APRS site shutting down

LettersFromFlyoverCountry · #1 07-23-2016, 09:44 AM

It looks like Joe Dubner is shutting down his APRS tracking site the end of August. This has been tremendously helpful for me since I installed it.

I'm interested in any good alternatives.

TCONROY · #2 07-23-2016, 10:21 AM

www.APRS.fi is likely the most popular APRS website...not sure of the differences but it ought to work for you.

rv7boy · #3 07-23-2016, 10:49 AM

My understanding is that the aprs.fi site is provided by Google, and it's always been dependable for me. There is also an app for iPhones available on the Apple App Store.
Works great!

7/24 update: I stand corrected! Joe's site is very useful for aviators, and although I haven't used it before, I can see how it is more useful than the aprs.fi site, especially for aviators.

gnuse · #4 07-23-2016, 04:20 PM

Joe has provided a wonderful resource over time with his APRS site.

For those that have not visited it, you might not understand why it is so significant for what it does. It is nothing like APRS.fi

Thanks to Joe, I have been made aware of high altitude ballons wandering around and even of a Russian pilot that seems to fly almost every day. It provided a way to find out if a friend was inbound or nearby.

Thanks Joe for what you have done for us, the work you did to provide the information that was unique to your site, and go enjoy that RV-8A!

Vlad · #5 07-23-2016, 04:51 PM

Joe needs a vacation. He put so much of his time and money into this wonderful resource. Free for all of us I doubt there will be similar info laden database. Thank you very much Joe!

Sam Buchanan · #6 07-23-2016, 05:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gnuse

Joe has provided a wonderful resource over time with his APRS site.

For those that have not visited it, you might not understand why it is so significant for what it does. It is nothing like APRS.fi

Thanks to Joe, I have been made aware of high altitude ballots wandering around and even of a Russian pilot that seems to fly almost every day. It provided a way to find out if a friend was inbound or nearby.

Thanks Joe for what you have done for us, the work you did to provide the information that was unique to your site, and go enjoy that RV-8A!

I know it is bit late now...but I need education. What did Joe's nice site do that aprs.fi doesn't do?

By the way, I am using an Android phone app for tracking of the Fokker. I didn't want to go to the trouble of an APRS install in it, at least not yet.

MS19087 · #7 07-23-2016, 08:47 PM

Joe has a great site. Thanks for hosting and processing for all of these years. I love the format. Maybe someone else can pick up where joe leaves off.

humptybump · #8 07-24-2016, 04:04 AM

For the curious, here are a few of the things Joe was able to do for the flying APRS community with his site ...

12 months of history
Filtered to be just 'flying things' (excluding the TARDIS)
Data available in both map view and Google Earth KML format
Lots of wibbly wobbly timy whimy code to correct 'out of order' packets
Organized APRS data into individual flights
Map of all active aircraft (I just tried this feature today)

The site did a lot more and it was unique to the flying community.

DanBaier · #9 07-24-2016, 06:07 AM

Quote:

Lots of ... code to correct 'out of order' packets

Especially that. Thanks Joe for the site - but sorry to see it go.

Dan

Sam Buchanan · #10 07-24-2016, 07:18 AM

Agreed, Joe put in a ton of work on his site and I'm sure it required a lot of maintenance. It will be missed by those who used it regularly.

Fortunately, we still have at least one site (aprs.fi) that is very serviceable even though it tracks everything with a transmitter. The owner of the site continues to add code and refine it. I'm glad we have volunteers that enable us to enjoy APRS and the safety enhancement it provides.