Today's Deep-Dive: Traccar

Welcome to another deep dive.

Today we're going to be looking at something, uh, I think is super cool.

It's called track car and basically it lets you track things in real time with

GPS so you could track anything you can imagine a car, a truck, maybe your dog.

Like the potential is huge.

Yeah, it is.

And one of the coolest things about it is it's open source.

Oh, really?

Yeah.

So it's completely free to use.

You can even modify it and distribute it yourself.

Wow.

OK, so that's a big difference for most GPS tracking systems out there because

most of them are proprietary.

That's right.

So they're locked into whatever company made them and all that.

So what can you actually do with track car?

Well, the most basic thing is you can see the real time location of whatever

has your GPS device on it.

So like a little dot on a map.

Yeah, exactly.

OK, but it's got any more than that, right?

Oh yeah, definitely.

It's way more than just basic tracking.

It can actually handle a bunch of different data from the GPS units.

Like what?

Well, for example, you can see the speed if they're breaking too hard, even fuel

consumption.

So it's almost like a digital logbook of like every move.

Exactly.

That's pretty cool.

Yeah.

But it's still just vehicles, right?

Oh, no, no, not at all.

One of the things that makes track car really powerful is that it can work with

just about any GPS device.

Really?

Yeah.

It supports like over 200 GPS protocols.

Wow.

And like more than 2000 different device models.

Oh, wow.

That's a lot.

Yeah.

So you could be using like a really cheap tracker or some super high end one.

It doesn't really matter.

Track car will work with it.

That's super convenient.

But I got to ask all this stuff sounds pretty technical.

Like how easy is it to actually use track car?

That's the cool part.

They actually designed it to be really user friendly.

Okay.

The interface is really modern, works great on desktop and mobile, and they even

have apps for Android and iOS.

Oh, wow.

So I could be like on the go and just pull out my phone and see where everything is.

Exactly.

That's amazing.

So I can see where things are right now.

Can I also see where they've been?

Like if I wanted to retrace a journey or something.

Oh yeah, for sure.

Track car keeps a historical record of everything.

So you can basically go back in time and see where something was at any given

moment.

Oh, that's really cool.

Like a digital eye in the sky.

So you mentioned reports earlier.

What kind of reports can you actually get from track car?

Well, it depends on what you're looking for, but you can get everything

from simple trip summaries to detailed charts and graphs about, you know,

like speed, fuel consumption, even stuff about driver behavior.

Oh, wow.

Driver behavior.

Yeah.

So that would be really helpful for businesses managing like fleets of vehicles.

Absolutely.

You can see things like, uh, how long a truck was idling.

If the driver was breaking too hard, you know, stuff like that.

That's incredible.

You could really approve efficiency, save money, all that.

Exactly.

Plus you can export all this data, you know, put it into a spreadsheet if you

want to analyze it further.

So there's even more possibilities there.

Yeah.

All right.

So let's get back to the real time tracking for a second.

You mentioned tracker can monitor more than just location.

Can you give us some specific examples of what you mean?

Sure.

Let's stick with that delivery truck example.

So like we said, you can track the truck's location, but you can also monitor

things

like, you know, how fast they're going, if they're breaking suddenly or

accelerating

really quickly, all that.

So it's like having a virtual driving coach.

Yeah, basically it can really help fleet managers identify any problems and

encourage safer driving, which could lead to lower insurance premiums, right?

Yeah, absolutely.

Cool.

You also mentioned something called geofencing earlier.

What is that exactly?

So geofencing is basically like setting up a virtual fence on a map.

You get alerts if a device enters or leaves that specific area.

Oh, okay.

So for example, if you had a piece of equipment on a job site and someone

tried to steal it and take it off the site, you'd get a notification.

So I think a virtual security system.

Exactly.

Wow.

Yeah, that's super useful.

But, you know, I got to ask with all this data being collected and transmitted and

all that is track car secure, like is my data safe?

Yeah, definitely.

Security is a top priority for the track car team.

They use all the latest encryption and security protocols.

Oh, good.

And because it's open source, tons of developers are constantly looking at

the code, making sure there are no vulnerabilities.

Oh, that's smart.

So it's kind of like having thousands of eyes constantly checking for problems.

Exactly.

Very cool.

Okay.

So we've talked about the features, but who is actually behind track car?

Like who makes this stuff?

So it's developed and maintained by a dedicated team and it's all hosted on GitHub.

GitHub, that's where developers share code, right?

Right.

So it's not just a company.

It's like a whole community effort.

Exactly.

That's really cool.

And the fact that you can actually see the code yourself really adds to

the transparency and trust, I think.

Definitely.

Wow.

Okay.

So TrackR is more than just a GPS platform.

It's like a whole ecosystem.

That's a good way to put it.

It's amazing.

Yeah.

Well, I think we've covered a lot of ground here.

We have.

So we've been talking a lot about like the basics of TrackR and how it works, but

it can actually do way more than that.

Oh, really?

Okay.

Like what?

Well, one of the really cool things about it is the API.

The API.

See, now you're getting technical on me.

What's an API?

Okay.

So basically API stands for Application Programming Interface.

It's kind of a way for different

software applications to talk to each other and share information.

I think of it like a universal translator, but for software.

So for TrackR, this means developers can connect it to other systems and create

their own custom solutions.

So like a company could use TrackR's data

and feed it into their own logistics platform or something.

Exactly.

Or they could even build an app for their

customers so they can track their orders in real time.

Super cool. OK, so the API basically opens up like endless possibilities.

Pretty much. Yeah, you could use it for security.

You could use it for research, pretty much anything you can think of.

That's amazing.

You know, it seems like TrackR is really

changing how we think about GPS tracking, like it used to be something only big

companies could afford, but now it's accessible to pretty much anyone.

Right. Exactly.

And that's one of the best things about it.

It's giving individuals and small businesses access to these powerful tools

that were way too expensive before. Yeah, that's a game changer for sure.

So we've talked about the interface, the apps, all that.

What about setting it up?

Like, is it hard to install TrackR? Not at all.

Actually, it's designed to be pretty straightforward.

They have tons of documentation on their

website and there's a big community forum where you can get help if you need it.

That's great.

You know, speaking of installation, all that our sponsor, Safe Server, can

actually help you get TrackR up and running.

They're experts in hosting and they can make sure everything runs smoothly.

Oh, that's super helpful.

Hosting can be a pain for people who aren't tech savvy.

Yeah, for sure.

If you want to learn more about their services, go to www.safeserver.de.

OK, but back to TrackR.

We've talked about how businesses can use it, but can regular people use it, too.

Oh, yeah, absolutely.

Give me an example.

Well, you could use it to keep track of your kids when they're out with friends

or, you know, maybe even your pet if it tends to wander off.

Oh, like if my dog ever escapes the yard.

Exactly.

You can get these little GPS trackers that you can attach to a collar or a backpack.

You can even use your phone as a GPS tracker with the TrackR app.

Wait, really?

So I could see exactly where my kid is on a map, like right now.

Yeah, pretty much.

It's great for peace of mind.

That's incredible.

But I guess it's important to be up front with people if you're going to track them.

Yeah, for sure.

Consent is super important.

Make sure you talk to your family about how and why you're using it.

Absolutely.

Yeah, transparency is key.

It's pretty cool to think about all the ways TrackR can be used from, you know,

businesses tracking their trucks to parents keeping an eye on their kids.

It really is.

OK, before we wrap things up, I want to go back to something we talked about

earlier.

The fact that TrackR is open source.

Can you explain again why that's such a big deal?

Yeah, sure.

So basically, open source means that anyone can see, modify and distribute the code.

So anyone can look under the hood and see how it works.

Exactly. And this is great for a few reasons.

Well, for one, it means that TrackR is

constantly being improved upon by a whole community of developers.

Right. Exactly.

And because everyone can see the code, it's generally more secure and reliable.

Right. Because there are no hidden secrets.

Plus, you're not stuck with one company's pricing or anything like that.

Exactly. You have the freedom to choose how you want to use TrackR,

how you want to host it.

You can even hire a developer to customize it for you.

Wow. That's a lot of flexibility.

So basically, TrackR gives you the power to control your own technology.

You got it. That's really cool.

So if our listeners want to learn more

about TrackR and maybe even try it out themselves, where should they go?

So we've really dug deep into TrackR,

learned all about its features and the fact that it's open source and has a huge

community behind it.

It's really a fantastic example of what open source software can achieve.

Yeah. And I think it's fair to say that TrackR is more than just a GPS tracking

system. It's like a platform for all kinds of innovation, right?

Absolutely.

We talked about how it can be used for things like fleet management and keeping

track of your kids, but I'm wondering, what about some of the less obvious uses?

Well, the cool thing is with its open source nature and that API,

the possibilities are practically endless.

Yeah. I mean, think about all the data it collects.

There's huge potential for research projects, you know, even art installations.

Oh, wow. That's a really interesting idea.

I could totally see artists using track car

to visualize the movement of people in a city or even create like a performance

where the dancers movements trigger sounds or visuals based on their location.

Exactly. Or researchers could use it to study

things like animal migration patterns or how traffic flows through a city.

That's super cool.

And since you can export all that data,

you could create some pretty amazing maps and visualizations.

And that reminds me of another cool thing about track car.

It actually offers different map views.

So you can use traditional roadmaps or even satellite imagery.

Oh, really? Yeah.

And you can even import your own custom maps.

Wow. So yeah, tons of flexibility.

That's what I love about track car.

So as we wrap up, I think it's important

to emphasize that track car is not a static thing.

It's constantly evolving.

Absolutely. With a community that's so active and engaged,

it just keeps getting better.

It's really exciting to think about the future of this platform,

how people will use it to create new and innovative solutions.

Yeah. Who knows what they'll come up with?

Well, I think we've given our listeners a lot to think about today.

I hope so.

So if anyone wants to learn more about track car and maybe even try it out

for themselves, where should they go?

The best place to start is their website, trackcar.org.

OK, perfect.

They have all the documentation there,

tutorials, even a demo server so you can test it out.

Awesome.

And of course, if you want to take the next step and actually set up your own

track car server, you can always check out our sponsor, Safe Server.

They can handle all the hosting for you so you don't have to worry about it.

And you can find them at www.safeserver.de.

Perfect.

Well, that brings us to the end of our deep dive into the world of track car.

It's been a pleasure.

Thanks for joining us today.

And to our listeners, thanks for tuning in and keep exploring.

And to our listeners, thanks for tuning in and keep exploring.