"wX" Android opensource/free weather app - new beta release 3.4

3.37929 released on May 4, 2016 - thanks to those that suggested these features.


  • Similar to dual-pane, new quad-pane radar activity added in MISC Tab.

  • Most textual overlays now enabled in multi-pane radars including primary and secondary city, county labels, and spotter labels.

  • Minor changes in the way long press operates in multi-pane radar to make it more intuitive.

  • Non-operational, experimental GOES-14 SRSOR activity added and accessible from submenu of activity invoked via cloud icon in bottom toolbar. Please note images can be as large as 1MB per image or larger and at best animations use frames from images captured every minute so it is very bandwidth intensive.

  • Performance enhancements for Level 2 Radar both in decode and interactive speed. ⅓ of the decoding and rendering was already written in C, the final ⅓ was converted to C. Additionally, fewer gates are displayed to speed up interactive performance.

  • More work on COD GFS including adding back in 3km Helicity and added new Snow total parameter. AK, MW, MA, NGP added as sectors. Removed params no longer supported

  • In COD/NCEP/SREF, add support for Z to local time translation for past few runs along with current. Added month/day.

  • (bugfix) Level 2 radar sharing was not working.

  • (bugfix) Dualpane radar was having issues with TDWR and nexrads that ended with the same last 3 characters ( like ICT )

  • (bugfix) COD NAM4KM was transparent after image upgrade, add white background to more easily see edge text

  • (bugfix) Storm reports long press for archive Level 2 , storm report location would only show if location dot was following GPS.



TIPS:


BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.


BUGS/CRASHES: If you are experience any crashes or bugs and have submitted crash reports but do not see resolution with this latest release please contact via email. It’s not always possible with the crash data automatically submitted or the comments to figure out what is going on. For now there was a crash with a comment that someone was trying to select a city but got a crash. The crash data didn’t provide enough detail to narrow this down and the comment didn’t specify what part of the program it was in. If someone continues to have issues with this please email me directly. Unfortunately the diversity of the android ecosystem causes folks to have issues that I don't see on my 3 devices.


Suggestions, bug reports always welcomed. thanks, Josh


wX @ Play Store:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=joshuatee.wx

wX ( and source code tarballs ):https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B9OogdTO1kXqYzktaHZzdGdQSEk&usp=sharing

https://app.box.com/wX37
 
3.37943 released on May 6, 2016


  • Nexrad radar on main homescreen now shows additional textual overlays including secondary cities, spotter labels, and counties if configured.

  • COD NAM images were upgraded and as a result URL changes in wX were required.
 
Unfortunately, there is a bug with this release that prevents the app from launching but it will only impact those who are using the older style interface that looks like this:
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/2...xfUGWn45UKcTXE0Tc7AhtXjHoZ58HlgQmw=w1572-h625

I believe the vast majority of users are using the newer style looking like this and in that case there is no impact:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/u...cA2nArLnCbXZpgnEZ7d-CoiE2G-YX-iN_5n_224g=h900

I have an update ready to go that basically disables the older style interface until I get feedback on if this older interface is worthwhile as it looks like there will be some effort in supporting it with the newer textual overlays supported on the main screen. However, with a moderate risk for tomorrow I won't be releasing an update that won't impact most people ( I believe ). I already have made quite a few changes to the main radar interface so am hesitant to release via play store w/o more testing on that.

If you were using the older interface you can find the new update in the "BETA" folder on google drive at the URL in my sig. Alternatively you can use the backdoor method below and then go into settings->UI and then choose to use cards.

Sorry for the inconvenience, as a user I get frustrated with stuff like this and strive to make wX as bugfree as possible. --Josh

---


BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.
 
3.37960 released on May 9, 2016


  • Bugfix for those using legacy homescreen UI ( no cards ). The legacy code did not work well with newer additions supporting textual overlays over homescreen radar and unfortunately caused the app to fail to open if in legacy mode. The legacy mode ( which consisted of pure text for current conditions and 7 day ) can be emulated by going into “settings->homescreen” and replacing “CC2” with “CC” and “7DAY2” with “7DAY”. Apologies for those impacted by this bug. Please email me directly if you are having troubles setting this up. [email protected]

  • Bugfix in multipane radar

NOTE: I’ve had one crash report in which a user on a Galaxy Note3 ( 4.4 ) gets a crash when doing pinch zoom on radar. I’ve not been able to reproduce on my test devices and the crash report is showing issues in native code which is more difficult to track down. If you experience this problem please email me directly - [email protected]
 
3.7989 released on May 14, 2016


  • New Level 3 radar product added: DAA, Digitial Accumulation Array ( 1hr )

  • New option in settings->UI to remove unnecessary line breaks in certain NWS text products. This is enabled by default and as a result products like AFD should display better on smaller screens.

  • (bugfix) NWS Datasource for TOR/TST/FFW polygon warnings stopped working Friday (5/13) night. This change reverts to the data source that was used prior to last fall. It was observed to work fine with TST warnings last night but no TOR/FFW have occurred yet. This impacts polygons on the main radar, severe dashboard, and count in the tab title area. I have notified NWS but I did notice the parent site for the old data source now directs to weather.gov ( few weeks ago it did not )

  • (bugfix) Hopefully occasional crashes on the main screen during rotation and occasional blank cards are now resolved with a fix put in.

  • (bugfix) Level 3 product 172 ( DSA ) was incorrectly labeled as DSP

  • (bugfix) DSA was not decoded properly if no precipitation was present
  • (bugfix) NWS GOES activity would crash in certain situations

  • (bugfix) prevent crash when Level 2 radar download initiated but not complete before user exists activity
 
Joshua, very interesting app. I know you haven't had time to write much documentation, so I hope you don't mind a new user question. I noticed that when the app makes a notification sound, it uses the device's default sound. I've looked for a setting in the app to choose the sound the app uses but have not found one. Have I overlooked such a setting? If so, please let me know how to access it. Thanks!
 
Jay,
I don't mind questions at all ! Currently it is not possible to choose a different sound for notifications but I will look into how to do that.

thanks for the suggestion,
Josh
 
Jay Farlow said:
Joshua, very interesting app. I know you haven't had time to write much documentation, so I hope you don't mind a new user question. I noticed that when the app makes a notification sound, it uses the device's default sound. I've looked for a setting in the app to choose the sound the app uses but have not found one. Have I overlooked such a setting? If so, please let me know how to access it. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Jay,
Two more things in care you weren't aware regarding. In various setting screens , you can touch any of the text labels on the left and a popup will open with more detail. And, from the main screen submenu you can select help which puts you in help mode ( touch help again to turn off ) and from there any tile icon you touch will open a popup with general description and any special notes about that activity. Hope it helps.

thanks,
josh
 
3.8017 released on May 20, 2016


  • New dual pane activities for COD Modes and SPC Mesoanalysis which are accessed via sub-menu of single pane versions of each respectively. If you like these features but would like them for a different model interface ( ie SPC SREF, NCEP, TT ) please do let me know.

  • For the following model activities, if the image is not zoomed in at all, a swipe from left to right or from right to left will advance or go back in time ( similar to arrow buttons ): COD, Tropical Tidbits, NCEP, SPC SREF, Dual pane COD. For left to right swipe you should not be close to the edge of the screen otherwise the navigation drawer will open. There is an option in settings->UI to hide the circular floating action buttons and instead show arrows on the bottom toolbar. If you find yourself using the swipe it might be advantageous to move the arrow icons back into the bottom toolbar.

  • In Settings->Notifications one can now select a different notification sound to be used throughout the program. Please note that selecting “no sound” in this dialogue will simply revert to the default notification sound. Sound continues to be an option a per notification type basis.

  • Modified quite a few URLs in accordance with this NWS “Service change notice” including the URLs impact Level 3 radar data which I view as critical to the program. If you observe any speed or reliability for Level 3 radar data please let me know. In addition the activity in the MISC tab that lets one browse Obs sites by state was impacted by this change notice as well and a new database of Obs sites per state was put in place. The textual labels are a little different than the old one but it should still be apparent what sites are available.

  • Bugfix when using multi-pane radar in animation mode when auto-updates is enabled.

  • Bugfix - radar was not working in Android “N” developer preview

  • Bugfix - remove “failed to decode radar” popup in radar as it was causing issues while in animations



FYI : this is an opensource project with the majority of the code under the GNU GPLv3 license:

For those who are not aware, wX is an open source project and the project as a whole is licensed under the GNU GPLv3 license:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License


This license was chosen so that the source code and project would have the best chance to succeed if I chose to abandon or leave this effort at any point in time ( I don’t plan to , this is just hypothetical ). As such any derivative work most also be licensed under the GNU GPLv3 ( or higher version) and if such work is distributed to the public, source code must also be made available for the greater good. The license falls into the broader category of “copyleft”.
 
3.8021 released on May 21, 2016



  • ( BACKED OUT THIS CHANGE ) Modified quite a few URLs in accordance with this NWS “Service change notice” including the URLs impact Level 3 radar data which I view as critical to the program. If you observe any speed or reliability for Level 3 radar data please let me know. In addition the activity in the MISC tab that lets one browse Obs sites by state was impacted by this change notice as well and a new database of Obs sites per state was put in place. The textual labels are a little different than the old one but it should still be apparent what sites are available. http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/notification/scn16-16wng.htm


The one on the bottom is the old one and working fine. I’ll work with the NWS. Problems observed when on cellular network with some provides such as ATT/Cricket. Issue is related to DNS and IPv6.


// public final static String nws_radar_pub = "http://tgftp.nws.noaa.gov/";

public final static String nws_radar_pub = "http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/";
 
Also, if you were on the update issued yesterday and experienced slowness in radar while on cellular network , please let me know. I think this only impacts specific networks/phones. So far ATT-Cricket.

thanks
 
3.8054 released on May 27, 2016



  • Two new settings in “Settings->User Interface” Impacting single and multi-pane radar: “Radar: transparent toolbars” and “Radar: immersive mode”. Android 4.4 or later is required. Immersive mode is a fullscreen experience with Android status and navigation bars hidden. Minor swipes from the top or bottom will temporarily bring them back. Both features are being considered as being default options in the future. One bug so far is under certain hardware/software variations a longpress ( or any popup in radar ) will show a pop-up dialog that has a white background which hides the white text. These new features work well with the existing setting in “settings->UI” called “lock toolbars”. If this setting is turned off and you scroll in the radar activity it will hide both the top and bottom toolbars. To have them reappear just single or double tap anywhere on the screen. This settings works in quite a few other activities as well. For example, in the AFD activity if you single tap the text it will hide the toolbars. Single tap again to show them. With regards to immersive mode there is one unresolved bug and that is if you are using Android 5.0 and using the quad pane radar it will crash when tapping the submenu. In testing seems to only impact 5.0. I suspect it is a bug and a fix is needed from google for the Design Support Library so it won’t be something available soon unfortunately.

  • With regards to City label support in Nexrad radar the extended city dataset has been replaced with a slightly larger and more accurate dataset. In the process the code was reworked and the 2nd city option in “radar->settings” for extended cities was removed. Now only one option exist to turn all cities on/off.

  • Enhanced formatting in hourly activity.

  • JAX Radar site sometimes had missing radials, fix applied for that.

  • NWS GOES Central/East/West views are now using a different projection. Overlays ( watch/warning, etc ) have been removed for those views as only mercato and equirectangular projections are supported at this time.

  • Potential bugfix for random crash on main screen particularly around transition in and out of the application. For some instead of a crash it meant the absence of any cards for 7day. Hoping the fix put in place with this release will address this. This is has been the #1 crash report in the last few months and was rather hard to track down.

  • Due to issues with the Cricket mobile network the change to satisfy http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/notification/scn16-16wng.htm had to be backed out. This change is now reimplemented but it’s using a URL that is not advertised in the change notice and thus might be subject to change. Until I get clarification from the project manager for this change notice I’ve configured things so that if “settings->debug” is enabled it will use the official URL in the change notice above. This URL should work for most folks, just not users on Cricket. I’m working with Cricket as well as NWS for resolution.

NOTE to Cricket Wireless users: This include me, in general there appears to be some sort of DNS resolution issue which impacts the ability to access www.spc.noaa.gov, GOES images, and now binary radar data via the new URL advertised in the change notice above. I’ve personally overcome this issue by using a program that allows me to change the DNS servers my phone is using and then the problem goes away, unfortunately this requires rooting one’s phone. In the meantime I will continue to push Cricket wireless but I have my doubts on a quick resolution. If your phone is rooted and you want to change your DNS please contact me directly for some recommendations.


NOTE: It’s been requested I provide a FAQ ( frequently asked questions) so here is a first draft. Please do let me know if you think something else should be included:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing


NOTE about “sharing option” in nexrad radar including how to get better animations in mp4 format instead of animated gif.:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lw6aRhzEyc1j_Cp97-N6qbg_yoa-hNhXt-GTUkoA0qo/edit?usp=sharing


FYI : this is an opensource project with the majority of the code under the GNU GPLv3 license:

For those who are not aware, wX is an open source project and the project as a whole is licensed under the GNU GPLv3 license:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License


This license was chosen so that the source code and project would have the best chance to succeed if I chose to abandon or leave this effort at any point in time ( I don’t plan to , this is just hypothetical ). As such any derivative work most also be licensed under the GNU GPLv3 ( or higher version) and if such work is distributed to the public, source code must also be made available for the greater good. The license falls into the broader category of “copyleft”.


Playstore summary: In settings->”User Interface” new options for transparent toolbar and immersive mode ( Android 4.4+ only ). New dataset for US cities is 20% larger and more accurate than the previous one used. Changed to new NWS URL for radar data ( different than one used last time, more details in release notes) Bugfixs. Please see release notes at the following URL for more detail: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1viSsU1X1x8BZFnZA1wPwf520xL7tyoVmhI4MZ8WkzYU/edit?usp=sharing


BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.


BUGS/CRASHES: If you are experience any crashes or bugs and have submitted crash reports but do not see resolution with this latest release please contact via email. It’s not always possible with the crash data automatically submitted or the comments to figure out what is going on. For now there was a crash with a comment that someone was trying to select a city but got a crash. The crash data didn’t provide enough detail to narrow this down and the comment didn’t specify what part of the program it was in. If someone continues to have issues with this please email me directly. Unfortunately the diversity of the android ecosystem causes folks to have issues that I don't see on my 3 devices.


Suggestions, bug reports always welcomed. thanks, Josh


wX @ Play Store:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=joshuatee.wx

wX ( and source code tarballs ):https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B9OogdTO1kXqYzktaHZzdGdQSEk&usp=sharing

https://app.box.com/wX37
 
3.8111 released on June 4, 2016



  • Substantial enhancement for Android 5.0+ users with regards to “sharing” selection in single/dual/multi-pane activities and other select activities as well. The opensource ( Apache License v2.0 ) android app “Telecine” by Jake Wharton ( github: JakeWharton ) was embedded and integrated into wX. Additional changes by Tyler Roach ( github: tylerjroach ) were added which added support for taking single screenshots from the same interface. In order to support this new architecture additional android permissions were needed including WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE and SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW. These are required as the files to be shared are written to your SDCARD in “Videos/joshuatee.wx” and “DCIM/joshuatee.wx”. Android 6.0+ users will notice popups to enable these permissions on the fly. All users will notice a popup requesting permission to record the screen ( you can check a box to not have this popup appear again for wX ). To use this new feature simply select “share” from the submenu in single or multi-pane nexrad radar and you will notice a floating and persistent set of icons in the upper right which allows you to exit the icon pane, use a distance measuring tool ( single pane radar only ), draw over the screen, take a screenshot, and record a video respectively. If you take a video by default the video will start immediately ( a 3 second delay can be enabled in Settings->Radar->Screen Recorder ). Once the recorder is running the icons will disappear ( since you are literally getting everything on the screen including any panning/zooming or product changes ). To stop the recording simply tap the screen in the same location the recording icon used to be - far upper right. Once a video or screenshot have been captured a notification will fire and from there you can view, share, or delete the given media file. Please note this is it the first instance of using WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE and a substantial body of code from someone other than me was integrated so this new feature is considered BETA for now. Testing on multiple physical devices has proven fine so far. Please email me directly with any problems: [email protected] For the distance tool and the drawing tool once these tools are engaged the icon will change from gray to a darker gry to let you know these tools are engaged. The reason this is important is because once they are engaged the only parts of the screen that can receive normal input are the status bar and the navigation bar ( if not in immersive mode ). To return to normal just tap the icon again. The normal workflow would be to get your radar or animation how you like it it, tap the draw and/or distance tool icon and perform whatever drawing you want, and then tap the screenshot or video icon to acquire your media. Once that is done you can deselect the draw or distance tool. With regards to the distance and drawing tool, When you stop the tools all markings are removed. Default color is red but is configurable in settings->colors. The width of the line is also configurable. Thanks to Chris Lizon for contributing this opensource project which was used as a great starting point: https://github.com/ChrisLizon/FingerDraw.

  • In nexrad radar the “tilt” submenu was moved under the “tools” menu as there appears to be a limit of 10 menu entries when using immersive mode under Android 5.0. A crash would result if there was more. Other radar entries as well were consolidated as well into “tools”. If you there are certain entries you feel do belong in the main submenu please let me know. In addition to the bug mentioned above I have gotten a few comments that the radar submenu was getting a little too big so this is my attempt to address that although in general I prefer to not change the interface once it’s deployed ( or at least make an option to revert to old behavior , etc )

  • (alpha) In the spotter activity accessible from the main submenu a new floating action button ( FAB ) is available at top, an “i” with circle around it which leads you to a new activity show spotter network reports. This is very new code meant to explore the format but at a minimum it should show a list of data. Future integration into nexrad radar is planned.

  • Screen recording toolbar is also configured for most model and visible satellite based activities. This can be configured in Settings->UI “Record screen for sharing”. This is enabled by default.

  • (bugfix) Visible satellite was not working in individual NHC storm activities. ( noticed for 2L over the past weekend )

  • Just a note about the GOES-14 SRSOR. According to this site the next data collection is Aug 16-28: http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/goes/srsor2016/GOES-14_SRSOR.html

  • If you use Cricket please see the note below.

NOTE to Cricket Wireless users: UPDATE 6/3/2016 - After going back and forth with Cricket for a few weeks they closed my case and stated there was nothing more they could do for me. They failed to provide the IP Address for the DNS servers ( that I suspect are the problem ) that are advertised to subscribers to their network. At this point if you are a Cricket user and are experiencing issues in slowness on cellular networks with SPC, NHC, and GOES content and are unable or unwilling to root your phone ( so that you can use non-cricket DNS servers ) the only advice I can give ( advice that I am about to follow ) is to switch to a different cellular provider to resolve this issue.


This include me, in general there appears to be some sort of DNS resolution issue which impacts the ability to access www.spc.noaa.gov, GOES images, and now binary radar data via the new URL advertised in the change notice above. I’ve personally overcome this issue by using a program that allows me to change the DNS servers my phone is using and then the problem goes away, unfortunately this requires rooting one’s phone. In the meantime I will continue to push Cricket wireless but I have my doubts on a quick resolution. If your phone is rooted and you want to change your DNS please contact me directly for some recommendations.


NOTE: It’s been requested I provide a FAQ ( frequently asked questions) so here is a first draft. Please do let me know if you think something else should be included:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing


FYI : this is an opensource project with the majority of the code under the GNU GPLv3 license:

For those who are not aware, wX is an open source project and the project as a whole is licensed under the GNU GPLv3 license:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License


This license was chosen so that the source code and project would have the best chance to succeed if I chose to abandon or leave this effort at any point in time ( I don’t plan to , this is just hypothetical ). As such any derivative work most also be licensed under the GNU GPLv3 ( or higher version) and if such work is distributed to the public, source code must also be made available for the greater good. The license falls into the broader category of “copyleft”.


Playstore summary: For Android 5.0+ users substantial enhancements to “sharing” in single and multi-pane nexrad radar including addition of a distance and drawing tool. Bug Fixes. Please see release notes at the following URL for more detail:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1cbczFwL1SW_PJ-qH8_wWV3gVsgfp2vOLCVaQ-x3fy1I/edit?usp=sharing



BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.


BUGS/CRASHES: If you are experience any crashes or bugs and have submitted crash reports but do not see resolution with this latest release please contact via email. It’s not always possible with the crash data automatically submitted or the comments to figure out what is going on. For now there was a crash with a comment that someone was trying to select a city but got a crash. The crash data didn’t provide enough detail to narrow this down and the comment didn’t specify what part of the program it was in. If someone continues to have issues with this please email me directly. Unfortunately the diversity of the android ecosystem causes folks to have issues that I don't see on my 3 devices.


Suggestions, bug reports always welcomed. thanks, Josh


wX @ Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=joshuatee.wx

FAQ at:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing

wX ( and source code tarballs ): https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B9OogdTO1kXqYzktaHZzdGdQSEk&usp=sharing

https://app.box.com/wX37
 
3.8157 released on June 15, 2016



  • Substantial enhancements to TTS ( Text to Speech ). Biggest improvements are the ability to pause and resume and to go back/forward in the playlist from the “media notification”. When paused , in most cases pause button will change color to indicate it’s paused. NOTE: initial startup for audio is a little slow then previous method.

  • Media notification redesigned in look and functionality for Android 5.0+ users

  • (bugfix) NWS severe weather alerts not working due to NWS website formatting change

  • WFO Text viewer ( ie AFD ) - added back/forward to view past text products

  • New screen recording technology partially rewritten to avoid external dependencies

  • New icon in Location settings for saving location via GPS

  • Add experimental tag to GOES-14 SRSOR

  • Bug Fixes ( certain AU locations not saving correctly )

NHC Note: If you are having issues with viewing NHC storm data with with NHC notifications and have submitted crash reports but have not seen resolution, please contact me. I am unable to replicate the issue or to resolve it with the data in the crash reports.


NOTE to Cricket Wireless users: UPDATE 6/3/2016 - After going back and forth with Cricket for a few weeks they closed my case and stated there was nothing more they could do for me. They failed to provide the IP Address for the DNS servers ( that I suspect are the problem ) that are advertised to subscribers to their network. At this point if you are a Cricket user and are experiencing issues in slowness on cellular networks with SPC, NHC, and GOES content and are unable or unwilling to root your phone ( so that you can use non-cricket DNS servers ) the only advice I can give ( advice that I am about to follow ) is to switch to a different cellular provider to resolve this issue.


This include me, in general there appears to be some sort of DNS resolution issue which impacts the ability to access www.spc.noaa.gov, GOES images, and now binary radar data via the new URL advertised in the change notice above. I’ve personally overcome this issue by using a program that allows me to change the DNS servers my phone is using and then the problem goes away, unfortunately this requires rooting one’s phone. In the meantime I will continue to push Cricket wireless but I have my doubts on a quick resolution. If your phone is rooted and you want to change your DNS please contact me directly for some recommendations.


NOTE: It’s been requested I provide a FAQ ( frequently asked questions) so here is a first draft. Please do let me know if you think something else should be included:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing


FYI : this is an opensource project with the majority of the code under the GNU GPLv3 license:

For those who are not aware, wX is an open source project and the project as a whole is licensed under the GNU GPLv3 license:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License


This license was chosen so that the source code and project would have the best chance to succeed if I chose to abandon or leave this effort at any point in time ( I don’t plan to , this is just hypothetical ). As such any derivative work most also be licensed under the GNU GPLv3 ( or higher version) and if such work is distributed to the public, source code must also be made available for the greater good. The license falls into the broader category of “copyleft”.


Playstore summary: Enhancements to text to speech functionality. Minor visual enhancements. Bug fixes including fix for NWS severe weather alert text. Please see release notes for details on how to use new text to speech functionality.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZxPQRyxQpiP29By-at5ozoLnuG2wztaPFtxnBnn-Nkc/edit?usp=sharing




BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.


BUGS/CRASHES: If you are experience any crashes or bugs and have submitted crash reports but do not see resolution with this latest release please contact via email. It’s not always possible with the crash data automatically submitted or the comments to figure out what is going on. For now there was a crash with a comment that someone was trying to select a city but got a crash. The crash data didn’t provide enough detail to narrow this down and the comment didn’t specify what part of the program it was in. If someone continues to have issues with this please email me directly. Unfortunately the diversity of the android ecosystem causes folks to have issues that I don't see on my 3 devices.


Suggestions, bug reports always welcomed. thanks, Josh


wX @ Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=joshuatee.wx

FAQ at:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing

wX ( and source code tarballs ): https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B9OogdTO1kXqYzktaHZzdGdQSEk&usp=sharing

https://app.box.com/wX37
 
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eSvCm1uuXJcSKjidTziGlYYQ0dG-Nmug9ucGhNBdSm0/edit?usp=sharing



38186 released on June 29, 2016



  • New Activity in MISC ( beta ): NCAR ARW WRF 15km Model viewer

  • Add elevation to bottom toolbar to match top

  • Remove “...” in submenu now that latest Android is showing gray arrows to indicate submenus.

  • In settings->notifications can now exclude a limited number of NWS local alerts such as “Air Quality”. Please email me if you have specific ones you want added. Filter applies to all locations you have alerts configured for.

  • For all widgets and if starting the app to go to radar first the top left arrow will now take you back to the home screen.

  • Widget showing NWS icon and current conditions has been revised graphically and a bug was addressed with regards to automatic update of data.

  • Java source code has been organized into subdirectories for easier maintenance.

  • Version number format changed to match other projects I am working on

NHC Note: If you are having issues with viewing NHC storm data with with NHC notifications and have submitted crash reports but have not seen resolution, please contact me. I am unable to replicate the issue or to resolve it with the data in the crash reports.


NOTE to Cricket Wireless users: UPDATE 6/3/2016 - After going back and forth with Cricket for a few weeks they closed my case and stated there was nothing more they could do for me. They failed to provide the IP Address for the DNS servers ( that I suspect are the problem ) that are advertised to subscribers to their network. At this point if you are a Cricket user and are experiencing issues in slowness on cellular networks with SPC, NHC, and GOES content and are unable or unwilling to root your phone ( so that you can use non-cricket DNS servers ) the only advice I can give ( advice that I am about to follow ) is to switch to a different cellular provider to resolve this issue.


This include me, in general there appears to be some sort of DNS resolution issue which impacts the ability to access www.spc.noaa.gov, GOES images, and now binary radar data via the new URL advertised in the change notice above. I’ve personally overcome this issue by using a program that allows me to change the DNS servers my phone is using and then the problem goes away, unfortunately this requires rooting one’s phone. In the meantime I will continue to push Cricket wireless but I have my doubts on a quick resolution. If your phone is rooted and you want to change your DNS please contact me directly for some recommendations.


NOTE: It’s been requested I provide a FAQ ( frequently asked questions) so here is a first draft. Please do let me know if you think something else should be included:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing


FYI : this is an opensource project with the majority of the code under the GNU GPLv3 license:

For those who are not aware, wX is an open source project and the project as a whole is licensed under the GNU GPLv3 license:

http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.en.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License


This license was chosen so that the source code and project would have the best chance to succeed if I chose to abandon or leave this effort at any point in time ( I don’t plan to , this is just hypothetical ). As such any derivative work most also be licensed under the GNU GPLv3 ( or higher version) and if such work is distributed to the public, source code must also be made available for the greater good. The license falls into the broader category of “copyleft”.


Playstore summary:

Minor visual enhancements. New model viewer at bottom of MISC Tab (ARW WRF 15km). If launching widgets or launching in radar first mode top left back arrow now takes you back to main screen. Enhancements to widget showing NWS current conditions icon. Ability to exclude certain NWS weather alerts ( please contact me if more alert types need to be added ) in settings->notifications. Please see full release notes for more detail.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eSvCm1uuXJcSKjidTziGlYYQ0dG-Nmug9ucGhNBdSm0/edit?usp=sharing




BACK DOOR to SETTINGS: If for some reason the app is crashing on start after a settings change or you suspect a roaming location is bad, there is a backdoor into settings. First, add the main wX widget to your homescreen and then tap the teardrop icon to access the hourly activity. In the submenu you can access settings and delete any bad locations or revert any settings made recently. I strive to keep wX bug-free as possible but it will always be a work in progress as long as new features are added. Additionally the dependence on a wide variety of upstream data sources that could change data formats at anytime will continue to pose challenges but thankfully it’s not that common. Thanks to those reporting bugs and helping to keep it a more stable program.


BUGS/CRASHES: If you are experience any crashes or bugs and have submitted crash reports but do not see resolution with this latest release please contact via email. It’s not always possible with the crash data automatically submitted or the comments to figure out what is going on. For now there was a crash with a comment that someone was trying to select a city but got a crash. The crash data didn’t provide enough detail to narrow this down and the comment didn’t specify what part of the program it was in. If someone continues to have issues with this please email me directly. Unfortunately the diversity of the android ecosystem causes folks to have issues that I don't see on my 3 devices.


Suggestions, bug reports always welcomed. thanks, Josh


wX @ Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=joshuatee.wx

FAQ at:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OQrviP10XBvQZ7QKh5R4bsd72ZKffK5f0ISRuCaSk5k/edit?usp=sharing

wX ( and source code tarballs ): https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B9OogdTO1kXqYzktaHZzdGdQSEk&usp=sharing

https://app.box.com/wX37
 
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