Just a quick post here to let you know about a newly created Sports Tracker group on Facebook. Over 200 members strong now.

Thanks, Ykä!

A new version of Sports Tracker became available today in the Ovi Store for S60 touch-screen mobiles. Soon after the app was added to the store I received a call from Jussi Kaasinen, one of the developer/owners of Sports Tracking Technologies Ltd (STT for short on my blog) I was informed of the new release and asked to share some details of our conversation as official Sports Tracker news. There aren’t volumes of information to report, nevertheless its great to hear from our friends after such a long winter of silence.

Beginning with platform support, Jussi said that in addition to today’s release we should expect new versions for all S60 mobiles in the coming weeks. He says, “We are now giving all necessary attention and support to S60, as there are millions of existing users out there to serve.” The STT team wants to be sure all of us who have been there through the years are taken care of first. He also said that other platforms will be supported at a later time, but refrains from any details or promises as those versions are still in development.

Moving on to user data Jussi explains that, as promised, great care has been taken to insure no loss of data, aiming for a totally seamless transition to the new service. This includes user name, profile, settings and all details of your workout history. The STT team had hoped that the new website would be ready for today’s release version, unfortunately its not quite ready to launch. Soon!

The next bit of news surely leaves us with a lot of questions; Polar heart rate monitors. Jussi only says that the STT team includes the heart rate features in the new versions to provide continuation to exisiting N79 Active users, “…who have changed their primary device to a touch model (and there’s quite an impressive number of them- based on the huge number of folks who have contacted us recently).” We’ll just have to wait for more STT/Polar news.

Jussi and the rest of the team are thrilled and thankful for all of the loyal Sports Tracker users who have been longing for news and support. He said his inbox has thousands of emails in it (naturally impossible to reply to them all) but is continually energized and touched by all the comments of support for Sports Tracker. Especially those of you who were inspired to become active as a result of using the app/service for the first time.

Jussi and I will stay in touch to bring you more information and updates as they become available.

I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to bring news to the Nokia Sports Tracker Beta migration to Sports Tracking Technologies issue!

I received a surprise phone call two days ago from Jussi Kaasinen, one of the two-person core team of developers responsible for bringing the Nokia Sports Tracker Beta project to us since March of 2007. Together with the other half of that team, Ykä Huhtala, they founded their own company named Sports Tracking Technologies back in June of this year. Jussi told me that his call was partly in response to my earlier post and partly just to touch base with a long-standing user of the service.

Jussi wanted me to let everyone know that the Sports Tracking Technologies (STT) incarnation is very much alive and kicking, and that they have appreciated the huge volumes of suggestions and feedback that continually flood their inboxes every day. He also apologized for the “quietness” throughout the exhausting process of migrating from Nokia. STT is slightly larger now than the original two-person core team, but their available resources have been especially limited due to complicated intellectual property issues; Jussi said, “You wouldn’t believe the amount of diligent individuals it has taken to make this transfer the amicable success that it is!.” Our conversation lasted for about a half hour.

I will not be able to make any major announcements on their behalf today, sorry. What I can tell you is that STT are working around the clock to ready a variety of feature enhancements and compatibility refinements for products and services which promise to remain wholly sports-centric. Jussi agreed with my opinion that the “Ovi Journeys: The Evolution of Sports Tracker” recent write-up is more of an evolution of the former “Vine” project than anything to do with the new STT. Nokia wil remain in the picture, solely and importantly (imo), as a client of STT.

One thing is clear: STT are passionate about their horizons and are committed to the development and integrity of the Sports Tracker service.

I will continue my dialogue with STT later this week, so stay tuned.

Nokia N79 Active

There’s not much time left remaining for the contest set up by the guys at the Nseries Innovation Newsdesk where the Grand Prize is a Nokia N79 Active phone bundle, which has been called a “healthy twist on Nokia’s smallest Nseries”. The deadline for entries is March 14th!

The challenge for the contest takes advantage of the Nokia’s Sports Tracker mobile application’s geo-tracking features along with your creativity to draw a virtual heart on the planet. Sports Tracker tracks the travelled routes of your workouts, saving that route on a map for you to see, analyze and share with your friends. Sports Tracker also gives you the ability to add geo-tagged pictures and video synchronized along your workout route.

Nokia’s using this contest to promote their newest bundled package, the N79 Active, combining the brilliant N79 phone with a brand new product from Polar heart rate monitors made exclusively for Nokia. The “Polar for Nokia” Wear-Link heart rate monitor belt communicates with the Nokia Sports Tracker mobile application via Bluetooth, adding heart rate data to your recorded workouts. The N79 Active bundle also includes an arm pouch to carry your mobile during your activities.

To enter you easily install the Nokia Sports Tracker mobile application to your GPS-enabled Nokia phone and sign up for a free Sports Tracker account, both of which can be done at: http://sportstracker.nokia.com. Then, look for and join the group called “Location Artists- Win A N79 Active” while you’re logged into the Sports Tracker website. Now all you have to do is go outside, start up the Sports Tracker program on your GPS-enabled Nokia phone and perform a workout in the shape of a heart. Upload that workout to the Sports Tracker website and choose to share it with the Location Artists group.

The deadline is March 14th, so hurry! Look for an earlier post of mine for tips and tricks to draw your heart and good luck!

UMapper Map of the Week

Once more, I want to thank Andrei and the guys over at UMapper for recognizing my Nokia contest entry for their Map of the Week. They gave me the same honor a few weeks ago for one of my routine Sports Tracker workouts.

UMapper can be used by anyone for logging and embedding custom maps just about anywhere. I started using their service to embed maps of each of my workouts when I began this blog, and I like that I can choose from many different map providers, each with multiple viewing options. I also like that I can add graphics, information and media to my maps and see those changes reflected anywhere I have embedded a particular map.

All UMapper features are quite user-friendly, especially for WordPress bloggers via UMapper’s available plug-in.

-David Hroncheck

A Detour for Some Fun

The guys over at the Nokia Innovations Newsdesk started a contest, “Track a Heart, Win a Nokia N79 Active”. They’re asking participants to use the Nokia Sports Tracker program, available for most Nokia handsets, to trace the shape of a heart on the earth. To enter, go to the Sports Tracker website and create an account, then join the group “Location Artists”. Install the Sports Tracker application on your Nokia mobile and start “drawing”. Your workout routes show up as a continuous line, what you do with that line can be artwork with some planning. Here’s a screenshot of my workout for the contest:

My workout page for the N79 Active contest

The planning for my entry too a couple hours using Google Earth. I first looked locally for the most natural heart shaped route, then I printed out the map for easier planning. The way the Sports Tracker application works requires your artwork to be drawn in one continuous path. So it’s not possible to stop your line and begin again elsewhere.

The way I’m using Sports Tracker nearly every day to record my training, I have become quite familiar with it’s features, mostly by trial and error. I noticed that any pause in satellite data would create a straight line (usually) to the point where the satellite signal is picked up again. I also have made mistakes by pausing the application mid-route when I wanted to register a lap instead. These issues and more were resolved a long time ago, but I thought I might be able to turn those problems into a technique for the “Location Art” contest; And it worked.

Once I planned my design, I mapped out a single-continuous route. For easier reference to my path, I saved all the key waypoints in the necessary order as landmarks within my Nokia Maps application on my mobile. I began a new workout at the first scheduled waypoint and, basically, connected the dots (waypoints) as I continued, always referring to the next landmark in my Nokia Maps application. The lines I drew which crossed over the tops of buildings and over water (though it is currently ice anyway) were made possible by pausing the Sports Tracker application at one waypoint then resuming at the next, resulting in a straight line.

Problems. After testing this technique a bit I set out for my first attempt. Sparing you the fine details, I failed. I completed the route, my heart rate high just from adrenaline, and I immediately checked the output. FAIL. My heart looked like a spider web. Not all my waypoints were successfully recorded. I just spent 4,5 hours biking 39,5km and it didn’t work. Oh, and I missed my first scheduled running workout since Christmas…Bad.

Success. The next day I headed out earlier with some ideas on how to insure a better result. Another 4,5 hours and nearly 40km later, I stopped the application and checked the output. It still was missing some waypoints that I had visited, nevertheless, the results were pretty good. Feeling rejuvenated from relief, I resumed my training program when I got home by running some hill repeats; Back to life.

No matter how I fair in this contest, I feel pretty good about having done this little project. I’m more familiar with my city’s streets and found some new shortcuts. I’ll also forever visually regard certain areas of my city relative to this project; “That restaurant is at the bottom of the seven“. Anyway, it was a rather fun detour Nokia provided me with this challenge.

Grand prize is a Nokia N79 Active, featuring the new Polar BT Wear-Link chest strap. Some runner-ups will receive the Polar BT Wear-Link chest strap, compatible with a new version of Sports Tracker on many Nokia devices. Good luck to everyone who enters!

Running Digital Thanks UMapper!

One of the advantages of using Word Press for blogging is their easy to use library of third-party plug-ins.  It’s right in line with my focus on flexibility and personalization, offering something for everybody. For my needs, the most useful plug in I’m using comes from UMapper.

All the maps of my workouts, filed under the tab “My Training”, were embedded using the UMapper plug in. I get to choose between a variety of map providers when creating a new map, then I upload the KML data file exported from my Nokia Sports Tracker application. If needed, I can manually add more details and markers, resize, align and insert my completed map anywhere on my blog. It’s very easy to use.

Yesterday I was notified by UMapper that my use of their product was recognized for their “Map of the Week” feature. Here’s what they had to say:

“From time to time we see some very interesting usages of UMapper. David Hroncheck from Running Digital uses innovative tracking technology for his endurance running training. This week’s featured map shows visualization of one of those exhausting runs!”-UMapper Feb 1, 2009

So, thanks to UMapper for showcasing my use of their product!

-David Hroncheck

First, here’s a nice Nokia promo for the product mentioned in the press release…

…and here is a link to their press release: Nokia N79 Active gets your heart racing