Today we would like to welcome the RunGap app to the Map My Tracks family.
RunGap is a third-party iOS app that uses the Map My Tracks API to sync workouts between services. Using this app make it super simple to keep your Map My Tracks in step with all your other apps and services.
RunGap can be downloaded free from the App Store and it includes options to upgrade unlock all features.
If you are a developer and wish to use the Map My Tracks API for your project then please contact us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
With your privacy as one of our top priorities today we have launched automatic privacy zones detection.
Starting today, all new activities will be scanned to check if you regularly start or finish in the same location. If we detect that you do often start or finish in the same place a new privacy zone will be created for you. The privacy zone will mask the exact start or end location so anyone viewing your public activities is not able to determine where you home or place of work might be.
Privacy zones can be edited, or created on the website at Settings > Privacy. You can choose to disable auto-detection altogether, or choose to ignore any zones that have been automatically created for you. Likewise, privacy zones can be deleted.
Privacy first
Our default set up for new users is all offline. This means that users have to choose to share their activities publicly when they wish to. We wanted to make sure that when our users do share their activities publicly that their privacy is protected by default. Automatic privacy zones will work in the background without users needing to configure their account to protect their privacy. Automatic privacy zones will help to do that for you.
We hope you like this new feature. If you have any feedback about this or any other features then please do get in touch at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
We’re thrilled to welcome HealthFit app to the Map My Tracks family.
From today, anyone that uses an Apple Watch to record their outdoor pursuits can sync it automatically to Map My Tracks through the HealthFit app.
HealthFit is a third-party app that uses the Map My Tracks API to seamlessly sync Apple Watch workouts over to Map My Tracks. It’s easy to set up and get started and once configured the HealthFit app will take over and do work in the background keeping your Map My Tracks account up to date.
All activities synced across using HealthFit will be set to Private but if you would prefer to share them with followers on Map My Tracks then you can edit each one on Map My Tracks.
The HealthFit app is available to download from the App Store for $2.99.
It’s great to see our API being using for really useful tools like HealthFit. If you are a developer and wish to use the Map My Tracks API for your project then please contact us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
We’re thrilled to welcome Polar to the Map My Tracks family. From today, anyone that uses a Polar watch to record their outdoor pursuits can sync it automatically to Map My Tracks. Polar joins the existing set of services, that includes Garmin Connect and Fitbit, that makes is easy for anyone that enjoys getting outdoors to keep all their records in one place.
It’s simple to set up
To get started first connect your Map My Tracks account with your Polar Flow account. On the website go to Upload > Connect to devices. On the app go to Settings > Services to complete the connection. Once connected, your Polar activities will be synced across to Map My Tracks. After that, all new activities synced to Polar Flow will also be synced to Map My Tracks. It will not sync historical activities. If these are needed on Map My Tracks then they can be upload manually.
By default, any activity synced from Polar will be made private. It’s possible to alter this by editing the connection settings on the website at Upload > Connect to devices.
As ever, we are keen to hear from our community on what other services would be good to integrate with. Get in touch to let us know.
We’ve been busy making sure that the app in general is much faster to use when browsing around. You’ll notice that maps load faster and that pages now include an infinite scroll that means you can easily browse more of your history or your friend’s activities. Some subtle changes to the page layouts mean everything is clearer and easier to read.
We’ve also made sure that the app stays in sync your website history. Now, if you upload activities to the website your phone stays in sync without needing to manually download it. This works great if you have connected your account to Garmin Connect or Fitbit. All the activities synced from these services automatically appear in the app on your phone keeping everything in one place.
Photos take center stage. When you pin a photo to an activity it will show in your profile and activity feed instead of the route map.
Other all round improvements make this version faster and even easier to use.
Your very own personalised heat map on Map My Tracks is now available to explore.
The Map My Tracks heat map provides an overview of all your activities to show where you’ve been in the past. It’s a great way to explore your history of activities and remind your of the places you have been.
We’ve included options for you to explore your heat map by year and each activity type you do.
Your heat map can only be seen by you as they include both public and private activities that you have uploaded to Map My Tracks. By default, the heat map will not include any activities that start or finish within any privacy zone but there are options to override this to see all your activities. Keep in mind, that if you choose to share a screenshot of your heat map with your privacy zone data visible then it may disclose sensitive locations.
To view your own heat map login to Map My Tracks then choose Heat map from the main dropdown menu.
Heat maps are available for PLUS members. If you would like to view your own heat map then please upgrade to PLUS and your heat map will be available immediately.
The global reach of Map My Tracks never ceases to amaze us. We are always thrilled to see that we have users all around the world.
To help illustrate this we’ve developed a simple map that showcases all the incoming data, in real-time, on Map My Tracks.
It’s fascinating to see how the incoming data moves across the world from east to west during the day. As Australia is going to bed there tends to be more activity in America as they wake up and start their day.
Being connected to friends on Map My Tracks is a great way to stay motivated and keep active.
Once you’re connected to friends Map My Tracks will keep you up-to-date with their activity by sending you various notifications. While notifications are a perfect way to stay in touch you may not want to receive all of them.
Now, you have full control over what notification you send and receive. You can choose what notifications you prefer to receive from your friends and also decide what notifications you send to your friends on Map My Tracks.
You can review, and make changes to, your notifications settings in your Account preferences.
We take our responsibility to protect our users’ privacy very seriously. So much so that none of the default settings on Map My Tracks force users to make their activity public. The starting point for every user is to keep everything private and only make it public if they choose to do so.
That said, when users do choose to make their activity public it’s important that the privacy zone tools we provide do their job to mask their data.
Through research undertaken by the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign into fitness tracking social networks like Map My Tracks they uncovered some problems with our initial implementation of privacy zones. We were provided with the details of the issue on February 22, 2018 by Hussain et al. who established an algorithm to deduce the place of interest within a privacy zone.
Their research included recommendations to further secure users’ data within a privacy zone to mitigate the risk of exposing the place of interest. Their recommendations, and a further set of our own, were implemented on February 23, 2018 and applied to new and established privacy zones.
We would encourage all our users to set up Privacy Zones over their home or place of work if they choose to make their activity public. Go to Settings > Privacy to set up as many as needed.
Map My Tracks has always been about tracking your rides, runs, hikes, outdoor activities and adventures. Over the past year we have steadily added more ways for you to be able to tell the whole story around your outdoor activities. Photos, goals and now in the latest update of the iOS app we’ve added augmented reality.
With all these new features available it was time to give the app a refresh to make it easier to get the most out of Map My Tracks - so welcome to version 5 of the Map My Tracks iOS app.
In this update you get a clean crisp dashboard, easy access to set goals, browse the Social Gallery and explore the landscape around you with augmented reality.
Augmented reality
If you have a compatible phone* your can explore the landscape around your when you are out on your next adventure. If you have ever wondered what mountain peak was on the horizon, or what town was down the road, or where your friends are then you’ll love this feature. To discover what’s nearby first open the Activity Map then tap on the AR globe in the top corner. You’ll see nearby peaks, places and anyone that is tracking live - all in the landscape around you.
New dashboard
The new dashboard has a familiar but cleaner feel. It still shows off all your activity history across today, this week, month, year and all time. We’ve added a tab bar to launch into some of the most used sections of the app like the Social Gallery, your friends activities, goals and your own profile.
Goals
Who doesn’t like a goal? You can challenge yourself to complete a distance goals, or a duration-based goal. With the New Year just on the horizon it’s a great time to set your 2018 goals and monitor their progress on Map My Tracks.
Connect to Fitbit and Garmin Connect
If you’re a user of either Garmin Connect or Fitbit then it’s now possible to connect these accounts to Map My Tracks. Once connected any activities added to either Garmin Connect or Fitbit will be synced to your Map My Tracks accounts. It’s a great way to keep everything all in one place.
Map My Tracks v5 for iOS is now available to download from the App Store. The Android update is due out in a week or so.
We hope you like the update and enjoy exploring the landscape around you with augmented reality powered by Map My Tracks.
*Augmented reality compatible phones include the following that run iOS 11: iPhone 6s/6s Plus, iPhone 7/7 Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 8/8 Plus.
Upgrade to PLUS to access the best of Map My Tracks including detailed performance analysis, live tracking and more . Map My Tracks PLUS is an affordable way to better understand your performance and organise your workouts. Try PLUS free for 30 days.
