BRX
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- 20 Oct 2008
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Can anyone recommend anything for android that's better than the nre app?
Can anyone recommend anything for android that's better than the nre app?
What exactly is it you are wishing to gain, by not using the NRE app?Can anyone recommend anything for android that's better than the nre app?
For real time running - not planning - I've been using Fasteroute for a while. Quite a clean interface and simple to store searches.Can anyone recommend anything for android that's better than the nre app?
What exactly is it you are wishing to gain, by not using the NRE app?
Hello, I have just released a new live train times app called "Commuter Train Check" (on Android only at this point, but will develop an iOS app also in the near-ish future). Many people above (like me) found existing apps cluttered and fussy. My app aims to be more straightforward and fuss-free. It does only one thing - give live train times (no journey planner etc.). Whilst not radically different to the plethora of other apps out there, it does allow you to specify a time window when you would usually make a specific one-way journey, and will show that as "active" within that time window - which really just means it shows at the top of the home screen, in easy reach of the index finger. There are just two screens - home screen (where all your journeys are accessible, and can be tapped to see the live train times for that journey) and the detail screen (which shows the breakdown of all stations on the journey, along with the live status for each). Uniquely, these two screens are independent, so you can swipe back and forward between them, keeping a specific journey in the detail, and tapping other journeys on the home page. I think this design avoids the fractured, abrupt experience of other apps - it's a small design point, but I think it makes for a much nicer, smoother user experience. Other features are a "dark mode", and the ability to fine-tune font sizes independently on the home and detail screen (very important for visually impaired users, but useful in general for people who want to find a more comfortable text size).
I'd love to get feedback from folks out there, so give it a try!
Here's the link to it on Google Play:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.ijmsoftware.commutertraincheck
Re: the long-tap to hide, good point (and why I put it in the instructions, which of course nobody reads haha!). I did wonder about having auto-refreshes in there, and also whether to simply have a refresh button for each journey. My rationale for how I've done it is 1) The screen is less cluttered 2) Bigger area to tap 3) I kinda thought most uses would be to show a single commute journey (perhaps refreshed a few times) and they would rarely hide it. I did think about an auto-refresh, but shyed away from it as I feared my server being unecessarily hit with loads of auto-refreshes that weren't necessarily needed! I'm not sure what best answer here is, to be honest! I shall think some more, but as I type I am thinking your suggestion about not hiding existing times on a refresh is a good one (and would also mean less screen-jumping), and in terms of "auto-refresh" then a compromise here could be to trigger an auto-refresh on all journeys currently showing as the screen is opened, so as you open the app to as you power-walk it to the station, the journey estimates are all updated within a second or two (assuming good data connection etc.).
Re: your point about showing the arrival time at the destination, that's a fair point actually. Just because my train is on time at the source station doesn't mean it will be on time at the destination.
Your mention about multi-leg journeys is interesting, because I've started to think how I could handle this nicely in my app. And if I could handle it nicely, that would definitely be a unique selling point. I think I would have to rely on the user entering the different (valid) legs, and making them logical, but I think the app should really group that multi-leg journey as a separate entry on the home page, so one tap would get all the journeys back in one go, and point out the minutes "gap" (positive or negative!) between each leg, based on the latest estimates. This will require a lot of thought and design to execute well, but it is intriguing me!
Yes, aware of that. However if it's a service with many stops, it means the answer is not just an additional tap away, but also a scroll down to the bottom of the page.Edited to add: I just wanted to check (based on your request to have the destination time showing), that you are aware that you can click on the individual service on the home page to open up the detailed list of stops? I appreciate that it would still be useful to see the destination time on the home screen, but just wanted to check how obvious - or not - it was to get to the detail screen for a service...
Yes I agree.Edited to add more! I am also thinking a simple "Refresh" icon in the action bar on the home screen to refresh all showing journeys would be useful also, to save tapping multiple journeys you are interested in.
Also of course when there are fast and slow trains, and waiting for a slightly later departure might get you there sooner!point taken about the destination arrival time being of importance when a multi-leg journey is significant.
Sounds much the same as the scenario i described in my post no. 40 above.@IJM Software the app is a great start, but something for you to think about is people, like me, who commute to/from a choice of multiple stations. In my case, there are two stations in Wigan (Wigan Wallgate and Wigan North Western) and three stations in Manchester (Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Oxford Road, and Manchester Victoria).
The idea behind your app is brilliant, but it needs to be able to handle cases where services start/end from multiple stations
Yup well done, seems to work now.Hi BRX, on the topic of Clapham Junction, this is now fixed. Clapham is one of those stations where, internally there are multiple different "stations" under one banner... and no obvious systematic way in the data to connect them (at least in the data I can find from the various sources). Anyhow.. now fixed, I had missed one of the Clapham Junction "stations". You'll need to close the app if you have it open, as the stations file is checked for any updates when you open up the app, and downloaded silently.
Sounds much the same as the scenario i described in my post no. 40 above.
Yep, that's exactly the use case I have in mind.@Mathew S Thanks for the positive feedback! Can I clarify your use-case? Are you saying that you would want to be able to specify multiple "From" and multiple "To" stations, and then the app would simply list all the services that match any combination? So in your case it would list any of the Wigan stations to any of the Manchester stations? If so, in terms of the app design I am visualising an "Add alternative From Station" and "Add alternative To Station" in the drop-down button for a Journey on the Home Page. So you would just add any number of alternatives. I suppose many people will have options for source stations on different lines, and want an easy way to get the status of trains on either line to help decide which one to go for.
Yeah, they are two different scenarios. Split journeys is valuable as well, though less so to me since I don't have to change trains. I also imagine that the sheer number of potential possibilities makes split journeys hard work.I think the two scenarios are different? In post no. 40, were you not referring to split journeys (and setting up different variations of split journeys so you can compare the results)? Matthew S is not referring to split journeys, but rather alternative start and end stations (no splits, simple single train journey). Though combining the two scenarios (split journeys with alternative start and end stations) may cause my brain to implode a this current moment
Amazing, thank you. I'll look forward to it@BRX I've just deployed version 1.2 (will take a while to reach devices), which has various refinements mentioned above - content no longer disappears on refresh, auto-refresh when the app is brought back to the foreground (this is a very nice feature actually!), estimated arrival time at destination station now shown in service result, refresh icon in action bar of Home screen (refreshes all journeys with services showing), and keyboard automatically shown on open of the station picker.
Looking ahead, the next enhancement will be the one needed by @Mathew S, i.e. multiple source and destination stations (up to 3 each, to keep things sane). That is easier than split journeys, which I plan to tackle afterwards. With split journeys, I am thinking about a completely separate screen (side-swipe to the left of the home screen) where you put together your split journeys, assembled from the single journeys added on the home page. The plan is to have both new features added in the next 3-4 weeks, all going well.
I was referring to alternative start and end stations as well (starting at either DMK or LGJ, and ending at either GLD or LRD) - but in my case, it also involves a change of train by either route, or what you call a split journey.I think the two scenarios are different? In post no. 40, were you not referring to split journeys (and setting up different variations of split journeys so you can compare the results)? Matthew S is not referring to split journeys, but rather alternative start and end stations (no splits, simple single train journey). Though combining the two scenarios (split journeys with alternative start and end stations) may cause my brain to implode a this current moment
@BRX I've just deployed version 1.2 (will take a while to reach devices), which has various refinements mentioned above - content no longer disappears on refresh, auto-refresh when the app is brought back to the foreground (this is a very nice feature actually!), estimated arrival time at destination station now shown in service result, refresh icon in action bar of Home screen (refreshes all journeys with services showing), and keyboard automatically shown on open of the station picker.
Looking ahead, the next enhancement will be the one needed by @Mathew S, i.e. multiple source and destination stations (up to 3 each, to keep things sane). That is easier than split journeys, which I plan to tackle afterwards. With split journeys, I am thinking about a completely separate screen (side-swipe to the left of the home screen) where you put together your split journeys, assembled from the single journeys added on the home page. The plan is to have both new features added in the next 3-4 weeks, all going well.
That's a useful addition.Just a quick post to say that V1.3 is out there now, which now includes the ability to show "earlier trains" for any given journey
No - I mean when I'm on the home screen, but I have several journeys 'expanded', and I feel like pressing the back button should get me back to where I started which is still on the home screen but all the journeys collapsed again. In other words, if I have 3 journeys 'expanded' then instead of having to do a long-tap 3 times I'd like to press 'back' and have them all revert. Maybe not entirely logical but that's what feels like it should happen.Hi BRX, re: the back button, are you saying that it quits the app when in the "Detail" screen?