This discussion has been locked.

You can no longer post new replies to this discussion. If you have a question you can start a new discussion

Countdown timer function or app?

I've been for a decent seach and I can't find an app or function that does what I want. Can you help please?

In a perfect world I'd have a configurable data field that counts down time to 0:00, beeps, and then counts back up until it is easily reset with 1 button press. Does such a thing exist?

Why you ask? I'm planning a long 300km ride in a small group and we want to keep track of our X minute stints on the front. After X mins you rotate into the wheels. So this is a basic ride captain type function. A stint only starts when you are on the lead and the group is settled, sometimes out on the road an exact X minute change is not neccessarily a good idea (middle of a hill or descent) or safe (traffic, junction, etc). Hence the need for an easy reset button.

I apprecaite that this might be using tech to solve seemingly easy problem. What would your solution be? Possibly a basic watch strapped to the bars? Rotating the lead captain every hour? Currently we are just rotating on 00,05,10,15,20,etc clock, but it's not ideal. It's too easy to lose track after 200km. Any ideas welcomed.

Thanks

Simon

0 Attila over 5 years ago

It's probably not exactly what you want, but the closest built in feature is that you can add time based recurring alerts to your activity profile:

www8.garmin.com/.../GUID-3ED6529C-FED2-4D3C-8126-9AFC22836DFE.html

Alternatively you can create a workout in Garmin Connect where it will alert you after x minutes and then repeats. This way you will even have laps to analyze for every alert cycle.

0 SimonB over 5 years ago in reply to Attila

Thanks Attila,

We've been using that and it's not really very useful as it gets out of sync so easily. It only takes a couple of stops at a junction to get out of sync. Hence the requirement for a reset button.

Thank you anyway.

Simon

0 Attila over 5 years ago in reply to SimonB

Ah, I see. I didn't realize you need to keep it in sync between multiple devices. One workaround is to disable "Auto Pause" on all units, but I guess not everybody likes that.

So the alternative would be to create a simple workout that repeats, counts to x minutes then gives you a second step that ends when you press the Lap button only. This way everybody can get back in sync if necessary. Not sure if I can attach a picture of the planned workout, but I try. If you need to reset and resync at a random time, you can press the lap button twice to start a new countdown whenever, I think.

0 SimonB over 5 years ago in reply to Attila

Thank you. I'll give this a try and see if we can work with it. It looks like a good soln. I'll let you know

The other idea I had was to work with AppBuilder5 and a custom data field.

Thanks

Simon

0 Former Member over 5 years ago

As far as I can tell, data fields cannot respond to button presses. That leaves the option of an App (accessed via Menu > Connect IQ) or a Widget (accessed via Status > Widgets). I've created a prototype that counts down seconds, with the lap button [re-]starting the countdown, and the start button starting or pausing. If this sounds like it may do what you need, I can try and take it further.

Stephen

0 Former Member over 5 years ago

I've build a prototype widget, available here: github.com/.../countdown