Up-To-Date 2025-05-16

First Run & Global Settings

Considerations on the first run, learn some app basics, understand the app structure and check the global settings!

Created by

João Pereira

First time using DMD²?

If this is your first time using DMD² there are some basics that we recommend you to read about. We will focus on those in this document.

We will assume you already installed DMD² or bought a device with DMD² pre-installed like the ones we sell, we will also assume that the device is compatible (minimum compatible Android version is 7.1 and the optimal minimum recommended is Android 10), and finally we will also assume that there is enough storage space on your device.

The first time you run DMD² you will probably get a series of permission requests, we have already covered what those are for in this guide, so please provide the required permissions to move forward.

The fundamentals are understanding the basic app structure, understanding that DMD² can run as the device default launcher or just like a regular app, learning about the two available layout types - Portrait and Landscape (and what is the difference between the two).

There is also a big list of settings under the Global Settings app view, these are settings that affect the whole app and not just a specific view, each view (like the Map, Home Dashboard, Roadbook) will have its own specific settings which we cover on other guides.

When you start using DMD² the big list of settings might be a bit overwhelming, but for 99% of our users you never need to touch them. On this documents we will focus on the settings you should change and/or know about.

You can find a list of all the available global settings on the bottom of this page!

App Structure

To make sure we use the same terms lets review the basic app structure:

Top Status Bar - The top bar includes indicators like battery level, GPS precision, available RAM or Weather, online status and clock.
Active View - The central area that shows the current view - Home / Map / Roadbook / OBD / Apps / Settings.
Bottom Menu - The menu in the bottom where you select the active view.

The top status bar is mostly indicators, you do not interact much with it, the only almost "hidden" feature is that tapping on it toggles the bottom menu visibility.

The active view is where most of the action happens and it is important to understand it will look very different depending on the screen orientation - Portrait (optimized for phones) or Landscape (optimized for tablets).

The bottom menu is where you select the active view, you can interact with it by tapping on it or by using a remote controller. If there is a view that you do not use, you can disable it, in Global Settings (cog wheel icon button in the bottom menu) there is a setting called "Interface Options - Edit Bottom Menu", there you can also change the menu order.

Portrait VS Landscape

The portrait and landscape layouts can be very different from each other, portrait is currently optimized for phone size devices while the landscape is optimized for tablets.

The landscape version, because it is designed for bigger devices (tablets) will have more information, while the Portrait will have less but everything will be presented on a bigger scale.

To avoid accidental screen rotation while ridding, DMD² locks the screen orientation! To change the app orientation you can go to Global Settings (cog wheel icon button in the bottom menu) and scroll to "Screen" section, there you can manually set the orientation lock ("Lock orientation in").

Localization

For a first run there is not much you need to configure, the remaining item that you should check is the localization settings. You will find localization settings in Global Settings (cog wheel icon button in the bottom menu) under the "Localization" section, the available settings are:

Use 24h format - enabled by default
User imperial units of measurement - meter / kilometer is set by default, enable this to change to feet / miles
Use MPG instead of L/100 - only for the OBD instant fuel consumption sensor
Use Fahrenheit instead of Celsius - self explanatory
Use PSI instead of Bar - self explanatory also

All these settings will have an immediate effect on the whole app.

Video

Default Launcher or Not

DMD² can be run as the device default home launcher or just like any other app. The home launcher is what you see on any Android device when you first start it, the app that you see when you press the device "Home" button, it usually allows you to open other apps from it, to setup shortcuts for your favorite apps and even add widgets. You can check this video for more information.

If you have multiple launcher apps installed on your device you can change the default at any time (check the video on the right).
To change it, go to: Android Settings > Apps > Default apps > Home app.

When you first install DMD² the device will detect that you have installed a new app capable of being used as a launcher and the next time you press the device home button it will ask you what launcher you want to use, it will do this once or until you select the "always use" option.

Who would want to use DMD² as the device default home launcher? This would be mostly users who have a device that they use only for navigation and that stays on the motorcycle.

Notice: DMD² will not show the exit button in the bottom menu when it is set as the default home launcher, the reason is that there is nothing to exit to, the base level on the system navigation is the home screen, additionally, a launcher is never closed on any Android device. This is a frequently asked question among our users.

Highlight

Profile Manager

If you are using the same device on multiple vehicles you might be interested on using a different profile for each.

You can setup up to 6 profiles, each profile will have its own full scope of settings (including global settings) while preserving downloaded maps and user content like GPX files and user saved locations.

Using the "Manage" button you can name each profile and reset (delete) to start fresh.
An option to show the profile selection dialog every time the app starts is also available.

Profile Manager is available in Global Settings > User Profiles.

Global Settings List

Backup and Restore:

Create Zip And Save - Creates a full app backup with all user settings, files, profiles, everything but the offline map files which are too big. When the zip is ready it will ask you where do you want to save it, we usually recommend uploading to something like Google Drive.
Import Zip and Restore - Allows you to select a backup zip file to restore. Please notice this will overwrite all your current app state and files.

User Profiles:

Manage User Profiles - Will show the user profile dialog where you can manage user profiles and change the active profile.
Show Profile Selection on Start - When the app starts you will always need to select a profile.

Theme:

Color theme (Dark / Light) - Allows you to select between a dark or light app theme (no influence on the map style).
Accent color - A color accent that is used all over the app in details like titles, selections, etc - select a color to match your vehicle.

Accessories Settings:

Setup Remote Controller - Will show the remote controller setup dialog, we already covered it in this document.
TPMS Sensor Settings - Settings for our TPMS sensors, if you have purchased a kit of DMD TPMS this is where you set it up.
Power Box Settings - Settings for our Power Box device, if you have purchased the DMD Power Box this is where you set it up.

Advanced APK Version :

These settings are only for DMD devices or when you install the app using the APK, check the installation documentation.

Run DMD2 as Service - If enabled, when you move from DMD² to another app, we will keep DMD² running in the background so that it can keep incrementing trip and record the GPX.
Check for app updates automatically - If enabled DMD² will notify you to update whenever there is an update available. If disabled you will need to manually check for updates.
Check for updates only on Wifi - Will check for app updates only when there is an active internet connection over WIFI.
Check for updates now - To manually force the update check.

Screen:

Lock Orientation in - Allows you to select the device orientation (portrait is recommended for phones and landscape for tablets).
Disable screen touch when moving - Locks touch by disabling it while you are moving - to prevent accidental touches or touches by rain drops. You can achieve the same by using the touch toggle either with a remote controller, the hardware buttons on DMD devices, or the lock button on the different app views.
Enable screen touch when stopped - Will unlock (enable touch again) when you stop moving.
Touch lock hides menu - If enabled, when you use the touch lock (disable screen touch) the bottom menu gets hidden.

GPS Settings:

Filter GPS Accuracy - Will ignore location updates which are too bad in terms of accuracy or when you are stopped or close to stopped to prevent incrementing the trip values or adding extra points in the GPX recorder.

Localization:

Use 24h format - Enabled by default, it has an effect on how time is presented.
User imperial units of measurement - Meter / kilometer is set by default, enable this to change to feet / miles.
Use MPG instead of L/100 - Only for the OBD instant fuel consumption sensor, enable if you are in the US.
Use Fahrenheit instead of Celsius - Self explanatory.
Use PSI instead of Bar - Slso self explanatory.

Interface Options:

Edit Bottom Menu - Allows you to change the order of the bottom menu items and enable/disable any of the entries.
Battery Indicator - By default the battery indicator will show the percentage, you can change it to show current now or temperature in this setting.

Notifications:

Enable notifications pop-up - Will show a small pop-up with any new notification - you can filter for which apps you want to see this.
Dismiss method - Setup how you want the notification pop-up to be dismissed - by timeout or manually (touch or controller).
Handlebar controller focus - If enabled, whenever there is a notification pop-up visible the controller will be focused on it, and pressing the controller keys will either trigger a notification tap (open the notification app) or dismiss the notification - check the controller setup for Menus and Dialogs.
Apps Filter - Tap on it to view the app filter dialog, here you can select for which apps you want to see the notification pop-up.
Enable iOS Notification Support - Allows you to get notifications from your iPhone (requires that your iPhone is paired with the device running DMD²). - Read about notification mirror here.
Select Paired iOS Device - After pairing your iPhone with your device running DMD² you can tap here to select the paired iPhone from a list of all currently paired devices.
Show Calls Only - Instead of showing all notifications from your phone, DMD² will only show call notifications.
Blink Screen On Remote Device Notifications - Will blink a screen frame to call your attention when you get a notification using the remote device "Notification Mirror" feature. - Read about notification mirror here.

Storage: