LittleBrother, the new beta application from eMacBerry is very small GPS utility that is being offered to users who wish to keep friends and family members aware of their location. The biggest claim for the application however, is that it uses the least amount of power and resources available in order to provide such information. In the past, GPS utilities have been known as power hungry, data intense applications. LittleBrother is looking to change that by offering a zero power consuming tracking solution.
LittleBrother Core Features:
- Automatically send eMail and/or SMS notification when the device is leaving a certain area: If your device will be moved into an area where you normally never would going too [could be ideally combined with other applications like SmrtGuard to wipe your device remotely]
- Automatically send eMail and/or SMS notification when the device is returning into a certain area: Let your loved once know, that you are coming home soon (e.g. returning from work)
- Export the local CellTower Database (locations) to a KML-File and send it via eMail: To be used with GoogleEarth to get an overview of all the CellTowers you have recorded so far.
- Support for device 'Backup & Restore': Keep all your LittleBrother CellToer Records when you updating your OS or change your BlackBerry® device!
Since LittleBrother is a beta application, users are encouraged to download the app and test it out. Of course, if you have any suggestions for additions you can always forward them off to Matthias for consideration. If you're looking for a simple tracking solution and a way to inform friends and family of where you are, maybe LittleBrother is just the app you need.
Reader comments
LittleBrother - The zero power consuming tracking solution
Works pretty damn good but i wish there were more funtions say multible zones and such!
one wierd thing happened though. I was just sitting at my house and it said i left the area and minute later said i returned when i never left at all. Only happened once!
increase the radius - even if you are stationary at home the device constantly looking for other/better cell towers - here I home I am cycling between three different ones...
Yea i did to 2000 meters
Depending on location, network (i.e., CDMA or GSM), terrain, etc., a radius of 2000 meters may still not be enough. I live in a rural area, and I changed my radius to 12000 meters in order to avoid the cyclic in sector/out of sector messages. While at home, I typically cycle between three towers, including one of which is less than 2500 meters away and another that is 10000+ meters away -- this is the nature of the cellular architecture.
This is yet another amazing work in progress from Matthias Marquardt!
I spoke too soon. All night it was saying i was leaving and coming back into sector atleast 20 times!!!!!!!!!
This is an amazing app, so simple yet useful for my needs.
I would love the ability to set multiple zones (i.e. an alert when I leave work, and another alert when I'm approaching home). Are there plans to extend this functionality?
Keep up the great work!
multi sectors are for sure on the list - have in mind, that this is a early beta version - more or less a "proof of concept" - I have to admit, that I am totally surprised that it works that good for so many people and that the number of installations have just passed 1200...
I can't get this working.
Installed it on two 9700's but I get no emails telling me the phone has left the cell area.
The cell location list is growing, so it seems to be logging information ok, but just no email alerts.
I am in the UK, is that an issue?
this might be an issue - depends on your sector definition and all the other configurations - hard to tell remotly
I am very happy with all the positive responses I have received so far - there are already over 700 installations and the number of cell tower locations that have been recorded is way beyond my wildest speculations - all that in just ONE day.
All I can say is: Thank you so much for all your support and your confidence in installing an so early beta 0.3.
Installed and run today. Did its job just fine. The message was not one my wife understood but that is remedied now. Non-techies are funny folk. :)
So looks like that a way to modify the message that will be send could be helpful here :-)
Absolutely! I could see where it would be more useful to identify a person as opposed to a device PIN in addition to customizing the text.
Amazing work in progress!
last night. No problem now, but my wife thought she got a message from Mr. Spock yesterday. :)
... when RIM's MAP-App is not installed
-> if you had issues before (getting a map for your current location) please update to 0.3.0.2
...so I guess Ill need to wait to test this app out.
just go ahead - it should be working on all devices that have OS 4.5 or higher installed... if 8530 is not listed on the site - no worries...
...the 911 service on a cell phone can pinpoint a caller down to a couple of meters even when the GPS is set to 911 Only and yet all these tracking and mapping programs have to have the GPS actually set to on in the phones programming? Blackberry's have obviously been programmed to have a call to 911 use the GPS without having to have it on constantly, why can't a mapping or tracking program be setup to do the same thing on a longer time frame, like once ever 1 or 2 mins, then shut the GPS off as soon as the location has been determined until the next time interval comes along?
... and many other apps as well - nevertheless when you don't move around (like myself when I am in the office) then it's waste of energy to check every x minutes the current location via GPS...
would be cool if it had the option to send your location every 5-15mins and not just saying your not in the preset area. because you can call and say i'm home or at work. but having it auto sms/email with your location regardless of where would be best.
So I guess once again this will not work on verizon
it's not GPS-based - so it should "work" on all CDMA & GSM Networks
"Thanks" "for" "putting" "quotations" "around" "the" "word" "'work'" *thumbs up*
since I am developing BlackBerry applications for quite some time there is at least one thing I have learned: you never know, what the combo RIM & providers have implemented additionally in order to make code not working in certain conditions - so I am quite carefully with statements like "This will work on all devices..." :-)
In Germany we say: Ich hab' schon Pferde kotzen gesehen [which means I have seen horses that have thrown up...]
I'll keep my fingers crossed, that LB will work for all devices - no matter what the provider have decided to lock - in any case this is a beta version...
Thanks Bla1ze! - Most important (IMHO) to know is, that this application does not make use of the GPS-Signal (Antenna) - it's "just" CellTower based - with that the location is just approximated - but should be sufficient enough for the use case.
Please take the time and read the "Theory of Operation" in order to understand what the app is doing (and what it does not do)...
Also I would like to add that the slogan:
The "zero power consuming" tracking solution
have to be proven during the beta phase - currently I just can say that the app is designed in a way to be way less power consuming then the available GPS-Signal-Based application.
Looking forward to your feedback!
Matthias
Going to try this out here at work for our service department!
Ha that's my town! i'm going to give this a try on my devices
You live near me then? lol.
Well since I have google maps I use the latitude feature. Is does a pretty good job. But I still may try this out to see if it may have other features.
latitude is nice but power hungry
Downloading now and trying it out on a trip this week.