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Android App

D

DunePlodder

Well-Known Member
Messages
861
Location
N Somerset
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I've been developing and using an Android app for some time.
I use it to record blood glucose readings, carbs eaten, & exercise.
Varying Insulin/Carb ratios for different times of day can be configured.
Suggested insulin doses are then computed using this information.
It is practical, rather than pretty, but I think it is easy to use once it has been configured.

There is a second app which allows you to enter carb values (and calories) of different foods. This data is then accessible from the main program. It is not a ready made database of food values, but if you enter values as you go it saves reading labels & tables later on.

It would be great if anyone experienced in carb counting would like to try it, your comments & any feedback would be much appreciated.
Remember this is "Beta" software so please check any results carefully.

It is available at http://rms-soft.co.uk/Diabetes

You may wish to view the Help files first.

Thank you.

Robert
 
It would be great to be log calories as well as the other Diabetic stuff. Looking forward to seeing it launched :clap:
 
Hi Sanober & Flavialee,
I developed it for myself really, but I think other people might find it useful.
The calories are in fact recorded with the carbs in the FoodList app but I could certainly add them into the data recorded by the main software. That's the sort of feedback I'm looking for.

To try the software, (it's free & fully functional) go to the web page at the link in the first message, using your Android device & click on the "Download" buttons. It should download automatically, then go to your notifications screen, probably by dragging the bar down at the top of the screen (depends on device) and click on "RMSInsucalc2.apk" to install. Repeat for the food list app.

I use it on my mobile when I'm out, but it also works very well on my tablet. I can keep the two synchronized using Dropbox & an associated app called DropSync.

The readings are stored in a comma delimited text file which means it can be imported into a spreadsheet if you wish. Alternatively there is an easy to read formatted text file option. The data can also be emailed to yourself, or anyone else, for easy transfer & back up.

Thank you for your positive messages.
Regards,
Robert
 
Hi. I downloaded both, very simple to use and allows the user to adapt the food list to their needs, I like that. On my Samsung the app itself is easy to locate but the food list app sits in downloads and I can't drag it out of there to my front screen

It's also unfortunately not good for me anyway as I work to carbs per grams rather that Carb units. I will keep playing with it to see if I can understand better though.

I also take an extra snack before exercise as I can't pare back my previous insulin dose or I go too high. I'm very insulin and Carb sensitive.

I'm sure the apps will benefit T1s though :) it's great that you're using your tech skills to share the tools :)
 
Hi Sanober,
Thank you for trying the apps.
Unfortunately I can't think why you would be unable to drag the Food List app to your front screen, unless that screen is full? I don't have a Samsung so it's difficult to be more specific.

In the Add/Edit Foods screen you have 2 choices of how to enter foods:
1. carbs per item - use this for a pot of yoghurt for example.
2. grams per carb - use for rice or potatoes for example. I use 60gms of potatoes = 1 Carb unit.
(It may help to temporarily move the keyboard using the "Back" key)
If you are not using Carb units could you give me an example of how you would work out values such as potatoes? Using my values would that be 1gm of carbohydrate = 6gm of potatoes? Or am I getting confused?

I may be able to adapt the app to help you & others using this method.

If you don't do a blood test before your snack, you could record it in the "Notes" option.

Thank you for your feedback. I'm happy to develop the app further if people think it is worthwhile.
Regards,
Robert
 
Thank you. I'll give it another go.

I'm on 1 unit insulin per 10g Carb. So 60g Carb in portion of potato would mean 6 units. I like sticking to simple approaches.

Wonder how others are finding it?
 
Hi Sanober,

Be careful, Carb units & carbohydrate are different.
The example of 60g of (raw) potato = 10g carbohydrate

1 Carb Unit = 10g carbohydrate (in the UK anyway)

So with your ratio of 1 unit insulin per 10g Carbohydrate you would only need 1 unit of insulin for 60g of potato (Not 6)

If you use 1 unit insulin per 10g Carbohydrate at all times of day, then enter 1.0 for each period in the configuration screen in the main software. Run the software, press the Menu button on your device and tap "Config". See the help file for more instructions.

It would be good if someone could just check what I am saying, as it is confusing.

Robert
 
Updated version now available on the web site (see first post)
Please note that I have changed the name of the software to "RMS InsuComp" for copyright reasons.

Regards,
Robert
 
Thank you.

I was hoping for a little more feedback on the app, not sure how many people are actually trying it.

I'm happy to receive any constructive criticism! I know it's not perfect & there are other things I want to add.

Robert
 
Hello Robert

I have just downloaded yr software onto my Android phone but cant seem to find the menu. The yellow home screen just shows the tabs - Enter Readings, Record Basal Insulin, Display Data, Note and Exit. Ive looked for the 4 horizontal lines (Menu) but cant seem to see them. Sorry to seem a bit of a dipstick but can you guide me as to where the Menu feature is pse?

Also, some people are going to get themselves into a 2 & 8 as they will think that 1 carb portion equals 10g of carb. Ive entered a bg reading of 7.8 and then get asked Carbs eaten so I've told it 5g carb and then get asked what my carb ratio is so Ive entered 1.0u : 1 carb portion (10g carb)... The dose calculated equals 5.4u :lol: which isn't at all correct. Is this sortable from configuring the Menu only its confusing at the moment :roll:
 
Ohhhh I am a dipstick..... Ive just realised how to configure the software. Its actually on the phone itself and not on yr software.

Sorry
 
Hi iHs,

No problem, I'm still getting used to Android myself. Yes the menu button will be on the phone.

The strange result will be partly due to the settings for the bg target value & correction factor, you can change these to suit your needs. The software assumes carb units/portions rather than grams. As you say, for you 1 carb portion = 10g, so 5g would be 0.5 carb units.

It's simple but confusing, not helped by slightly different terminology (e.g. carb units/carb portions) & international differences such as carb units in the USA being 15g & bg in mg/L instead of mmol...

Thank you for trying the software. Let me know if you have any other queries.
Regards,
Robert
 
Well done, its a pretty useful app.

Great that I can put my ratios, and that it works out corrective doses.

My suggestions for improving it would be:
1: A much bigger food list please! Yes I know I can add my own, but it'll take forever.
2: OnTrack lets you categorise your entry. It might be 3pm, but it might still be lunch! That way I can look back at all my 'lunch' figures later
3: Can I manually enter the time, if I want to record a meter reading I took earlier?
4: Too many 'next' screens, if I'm being picky.

Will updates be available? How do I know if an update is there?
 
Hi Rosey,

Thank you, I'm glad you like it.

I'll look at expanding the number of foods, but if you & others would like to send food list suggestions I'll try to add them to the default file. I need food name, carbs per item or gms per carb unit, and optionally calories per item. Send them to me at [email protected]. I had thought that it was better to keep the list short, only including the foods eaten regularly which would be very a personal list. If the list is more comprehensive though, people can still add more and delete unwanted foods.

I'll look at your items 2 & 3.

Be 'picky' please! From my experience in logging surveying data, I came to the conclusion that it was better to enter one item at a time, rather than multiple items on one screen, especially on small devices. This also allows text to be bigger, something I appreciate as I get older! It may be that "Comments" could be a menu option, & I've been wondering about the "Carb Ratio" screen, as I always use the configured value. Your thoughts would be welcome.

I have made some small updates, mainly to the report format. Have you tried it? In the menu there is an option to create a full report which can be emailed to yourself, or view the last few days on your device. Reports include more data than the "Display Data" option.
I have some free time at the moment so I'm working on a better web site. I'll post a message here when it is available.

Thank you again for your feedback.
Regards,
Robert
 
I've updated the website (http://rms-soft.co.uk/Diabetes)
I have more to do but hopefully it looks a little better.

There is now an updated version of the Android app on the web site.
This allows entering data with a specific time, in case you've forgotten one - as requested by RoseyAlexander.

I'm looking at her other suggestions. Watch this space!
Regards,
Robert
 
That link doesn't work - it's actually /Diabetes (or the explicit /Diabetes/index.html)
Also, since you're asking for feedback... your website is absolutely atrocious. For example, you'd need only a half of the divs if you knew how to use the CSS box model (specifically, padding).
boxdim.png

Further, absolute positioning with absolute dimensions is a bad idea - you've checked how your website looks on a widescreen monitor, right?
 
Hi AMBrennan,
I've corrected the link, thank you.
I did some work on web pages many years ago, but things have moved on.
Thank you for the suggestions, obviously I've got some reading to do!

Regards,
Robert
 
Hi All,
The App has now been updated to allow users to specify the time periods for Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner/Evening. These will be used to display results for each of these periods.
Simply download using the link in the first message. Existing versions will be updated.

Regards,
Robert
 
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