Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

sugartrack-beta.vercel.app

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

21–30 of 30 posts

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#21

Post by kuerbel »

close04 wrote: post #20
arjie wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting. My dad wears his on the back of the arm (posterior) not the inside (medial) - and when I asked him he pointed to the official instructions which do actually have it there https://www.freestyle.abbott/content/dam/adc/freestyle/count... It must be a different kind of device.

Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Most CGMs are going on the back of the upper arm but some were put on the lower back, or other places. The manufacturer develops the CGM with a very specific placement in mind and they make sure to tell you very clearly.

My parents dog has diabetes and since they failed to draw blood from his ear he got the freestyle libre 2. The vet just put it near his shoulder. I'm not sure how accurate this is...

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#22

Post by sublinear »

KetoManx64 wrote: post #18
sublinear wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've used Xdrip before, and it's device support is not that great either. I'm not arguing against the idea. I'm being realistic about what devs and users can do about this situation. If you're lucky enough to find something that works, I'm not knocking that.

"Kimi decompile this proprietary APK and find the communication channels used to communicate with this model GCM. Let me know what software you need to to install to achieve this " The world is your oyster if you have some self motivation.

This is your honest recommendation? You might want to re-read how this thread started.

The issue isn't anyone's ability to reverse engineer a glucose meter nor their "self motivation" to do so.

The issue is how outdated the expectations of some devs can be. The typical consumer will never use these apps because the whole topic is washed up. Software maintenance is a much steeper hill to climb than it used to be. Throwing an LLM at that just makes it more Sisyphean than it already was.

You can have fun, but this isn't helping anyone else defend their privacy. That angle is starting to become as embarrassing as the advice to save the planet by riding a bike.

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#23

Post by [deleted] »

hunzaboy wrote: post #2

Hello Hacker News, I’m sharing a small app I built: *SugarTrack*. I know it’s the age of AI, but I still think there’s value in taking the time to solve simple, practical problems—especially when those problems affect people who aren’t technical. I built SugarTrack because I was tired of managing blood sugar readings using paper forms and notebooks for someone close to me. We were taking photos of readings, keeping E…

[deleted]

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#24

Post by Godsend69 »

hunzaboy wrote: post #2

Hello Hacker News, I’m sharing a small app I built: *SugarTrack*. I know it’s the age of AI, but I still think there’s value in taking the time to solve simple, practical problems—especially when those problems affect people who aren’t technical. I built SugarTrack because I was tired of managing blood sugar readings using paper forms and notebooks for someone close to me. We were taking photos of readings, keeping E…

[flagged]

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#25

Post by close04 »

kuerbel wrote: post #21
close04 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Most CGMs are going on the back of the upper arm but some were put on the lower back, or other places. The manufacturer develops the CGM with a very specific placement in mind and they make sure to tell you very clearly.

My parents dog has diabetes and since they failed to draw blood from his ear he got the freestyle libre 2. The vet just put it near his shoulder. I'm not sure how accurate this is...

Probably very inaccurate numbers but the trends could be okish.

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#26

Post by Projectiboga »

kuerbel wrote: post #21
close04 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Most CGMs are going on the back of the upper arm but some were put on the lower back, or other places. The manufacturer develops the CGM with a very specific placement in mind and they make sure to tell you very clearly.

My parents dog has diabetes and since they failed to draw blood from his ear he got the freestyle libre 2. The vet just put it near his shoulder. I'm not sure how accurate this is...

It can be roughly calibrated to blood work later.

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#27

Post by nabedam »

VoidWhisperer wrote: post #8

Worth noting, if they are covered by the person's insurance, it may be worth looking into using a CGM (Continuous glucose monitor) and the self-hostable application Nightscout[0]. CGMs use the interstitial fluid in (usually, although people also use other spots) inside side of the upper arm to measure blood sugar. As long as they are placed in the right spot (i.e. in a fattier area instead of directly on top of muscl…

And if you really want to live on the bleeding edge, check out https://androidaps.readthedocs.io/en/latest/

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#28

Post by KetoManx64 »

Godsend69 wrote: post #19
KetoManx64 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's extremely unlikely that owners of these meters would be able to use any other app. I've been using Xdrip+ for 2 years now with the Dexcom CGM instead of their proprietary app. Works great and gives me the ability to export my data or sync it with a self hosted database if I so please. Why would I trust a corporation with my private health data when they have continuously shown that they will sell it or lose it…

You might want to consider using a self-hosted database to store your data. Telemetry Blocklist (free) can help prevent any apps from phoning home, but it's not specific to this use case. If you're concerned about data security, you might want to explore other options for storing your health data offline.

Thanks for the advice. XDrip+ doesn't require internet access, and if it did then my GrapheneOS phone has a toggleable network permission for each app that I could utilize if I was worried. I wanted my data stored and backed up on an external database that I then backup nightly as part of my Proxmox homelab. With an external database I can build /use other tools to pull data from the database for that I would not be able to do from a phone app.

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#29

Post by KetoManx64 »

sublinear wrote: post #22
KetoManx64 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Kimi decompile this proprietary APK and find the communication channels used to communicate with this model GCM. Let me know what software you need to to install to achieve this " The world is your oyster if you have some self motivation.

This is your honest recommendation? You might want to re-read how this thread started. The issue isn't anyone's ability to reverse engineer a glucose meter nor their "self motivation" to do so. The issue is how outdated the expectations of some devs can be. The typical consumer will never use these apps because the whole topic is washed up. Software maintenance is a much steeper hill to climb than it used to be. Thro…

I don't care what the typical consumer wants nor what the expectations of some Devs are. I was just letting people know that private solutions exist that work and if they are self motivated they can probably expand them to include their sensors if it's not already included.

Re: SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)

#30

Post by hunzaboy »

sublinear wrote: post #6
brayhite wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For those who don’t have a meter that can export readings.

Which ones? The most humble meters come free in a kit, since you're really buying the test strips, and they all have onboard memory and an optional app. It's extremely unlikely the owners of those meters would even be able to use any other app. There's no standard for the device data sent over bluetooth to the app. There's no USB port. Beyond 90 days of data (many meters have 99), A1C is preferred. Reverse engineerin…

SugarTrack is intentionally just a simple log. It doesn't try to replace the glucometer, connect over Bluetooth/USB, or automatically import readings.

My motivation wasn't really to replace existing apps. I built it because this is the workflow I actually needed.

For example, my mother is 70 and isn't comfortable using apps. Someone else usually has to help her take the reading, and I need to keep track of the data for her. I wanted something where whoever is helping can simply open her phone, enter the reading, and have everything relevant in one place — readings, meals/photos, medication, notes and A1C.

There are definitely more sophisticated solutions out there, but they aren't always practical or available for everyone. In some places, CGMs and connected meters aren't covered by insurance, aren't readily available, or simply aren't realistic to use.

So SugarTrack is deliberately boring: no Bluetooth, no USB, no account, no cloud, no subscription. Just a simple log that stays on the phone.

It solves my particular problem, and I figured there are probably other people with a similar situation.

Post reply on HN