. Next time you enter settings, it will correctly display your chosen date (valid date must be between current date and 18 Jan 2038).

[----- GARMIN EXPRESS MAC / WIN -----]
VERY IMPORTANT: Make sure your Garmin Express version is 4.1.11.0 or higher!
Older versions cause problems with all colors resetting to black, making the watchface appear blank and empty.
Once you have the latest version installed, configuring settings with Garmin Express is the RECOMMENDED way: It provides the most stable and reliable experience in configuring this watchface. If you experience any difficulties with your mobile phone, please first try Garmin Express before giving up.

Please email me at
[email][email protected][/email]
for further assistance.
Don't forget to provide the model of your watch and the firmware version. Help me to help you :)

TUTORIAL:
Follow this link for a quick tutorial on how to use Garmin ConnectIQ settings to configure this watchface:
(TIP: Use your existing Connect account to log into the forum to be able to view the screen shots. No need for you to create another account!)
How to: App Settings

Nighthawk700 over 9 years ago

Does this watchface have any type of move bar/indicator? I wasn't sure if the green dots across are showing your step progress towards the goal (fill the row when you meet your goal) or were nudging you that you need to move already.

I'll try loading this watchface the next time I plug in to charge up, likely after my run tomorrow.

HermoT over 9 years ago

Does this watchface have any type of move bar/indicator? I wasn't sure if the green dots across are showing your step progress towards the goal (fill the row when you meet your goal) or were nudging you that you need to move already.

Thanks for your question, and good point!
There is no move bar due to limited space.
The dots you referring to is more a step goal progress bar.

I will make this more clear in the documentation.

Former Member over 9 years ago

Wrong number of days

Hi, I installed the watchface yesterday and really like it, BUT: it is not counting down! Yesterday, I set the date to April 10th 2016, which was 104 days in the future, which was correct, but right now, a day later, it still says: 104 days. I tried setting the date again in settings, but the result is the same.
The app on my phone clearly says it is now 103 days..

My question: is this because of time zone differences? If not, what time is used for calculations? Which leads to the question: why can't I set a specific time? A countdown, imho, should count down days, hours, minutes and seconds; even if you only show days until the event, on race day I'd love to see the hours till the event.

And to take the idea a bit further: you might even add configurable type of events: races, birthdays, reminders for someone else's birthday, etc. And the app could then congratulate you, remind you or wish you good luck ;)

But first things first... this app needs to count down properly!
I use it on a Garmin FR 235, latest software.

HermoT over 9 years ago

Hi, I installed the watchface yesterday and really like it, BUT: it is not counting down! Yesterday, I set the date to April 10th 2016, which was 104 days in the future, which was correct, but right now, a day later, it still says: 104 days. I tried setting the date again in settings, but the result is the same.
The app on my phone clearly says it is now 103 days..

My question: is this because of time zone differences? If not, what time is used for calculations?

Hi!

It most definitely should be a timezone issue.
Thanks for reporting it here. I will try my best and assist with the issue.

To start, can you please provide me with the following details:

In which timezone do you live?
I assume you used Connect Mobile App to configure the watchface? If not, was it Garmin Express?
If it is Garmin Connect Mobile app, is it iOS or Android?

There are a lot of variables and right now the date support in settings is buggy.
Your patience in this regard while we troubleshoot this will be appreciated!

Regards,

Hermo

Former Member over 9 years ago

Hi!

It most definitely should be a timezone issue.
Thanks for reporting it here. I will try my best and assist with the issue.

To start, can you please provide me with the following details:
In which timezone do you live?
I assume you used Connect Mobile App to configure the watchface? If not, was it Garmin Express?
If it is Garmin Connect Mobile app, is it iOS or Android?

There are a lot of variables and right now the date support in settings is buggy.
Your patience in this regard while we troubleshoot this will be appreciated!

Regards,

Hermo

Thanks for the quick reply, Hermo.
I live in The Netherlands, so the timezone is UTC/GMT +1 hours.
I did not use the Mobile App - still have an old phone which doesn't have bluetooth 4 yet; I am ordering a new phone so I can use the full functionality of the watch, but it's not here yet :D I am using Garmin Express instead, the iOS version.

thanks in advance!

HermoT over 9 years ago

Thanks for the quick reply, Hermo.
I live in The Netherlands, so the timezone is UTC/GMT +1 hours.
I did not use the Mobile App - still have an old phone which doesn't have bluetooth 4 yet; I am ordering a new phone so I can use the full functionality of the watch, but it's not here yet :D I am using Garmin Express instead, the iOS version.

thanks in advance!

I have found some anomalies in the way iOS, Android and Garmin Express configure a date on the watch. Unfortunately all three send different values to the watch, so it was pretty hard to troubleshoot and fix.

I have uploaded a new version: 1.0.1 to the store.
Can you please download and test it. The counter should change at 12:00 am (midnight) regardless of timezone.
Please let me know if there are still unexpected results.

Also important to note:

I have discovered some issues when configuring a watchface using Android, and then after that using Garmin Express to configure the same watchface.
It appears that there is some level of data corruption or incompatibility between the two.

If you run into issues, please fully uninstall and reinstall the watchface, and then try to stick to only one method of configuring the watchface, instead of mixing it up between iOS, Android and Garmin Express.

I am reporting all the issues to Garmin.

webvan over 9 years ago

Thanks for the watch face, nice to have all these options. Can't really think of anything to suggest at this point, maybe multiple events wit a rolling display but there might be memory/display issues?

Former Member over 9 years ago

Thanks!

Hi Hermo,

Thanks for the very fast reply and fix, I will download it now and test it :) Will post the results at midnight my time ;)

HermoT over 9 years ago

Thanks for the watch face, nice to have all these options. Can't really think of anything to suggest at this point, maybe multiple events wit a rolling display but there might be memory/display issues?

Thanks for supporting and the kind words!
Noted your interesting idea about the scroller. Will put on backlog and reevaluate feasibility when I get to it.

HermoT over 9 years ago

Hi Hermo,

Thanks for the very fast reply and fix, I will download it now and test it :) Will post the results at midnight my time ;)

Thank you! Please uninstall first. I would like to make sure there are no leftover issues from the first version.