Zumo XT doesn't save time information in Tracks?

[jfheath]

Ok, just read the rest below the first image.

I never noticed the logs disappearing when I disabled explore. They disappear when you perform a full factory reset.

Your recorded logs - they should appear in the gpx folder using the name that you gave it when you saved it.

Hmmm You did stop the recording and save it, Didn't you ? The manual recording continues day to day until you stop it. If it is recording, there is a little orange disc on the track icon on the main page. Check it. If it is, tap the icon to open the track window, and select stop recording. It will prompt you to save it.

Long shot. Can you see the hidden .System folder ? In there, there is a folder called GPX, and that contains DriveLog.gpx which appears to be a duplicate of the CurrenTrackLog.gpx. The archive folder seems to have duplicates of the numbered archives but these are called DriveLog1.gpx, DriveLog2.gpx etc. They may still be there if the Archive contents were deleted accidentally - but they do not survive a system reset.



Access to the .System Folder.

Main Screen -> Map -> Speed Button -> Long Press Circular Speedo (10 secs) to access the hidden system config menu.
Configuration and Settings -> MTP Settings -> Show .System -> Tick


Recording a Track Manually


Some screen shots. Click the pic to get a slightly laregr version.

Note the little recording orange disc on the Track icon.

You must press Stop in order to save the recorded track. It will keep recording each time you turn ont he Zumo as until you press stop.

Track 0.jpg (53.96 KiB) Viewed 520 times

When you press stop, you get the option to save or discard. Tap Save.

Only then does it give you the option to change the name - which you can do by tapping the name label on the left.

And then - you must press 'Done'.

Track 1.jpg (34.9 KiB) Viewed 520 times

Here is my view of my files and folders.

This is after recording a very short track of my Zumo moving 2 feet across my desktop.
Curiously - I also have just 15 files in the archive - and these are all set to the same date - 2 days ago.
I had never spotted that before. My CurrentTrackLog.gpx file is also large at 3MB

Note at the bottom is the contents of GPX with the same standard 4 file names (Current, CurrentTrackLog, Position and Temp). The saved track log is there - with the name given by the XT by default - I didn't change it.

If you had saved it, then it would be there. I see that @FrankB has added other ways of getting the track log out of the XT - but you must have saved it first - and in your folder list, for whatever reason, it is not there.

It is possble to delete these tracks using the Track apps.

XT GPX Folder.jpg (53.29 KiB) Viewed 520 times

And this is the GPX folder inside the Hidden .System folder showing the DriveLog files.

XT System GPX Folder.jpg (58.16 KiB) Viewed 520 times

Done

[FrankB]

@skyguy

Your tracks should still be on the Garmin Explore site. (Without date time!)

Advice for the future:
If you have an SD card mounted in your XT you can save a copy there, from within the Tracks App on the XT. Use the 'Share' function accesible from the spanner.
Note you can also share it to the Garmin Drive App. No USB connection needed.

[skyguy]

So many helpful people! (and I mean that seriously – thanks!)

For @jfheath – Yes, I did follow that procedure when recording track logs. I'd gotten into the habit on past motorcycle tours I'd taken with my old zumo 660, so I'd always start the day's ride by starting the track recorder, and I'd always stop recording and SAVE the file when I reached that day's destination. I'd usually name the files something simple like the date (YYMMDD format for easier sorting) but the XT already names the files with the date and time so I just saved the tracks with their default names.

But I had a bit of a BREAKTHROUGH this morning!

I can't get out on the motorbike until the weekend, but I had an appointment this morning a few miles away so I took my zumo XT with me in the car. I don't have the car cradle so I just powered it up and ran it off the battery. Before I left my house I opened the Tracks app and hit START. Then I drove to my appointment 8 miles away (the XT went to sleep a few times but I'd wake it back up when I stopped at red lights). When I arrived, I hit STOP and saved the track with their suggested filename (today's date and time I started).

When I got back home, I turned the XT back on and found the track in the Tracks app. The file was there. I hit the wrench (spanner) and selected "Share" and shared via the Drive app. The iPhone alerted me as usual "You've received a file – Do you want to share it?" and I said yes and used AirDrop to send the file to my desktop Mac. It arrived with its usual uninformative filename (bt_shared_tracks.gpx) but this time when I opened it in Utrack... The time and elevation data were INTACT! I could see my max/avg speed, elevation changes, etc. I also tried opening the file in Google Earth and sure enough, it could "fly" the track with no problem.

Encouraged, I plugged a USB cable into the zumo. Once mounted (via Android File Transfer), I opened the GPX folder and there was my track, properly named.

Screen Shot 2023-08-21 at 10.49.09 AM.jpg (108.33 KiB) Viewed 504 times

You can see it there at the top "Aug 21, 2023 8_35am.gpx." I dragged the file to my Mac desktop and tried opening it with Utrack and Google Earth again, with the same positive results: The speed and elevation data were properly saved.

So I think this problem is SOLVED!!

My guess (and it's only a guess) is that when the zumo XT is connected to Garmin Explore, it doesn't bother saving user-recorded tracks locally (on the zumo) but just uploads them to Explore. Perhaps to save space on the XT? The files would still show up when I opened the Tracks app, but for all I know the zumo was just accessing the files on Explore via the Drive app. (I could be wrong). That might explain why my recorded tracks weren't in the GPX folder on the zumo and why they disappeared from the Tracks app when I disconnected from Explore. And in any case, when the files are uploaded to Explore they get stripped of their time/elevation data for some reason.

I'll record another test the next time I'm out on the bike. If it works (I suspect it will) I'll just adapt to the new workflow. So the next time I do a multi-day tour, I'll record the track every day (as usual) and when I get home I'll transfer them via USB so they'll retain their proper filenames.

THANKS AGAIN for everyone's assistance! I never would've suspected that Garmin Explore was the problem without this site (indeed, I'd forgotten all about it). Fingers crossed that this is a viable solution. I'll let you know if my next test is successful.

[FrankB]

Basically that's my workflow. Only trivial difference is that I use Google Drive.

Thanks for posting the result.

[jfheath]

I've never tried it with Explore up and running - so you may be right. GArmin once told me when I asked why Live Track had not been carried across from the 595, that Explore did a similar thing. I pointed out that I could only do it if I synchronised it at each stop - it didn't happen in real time. Yes that's right sir. So not much use if I want to let my partner see that I have still been moving in the last 5 minutes ? No.

When I got my first Zumo, there were so many odd things happening, that didn't happen when Explore was disabled, that I only ever load it if I want to check on how something works for someone else. They may have got those things fixed in all of the updates that they implemented in the first year of its existence.

I keep saying - Explore is an excellent solution for something that I have absolutley no use for.

[skyguy]

Follow-up!

I took the bike out for a nice 168-mile ride today and brought the zumo XT along. Used the Track Recorder and... it worked properly!

The track was saved locally (that is, on the zumo) and when I downloaded it to my iMac via USB, all of the data were present.
The route of course, but also the speed, time, and elevation info was all intact.

So I guess the moral of the story is: If you want to record accurate and complete track information using the built-in Track Recorder on the zumo XT, do NOT connect it to Garmin Explore.

Thanks again for all your help, folks!