squiddio plugin

[coupdemistral]

Originally Posted by kevinvh

From my viewpoint, Squiddio is not a suitable replacement for Active Captain. In most instances it requires internet access to view the relevant data, its user interface in OpenCPN is not as user friendly and nor does it contain the anchorage detail that Active Captain does, and there is very little feedback from sailors visiting the anchorages.

I don't think anyone has ever claimed that sQuiddio is on par with Active Captain in terms of depth and breadth of content. It simply follows a different approach: make the information available on OpenCPN (including when not connected to the Internet!) and make it open. It's an initiative that relies on user participation to grow and improve (including improving the UI)

Perhaps I am not familiar enough with Squiddio yet, but I would like to see something that updates the anchorage database on my hard disk rather than having to access the internet - which is not a possibility if you are cruising remote parts of the world.

to make it clear: the POI information you download through the plugin is indeed cached on your hard drive and available offline through OpenCPN. It includes almost all the stuff you see online on the Destination page online.

Suggesting that Squiddio can be used over a satellite phone is ridiculous - it would run you broke and you would have no hair left with the frustrations of poor connectivity.

I do not disagree with you. It is not a feature we have promoted widely and yes, it can be expensive and perhaps frustrating. I think we only have a reference in the FAQ, simply denoting the possibility of doing it.

[rgleason]

Originally Posted by kevinvh
From my viewpoint, Squiddio is not a suitable replacement for Active Captain. In most instances it requires internet access to view the relevant data, its user interface in OpenCPN is not as user friendly and nor does it contain the anchorage detail that Active Captain does, and there is very little feedback from sailors visiting the anchorages.

Kevin, it needs access only to download the POI, then they are stored in the navobj.xml file that stores all Routes, tracks and waypoints.
The data for that area that has been downloaded is available and stored in the navobj.xml file.

Regarding the quality of the POI, that will improve as users get more involved.

I suggest you become more familiar with the interface. It is actually pretty good.
1. Right click on the chart and there are Squiddio selections for
2. Show/Hide of POI,
3. Download POI
4. New destination

5. Click on Toolbar Button pref menu comes up.
6. Right click on POI pick properties POI info shows. Tabs.

I would not change it unless there is a good reason and the final config is an improvement. Clicking on the Toolbar Button would most normally control the PI menu, which it does.

[kevinvh]

Originally Posted by coupdemistral

I don't think anyone has ever claimed that sQuiddio is on par with Active Captain in terms of depth and breadth of content. It simply follows a different approach: make the information available on OpenCPN (including when not connected to the Internet!) and make it open. It's an initiative that relies on user participation to grow and improve (including improving the UI)


to make it clear: the POI information you download through the plugin is indeed cached on your hard drive and available offline through OpenCPN. It includes almost all the stuff you see online on the Destination page online.


I do not disagree with you. It is not a feature we have promoted widely and yes, it can be expensive and perhaps frustrating. I think we only have a reference in the FAQ, simply denoting the possibility of doing it.

OK - I understand that you need to download the Squiddio POIs for the areas of interest and that they remain available within OpenCPN. Guess the difference is that with AC you periodically download the whole database of POIs. The Squiddio approach is quite OK with me.

I know that you must be very familiar with the information content and structure
of POIs in AC and it covers just about everything that a cruising yachtsman wants to know about a destination. It should be quite simple to do something similar with Squiddio (it needs a structured template), including adding a tab for comments by individual cruisers.

AC started the same way and it was disappointing when Garmin bought AC and started restricting its availability. Hopefully, this will not happen with Squiddio if it becomes as popular and successful as AC.

I encourage you wholeheartedly to continue with the development of Squiddio and I will certainly be using it if it develops the anchorage information along the lines of AC. If so, then I will definitely be a regular contributor.

Incidentally, something strange periodically happens with my version of OpenCPN (4.8.2) and Squiddio (0.7) on my MacBook Pro (10.13.3). If I click on the Squiddio toolbar button and open Squiddio Preferences and then click OK, OpenCPN freezes and gives a beep when I click anywhere on the screen - I have checked that there is no open window hidden under the chart window. Clicking on the OpenCPN Menu at the top will bring up the menus but they are all greyed out. The only way to get out of OpenCPN is to force quit it. This does not happen every time - it is random.

[CaptTom]

Originally Posted by kevinvh

I know that you must be very familiar with the information content and structure of POIs in AC and it covers just about everything that a cruising yachtsman wants to know about a destination. It should be quite simple to do something similar with Squiddio (it needs a structured template), including adding a tab for comments by individual cruisers...

I encourage you wholeheartedly to continue with the development of Squiddio and I will certainly be using it if it develops the anchorage information along the lines of AC. If so, then I will definitely be a regular contributor.

Sorry for jumping around between two threads on this. But I'd like to reinforce a couple of points Kevin made, above.

Structured fields - I share this concern. Expecting the user to invent their own keyword-value pairs just won't cut it. It's a great feature, but only AFTER a standardized set of fields are filled in. AC is full of useless reviews where the reviewer failed to enter any helpful data.

As a user, I first look for very specific facts; where the place is (along my route), what it is (anchorage, marina, mooring, fuel dock, etc,) and if it has what I need (right depth, wind protection, good holding, diesel fuel, pump-out, shoreside services, good scenery, etc,) These need to be formatted in a way that allows me to somehow filter out the ones that don't meet my needs. Only later would I care about extra details people wanted to add.

Comments/Reviews - These are what give real value to the system. I guess there's not enough data for locations near me to evaluate the "media feed" feature, but it sounds sort of Facebook-ish. I'd be looking for a way to quickly get a summary (four stars), then scan the detailed reviews to get a sense of what the reviewers based those scores on.

I'm with Kevin on hoping this gets enough critical mass to become useful to me. I will certainly try to help. I'm OK that it's only available on the web and downloaded to OpenCPN. Even better would be to have the data on a smart phone. While it's nice to have data like this on a chartplotter, that form factor isn't really right for the task. It's fine for locating a place and getting a phone number, but to actually read about and choose between different places requires the better UI of a smart phone, tablet or laptop.

[kevinvh]

Originally Posted by CaptTom

Sorry for jumping around between two threads on this. But I'd like to reinforce a couple of points Kevin made, above.

Structured fields - I share this concern. Expecting the user to invent their own keyword-value pairs just won't cut it. It's a great feature, but only AFTER a standardized set of fields are filled in. AC is full of useless reviews where the reviewer failed to enter any helpful data.

As a user, I first look for very specific facts; where the place is (along my route), what it is (anchorage, marina, mooring, fuel dock, etc,) and if it has what I need (right depth, wind protection, good holding, diesel fuel, pump-out, shoreside services, good scenery, etc,) These need to be formatted in a way that allows me to somehow filter out the ones that don't meet my needs. Only later would I care about extra details people wanted to add.

Comments/Reviews - These are what give real value to the system. I guess there's not enough data for locations near me to evaluate the "media feed" feature, but it sounds sort of Facebook-ish. I'd be looking for a way to quickly get a summary (four stars), then scan the detailed reviews to get a sense of what the reviewers based those scores on.

I'm with Kevin on hoping this gets enough critical mass to become useful to me. I will certainly try to help. I'm OK that it's only available on the web and downloaded to OpenCPN. Even better would be to have the data on a smart phone. While it's nice to have data like this on a chartplotter, that form factor isn't really right for the task. It's fine for locating a place and getting a phone number, but to actually read about and choose between different places requires the better UI of a smart phone, tablet or laptop.

Here is my list of important information that should be included for every anchorage:
- Anchorage Name and Location (Lat/Lon)
- Approach to Anchorage (visual aids, hazards, etc)
- Overall Description of Anchorage (boat capacity, preferred anchor location, hazards, current effects, wind effects, prevailing wind direction, swell, etc)
- Bottom Conditions (weed, mud, sand, rock, etc)
- Water Depth and Tidal Range
- Communications (mobile phone coverage, wifi, local businesses on specific VHF channels)
- Dingy Landing (dingy dock, beach landing, etc)
- Pet Tolerance
- Area Attractions (beaches, landmarks and historical sites, nearby towns or settlements, nearby restaurants and food stalls, etc)
- Local Services (food supply, boat supply and repair services, fuel, LPG, etc)
- Local Rules and Restrictions
- Anchorage Rating (overall rating, Sub-ratings for the above mentioned)

I am sure that others can come up with similar for marinas and other categories.

[rgleason]

Kevinh Your list looks good to me.
CaptTom Android and iphone can access the website, nice and simple. Are you looking for apps? I understand your point about readng on an Android tablet or ipad, but isn't a browser good enough?

[Moo]

Originally Posted by kevinvh

Incidentally, something strange periodically happens with my version of OpenCPN (4.8.2) and Squiddio (0.7) on my MacBook Pro (10.13.3). If I click on the Squiddio toolbar button and open Squiddio Preferences and then click OK, OpenCPN freezes and gives a beep when I click anywhere on the screen - I have checked that there is no open window hidden under the chart window. Clicking on the OpenCPN Menu at the top will bring up the menus but they are all greyed out. The only way to get out of OpenCPN is to force quit it. This does not happen every time - it is random.

Seen something similar in Windows too. I go into settings > plugins and disable it. Generally I find that the plug adds so many oddities to the system that it is not useful to have it installed. I've just installed it again and got the beeping... Will try to capture a video of it happening.

[CaptTom]

Originally Posted by rgleason

Kevinh Your list looks good to me.

CaptTom Android and iphone can access the website, nice and simple. Are you looking for apps? I understand your point about readng on an Android tablet or ipad, but isn't a browser good enough?

I'm not suggesting plagiarism, but check out the fields AC has set up for more ideas. And there are different needs for marinas, anchorages, fuel docks and mooring fields. That last one seems to elude a lot of the guides, and even AC doesn't handle them well.

A browser is fine. If you have an internet connection. I try to avoid places like that. I was thinking more in terms of an app you could download the POIs to. Cell coverage is getting better all the time, but underway offshore is still iffy.

[rgleason]

Cell coverage is getting better all the time, but underway offshore is still iffy

But I understand your point.

[kevinvh]

Originally Posted by rgleason

But I understand your point.

We are cruising the world and quite often do not have cell phone or wifi coverage. It is essential that the data can be stored on an iPhone or computer when we do have internet, and then use it offline.

[Moo]

Originally Posted by CaptTom

Cell coverage is getting better all the time, but underway offshore is still iffy.

Iffy!!!!!! offshore (that means well away from land and not on a coastal passage by the way) there is no cell coverage period.... well unless you happen to pass a cruise ship with an open cell that you can roam onto.

[Moo]

Originally Posted by Moo

Seen something similar in Windows too. I go into settings > plugins and disable it. Generally I find that the plug adds so many oddities to the system that it is not useful to have it installed. I've just installed it again and got the beeping... Will try to capture a video of it happening.

A video, at least with my recording capabilities, doesn't show anything. But yes whenever I have the plugin activated and click the icon in the tool bar which brings up the properties dialogue and then make some changes or close it. I get the beeps when I click anywhere and OCPN will not shut down cleanly. It crashes when the close X is clicked.

Hopefully a crash report gets sent.

Unusable

Latest OCPN and Plugin from the official downloads running on W 10.

[Franziska]

It beeps when you set automatic log updates to active.
When that is disabled it does not beep.
Might be that the beeping stops when a GPS signal is present and the first log has been sent?

Maybe somebody actually on board can test? Mine is still on the hard.

[Moo]

Originally Posted by Franziska

It beeps when you set automatic log updates to active.
When that is disabled it does not beep.
Might be that the beeping stops when a GPS signal is present and the first log has been sent?

Maybe somebody actually on board can test? Mine is still on the hard.

Good point. I'll test later today.

And as others have pointed out. You have to mess with the log updates before you can edit your login and API. Then once it is turned on it is impossible to turn off. You can select never in the log fields and click OK but it doesn't stop the beeping or allow OCPN to exit cleanly. On start up the previous state is restored.. in my case "once a day".

[Franziska]

I agree that seems flawed.

What I did is switch log on add ID and Api. Than crash out OpenCPN, restart it and turn log off.

Rightclick to add new location leads than to the website opening for input.

Actually I feel there should also be a Rightclick menu option to add a log position (not only a new location =POI) manually.