Greetings from Openandromaps

[kech61]

Hi Orux,



Greetings to the south from a rainy Austria.



Best regards

Christian

http://www.openandromaps.org">www.openandromaps.org

[febs]

I really hope you two guys will collaborate tightly because Oruxmaps is powerful as hell and those vector maps are superb and super handy, too.



I already suggested this privately to Orux but here I go again

I think that Oruxmaps should behave as an openandromaps client. In simpler words, offering the user to download openandromaps straight from Oruxmaps itself, and caring about the updates as well every month (for instance).



Popup: "a new version of OpenAndromaps is available for this area! Do you want to download it?"

(with checkbox "download on wifi only").



"sure!"



"download starting....".



Something similar should happen with themes in my opinion (for instance, simply, the next version of Oruxmaps could come with the openandromaps themes preinstalled and configured).



I have many friends that are not geeks and for them, reading instruction, connecting phone to PC, transfering files, creating folders, reloading programs... are simply steps out of their average users skills. And even for skilled users as we are, those are still pretty much boring steps



That was it. I think that such an integration would help to spread oruxmaps and openandromaps even more (and a lot more).



Cheers and thanks for what you are doing!

[febs]

Bump. Nobody else thinks that this feature would be SUPER COOL? :-|



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[Maki]

Yes, it would be cool. It would be even cooler to have diff upgrades, so that you don't download every time the same stuff that didn't change since last time (think about contour lines).



However, given the typical download size, I have some reserve. After all it's unlikely that most people needs to update very often, making things too easy could put a massive load on servers.

[Quercus.JB]

Después de Oruxmaps, Openandromaps ha sido mi mejor descubrimiento. La combinación es perfecta, al menos para mi. Aunque intuyo que para millones de personas mas.



Gracias a Orux y a kech61.

[kech61]

Bump. Nobody else thinks that this feature would be SUPER COOL? :-|

Hi Febs,



It would be perfekt possible (from my side) to provide the themes on ftp/dropbox/GDrive or something else for download/update direct from Oruxmaps or any other APP.



The maps itself.....

Well,

Some clear words about this:



The anual costs for driving the OAM are about 2000Euros (Yes indead, look at the prices/TBW-lifetime of a SSD), the donations cover these costs more or (most likely in my experience) less.

If I would provide maps for direct download (without a donation button ever seen for the user) within an APP I would have to charge user for this (like some Apps do with their own maps) or cancel the OAM because of lack of budget.

The only way to provide payed maps for a small fee would be to provide my own APP - this would mean to run behind Orux/Locus and making all bugs they aleready cleared in long years of making these APPs.



Believe me, I'm thinking a lot how to improve OAM and keep it running for everyone with at least a small plus-zero-balance.

I'm aware too that about 1% of the user donate driving OAM for the 99% that newer provided even one coin for this Projekt.



I'm open for any idea how to improve this situation for everyone.



Best regards, Christian

[febs]

An app like DEM1 could work? It's funded by ads (although I'd rather pay a fee than having ads but that's my taste) and it allows to downoad altitude data separately from oruxmaps. Could it provide a decent revenue?



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[febs]

I mean, an app only meant to downoad data, not a cartographic app on its own, just like dem1. Orux allows to call for the externa app. You do, get the dem, see the banner, and get back to oruxmaps with your fresh DEM.



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[orux]

Hi; all are right;



Openandromaps maps and themes are perfect for oruxmaps, and Christian needs that people visit the web site to receive support for the project.



In the next version I will add an initial link to http://www.openandromaps.org">www.openandromaps.org site, to promote these maps.



I think it is not hard to visit the web site from time to time to update the maps.



orux

[febs]

It's not only visiting the site, it's also downloading, connecting the phone, unzipping, choosing the folder. For geeks as we are this is super easy (though quite boring anyway!) for ordinary touch and go people that's quite a daunting task.

Two friends of mine, great alpinists, can't use oruxmaps on their own and I have to set up their!



Is the separate, advertisement funded app option not remunerative enough, I guess



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[febs]

Why don't you sell them as in app purchase elaewhere? Skobbler works like that. Cheap fees, lifetime licenses. Good model in my opinion.



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[Maki]

I'm open for any idea how to improve this situation for everyone.

I already suggested on your website more or less what Febs is suggesting here, but you declined. I perfectly understand the reasons why you can't do that, your time and family are more important than our maps. However that seems the only way to make money from maps as of today. Have you thought about contacting another programmer to write the app and share the revenue? It's a very simple app, all it has to do is download a file, extract the map and place it in the right folder.

I don't know how many downloads you have in a year, but I'm confident that even at 0.10€/download your expenses would be more than covered and I think that nobody would have problems with such a price, not even occasional downloaders. Just please don't go the way of DEM1, forcing users to click a banner is unethical. I would have gladly paid for that app, but I ditched it instead and got my DEMs elsewhere.



The really cool feature would be the diff upgrades, but I don't know if that's possible with OSM data. Without that I think that the direct download on the phone poses some risks. Some maps are 1GB compressed, so one needs to have more than double that space free on the phone. Also it could eat up a monthly data plan with a single download. Not a problem for the geeks that know what are doing, but for Average Joe who can't remember if a MB is bigger or lower that a GB it could be a problem. On the other side a lot of car navigators on the market are doing this  so I'm probably wrong.



Personally the reason why I'd like the app is the in-app purchase. I got the donate version of OM almost immediately after trying the free one just for the convenience of the Play Store; on the old forum I asked for in-app donations so that I can donate again every now and then. On the other hand I'm still in the 99% of those that haven't paid for the maps, just for Paypal. I made a vow that before Christmas I'll go past my hate for it and make a donation, and I'll do because you more than deserve it, but I'd *much* prefer going trough the Play Store.

[febs]

For what matters me, I already tipped three euros via PayPal but I would pay more to have the maps readily available on my phone just touching ONE button and supporting the development (both of the maps and the app itself!) at the same time.



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[febs]

Speaking about donations, I'd happily pay for a fundraising campaign to make OM open source, but that's another story. :-)



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[kech61]

It's not only visiting the site, it's also downloading, connecting the phone, unzipping, choosing the folder. For geeks as we are this is super easy (though quite boring anyway!) for ordinary touch and go people that's quite a daunting task.

Hi febs,



You are right - unfortunately, and things get more complicated for users with thoses #'§$'# Android 4.x Devices using RAM, Internal_SD, External_SD aso..

So an App financed by adds would be fine.

I installed Android-Studio, however java is a complete different horse compared to lisp, perl, delphi, clipper, vba, shell, rexx and numerous other I managed to ride during the last 30 years.

AND I'm really afraid to run into all bugs Manufakturers love to implement with their Smartphones.



However, I will (have to) think about ways to provide a solid financial base for OpenAndroMaps - a Downloader would be one of the options to go.



Best regards, Christian