Downloading GPX to iPhone

[Doug]

Hi,

I like to use a website called Hiking With My Brother (http://www.hikingwithmybrother.com/) to find and plan hikes. Most of the hikes listed there have a link to a GPX file, above the upper left-hand corner of the track map. I have noticed that these files do not "Open In" Gaiagps on my iPhone. I believe that this is because the link address does not end in a file name xxx.gps. Rather, they are file aliases, pointing to a Google Drive address. For example, the hike currently showing on the hikingwithmybrother home page is https://docs.google.com/uc?export=download&id=0B5-4kdc2K7LsejN2UkJtVkN4alU. If I attempt to open that file from the browser on my phone, it is not recognized as a gpx file. Instead, I get a text document that is mostly gibberish.

I can download this file to my computer, then email it to myself, and open it in Gaiagps, but that requires a computer, which I do not carry with me when I hike. I have also found a workaround by using the browser in Goodreader to download the file to my phone, then exporting it to Gaiagps. However, I would prefer to have Gaiagps recognize the file directly. Is there a way to do this?

Thanks,

Doug

[Andrew Johnson]

Sorry, I don't think we'll have a fix for this soon, I'm not exactly sure what to do. It's very haphazard which GPX links Gaia can manage to be recognized as an app for from Safari.

You might want to use the Dropbox app, which lets you download any file, and then you can add GPX files from DropBox to Gaia GPS. 

Andrew Johnson

Co-founder

www.GaiaGPS.com

415 335 7447

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[Douglas Rosenberg]

Thanks, Andrew. Does the Dropbox app let you download a file directly from the internet? I thought you had to download it first to your computer (because the app does not have a browser built in), and then sync it with the app. In any event, Goodreader does have a browser and works as you suggest Dropbox does.

Doug

[Andrew Johnson]

I think DropBox will let you save files from the browser, using your phone/ipad. Once it's installed, there should be an Open In option for DropBox... I think that will work, though maybe it will suffer the same issue.

Andrew Johnson

Co-founder

www.GaiaGPS.com

415 335 7447

[Douglas Rosenberg]

Hmm. I have the Dropbox app, but I do not get the "open in" dialog when I tap (or tap and hold) a linked file in Safari. Is that what you mean?

Also, when I do import a gpx track into Gaia, I get waypoints and comments, but not photos. I assume you haven't implemented this feature yet. Is this something you are considering?

Thanks,

Doug

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Sent from Mailbox

[Andrew Johnson]

Hmmm, I guess I don't have a better option than Goodreader then. If you'd like, please add an idea to our voting forum to have an internal browser for GPX browsing, so others can view and comment. If we finish the idea, you will get notified: http://help.gaiagps.com/forums/118985-ideas-for-gaia-gps

Couple of notes on GPX and photos:

1) GPX files can't embed photos, unless it's a URL in the Notes for a photo on the internet. So, there is no photos to import, maybe names of images? You can send me the file to have a look if you want.

2) You could potentially view the track you import on gaiagps.com and upload photos to the track there, which will sync to your devices.

3) You can also add photos from your camera roll in Gaia GPS 9.0 for iOS, which is under review by Apple, and may come out as early as today.

Regards,

Andrew

Andrew Johnson

Co-founder

www.GaiaGPS.com

415 335 7447

[Douglas Rosenberg]

Andrew,

Upon reflection, I think that GoodReader meets my needs with minimal inconvenience. I can browse to a link, download the file, and then immediately export to Gaia. I'm not sure that adding a browser to Gaia would be the best use of limited resources (i.e., I'm not sure I would vote for it if it were suggested).

Regarding photos, thanks for the information on the limitations of GPX files. Some of the tracks I use are in KML format, which be imported into Google Earth with photos. I believe that Gaia now supports importing of KML. Would those photos be included when KML/KMZ files are imported to Gaia?

I have been using Gaia for about four years now, and I think it is a wonderful product. However, I mostly use it to guide me when I hike, using a track that someone else has recorded. I.e., I rarely record my own hikes, but would use the photos to keep me oriented, help me identify landmarks along the way, etc.  So I would not be particularly interested in adding photos the hike.

Thanks for all your help, and for your excellent app!

Doug

[Andrew Johnson]

For KML, Gaia GPS just handles simple stuff, no photos - lines and points, basically what is supported in GPX.

We might soon have features to better import KML and other file types, but we haven't scheduled such work, just discussed. Even implementing a big subset of possible KML is a big job, and open to artist interpretation. 

Thanks for your comments, and I'm glad you've gotten a lot of use from the app!

Andrew Johnson

Co-founder

www.GaiaGPS.com

415 335 7447