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APRS-IS Tracker

APRS-IS Tracker

by Barry de Graaff

App

APRS-IS GPS position tracker for licensed amateur-radio operators

Install

About APRS-IS Tracker

APRS-IS Tracker is a native Ubuntu Touch position tracker for licensed amateur-radio operators.

It sends the device's current position directly to the APRS-IS network using the configured callsign. The APRS-IS passcode is calculated automatically and locally from the callsign, so there is no passcode field to configure.

FEATURES

- native Qt/QML Ubuntu Touch application
- uppercase-only APRS-IS callsign configuration
- automatic local APRS-IS passcode calculation
- visible GPS acquisition, fix, accuracy, and error status
- in-app APRS-IS connection log with server responses, socket states, write status, timeouts, and errors
- direct APRS-IS TCP connection to rotate.aprs2.net on port 14580
- configurable APRS location comment, defaulting to Ubuntu Touch APRS-IS Tracker
- APRS symbol selection using the APRS symbol table, defaulting to Motorcycle
- APRS.fi button for opening the configured callsign in the browser
- testing mode with a fixed Den Bosch, Netherlands location
- Protect Home mode that suppresses updates within 1 km of a saved home location
- one-button home-location capture from the Ubuntu Touch location sensor
- configurable refresh interval with a minimum of 1 minute
- Privacy Mode that randomizes transmitted live positions within a 250 m radius
- corner-triggered position updates when movement direction changes at least 30 degrees above 15 km/h
- 10-second anti-jitter cooldown for corner-triggered packets
- light mode and dark mode
- hamburger menu at the top right
- About dialog including the application version
- hands-off ride screen with 50% larger text, glove-friendly double-height controls, live speed, GPS fix age/accuracy, home-zone state, send timing, packet count, and ride duration
- keeps the display awake while tracking using the supported Ubuntu Touch keep-display-on permission
- active tracking intent survives an app restart and waits for a fresh GPS fix before resuming
- rejects live GPS positions older than 30 seconds and shows --.- km/h on the ride screen while the fix is stale or unavailable
- sends immediately when leaving the 1 km protected-home radius

PRIVACY AND NETWORK BEHAVIOR

APRS-IS is a public amateur-radio network. Any position sent to APRS-IS should be treated as public information that can be redistributed or stored by third parties.

Standard APRS-IS TCP traffic on port 14580 is not encrypted.

Protect Home is evaluated against the real device location before any privacy randomization. When the device is within 1 km of the configured home coordinate, no location packet is sent.

Privacy Mode randomizes each transmitted live position within a 250 m radius. This reduces precision but does not make APRS transmission anonymous: the configured amateur-radio callsign remains part of the APRS packet.

Testing mode always transmits the fixed Den Bosch location, appends [Dummy Test location] after the configured comment, and intentionally bypasses Protect Home and Privacy Mode so tests are deterministic.

The in-app connection log is held in memory only. It can contain transmitted packet coordinates, APRS-IS server responses, and socket diagnostics. The calculated APRS-IS passcode is not logged and the connection log is not persisted to storage.

The app has:
- no advertising
- no analytics
- no tracking or telemetry service operated by the developer
- no cloud account
- no developer-operated relay
- no filesystem access

Ubuntu Touch permissions are limited to the common AppArmor `networking`, `location`, and `keep-display-on` policy groups.

RIDE MODE AND FOREGROUND OPERATION

Version 0.1.6 does not install a background service. While tracking, the app switches to a minimal black ride dashboard and requests that Ubuntu Touch keep the display on. Ride-screen text is 50% larger than before and the Send now and Stop tracking controls are twice the normal Lomiri button height for easier glove use. This keeps the app in the foreground so location updates continue without UT Tweak Tool or privileged background access. Stop Tracking releases the display wake lock.

Protect Home is checked on every fresh location. The transition from inside to outside the 1 km home radius triggers an immediate position send. Cached live positions older than 30 seconds are not transmitted. While a fix is stale or unavailable, the ride-screen speed display is --.- km/h instead of the last known speed.

AMATEUR-RADIO USE

APRS-IS transmission requires a valid amateur-radio callsign and a verified APRS-IS login. Users are responsible for complying with the amateur-radio rules and APRS practices that apply to them.

This application is independent and is not affiliated with APRS-IS server operators, aprs2.net, APRS Foundation, TAPR, or aprs.fi.

This app was vibe coded with AI assistance. The source code is published for inspection and improvement.

APRS-IS Tracker is released under MIT No Attribution, SPDX identifier MIT-0.

MIT No Attribution

Copyright 2026 Barry de Graaff

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

Recent Changes

release

Permissions

  • Networking
  • Location
  • Keep Display On

Community Built

This app has been released under the Public Domain license.It is developed in the open and you can review the source code.

Get involved

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Info

  • Published Date

    Aug 20, 2026

  • Updated Date

    Sep 12, 2026

  • Current Version

    0.1.7

  • Total Downloads

    27

  • Latest Version Downloads

    11

  • Supported Architectures

    arm64

Links

Reviews

Angonikro

Reviewed Aug 21, 2026 for version 0.1.5(older version)

work fine on redmi note 9 pro. 73