Apps WorkOutDoors: New workout features

[chris432626]

I have just released version 5.4 to the App Store. It is only a bug-fix version that I am mainly releasing because it contains a workaround for the map transfer issues with iOS 17.5. I was hoping to wait a couple of weeks until Apple release betas of iOS 18 and watchOS 11, to make sure that this new version worked on them. However I was getting too many complaints and angry reviews so I decided to release now.

It may take a day or so to get through Apple's systems and appear on each country's App Store. I have requested a phased release as I always do, which means that automatic updates are spread over the next week, but manual updates can be requested at any time (once the new version is available on the store).

This version also contains several other bug fixes, including a workaround for the always on display issues with watchOS 10.4.

Many thanks to all the beta testers who have been using it for the last few months. I really appreciate their help and feedback. The changes are relatively minor and there haven't been many problems during testing, so I am hoping that the release goes smoothly. That may be optimistic though...

I have also decided to raise the price by a dollar because I haven't done that for a while and people often tell me that the app is worth more than the current price!

Thanks for a great app. I think you should move to a subscription model for recurring revenue……maybe include some health metric such as recovery time or something that mimics Garmin body battery / training readiness as a way of justifying the move?

just a thought!

 

[Pitch]

I also spent a month or so investigating whether it was possible to provide offline routing by using the map data, but unfortunately this data is geared for display and didn't contain the necessary information (e.g. turn restrictions). It worked for 95%+ of the time, but I didn't think that was good enough. I may revisit it in the future though, because offline routing would be very useful. I was tempted to just provide it for walking/hiking where turn restrictions etc don't matter, but in the end decided against it.

Hi Ian, to clarify here, does this mean there won't be re-routing if you go off course when there's no cellular signal or does it mean there's no routing at all when there's no signal? I often do trail running where there's no cell reception and it would be a bummer were there no routing at all, even following the imported GPX route.

 

[cfc]

Hi Ian, to clarify here, does this mean there won't be re-routing if you go off course when there's no cellular signal or does it mean there's no routing at all when there's no signal? I often do trail running where there's no cell reception and it would be a bummer were there no routing at all, even following the imported GPX route.

If the route file has navigation waypoints in it then the app will speak out those directions if you are following the route, even if you are offline.

However the app will not do any routing itself, either online or offline. It will simply read out navigation directions contained within the route file.

Offline routing would obviously be the perfect solution, which is why I spent time investigating it. However the data that the app currently uses to display the map does not contain all the information required for routing.

If the app becomes more successful in the future then I may pay someone to build a server that provides the map data in a format customised for the app, including the data required for routing whilst offline. This would also have other advantages such as not including data that I don't use, so the tiles would be smaller and faster to load. However it would initially cost money to build, and would also increase the ongoing cost, and unfortunately ongoing costs don't fit with the app's single payment business model.

So the alternative is to use online routing, which would require access to a third party server to calculate routes. However this would also probably involve ongoing costs.

In the long-term I would love to include offline routing. I got tantalisingly close when I looked into it this time, so it's a possibility for the future. I suspect that I will build/buy a custom map server at some time, despite the ongoing costs, but I am starting relatively simple with the first navigation features.

 

[cubodado]

Hi Ian, just a feedback.
Upgraded today to version 5.4.8 in the features it is written that you solved the map transfer feedback issue but I still have it. iOS 17.5.1 (I read you claimed the solution for iOS 17.5) and watchOS 10.5.
I think the map transfer works anyway.
As usual, thanks a lot for your work.

 

[cfc]

Hi Ian, just a feedback.
Upgraded today to version 5.4.8 in the features it is written that you solved the map transfer feedback issue but I still have it. iOS 17.5.1 (I read you claimed the solution for iOS 17.5) and watchOS 10.5.
I think the map transfer works anyway.
As usual, thanks a lot for your work.

Is the watch app up to date (v5.4.8)? Apple usually don't update the watch app when you update the iPhone app, which is very annoying. To check go to the Settings on the watch app and tap More and then scroll down to the bottom.

If the watch app is not v5.4.8 then please go to the App Store app on the watch and install it from there. Don't worry if it implies that you need to pay again because you won't.

Note that the watchOS app store sometimes takes a bit longer to update than the iOS App Store, so if it is still showing the old version then you can either wait, or reinstall the watch app by using Apple's Watch app on the iPhone. However if you do reinstall the watch app instead of using the watchOS App Store then you will lose the data in the watch app.

If this happens then you will then need to send the data from the iPhone app to the watch app. This can be done by going to the Settings tab and tapping File Management and then "Send Yesterday’s Watch Settings", "Send Screens to Watch” and “Send Interval Schedules to Watch”. If you want then you can also send routes or workouts individually. They can’t all be sent at once because they are too large.

Sorry that it is so complicated but hopefully your App Store on the watch will have the latest version and it is simply a case of updating from there.

 

[firewire9000]

I have just released version 5.4 to the App Store. It is only a bug-fix version that I am mainly releasing because it contains a workaround for the map transfer issues with iOS 17.5. I was hoping to wait a couple of weeks until Apple release betas of iOS 18 and watchOS 11, to make sure that this new version worked on them. However I was getting too many complaints and angry reviews so I decided to release now.

It may take a day or so to get through Apple's systems and appear on each country's App Store. I have requested a phased release as I always do, which means that automatic updates are spread over the next week, but manual updates can be requested at any time (once the new version is available on the store).

This version also contains several other bug fixes, including a workaround for the always on display issues with watchOS 10.4.

Many thanks to all the beta testers who have been using it for the last few months. I really appreciate their help and feedback. The changes are relatively minor and there haven't been many problems during testing, so I am hoping that the release goes smoothly. That may be optimistic though...

I have also decided to raise the price by a dollar because I haven't done that for a while and people often tell me that the app is worth more than the current price!

Thank you very much! As I did in the past, I tipped you some money again. You deserve it!

 

[cubodado]

Is the watch app up to date (v5.4.8)? Apple usually don't update the watch app when you update the iPhone app, which is very annoying. To check go to the Settings on the watch app and tap More and then scroll down to the bottom.

If the watch app is not v5.4.8 then please go to the App Store app on the watch and install it from there. Don't worry if it implies that you need to pay again because you won't.

Note that the watchOS app store sometimes takes a bit longer to update than the iOS App Store, so if it is still showing the old version then you can either wait, or reinstall the watch app by using Apple's Watch app on the iPhone. However if you do reinstall the watch app instead of using the watchOS App Store then you will lose the data in the watch app.

If this happens then you will then need to send the data from the iPhone app to the watch app. This can be done by going to the Settings tab and tapping File Management and then "Send Yesterday’s Watch Settings", "Send Screens to Watch” and “Send Interval Schedules to Watch”. If you want then you can also send routes or workouts individually. They can’t all be sent at once because they are too large.

Sorry that it is so complicated but hopefully your App Store on the watch will have the latest version and it is simply a case of updating from there.

You were right, watch app wasn’t updated yet. Removed the app from watch only and inserted it again. Now it is updated to version 5.4.8 too.
Already tried to download maps for next trip and it worked correctly.
The few maps I had before on my watch were still there.
Thank you!

Tipped for solving issue, update and help.

 

[cfc]

Thank you very much! As I did in the past, I tipped you some money again. You deserve it!

That's great! Many thanks for that.

 

[cfc]

You were right, watch app wasn’t updated yet. Removed the app from watch only and inserted it again. Now it is updated to version 5.4.8 too.
Already tried to download maps for next trip and it worked correctly.
The few maps I had before on my watch were still there.
Thank you!

Tipped for solving issue, update and help.

Glad that helped. I wish Apple updated the watch app with the iPhone app.

Many thanks for the tip. I really appreciate that!

 

[Jschut82]

Hi! New to the app. Just bought it today.
I started to customize the screens and man this is super!

On the overview of the website you see a row with 3 images. (Attached it) On the third image on the bottom you see a zone (3.0) bar
How can i add that bar to a screen? I can't find any option for it.

Thanks!

 

[cfc]

Hi! New to the app. Just bought it today.
I started to customize the screens and man this is super!

On the overview of the website you see a row with 3 images. (Attached it) On the third image on the bottom you see a zone (3.0) bar
How can i add that bar to a screen? I can't find any option for it.

Thanks!

Go to the Settings tab in the iPhone app and tap "Screen". Then select the zone you require in the "Bottom Line" section.

Or go to the Settings in the watch app and tap "More" and then "Bottom Line".

 

[j0hnmerrick]

Hello, and thank you for the app. However, I'm experiencing a bug that's a bit annoying. When I'm running an interval session, there is a delay of 2 or 3 seconds between the remaining time of the intervals on the watch and the speaker who announces 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Essentially, the interval time is over while the speaker is still announcing that there are 2 seconds left.

The same thing happens at the start of the sets. It's a bit frustrating when doing 30/30 intervals to either run a few extra seconds (those seconds are very tough ) or to start with a 2-second delay. Is this a known bug, or is it a configuration issue?

thanks

 

[firewire9000]

Hi @cfc , is it possible to cast the heart rate that the app is reading to another device like a bike computer?

heartbeatz

heartbeatz PÔD links Apple Watch heart rate to bike computers and consoles via our heartbeatz Connect App. heartbeatz PÔD broadcasts natively in ANT+, but can transmit heart rate via Bluetooth by using the heartbeatz iPhone companion app and selecting 'Transmit via Bluetooth'. Bike...

npe.fit

This product does that but to an external device that then it connects to a bike computer or so.

 

[cfc]

Hello, and thank you for the app. However, I'm experiencing a bug that's a bit annoying. When I'm running an interval session, there is a delay of 2 or 3 seconds between the remaining time of the intervals on the watch and the speaker who announces 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Essentially, the interval time is over while the speaker is still announcing that there are 2 seconds left.

The same thing happens at the start of the sets. It's a bit frustrating when doing 30/30 intervals to either run a few extra seconds (those seconds are very tough ) or to start with a 2-second delay. Is this a known bug, or is it a configuration issue?

thanks

I haven't heard of that. Are you playing alerts via the watch or the phone? I have heard that the phone can be slower to play alerts in recent versions of iOS.

In any case it is worth rebooting both devices in case something is slowing things down.

 

[cfc]

Hi @cfc , is it possible to cast the heart rate that the app is reading to another device like a bike computer?

heartbeatz

heartbeatz PÔD links Apple Watch heart rate to bike computers and consoles via our heartbeatz Connect App. heartbeatz PÔD broadcasts natively in ANT+, but can transmit heart rate via Bluetooth by using the heartbeatz iPhone companion app and selecting 'Transmit via Bluetooth'. Bike...

npe.fit

This product does that but to an external device that then it connects to a bike computer or so.

The app uses the Bluetooth system provided by Apple, which unfortunately does not currently allow the watch to act as a "Peripheral". So sending HR to another device is not possible without writing custom low-level Bluetooth code, which would be more work than I would want to undertake. Sorry about that.

 

[j0hnmerrick]

I haven't heard of that. Are you playing alerts via the watch or the phone? I have heard that the phone can be slower to play alerts in recent versions of iOS.

In any case it is worth rebooting both devices in case something is slowing things down.

I run without a phone, only with my Ultra 2. I've had the problem for about 6 months, and I've rebooted my devices since then.The OS versions are up to date. The vibration on the watch is okay (timely).

 

[cfc]

I run without a phone, only with my Ultra 2. I've had the problem for about 6 months, and I've rebooted my devices since then.The OS versions are up to date. The vibration on the watch is okay (timely).

Sorry, I don't know what to suggest then. The app asks watchOS to speak the alert at the same time as it asks it to play the haptic.

 

[javataco]

I haven't heard of that. Are you playing alerts via the watch or the phone? I have heard that the phone can be slower to play alerts in recent versions of iOS.

In any case it is worth rebooting both devices in case something is slowing things down.

Mine does the same thing and has for months!

I think it happens when I’m playing podcasts.

 

[cfc]

Mine does the same thing and has for months!

I think it happens when I’m playing podcasts.

What interaction mode do you have configured? By default it is Duck but there is also a Pause option which only has an effect with spoken audio. The audio interaction is handled by watchOS but the pause option requires a bit more interaction between the apps and watchOS. So it may be worth playing with that setting to see if it helps.

 

[javataco]

What interaction mode do you have configured? By default it is Duck but there is also a Pause option which only has an effect with spoken audio. The audio interaction is handled by watchOS but the pause option requires a bit more interaction between the apps and watchOS. So it may be worth playing with that setting to see if it helps.

Have been on Duck but will try Pause.

Honestly it hasn’t been a big deal as I usually watch the display for the start and stop, but yeah. Wondered if it was just me with this!

Will keep an eye on it and see if it changes.

 

[assquatch]

I triggered an app update on my phone to get the AOD fix. I also removed the app from my watch and re-installed. When I went for my run, none of my screens, intervals, HR zones, start settings etc. were on the watch. I had to go digging through the app and "send" everything I could find one by one. Is there a simpler way to make sure the watch has all the settings?

I do think the AOD fix is working for me, but I also noticed the "send to strava" button is gone on the watch and I'm not sure why.

 

[cfc]

I triggered an app update on my phone to get the AOD fix. I also removed the app from my watch and re-installed. When I went for my run, none of my screens, intervals, HR zones, start settings etc. were on the watch. I had to go digging through the app and "send" everything I could find one by one. Is there a simpler way to make sure the watch has all the settings?

I do think the AOD fix is working for me, but I also noticed the "send to strava" button is gone on the watch and I'm not sure why.

If you uninstall the watch app then you will lose all the settings on the watch because watchOS/iOS don't preserve watch app data between installations. So you will need to send them again by going to Settings / File Management / Send Yesterday's Settings (or Send Current Watch Settings). This should send the Strava details but if not then go to Settings / Export Options and disable and re-enable the automatic Strava uploading.

You may also need to tap "Send Screens to Watch” and “Send Interval Schedules to Watch”. If you want then you can also send routes or workouts individually. They can’t all be sent at once because they are too large.

Note that if you install the watch app from the App Store on the watch then this is not an issue because the settings are not lost. However it seems that new versions can take many days (I suspect up to a week) to appear on the App Store on the watch.

 

[coachjeffroc]

I haven't heard of that. Are you playing alerts via the watch or the phone? I have heard that the phone can be slower to play alerts in recent versions of iOS.

In any case it is worth rebooting both devices in case something is slowing things down.

It happens to me too. It happened on my older series 6 and now my new (last week 🥳) ultra 2. I wondered if the faster processor would fix it, but it happened this morning. It's not such a big deal for me. I have "time remaining" counting down on my "recover" screen and the haptic is always spot on. Sound is set on the watch and sent to bluetooth headphones and I was playing music today. Never paid attention to the "music/no music" possibility. Maybe I'll test it next time. Tipped last week. WOD works great on the ultra 2.

 

[cfc]

It happens to me too. It happened on my older series 6 and now my new (last week 🥳) ultra 2. I wondered if the faster processor would fix it, but it happened this morning. It's not such a big deal for me. I have "time remaining" counting down on my "recover" screen and the haptic is always spot on. Sound is set on the watch and sent to bluetooth headphones and I was playing music today. Never paid attention to the "music/no music" possibility. Maybe I'll test it next time. Tipped last week. WOD works great on the ultra 2.

If it only happens when listening to other audio then it sounds like an issue in watchOS with the audio interaction.

I added a new "advanced" setting in the latest version which may be worth trying. It is only available in the voice settings in the watch app and is called "Use Main Thread". For non-coders that means that the app will do all speaking in the same "thread of execution" as the user interface instead of having a dedicated thread/queue for speaking.

I have no idea whether this will help, because I don't see (hear?) any problems. But I thought it would be worth adding to see if it can help people who are having problems with voice alerts. So please give it a go if you are having any issues with speaking (not just delays).

 

[Akrapovic]

Completed an Ultra Marathon using WoD. It was perfect for the entire event.