Legacy Mobile App

The .pwlw-sedmob/ directory contains the original SedMob application, a Cordova-based mobile app developed by Pawel Wolniewicz. The current Flask web app is a rewrite of this original.

Reference

Wolniewicz, P. (2014). SedMob: A mobile application for creating sedimentary logs in the field. Computers & Geosciences, 66, 211–218. DOI: 10.1016/j.cageo.2014.02.004

A markdown conversion of the full paper is available at .dev/sedlog_paper.md.

Tech Stack

Component Technology
Framework Apache Cordova 2.7.0
UI jQuery Mobile 1.3.1
JS Library jQuery 1.9.1
Database WebSQL (SQLite via browser)
Testing Jasmine 1.2.0

File Structure

.pwlw-sedmob/
├── index.html              # Single-page app entry point
├── main.js                 # Cordova/Electron main process
├── master.css              # Custom styles
├── cordova-2.7.0.js        # Cordova framework
├── css/
│   ├── index.css           # App-specific CSS
│   └── jquery.mobile-1.3.1.min.css
├── js/
│   ├── index.js            # App initialization
│   ├── database.js         # Schema creation and seeding
│   ├── pagehome.js         # Profile list view
│   ├── pageprofile.js      # Profile management
│   ├── pagebed.js          # Bed form and CRUD
│   ├── pageedit.js         # Reference data editing
│   ├── pagesettings.js     # Settings, backup, sync
│   ├── helpers.js          # File system utilities
│   ├── jquery-1.9.1.min.js
│   ├── jquery-ui.min.js
│   ├── jquery.mobile-1.3.1.min.js
│   ├── jquery.ui.sortable.min.js
│   └── jquery.ui.touch-punch.min.js
├── res/                    # Platform-specific icons and splash screens
└── spec/                   # Jasmine test specs

Architecture

The legacy app is a single-page application using jQuery Mobile’s page system. All pages are defined as div[data-role="page"] elements within index.html, and jQuery Mobile handles transitions between them.

Database Layer (database.js)

  • Creates tables using WebSQL executeSql calls
  • Schema mirrors the current SQLAlchemy models
  • Seeds the same reference data as sedmob/seed.py
  • Tables: profiles, beds, bedphotos, typelithology, indexlithology, typestructure, indexstructure, grainclastic, graincarbonate, bioturbation, boundaries

Page Modules

Each page has its own JS module:

  • pagehome.js — Profile list, selection, navigation
  • pageprofile.js — Profile save/delete, bed list with drag-and-drop reordering (jQuery UI Sortable), geolocation capture
  • pagebed.js — Bed form with dynamic lithology menus, percentage validation (ensures 3 lithologies sum to 100%), photo capture, audio recording
  • pageedit.js — Add/edit/delete lithologies and structures
  • pagesettings.js — Theme switching, database backup/restore, MySQL sync

Features Not Yet in Flask Version

The legacy app had several features that haven’t been ported to the Flask rewrite:

Feature Legacy App Flask App Notes
Photo capture (per bed) Yes No Used Cordova camera API
Audio recording (per bed) Yes No Used Cordova media API
Bed photos table Yes No bedphotos table with descriptions
Database backup/restore Yes No Exported SQL to device file system
MySQL synchronization Yes No Synced to remote MySQL via PHP endpoint
Theme switching Yes No High contrast mode toggle for field use
Geolocation auto-capture Yes No Used Cordova geolocation API
Lithology % auto-balance Yes Yes Client-side JS + server-side validation
Ref data import/export Yes No Export/import custom lithologies and structures between installations

Database Schema Comparison

The legacy WebSQL schema and the Flask SQLAlchemy schema are functionally equivalent, with minor naming differences:

Legacy Table Flask Model Notes
profiles Profile Same columns
beds Bed Column names use underscores in Flask (e.g., lit1group → lit1_group)
bedphotos — Not ported
typelithology LithologyType Same data
indexlithology Lithology Same data
typestructure StructureType Same data
indexstructure Structure Same data
grainclastic GrainClastic Same data
graincarbonate GrainCarbonate Same data
bioturbation Bioturbation Same data
boundaries Boundary Same data

Migration Notes

If migrating data from the legacy app:

  1. The reference data is identical between both versions
  2. Profile and bed data can be mapped directly, adjusting column names (remove camelCase, add underscores)
  3. The bedphotos table has no equivalent in the Flask version
  4. Audio file paths stored in bed records won’t be usable without the Cordova file system