Apple brings customizable geofencing to Find My Friends in update
In a minor update to its iOS device-finding Find My Friends app, Apple has added a slightly tweaked user interface for searching and setting notifications based on proximate location, bringing the title up to version 2.1.
With the new Find My Friends version, the app's "Notify Me" page now features a customizable boundary, or geofencing, option that can be expanded or contracted around a located iOS device. Users can adjust the monitored area around a device by selecting the "Change Location" button, which resets the geofencing threshold to allow for more accurate location-based notifications.
With the added functionality, users can select and manipulate the purple circle representing the geofencing around a tracked device, giving a bit more customization to the previous set threshold.
In addition, the notification page's UI has been slightly tweaked to show an Apple Maps thumbnail image of a device's current location.
Find My Friends is available as a free universal download from the App Store and requires iOS 6.1 to run.
With the new Find My Friends version, the app's "Notify Me" page now features a customizable boundary, or geofencing, option that can be expanded or contracted around a located iOS device. Users can adjust the monitored area around a device by selecting the "Change Location" button, which resets the geofencing threshold to allow for more accurate location-based notifications.
With the added functionality, users can select and manipulate the purple circle representing the geofencing around a tracked device, giving a bit more customization to the previous set threshold.
In addition, the notification page's UI has been slightly tweaked to show an Apple Maps thumbnail image of a device's current location.
Find My Friends is available as a free universal download from the App Store and requires iOS 6.1 to run.
Comments
(love it, by the way.)
Originally Posted by quinney
Nice stitching
The lack of a physical analogue is the reason the overt skeuomorphism doesn't work as well here.
Now they need a Bubble Popping option that will send you a notification if one of the people you follow enters into your geofence border. You happen to be in Times Square and you just happen get a notification that such and such is close by. This would have helped Ferris Bueller's parents catch him in the act even if they didn't actively check FMF.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
This would have helped Ferris Bueller's parents catch him in the act even if they didn't actively check FMF.
Ferris asked for a car but got, not only an iPhone, but caught as well.
How's that for being born under a bad sign?
Extremely useful for those who carpool, etc.
I wasn't aware anyone actually used this app.
Same here, almost. It works pretty good. I can find all my friends but it doesn't seem to be anywhere near as fast as being able to find ME. I mean, all it's got to do it get a GPS fix and send the coordinates to me. How long should that take? Also, it's not very well suited to tracking someone - you have to play tricks sometimes to get it to update a friend's location once it does find them. Not good for tracking their progress, like trying to give them driving directions by phone as they go. I'm going to assume they did it this way to save battery power in the friend's phone. It probably would generate a lot of complaints if I could keep a friend's GPS pinging away for a long time.
I've been reading all these stories and NONE of them have noted this key functionality. If you want to tweak the pin location, you don't need to create a location or enter an address. You can now set it in the middle of a field, for example, if you want/need to.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wings
"FMF doesn't work well for me. It struggles to update locations of people. Idk if its their lack of signal, or because I'm on wifi?"
Same here, almost. It works pretty good. I can find all my friends but it doesn't seem to be anywhere near as fast as being able to find ME. I mean, all it's got to do it get a GPS fix and send the coordinates to me. How long should that take? Also, it's not very well suited to tracking someone - you have to play tricks sometimes to get it to update a friend's location once it does find them. Not good for tracking their progress, like trying to give them driving directions by phone as they go. I'm going to assume they did it this way to save battery power in the friend's phone. It probably would generate a lot of complaints if I could keep a friend's GPS pinging away for a long time.
That's by design. I'm sure there's security implications with being able to track someone's movements to the meter in real time. It's best used to find someone at a specific locaiton, to be notifies when someone leaves a location, or is due to arrive to your location, etc. It's not meant for stalking.
I really hate to admit this since I use this app all the time, check on friends, send notifications, keep track of a family member in bad weather, etc. but I DONT GET IT??? I cant see anything different since I updated it?