Anyone who thinks of secretly tracking his partner’s doings on the basis of GPS data will be disappointed from the following sentence. Secretly is not part of it, because it remains a matter of I-follow-you and you-follow-me. But these tracking functions are useful to find each other in the forest, on the festival meadow or to see if the children are almost home and you can start cooking.
Tip 01: Cross the road immediately
To share each other’s location in real time via Google Maps, the app must be installed on both devices. It’s no problem if one device is on android running and the other on iOS. Open Google Maps and tap your profile picture in the top right corner so you’re at Share location comes. If you have never done this before, you must share your own location before you can request that of the other person. Next, you need to select a time frame. The default setting is one hour, but you can adjust this period with the plus and minus buttons. Another possibility is the option Until you turn this off. Then tap the blue button share with someone and select the contact person or scroll to the right, where you can click the More comes to all your contacts.
With or without Google account
To exchange locations with someone who has a Google account, add their Gmail address to your Google Contacts (if you haven’t already). Tap the profile of the person you want to share the landmark with and tap again To share. It is also possible to exchange locations with someone who does not have a Google account. In that case, use the command Share via link. Then copy that link to the clipboard. You can paste it into an email, text or message. Whoever receives that link has 72 hours to respond to it.
After sharing your location, you can ask the other person to share theirs
Tip 02: Request
Only after you’ve shared your location can you ask the contact to share theirs as well. Select the contact, select Request and tap again Request in the next window. Your contact will receive a notification in Google Maps and by email asking them to provide their location. As soon as that person agrees, you can easily find them in the app or via the site.
Tip 03: Via app or browser
To locate someone using your mobile device, open Google Maps and tap their profile picture or initials in the top right corner and choose Share Location. You will then see the people who share location data with you at the bottom. You can also view the details of the location, such as the address. It is even possible to open directions to the person in question.
To find someone with the browser and Google Maps, you do about the same. Click the three-line menu in the top left corner next to the search box and select Share location. You will then see its icon on the map, along with the address of its current location.
Taking into account how you move, Google knows when you reach the other person
Tip 04: Where are you staying?
You can reach your contact person by driving, walking or cycling on the basis of directions in Maps. Taking into account how you move, Google tells you when you’ll reach the other one. The person you share the location with can track your progress. After you start navigation, tap the button More and then select Share journey progress. Once you’ve reached the destination, your location will no longer be shared. To stop sharing along the way, tap More and then on Stop sharing.
Tip 05: Hide people
If you share the locations with several people, you can also hide certain contacts on the map. On a mobile device, tap the three dots in the top right corner of the location data and select Hide (name). Of course this is also possible online. Select the contact and click Hide from map. This will remove the photo or initial from the map view, even if the person is still in the list of people you share the location with. Both with the mobile and in the web version you can also definitively identify these people remove.
Tip 06: Individual or group
WhatsApp has also had a function for a while to track each other’s location for a longer period of time. This feature works in the individual chats and even in WhatsApp groups. That way you immediately let the whole group know where you are. If several people in a group share their location at the same time, you can see where everyone is on one map. To share your location live, select the chat with the person who is allowed to follow you. In the chat, tap the plus sign and select Location. In the next screen, tap the option Share live location. Then you choose the desired period in which the other person can follow you. You can choose between 15 minutes, 1 hour or 8 hours. If you have not yet given WhatsApp access to the location service, this app will notify you and direct you to the Settings to activate this function. For that you need to go to the Institutions. there you open Privacy / Location Services and then you give WhatsApp access to the location service.
To see who you share your location data with, WhatsApp creates an overview
Tip 07: Share location live
On an Android smartphone, tap chats and then select the conversation in which you want to exchange the location. Tap the paperclip icon in the text box and then you can run the command Select location. When you use this option for the first time, you need to give WhatsApp access to your location. Tap on Continue / Allow or Allow when using app. Then tap Share live location. The first time you will receive an explanation about this function. Continue and then you decide how long the recipient can see where you are. If necessary, add a message and use the green send button. From now on, the location is shared.
Tip 08: Overview
If you have shared the location, you will return to the chat. Here you can also click the button stop sharing Selecting. To view a friend’s location, tap the sent map in the chat. You can also find the location by tapping the name at the top of the chat and then the button Live Location. In order not to lose track of who you share your location data with, WhatsApp makes an overview. Open WhatsApp and tap Settings. That’s where you go Account and tap Privacy / Live Location. Here you will see the list. Moreover, you can read how long this sharing will take. In the same place you will find the button stop sharing to stop sharing your location live in all chats.
Tip 09: Combine apps
The Find My app used to be standard in iOS to find your iPhone or iPad. If the thing had slid between the cushions on the couch, you could make the device betray its position by means of a shrill sound signal. You still can, but the new Find My app combines Find My iPhone and Find My Friends in one interface. By the function Share my location enabling friends and family to find you. If you have the option Share with family and share your location, all family members will automatically appear in Find My.
Tip 10: Overview
To follow someone else, you must also provide your own location in Find My. Open the Find My app and use the tab People. There you select Share my location or Start sharing location. Then enter the name or phone number of the person you want to share the location with and tap Send. Here too you have the choice to share your data for one hour, until the end of the day or forever. Then select the tab People in the app and select the person with whom you have shared your location in the meantime. Scroll down and tap Ask to track location and confirm with OK.
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