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Cross Platform Frequently Asked Questions

Forecast Bar is designed to work together across all the Apple platforms, including macOS, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple TV. In order to take advantage of these features, your devices must be using the exact same Apple IDs and have valid subscriptions.

Benefits

  • What benefits do I get when using Forecast Bar on multiple platforms?

    Primarily, we will help save you time by sharing a number of key settings across all your platforms and devices. Specifically, we will share your list of favorite locations (and any custom names you have assigned), your language, time format settings, and several other platform-specific settings.

    When you pair your macOS device with iOS devices, 2 additional powerful features become available:

    1. Your Mac can set your application badge to the current temperature, keeping your current temperature right on your iOS device home screen!
    2. Your Mac can forward precipitation alerts to your iOS device as a push notification to alert you when precipitation is imminent.
    These features are also available if you have an iPhone paired with an Apple Watch (with a valid subscription)!

Set Up

  • How do I ensure my devices work together?

    In general, you shouldn’t have to do anything! We use iCloud to seamlessly and securely communicate between your devices which means it is all handled for you.

    To get started with your Mac and iOS devices:

    • Ensure you have the latest version of Forecast Bar on all your devices.
      • We recommend you check the App Store to ensure you have the very latest.
    • Ensure all your devices have active subscriptions.
      • Note: you can use the ad-supported mode on the iOS app to receive badges and alerts.
    • Ensure all your devices are using the exact same Apple ID.
      • You can verify this in the App Store on each platform. Being on the same family plan is not sufficient--it must be the exact same account.
    • Ensure you have iCloud Drive & Forecast Bar enabled inside of iCloud Drive.
      • On your Mac: you can verify this by going to the Apple menu --> System Preferences --> iCloud --> click Options next to iCloud Drive, and ensure Forecast Bar is Checked.
      • On your iOS Device: you can verify this by going to the iOS Settings --> tapping your name at the top --> iCloud --> and ensure Forecast Bar is Enabled.
    That should be it! You also may be prompted automatically to enable features as we detect other devices on your account. If you are still having trouble getting them to work, see the debugging section below for more details.

Temperature Badge

  • What is a temperature badge?

    When you get push notifications on an iPhone or iPad app, often you’ll see a red circle with the count of notifications you’ve received. When using the temperature badge feature, you can have your Mac send the current temperature to display in that red circle. It will stay up to date as your Mac updates weather in the background.

  • Why does the badge say the temperature is over 1000 degrees!?

    Apple doesn’t allow us to show anything other than positive numbers in the badge, so for temperatures equal to and below 0, we add 1000. 1005 would indicate a temperature of -5 degrees.

  • How often is the badge updated from a Mac?

    Every time your Mac updates the weather, it is sent to your iOS devices when the feature is enabled (see the debugging section below if you are having issues). If your device is a laptop, or is set to go to sleep, updates won’t be sent.

  • How often is the badge updated from Apple Watch?

    Every time your Apple Watch updates the weather, it is sent to your iPhone when the feature is enabled and set up properly (see the debugging section below if you are having issues).

  • How do I get rid of this badge?

    You can disable the badge on either your iOS device or your Mac.

    On your Mac, go to Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync and uncheck ‘Send Temperature to iPhone/iPad as badge’. That will send one final push alert to disable and clear the badge.

    On your iOS device, go to Settings > Alerts and press ‘Clear Badge’. If you are using Apple Watch, also disable ‘Temperature in App Badge’.

Precipitation Alerts

  • What is a precipitation alert?

    When precipitation is imminent in your area, your Mac can send a push notification to your iOS devices to alert you. Imminent is defined by the update interval your Mac uses (the default is one hour, unless you have paid to upgrade to a faster interval). This means if we detect rain in the next hour, we will send a push notification with the details. You will only get one push notification until it stops raining again.

Subscriptions

  • Is my subscription shared across platforms?

    No. Subscriptions are offered by platform, and will not be shared across platforms. A subscription on macOS will apply to all your Macs, while one for iOS will apply to all your iPhones and iPads. This is because each platform has it’s own pricing to reflect the cost of weather updates from our premium provider.

Debugging

  • Why are my settings not syncing between my devices?

    While generally this works automatically, we’d recommend you check a few things:

    • iCloud does not always immediately sync data, so we may recommend waiting up to an hour before debugging further the first time.
    • Review the list of requirements in the ‘Set Up’ section above.
    • Ensure the ‘Sync Settings Across Devices’ setting is enabled on your Mac and iOS devices.
      • You can find this in Settings > Mac Sync on iOS, and Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync on Mac.
    If you are still having trouble after doing so, we’d recommend uninstalling and reinstalling the app on your devices to try again.

  • Why am I not receiving temperature badges from my Mac?

    Temperature badges are sent from your Mac whenever the weather forecast is updated.
    You should expect to have a badge forwarded if:

    • The feature is enabled on your Mac.
      • Ensure ‘Send Temperature to iPhone/iPad as badge’ is checked in Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac.
    • You have enabled push notifications on your iOS devices.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > ‘Enable Alerts and Badges’ on your iOS devices.
    • You are updating your Mac with your iOS device’s location.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > ‘Send Location to Mac’ on your iOS devices.
    • Ensure you have iCloud Drive & Forecast Bar enabled inside of iCloud Drive.
      • On your Mac: you can verify this by going to the Apple menu --> System Preferences --> iCloud --> click Options next to iCloud Drive, and ensure Forecast Bar is Checked.
      • On your iOS Device: you can verify this by going to the iOS Settings --> tapping your name at the top --> iCloud --> and ensure Forecast Bar is Enabled.
    • You have at least 1 iOS device connected to Forecast Bar for Mac
      • The Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac will show you the status of your connection with your iOS devices. If that shows 'not connected', we recommend the following:
        • Copy the ‘Notification ID’ from the screen on your Mac and paste it into the ‘Custom ID’ field in Settings > Mac Sync on your iOS devices
        • Refresh the weather on your iOS devices by pulling down to refresh on the main weather screen.
        • Close and reopen the preferences pane on your Mac.
    • Your Mac’s location in Forecast Bar is set to ‘Phone Location’.
      • You can verify this is the case in Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac which also offers a button to set it to Phone Location.
    Pressing ‘Send Test Notification’ should then send a push notification to your connected iOS devices. If you are still having trouble after doing so, we’d recommend uninstalling and reinstalling the app on your devices to try again.

  • Why am I not receiving precipitation alerts from my Mac?

    Precipitation alerts are sent from your Mac when precipitation is imminent (due to start before the next planned weather update--by default, one hour).
    You should expect to have a precipitation alert forwarded if:

    • The feature is enabled on your Mac.
      • Ensure ‘Send Temperature to iPhone/iPad as badge’ is checked in Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac.
    • Precipitation is due to start in the next update interval.
      • You should see something like “Rain starting at 4:15PM, stopping 20 minutes later.” as your forecast. “Rain for the hour” won’t trigger a notification as that isn’t signifying the start of precipitation.
    • You have enabled push notifications on your iOS devices.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > ‘Enable Alerts and Badges’ on your iOS devices.
    • You are updating your Mac with your iOS device’s location.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > ‘Send Location to Mac’ on your iOS devices.
    • Ensure you have iCloud Drive & Forecast Bar enabled inside of iCloud Drive.
      • On your Mac: you can verify this by going to the Apple menu --> System Preferences --> iCloud --> click Options next to iCloud Drive, and ensure Forecast Bar is Checked.
      • On your iOS Device: you can verify this by going to the iOS Settings --> tapping your name at the top --> iCloud --> and ensure Forecast Bar is Enabled.
    • You have at least 1 iOS device connected to Forecast Bar for Mac
      • The Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac will show you the status of your connection with your iOS devices. If that shows 0 devices, we recommend the following:
        • Copy the ‘Notification ID’ from the screen on your Mac and paste it into the ‘Custom ID’ field in Settings > Mac Sync on your iOS devices
        • Refresh the weather on your iOS devices by pulling down to refresh on the main weather screen.
        • Close and reopen the preferences pane on your Mac.
    • Your Mac’s location in Forecast Bar is set to ‘Phone Location’.
      • You can verify this is the case in Preferences > iPhone/iPad Sync section on your Mac which also offers a button to set it to Phone Location.
    • Your language is set to English.
      • You can verify this in Settings > General.
    Pressing ‘Send Test Notification’ should then send a push notification to your connected iOS devices. If you are still having trouble after doing so, we’d recommend uninstalling and reinstalling the app on your devices to try again.

  • Why am I not receiving temperature badges from my Apple Watch?

    Temperature badges are sent from your Apple Watch whenever the weather forecast is updated and the feature is enabled.

    You should expect to receive temperature badges forwarded if:

    • The feature is enabled on your iPhone.
      • Ensure ‘Temperature in App Badge’ is checked in the Settings > Alerts section on your iPhone.
    • You have enabled push notifications on your iOS devices.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > Enable Alerts and Badges on your iOS devices.
    • You have a valid subscription which includes background updates on Apple Watch.
      • You can verify this in Settings > General. The Type should be ‘iOS App + Background Updates’.
    • You need the Forecast Bar app installed on your Apple Watch.
      • You can install it through the Watch app on your iPhone.
    • You need the Forecast Bar watch app kept in your dock.
      • To do so, run the app, then press the side button to bring up the dock. Slide up on the Forecast Bar app and press ‘Keep in Dock’.
    • You need an active Forecast Bar complication on your watch face.
      • To add a complication, force touch on the watch face, then press Customize. Find the position you’d like and spin the digital crown to select Forecast Bar.
      If you are still having trouble after doing so, we’d recommend rebooting your Apple Watch. If the issue still persists, uninstall and reinstall the app on your iPhone and try again.

  • Why am I not receiving precipitation alerts from my Apple Watch?

    Precipitation alerts are sent from your Apple Watch when precipitation is imminent (due to start before the next planned weather update--by default, one hour).

    You should expect to have a precipitation alert forwarded if:

    • The feature is enabled on your iPhone.
      • Ensure ‘Precipitation Alerts’ is checked in the Settings > Alerts section on your iPhone.
    • Precipitation is due to start in the next update interval.
      • You should see something like “Rain starting at 4:15PM, stopping 20 minutes later.” as your forecast. “Rain for the hour” won’t trigger a notification as that isn’t signifying the start of precipitation.
    • You have enabled push notifications on your iOS devices.
      • You can verify this is done in Settings > Mac Sync > Enable Alerts and Badges on your iOS devices.
    • You have a valid subscription which includes background updates on Apple Watch.
      • You can verify this in Settings > General. The Type should be ‘iOS App + Background Updates’.
    • You need the Forecast Bar app installed on your Apple Watch.
      • You can install it through the Watch app on your iPhone.
    • You need the Forecast Bar watch app kept in your dock.
      • To do so, run the app, then press the side button to bring up the dock. Slide up on the Forecast Bar app and press ‘Keep in Dock’.
    • You need an active Forecast Bar complication on your watch face.
      • To add a complication, force touch on the watch face, then press Customize. Find the position you’d like and spin the digital crown to select Forecast Bar.
    • Your language is set to English.
      • You can verify this in Settings > General.
    If you are still having trouble after doing so, we’d recommend rebooting your Apple Watch. If the issue still persists, uninstall and reinstall the app on your iPhone and try again.

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