This program is a compass for Pocket PCs that shows you the direction to Makkah (Quibla) from about 500 cities of the world. All you have to do, is to setup your home city by selecting it from the dropdown-list. If your hometown is not available just select one nearby.
After knowing the geographic position (longitude and latitude) and the timezone (difference to the GMT Standard Time) the program calculates the direction of the sun and displays a yellow circle (sun symbol) on the display.
Important information
Because in the meantime many (many, many, many ;-) people have asked me what the meaning of the time in the upper right corner of the QIBLA Compass is, I would like to explain this in general form and so understandable as I am capable of it:
The time which is valid in your time zone is actually valid only at a certain longitude. If you live in Germany - like I do - you have MET (GMT+ 1 h). With respect to the sun, however, this is only right when you live on the 15th degree (longitude) east. If you live in Austin, Texas GMT - 6 h is only the correct time when you live on the 90th degree west .
At 12:00 (noon) the sun stands exactly vertically on this exact longitude which belongs to your time zone. If you, like me, live in Munich (Bavaria) which is on the 11th degree east, the sun stands vertically only a little later. It must overcome 4 longitude degrees (from 15 to 11) , which lasts a 4/15 hour (= 16 minutes - the sun makes 360 degrees per day therefore 15 degrees per hour).
So in the QIBLA Comass the upper right time is, the REAL for YOUR place. If it is 12:00 there, the sun stands vertically above you.
I hope the explanation is so far plausible. Since my mother tongue isn't English, I liked to ask all who can explain it in a more clear way to send me the explanation and I will forward/post it.
The QIBLA Comass is freeware, so I unfortunately cannot do intensive support. Hope you understand that.
Yours sincerely from Bavaria
Ingo Boehme
What you have to do:
1. Choose the City from the dropdown list.
2. If you actually have a daylight saving time, check the checkbox.
3. Hold your Pocket PC horizontal and rotate it until the sun symbol points to the direction of the sun.
4. Your compass is now aligned and the blue arrow points to Makkah.
Qibla Compass is Freeware. Feel free to distribute it wherever you want, but please let me know the URL of the website.
For putting it on CDs or DVDs please definitly ask for our permission (you īll getit - thatīs sure).
If you want to support our efforts to produce valuable freeware, please make a donnation at our donnation page.
Please send suggestions on further enhancements or new development ideas to cre@ive-software.com
You find more software for Pocket PC and Palm at www.AstroWin.com
We have tested the qibla on many geographic positions. If you find one, that is not correct, please send us a note.
