Compass 55: Beta version 4.2 with OSGB and SK 42 (СК 42) converter is now available!

Re-designed free-text coordinates converter is available from version 4.2 of the app. You’ll find it in several places:

1. MENU > Coordinates converter.
2. On the map, in the map search > Coordinates.
3. In the point editor, to the left of the Done button or in Lat/Lon, UTM, MGRS rows.

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New coordinates converter adds support for OSGB and SK 42 coordinate systems, in addition to current Lat/Lon, UTM, MGRS. More coordinate systems will be added with time.

We started with OSGB and SK 42 as they both represent some unique challenges that we wanted to solve before looking at more generic conversions:

• OSGB. The app provides options for both approximate conversion and precise conversion with usage of a grid shift file. By default, approximate conversion is used (as in most online converters and apps). In the OSGB conversion settings section in the converter screen, if you switch to a precise conversion, the app will ask you to download grid shifts file (about 15MB). After that you can use the precise conversion and avoid error of 0..±5 feet which happens in case of an approximate conversion. OSGB settings also provide an option to insert space between coordinate components or not.

• SK 42. Former Soviet Union standard (covering area from Germany to Japan) that a lot of Eastern European users still have maps for. The app provides precise zonal conversion for SK 42, where different parameters are used for each zone and thus accuracy corresponds to sources like EPSG iself or SK42.org.

This probably makes the app one of the rare ones that can provide offline precise conversion for OSGB and SK 42 systems.

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You can enter free text in the top coordinate input text box and the app will do its best to parse it as a coordinate.

For WGS84 latitude, longitude (d, dm, dms), UTM or MGRS input you have an option to switch format between these coordinate representations. Use the Format button:

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For the point editor, converter button is available on top of the screen and in Latitude/Longitude, UTM, MGRS input rows:

The above screenshot also shows that you can have different button colors from Version 4.1

The top converter button starts with coordinates in either Latitude/Longitude, UTM or MGRS - dependent on your choice of a default in Settings > Coordinate format.

Buttons in the Latitude/Longitude, UTM or MGRS rows start with respectively with Latitude/Longitude, UTM or MGRS.