Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the passcode take so long?

By virtue of the masters of APRS-IS, issuing a passcode has to be a manual process involving a check if you are a licensed Radio Amateur. As APRSdroid is a small spare-time project, we can not guarantee immediate processing, sorry.

However, you should be able to use the same passcode with all APRS-IS applications, and you should be able to obtain one from your local iGate operator as well.

How can I configure APRSdroid on the Samsung Galaxy S5?

The S5 does not have a "menu" button any more. You can open the menu by long-pressing the multi-task button. The next major release of APRSdroid will feature its own options menu, stay tuned!

Why am I the only station on the map?

Please check the following:

• Is the APRSdroid service running (APRSdroid icon in the status bar). Push "Start tracking" to enable.
• Is GPS activated?
• Are you using a TCP or Bluetooth connection? (The other connection types do not support displaying of other stations)
• Is your own position report up to date? (Menu -> Show Hub, your own entry's date/time)
• Are there any errors in the Log (Menu -> Show Log)

Why am I not showing up on aprs.fi?

This can have many reasons which need to be diagnosed individually:

Internet connection:

1. Are you properly connected to your APRS-IS server? Please enable Connection Logging in the preferences and then check the Log View for error or success messages. When using TCP, you will see periodic messages from your server, other connection protocols are discouraged and should not be used.
2. Are you using the default APRS-IS server (euro.aprs2.net)? Custom servers might not forward your packets to the APRS-IS network, please only change the server after verifying that everything else works.
3. Can you see your packets in another client connected to the same server?
4. ...to another APRS-IS server?

Radio:

1. Is your radio set to the correct frequency (144.390MHz in the Americas, 144.800MHz in Europe, other regions may vary)?
2. Does your VOX circuitry work? Check the TX light on the radio when APRSdroid is sending!
3. Double-check with another radio set to the same frequency - are you hearing the AFSK "burp" sound?
4. Are you near to a digipeater or iGate that could forward your packets?

Common issues:

1. Do you have a good GPS reception (the GPS icon in the statusbar should be lighted permanently)?
2. Is APRSdroid generating position packets (green lines in the Log View, or your callsign appearing in yellow at the top of the Hub View)?
3. Are there problems sending out the position packets (check the status text in the Log View)?
4. Can you see your packets in another APRS-IS client?
5. Can you see your packets in aprs.fi's raw log? Please enter your full callsign with SSID!

Depending on how far you came, the cause is different, and therefore different measures need to be taken. When reporting a problem, please provide the answers to every of the above questions!

Why is APRSdroid eating my battery?

There are three possible causes for APRSdroid draining your battery very fast:

1. GPS (the most significant one) - to mitigate, you should switch from the default SmartBeaconing to "Periodic GPS/Network Position". Then the GPS will only be turned on every some minutes to obtain a position. You can disable GPS in the system preferences and enable Network Location to further reduce battery drain.

2. Display (depending on your usage) - keeping the display on drains the battery fast.

3. CPU usage (rather insignificant) - if you are using a TCP connection, ensure that you have configured a reasonable neighbor radius. If the radius is very high, you are going to receive packets at a high rate, causing the network and CPU to stay awake.

Why is the service stopping immediately?

The service automatically stops if it can not ensure a working TCP or Bluetooth connection. You can see the reason for stopping in the Log (Menu -> Show Log)

How do I automate APRSdroid (with e.g. Tasker)

In Tasker, you can start the APRSdroid service with the following task:

• Action Category: Misc then Send Intent
• Action: org.aprsdroid.app.SERVICE
• Target: Service (instead of the default Broadcast Receiver)

Why does APRSdroid not run on my low-cost chinese Tablet?

APRSdroid requires the Google Maps library to be present on your device. Usually this is the case on all "with Google[tm]" phones and tablets. If your device is not officially branded, you have to manually install Google Maps or use the OSM version of APRSdroid.