Graphic weather on your smartphone - help beta test

by Daria Blackwell on 3 Nov 2010 www.passageweather.com!Passage_Weather is the website cruisers worldwide rely on for accurate weather information while planning off shore passages from on shore. Now they are beta-testing an app for iPhone, Android and various other handheld mobile devices and looking for input. If you have a handheld mobile device, please help Passage Weather with their beta testing.

If you haven't come across Passage Weather, it's an easy-to-use free global service that provides distilled yet enhanced and animated grib files along with sea state, visibility, precipitation and several other variables. We found it essential for accurate weather prediction for up to a week in advance.

Whether you're planning a passage or a day sail, or even just dreaming about it, check it out and help them perfect the mobile app. You?ll be helping us all improve our safety at sea.

Passage Weather a useful addition to any sailor's armamentarium and now we'll be able to take it along with us.

The development will include most modern smartphones - iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Palm, Symbian, etc. and other mobile devices (iPod touch, etc.)

Please keep in mind that this web app is still in it's early (beta testing) stages, so what we have now is not the finished product... In fact, we have a long way

to go before it's finished, with many features yet to be included...

Passage Weather have tested it on iPhone and Android devices, and they report that 'it all seems to work fine so far...'

Blackberry devices should have the latest operating system (OS6) for it to work properly, but that hasn't been tested yet.

It should also work on most Symbian devices (such as Nokia and some Sony-Ericsson smartphones), but the forecast images weren't so clear on the ones it's been tried on...

Passage Weather are asking you to try it out and let them know how it works. Read on for more info on installation and how to send them feedback:


Installation Instructions:

NOTE: This web app is not designed to be used in a desktop browser, so it won't work in Internet Explorer and other desktop browsers.

iPhone

Open Safari, and go to www.passageweather.com/mobi
Tap the + sign at the bottom of the screen
Select 'Add to Home Screen'
Run the web app by tapping the PassageWeather icon

Android
In the Android Browser, go to www.passageweather.com/mobi
Click the 'Settings' hard button on your Android phone
Choose 'More' from the settings options
Click 'Add Bookmark'
Click 'Ok' to save the bookmark
Go to a free spot on your Home Screen and long press on the screen until 'Add to Home Screen' shows up
Choose 'Shortcuts'
Choose 'Bookmark'
Choose your recently created bookmark for PassageWeather
Run the web app by tapping the PassageWeather icon

Blackberry
On your Blackberry, go to www.passageweather.com/mobi
Press the Menu key
Click 'Add Bookmark' and adjust the name if desired

Press the Menu key and click 'Add'
Choose your recently created bookmark for PassageWeather
Run the web app by pressing the PassageWeather icon

Symbian
On your device, go to www.passageweather.com/mobi
Hope it works!
On the Nokia phones that we've tested it on, it all seems to work OK, except that the forecast images weren't so clear, so we needed to hit the Zoom button to view them properly
With Nokia, use the built-in browser that came with your device, as the Opera Mobile browser and the SkyFire browser don't seem to work very well.

NOTE: Instructions may vary between models

To make any comments, suggestions or to report any bugs or problems, please send an email to info@passageweather.com

Please include your phone/device make and model in your email, and if you know the operating system version please include that as well... They are trying to work out all the bugs and problems, so you are encouraged to help them make this web app work properly on your phone/device...

Daria Blackwell is the co-author of http://www.coastalboating.net/Resources/Books/CSBooks/HappyHooking.html!Happy_Hooking:_The_Art_of_Anchoring - www.coastalboating.net