TerraTrek Explorers

14/02/2024

TerraTrek App update:

Latest version hiccups, disappointments and how we are working through it.

The original Artist Renderings for the proposed “look” of TerraTrek were above and beyond my expectations. As we got closer to to implementing the design concept to the dynamic clearing of clouds to expose the map below, it became clear that we could not. That’s the hiccup.
The disappointment is that the alternative option is to look just like two other map clearing apps (that admittedly, I didn’t know existed when I started this project…mine is still cooler).
As we work through this, the clouds are just a grey overlay that will clear out. Eventually it will be clouds, but for time sake getting a first version to test, these are the steps we take.

Currently I have a list of things that need to be edited. There’s some things that could be smoothed out. I’m hopeful that by May 1st a “completed” version is out for testing.

Stay Tuned for more! In the meantime go explore something.

05/12/2023

People ask me what I’m doing with this app I’m building, what is TerraTrek? One of the parts of TerraTrek is to log your adventures. Post a short blurb about what you did, what you saw, snap some pics and save them.

Meet Irina. She is a friend of mine. Recently hiked Cucamonga Peak. As she was describing it to me because I’ve never heard of it this is what she shared:

“I went to Cucamonga Peak, LA, which is 11.6 miles with 4219 feet of elevation gain. It took me 7 hours to walk it. The scenery along the way was breathtaking with beautiful fall foliage and the sound of a babbling brook, the descent was challenging with lots of scree and loose rocks”

This is what you do here. Go on an adventure and share it here for us all to be inspired to get out and see this planet ourselves. After the app is live and maybe a version or two later, there will be an option to share adventures directly to this page and the website….and whatever other social media we need to get our hands on.

In the meantime, find your own “cucamonga” wherever you are and spend the day on it.

01/12/2023

As the app works its way to the App Stores, I am left with a big question. How do I generate revenue? The app itself has its own methods of doing that with optional in app purchases to make your adventuring more interesting. But that option doesn’t get introduced into the app for a few versions down the road. In order to reach those versions (that will be awesome!) the TerraTrek app needs to generate funds. And the two options that lay before me both suck.

1) charge to download. $0.99?
2) free download and dupe my users with a free trial for a month to charge them some stupid dollar amount, OR
Free download and a plethora of annoying garbage ads?

I don’t like any of these options, I do believe that the app itself could be free, no ads, no charges and it can generate its own funding from faithful users that love the app for its purpose and truly use it as a tool in their exploration arsenal.

But the Big BUT of it, is that in order to reach that point the developers need to continue to be paid, and while things are basic at the moment, development is about to get wild!

So, what are your thoughts? Which is the lesser evil? Ads, charge a dollar download fee, combo of both? I’m not going to charge a subscription fee for the app.

Let me know your thoughts.

Steve

01/12/2023

App Progress Update- as of this morning Phase 2 has rounded completion. Onto Phase 3- Back End Development. This is where all the logic happens, connecting to servers and overall functionality. An actual working Beta app should be in my hands very soon.

13/11/2023

Good morning friends. I know it’s been a little while for an update. First update is the Kickstarter Campaign. We didn’t meet the goal. But that is ok! I have gotten to speak with lots of people about what TerraTrek is and the progress of the app so far. Considering I was moving forward with the project regardless of successful crowdfunding, it was a great way to engage with people without forcing my dreams down their throats. It’s so much easier to answer questions and get excited when people come up to you asking “what is kickstarter?” And “what is TerraTrek?” HUGE Thankyou to everyone that did pledged and shared the project. Your support means more than you know!

Next update- got off a zoom meeting with the Developers this morning. They have already started work on phase 3 ahead of schedule and testing app functions in the quality assurance dept. my original goal was a Spring Launch. But it may be sooner than that!

Stay tuned for big news!

22/09/2023

UpDayte…22. Developers are testing the app against different map vendors (google, apple, mapbox… etc), I don’t have a test version yet and that’s ok. We want it to be done right and there’s no rush.

However, there is still the Kickstarter,
http://kck.st/3PlZP23
🚀 Our Kickstarter campaign is in full swing, and we need YOUR support to make it happen. With just 38 days left on the clock, we’re on a quest to raise $75,000 to bring TerraTrek to life. 🌄

What is TerraTrek, you ask? It’s not just an app; it’s your passport to the world of adventure. 🌟

🗺️ Explore hidden gems and uncharted territories.
📸 Connect with fellow explorers and share your epic moments.
🏞️ Unveil what your eyes have never seen before!

But here’s the deal, folks: We can’t do it alone. We’re not asking for world domination (at least not yet 😉), but we are asking for your support to conquer this crowdfunding challenge!

💥 Be one of our trailblazing backers.
💬 Spread the word like wildfire.
💰 Contribute and grab some fantastic rewards.

Together, we can make TerraTrek a reality and embark on adventures that will redefine the way we explore our incredible planet. 🌍

Join us on this incredible journey! Click the link below to back TerraTrek and unlock a world of adventure like never before. Let’s make it happen, one trek at a time! 🌄🌿

http://kck.st/3PlZP23

Adventure awaits, explorers! Let’s 🌏🚀

06/09/2023

Good morning TerraTrekers! UpDayte 7. No there was not an UpDayte 6. I just got off my Zoom Meeting this morning with the Developers, nothing overly exciting except that by Wednesday (provided that no hiccups occur) I should have a test version of the app that I can play with. It’s not a Beta version that I can send out for users to start testing, it’s just the version that I get to say “this is awesome!”, “Change this…”, “this part sucks!”, “nailed it!”.

I had a fun laugh with the team, over the weekend they went on a mountain hike for a team building experience. I laughed and said “guys if you would have had this app done, you could have been on your own TerraTrek” they laughed and said they are going again in November and they will definitely be taking the app with them.

As usual, link to the kickstarter campaign

http://kck.st/3PlZP23 (join a pledge reward tier or chose a random amount and throw a dollar at this)

And for those curious, Eugene stayed through yesterday, and is still here this morning. 👏 yay! Eugene!! Otherwise, no new updates from the realm of Kickstarter. Still rockin at $331 of goal $78,470.00 (I’ll do a breakdown of the goal in another post for transparency purposes. To educate on how app development is charged and how much Kickstarter sucks out of your soul!… all things I didn’t know going into this project.)

Happy Trekking friends.
Talk soon!

05/09/2023

Edit: silly ole me forgot to add the kickstarter link. I was so irritated at Scammer Eugene that it slipped my mind. Here it is, don’t forget to send those dollar now 😉. http://kck.st/3PlZP23

Good morning friends. TerraTrek UpDayte 5! Yesterday reached $331 from the help of incredible badasses. Very much appreciated. Spread the word and direct newcomers directly to me. I’ll answer any questions about the app, the project and the overall drive behind wanting to do this. Regardless of a successful kickstarter campaign, TerraTrek app will be completed…it just might take much much longer to get to that point.

Now. Meet Eugene. Eugene is a scammer. He’s(she, it? 🤷‍♂️) is one of the more clever scammers. Eugene pops in that Kickstarter inbox and claims that he is “so in love with the project” (it’s always vague) and that he wants to pledge and asked what would be the best pledge for him. Idk if anyone of you have read through the pledges/rewards, but they really aren’t that great. Offering silly digital products. The $50, $100, $1000 pledges are probably the only ones with some actual value. Which in those pledge levels, you at least become a beta tester and get to sit in and have updates and insights into the project. I tell Eugene, to read the story on the campaign. Perhaps after that he will be compelled. To pick a pledge level himself. I did explain that the $50 is where the real value starts, but that every dollar counts and I would rather have 78,000 $1.00 pledges and get to discuss and meet all the people and share the story with them instead of eight $10,000 backers. Eugene pledges $50, says he has a friend that has three successful Kickstarter campaigns fully funded. 😑here we go. Eugene asks me to talk to his friend (a he by the way) named Denise…🤷‍♂️ I’m not judging! Denise emails me. Denise has an expert that he/she? uses. But they never tell me who the expert is. Eugene pulls his $50 pledge and I was surprised that it could be done. Like scammers can really screw with a projects mental state if they were smarter. I go back and forth with Denise for a bit asking how the namesless expert can help. I never get contact info from Denise. Eugene comes back the next day with a new profile and starts out the same way. “Oh I just love your project…” listen up Eugene I’m a semi professional scammer hunter. F off! he pledges $100. And stayed two days. That’s a day longer than previous (we’re only 5 days in), and today, he messaged to say he wants to pull his pledge. So that $331 is about to drop to $231. Don’t be a Eugene. Bc I’ll write a nonsense story and make you a tshirt like I did Cavedweller Bob!

Thanks for reading. Thank you for your support.

TerraTrek is an exploration liaison app, that tracks where you've been (Explored) enticing users to explore their world.

03/09/2023

Day 4 update(? did I miss a day?). $181 raised so far👍🏻. This being my first kickstarter campaign and never being the type of person to ask for help, this is a weird experience for me. Completely out of my comfort zone. Here’s the good and the bad…
The Bad- F’n Scammers man! There’s an inbox within kickstarter and they are Clever! I’ve actually managed to get two of them to pledge to the campaign😂🤣. The Bad- bc they are scammers that $181 May drop. I learned yesterday that you can pull your pledge at anytime which is discouraging.

The Good- I’ve been getting calls and texts of encouragement. People saying that I’m an inspiration to them. How proud they are of me for doing something so neat. Usually followed by “I wish I could support financially…” yada yada. Look guys I don’t care if you can’t financially support the campaign. I get it. But what you need to know is that these texts, calls, post shares are freaking huge in support, probably more than any financial pledge to the kickstarter campaign. It gets the word out there that I AM Doing this! We get to talk about it. Thank you all!!

Remember though. You can pledge a dollar. Hit the link. Do the thing. 😉 http://kck.st/3PlZP23

02/09/2023

OK! Day one update. It has been a wild ride of Facebook Shares. Thank you everyone that has liked, Shared the post, followed the TerraTrek page, and pledged funds to the kickstarter campaign. It is already up to $61.00 which may not sound like a lot when the goal is like $75k, but I didn't honestly expect anything on day one. So I feel like I'm already ahead of schedule. Which is a good thing. IF in the remaining 59 days this campaign doesn't reach its goal, the project receives Zero dollars. no one gets charged.

If you haven't checked out the story behind TerraTrek, and what is the driving force behind it, I suggest you do. It's a good read. and reading is free.

KickStarter is a whole new world for me, and that means a whole new world of scammers! as some of you may know, Scammers are a hobby of mine. and now I have 15 competing for my "business" to become my campaign manager. may the scammer with the largest pledge win! I also learned that there is a additional pledge box that backers (that's you), can pledge as low as a dollar! So round up those 78 thousand friends and get them over there to my kickstarter with their dollars so I can pay these developers. Also Someone learn how to develop apps! I have two more sitting on the backburner.

The pic attached is a screen shot of the concept art we worked on in the design phase. Final product wont be exactly like this, but for the visual understanding of what I'm going for, this is pretty close.

If we pull off this campaign and get this app live before spring, I will commit to a nonstop kayak trip of the great loop. Sponsored of course by TerraTrek! who's gonna come with me?!

and of course once again, the Kickstarter link:

http://kck.st/3PlZP23

OH! and if one of you is an actual professional Marketing Specialist (I know I have at least two of you as friends) lets talk.

02/09/2023

I've been working on something pretty epic in my spare time. I found myself longing for adventure. I believe a lot of us have. So I came up with an idea to make us all our own main character in a personal rediscovery of our beautiful planet. Come join me as I...we (I Cannot do this with out you) create -TerraTrek- the Explorer App.

TerraTrek is a map app like none other. It does not give you directions, It does not tell you traffic congestion, its main purpose is to only show you where you've never been. Well since you download the app and start using it. Yes! that means you will have an excuse to go back to that exciting camping spot or island retreat or backpacking through Europe on a quest for castles and pubs! Combined with the Hidden Undiscovered Area Map view of many popular Role Playing Games, and those gigantic RV's with the maps of the US with colored in states, TerraTrek hones in with a fine tip of "we haven't been to this area yet", "Lets see what's over there" type of enticement for newfound discovery.

This App is currently under Development as we speak. It has taken me months and months of teaching myself how to code and program apps (something completely new to me) before I realized I need advanced professional help.

Please share this post with anyone and everyone I haven't already. It would (in every sense of the words) mean the world to me! Below is my kickstarter link, and my website link. Website and Store are live but also under construction. I am a one man operation at the moment with a day job, an occasional night job and a family to raise. Don't be too critical, but I am open to pointers and insights.

http://kck.st/3PlZP23

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1197879075/terratrek-explorer-app We have a big goal to reach to get this project completed before next Spring...you know, when it's nice out again. Any donation is more than appreciated.

www.terratrekapp.com

There's a page too. Join TerraTrek Explorers and start sharing your pictures, videos, and stories of where you have been.

Thanks for reading the long post.

Steve

01/09/2023

I've been working on something pretty epic in my spare time. I found myself longing for adventure. I believe a lot of us have. So I came up with an idea to make us all our own main character in a personal rediscovery of our beautiful planet. Come join me as I...we (I Cannot do this with out you) create -TerraTrek- the Explorer App.
TerraTrek is a map app like none other. It does not give you directions, It does not tell you traffic congestion, its main purpose is to only show you where you've never been. Well since you download the app and start using it. Yes! that means you will have an excuse to go back to that exciting camping spot or island retreat or backpacking through Europe on a quest for castles and pubs! Combined with the Hidden Undiscovered Area Map view of many popular Role Playing Games, and those gigantic RV's with the maps of the US with colored in states, TerraTrek hones in with a fine tip of "we haven't been to this area yet", "Lets see what's over there" type of enticement for newfound discovery.
This App is currently under Development as we speak. It has taken me months and months of teaching myself how to code and program apps (something completely new to me) before I realized I need advanced professional help.
Please share this post with anyone and everyone I haven't already. It would (in every sense of the words) mean the world to me! Below is my kickstarter link, and my website link. Website and Store are live but also under construction. I am a one man operation at the moment with a day job, an occasional night job and a family to raise. Don't be too critical, but I am open to pointers and insights.

http://kck.st/3PlZP23

https://www.kickstarter.com/.../terratrek-explorer-app We have a big goal to reach to get this project completed before next Spring...you know, when it's nice out again. Any donation is more than appreciated.

www.terratrekapp.com

There's a page too. Join TerraTrek Explorers and start sharing your pictures, videos, and stories of where you have been.
Thanks for reading the long post.
Steve

There’s an entire planet you haven’t discovered yet. Your Planet, Your experiences, Start Adventuring today and share your experiences and photos of your journeys.

07/08/2023

07/08/2023

🌍🚀 Welcome to TerraTrek Explorers! 🚀🌍

Embark on a journey of discovery with us as we prepare to unveil the TerraTrek app—a gateway to endless adventures and exploration of our magnificent planet! 🗺️✨

Our mission is to create a thriving community of passionate adventurers like you, eager to uncover the world's wonders and share your incredible experiences. 🌄🌊

Here, we celebrate the spirit of wanderlust and the thrill of venturing into the unknown. Whether you're an avid hiker, a daring diver, an intrepid backpacker, or simply someone captivated by the beauty of nature, TerraTrek is your platform to connect, inspire, and be inspired! 🏞️🌅

Join us on this epic voyage as we cultivate a community of explorers who yearn to forge unforgettable memories and revel in the awe-inspiring landscapes that our planet offers. 🗺️📸

From the highest peaks to the deepest oceans, we encourage you to share your stories, pictures, and experiences, kindling the spark of curiosity in others and igniting a sense of wonder that knows no bounds. Let's come together to weave a tapestry of adventures and camaraderie! 🧭🌌

Stay tuned for updates on the TerraTrek app's progress, exciting events, and engaging challenges that will test your spirit of exploration. Together, we'll create a legacy of discovery that inspires generations to come! 🌠

Let's embark on this extraordinary expedition, bound by our love for the world and fueled by the thrill of exploration. Spread the word, invite your fellow explorers, and let the TerraTrek adventure begin! 🚀🌏