Golf Scorecard: 1st version submitted.

Former Member over 10 years ago

I have just submitted my very first release of a simple Golf scorecard app.

(I'd like to post a screenshot here but the image upload widget doesn't work for me)

A simple Golf app that counts your strokes per hole and, if manually started, records the distance, duration and track of your round.
Instructions:

(1) The App will crash on the very first instance. Don't worry. Retry. Just as in Golf: your next swing will be just fine!

(2) The main screen shows the current hole, the strokes on this hole, and, in smaller print, the total score (no stableford, no Hcp, no nothing, only plain strokes) and the time.

(3) To add a stroke press the up button. To delete a stroke press the down button.

(4) Press the "Start/Enter" button to show your score card: the "out" 9 holes in the first row, the "in" holes in the second row. The current hole is marked by a "V". Please note that for convenience the app advances one hole when you invoke the scorecard. You can just click "Start/Enter" a second time to return to the stroke keeping main screen for the next hole. If you want to stay in the current hole or navigate to any other hole, use the up and down buttons. Use "Start/Enter" when done.

Remember: clicking "Start/Enter" twice advances one hole and returns to the main screen. Convenient, isn't it?

(5) If you want to record your activity and create a FIT file that will be uploaded automatically to your Garmin Connect Account, press the "Menu" button (that is the "up" button, but pressed for a while). Use the up/down buttons to navigate the menu. Select "Start Round". CAUTION: this will reset the current scorecard! So if you want to record your round, activate recording before you start your round. Once done, invoke the menu again and select "End round". This will stop recording and finalize the FIT file for upload. You

There are currently no confirmation dialogs such as "are you sure you want to do this?". So be prepared to take the responsibility of any button you press.

The App runs on a fenx 3 only. I bet there will be bugs. Please remember: this is the very first release! Hcp 54 in Golf language.

QUARKTD1 over 10 years ago

I also get crash at 8.05km.

Former Member over 10 years ago

OK, I found the reason for the 8.05 km "crash" and fixed it. New version 1.2 is uploaded. Please go and grab it.

Apart from fixing the problem, there is one small goodie: I recognized that sometimes during a stroke my wrist or glove pressed the ESC/Back button and ended the App. Now the ESC/Back button is blocked while you are recording. In order to terminate the App, you now have to terminate the recording by the corresponding menu item. The screen indicates this by a red circle next to the ESC/Back button with a "!" in it.

Now for the explanation why the app kept terminating around 8.05 km. It turned out that is wasn't a real crash but it terminated in a nominal way, i.e. saving the status and closing the FIT file. However, the termination was unwanted, of course, and not initiated by the user or by the app. The reason is a screen that is invoked by the system (I don't know why this happens), and this screen replaces the App's screen, which calls the App method "onHide()", where my code initiated a nominal shut-down.

I can't do anything against these unwanted system screens appearing, but I simply removed the shut-down code from the onHide() method. This should keep the App active until it is closed manually by stopping the recording by the corresponding menu item.

Thank you all for patiently waiting for me to find the problem and fix it. The solution is still not perfect because these system screens may still pop up, but that's something I can't control (and not even test in the simulator).

QUARKTD1 over 10 years ago

Many thanks. I have downloaded the new 1.2 version. Will test it in the next upcoming golf round.

newtonfb over 10 years ago

anyway to get yardage? I know its a scorecard app.
I use this on my Suunto watch

http://www.movescount.com/apps/app10005836-Golf_Yardage

You have to mark your course holes with waypoints on your own via gpx file and save as a route. Then you use the waypoints as your hole points but it converts it from meters to yards. Seems pretty simple I just have no idea how to program.

Former Member over 9 years ago

I thought about it. However, it would not be in yards, but meters, if it ever comes (There are only 3 countries in the world that haven't adopted the metric system).

My first idea was to use lap markers and later read a course and evaluate it, but the API does not support it. It is possible and probably rather easy to store the 18 pin positions (to be marked manually) on the app's properties. There are some disadvantages with this, though:

1) It would work only if you played the same course already before and it was the last course on which you marked the greens.
2) One would need an extra button to mark the green, but the SDK does not support the "light" key, or hold key events or similar. Marking the green position using the menu is no option for me, because it would upset me and my flight partners if I play with a gadget on the green and delay the game.
3) It somehow closes the door for a more sophisticated approach: provide DIFFERENT courses on a JSON server somewhere, and let the app download it per JSON request.

The latter would be great, but I have no experience in setting up a JSON server, and a first attempt to load something else, in order to get familiar with the API, failed. I am too dumb to get it up and running.

Former Member over 9 years ago

You might take a look at the Disc-Golf-IQ sample that was recently posted. Using a partner app to store saved courses and send the green locations to the watch at the start of the round would probably work pretty well.

With a bit of additional interface, you could probably save a handful of courses in the object store before without running out of app space without using a companion app.

Nikeow over 9 years ago

OK, I found the reason for the 8.05 km "crash" and fixed it. New version 1.2 is uploaded. Please go and grab it.

Now for the explanation why the app kept terminating around 8.05 km. It turned out that is wasn't a real crash but it terminated in a nominal way, i.e. saving the status and closing the FIT file. However, the termination was unwanted, of course, and not initiated by the user or by the app. The reason is a screen that is invoked by the system (I don't know why this happens), and this screen replaces the App's screen, which calls the App method "onHide()", where my code initiated a nominal shut-down.

what "screen" is that?

QUARKTD1 over 9 years ago

Many thanks. I have downloaded the new 1.2 version. Will test it in the next upcoming golf round.

Today I've just completed a golf round with Golf_SC v 1.2. It worked very well for the purpose of scoring and recording your walk path using GPS.

Some notes:
- Auto Lap is happened at 8.05km (which is not the behavior of the app, but the watch software, I guessed).
- When you are in the "hole selection" screen and press menu (holding the UP button) to select "exit app"... the app does not actually exit. You must go back to the scoring screen to exit.

Anyway, this is a very excellent app. Many thanks to planetscooter for bringing us a very practical app to score the golf results.

many ideas to improve this app further. But it will be later.

Former Member over 9 years ago

what "screen" is that?

What I read from the Garmin staff, it is the screen that pops up when an automatic lap marker is set. I can control neither of the two (automatic lap enabled/disabled and show/don't show screen) from my App. The system gets in the way.

Former Member over 9 years ago

Today I've just completed a golf round with Golf_SC v 1.2. It worked very well for the purpose of scoring and recording your walk path using GPS.

Thank you, I'm glad to hear that.

Some notes:
- Auto Lap is happened at 8.05km (which is not the behavior of the app, but the watch software, I guessed).
- When you are in the "hole selection" screen and press menu (holding the UP button) to select "exit app"... the app does not actually exit. You must go back to the scoring screen to exit.

Yes that's right. I'm not sure how I can terminate the app by source code. I am reluctant to call the "onStop()" method directly, because it is an event handler, reacting on an event that comes from the system (or user). What the menu item currently does is it sets a flag such that the "Esc/back" button is enabled again. But the user still has to push that button to quit. I'd like to change that, but I need to understand how.

Anyway, this is a very excellent app. Many thanks to planetscooter for bringing us a very practical app to score the golf results.

many ideas to improve this app further. But it will be later.

Thanks again! Good to hear that.