I couldn’t find ANY guide for installing mapillary_tools on an Android device. So I took several hours of trial and error to figure it out myself! You can install mapillary_tools on an Android device without rooting it. Here was my process:
Start by downloading Termux, a good command line program for Android.
Then, install mapillary_tools according to Linux custom installation instructions on the mapillary_tools readme (mapillary_tools/README.md at main · mapillary/mapillary_tools · GitHub). However, because Python 2 is no longer supported, the “pip” command seen in the readme will not work.
Use the command…
pkg install python2
…to install the necessary version of Python. Then follow instructions as-is, but replace instances of “pip install” with “python2 -m pip install”
Not sure, but I imagine these exact same steps may be needed on any version of Linux, now that Python 2 isn’t supported.
Finally, on Termux, you must run the command “termux-setup-storage” to access the device’s internal storage.
As a non-programmer with a fleeting familiarity with Linux command line, this took me a while to figure out. I hope this helps someone!
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Update: So far, mapillary_tools has worked very well on my phone! Much faster and better than the website upload. I’m impressed enough that I’m getting an inexpensive 360° camera!
I don’t have a Windows or Apple device, so this is the best alternative I can find for uploading wide-angle images on an Android.
mapillary_tools has been updated. I haven’t found a method to get versions of mapillary_tools 0.6.0 and up installed on Android / Termux.
If someone finds a way to install the latest mapillary_tools on an Android without rooting, please reply here or message me.
Older versions of mapillary_tools just freeze up when I try to use them.
Well, I found out how to install mapillary_tools on Android!
Again.
On Termux, instructions to do an install from scratch look like this:
pkg install python git build-essential libgeos openssl libjpeg-turbo
and
pip install --upgrade pip wheel
to install required libraries and programs.
pip install --upgrade git+https://github.com/mapillary/mapillary_tools
to install mapillary_tools. And
termux-setup-storage
to access shared internal storage.
Also, on devices running Android 11, mapillary_tools will run slowly if it must access shared internal storage. Thus, I suggest moving images to Termux’s native directory before running mapillary_tools. For example, if you store your imagery in the folder “Internal storage/DCIM/Trip1” you’d use a command like
mv -v storage/dcim/Trip1 Trip1
to move folder Trip1 and it’s contents to Termux.
I’ve already used mapillary_tools in Termux to upload thousands of images recently, and it’s worked very well for me.
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