Geo location item: changing from string to location

Setup, Configuration and Use Items & Sitemaps
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1

running OH4.2.2-release on openHABian.

I’ve collected geolocation information in string items over a long time. They’re in the format: 52.51992490069972, 13.369058138496499.
What’s the gain, if I changed the item from string to location? I can insert the “string” item into a map in pages for MainUI and ther marker will show up accordingly.
So two questions:

  1. Can I just change the item type to location without losing its histroy in the persistence (rrd4j, MariaDB)?
  2. What is something you could only do with a location-item but not with a string-item with the correct location format?

thanks.

2

Can’t really answer your question regarding persistence, but the second one.

With pointType (Location Items), you can directly do calculations like LocationItem1.distanceFrom(LocationItem2),
whereas Strings have to be translated to PointTypes first.

1 Like
3

Usually not but the full answer will need to come from an expert.

Personally I’d backup and try it out and see what happens. Or maybe test it out with a test Item.

The problem will arise if the MariaDB add-on splits the three fields of a PointType (altitude is in there too) into three separate columns, or if it just converts them to a String and drops that into a single column in the DB.

4

good point.

  • string-item: VARCHAR(50) with the location 52.51992490069972,13.369058138496499
  • location-item: VARCHAR(16255) with the location 52.51992490069972,13.369058138496499.

=> both items have the exact same values

I’m not sure, why there’s a 50char limit on String as there’s 16255 on the location. But should be enough both ways.

And I think I’ll just test it, was curious if someone knew the answer right away.