Trapster- live speed trap update via cell phone

ozzy71 · 04-01-2008, 07:25 PM

RDholtz just introduced me to an cool new site called trapster.

www.trapster.com

It is currently focused on the cell phone... and my first question to the developer was... do you have anything for all of us with PC's in our car...

I specifically requested a plug-in for Centrafuse and I am sure a few of you would like to see streetdeck and roadrunner added to the list!!

It is a very cool concept and the developer seems willing to work with us!

So jump on here and leave a POST to show home many people there are with PC's in their car... or plans to have one in their car...

the devolper email is beta@trapster.net

Thanks-- and POST early and often!!!

ptenereillo · 04-09-2008, 04:35 PM

Project in progress as requested.

PacketSniffer · 04-09-2008, 07:16 PM

Damnit! I'm a day late AGAIN! lol I was thinking of the same exact thing as this developer has.

Everyone working together to keep a live database is probably the best way of, uuhhhhmmm, avoiding speeding tickets if you have a heavy foot. Let's not kids ourselves folks, speeding tickets are primarily used as revenue generators. Whether you were 10 over (big whoop) or 20 over while in the highway, it brings in big bucks. We are preyed upon for this revenue.

For some time (well, since my last speeding ticket..lol), I was thinking of how the radar trap could be beat once and for all. Monitoring police radio traffic is now not an option with the new encrypted digital systems. There's nothing in a patrol car that could be used to locate it except for the radio and you can't tap into the radio network. Sooooo, if we apply technology with the eyeballs on the street and get them collaborating together, we'll have a chance; err, maybe an edge.

For CarPCs, I was thinking of a skin that would have a "Hot Button" that you would hit when you see a patrol car using radar. That info (GPS location, time, date) would go to a Internet database. Ultimately, we would want the CarPC to proactively inform us when we are closing in (user configurable distance) on a radar gun. It could give us a rank of how many others (validity) were exposed to this radar gun. It could show us the radar sites on our mapping software. This system would be better than any radar detector ever could be because it could warn us well before we ever entered the hot zone. As we all know, InstantOn Radar is a ***** to beat. However, this system would be the ultimate and turn the tides in our favor. It's the 21st century CB Radio on steriods.

I can see the day when this would be extended to radar detectors that could be enabled with Internet access (cellular PrePay or RJ-45 equipped for your own Net). Push a button on the detector to confirm a police car emmiting radar and the info is sent to a central database with all of the necessary vitals. Hundreds if not thousands of people collaborating together. Carnivore, eat your heart out. lol

Sprint Broadband equipped CarPC.

nserpa9248 · 04-09-2008, 08:01 PM

the problem would be some idiot driving down the street pressing the report button every block.

PacketSniffer · 04-09-2008, 08:07 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by nserpa9248

the problem would be some idiot driving down the street pressing the report button every block.

It won't matter if you have lots of users updating the database. The more people play, the better the data.

ptenereillo · 04-09-2008, 08:44 PM

hmmm... this is my third attempt at posting (I'm obviously doing something wrong).

Anyone who wants to participate in the beta please e-mail me at the beta address above. It will start next week. It will work much like the demo video on the site (of the Nokia Symbian version). Runs as a background process. You press a button when you see a live police (or when you want to mark a static redlight cam / speed cam / known hiding place). Others members are alerted as they approach via audio (customizable WAV file).

Like the mobile handsets, it will use a Trapster's hybrid GPS/WiFi location algorithm.

The system would never have critical mass without being on many platforms. We are on about 10 mobile platforms now, iPhone almost done, a bunch more coming!

As for the comment on accuracy, the system allows users to rate each other's traps (go to the site, log in, and click on a trap - you can check "I agree" or "I don't agree"), and over time it learns the credibility of users based on how many others agree with them. Think Facebook meets eBay ratings meets radar detectors. Of course a one can game eBay and Facebook and Google, so really it's up to the community to moderate itself. Like any such system, if there are more people who set out to put in lousy data than those who set out to put in good data, it won't be accurate. So please help out and make this a great community!

meddler · 04-10-2008, 04:50 AM

You are not doing anything wrong when posting. New forums members threads are moderated. This is a spam prevention measure. Please do not take it personally. Once you get a few more posts up, you will be fine.

rdholtz · 04-12-2008, 06:46 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by ozzy71

rdholtz just introduced me to an cool new site called trapster.

www.trapster.com

This is a really interesting project, and I'm in.

nserpa9248 · 04-12-2008, 04:23 PM

Is there any development to make this program a windows application? For us car-pc users a program that can run in the background that can alert the same way the phone applications do would be amazing. Obviously the user would need GPS and Wireless but alot of car-pc owners have it or are looking into it.

I am not sure what the logistics would be to retrieve location data from the gps and from trapster into a program, and what kind of interface would be used, but from seeing the skills of the community on mp3car i imagine it can be done.

rdholtz · 04-15-2008, 06:54 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by nserpa9248

Is there any development to make this program a windows application? For us car-pc users a program that can run in the background that can alert the same way the phone applications do would be amazing. Obviously the user would need GPS and Wireless but alot of car-pc owners have it or are looking into it.

I am not sure what the logistics would be to retrieve location data from the gps and from trapster into a program, and what kind of interface would be used, but from seeing the skills of the community on mp3car i imagine it can be done.

That's what the beta test program is all about -- making it run on a carPC. If you have GPS and wireless access, and would like to be a tester, you can sign up for the beta at the link in the first post of this thread.

I think the Centrafuse plug-in will come later.

ptenereillo · 04-22-2008, 08:33 PM

Folks - I apologize for the delay. The program works, I've been testing it out with WiFi location (I still need to buy a GPS dongle), but the Windows developer has been very ill for the last week which has set us back.

I expect it will be ready to beta in the next day or two.

rdholtz · 04-26-2008, 10:42 PM

Good News -- the beta is out! Sign up at the address in the first post.

ptenereillo · 04-30-2008, 04:15 AM

For anyone who downloaded the beta, please redownload the latest version. The last one had some serious issues with COM ports and lat/lng in GPS mode.