Subsurface (software)


Subsurface is a piece of software for logging and planning scuba dives. It was initially designed and developed by Linus Torvalds and Dirk Hohndel in 2011.
Subsurface is free and open-source software distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2.

Overview

Subsurface allows a scuba diver or free diver to keep track of their dive data. It allows dive record data to be downloaded from many different makes and models of dive computers and can represent this data both graphically and in tabular format. Digital photographs taken during the dive can be added to the log and the location of the dive site is displayed on a map. Decompression information based on the Bühlmann model or the VPM-B model and gas usage information can be displayed. The program also includes an interactive dive planner. The logbook can be exported in many file formats and to a Git-based cloud storage. There is a version running on mobile devices that can display the log book data as well as providing a limited ability to download new dives from a dive computer.
Until version 3.9.2, Subsurface used GTK+ for its graphical user interface, and with version 4.0 it was switched to Qt 4. At the LCA2014, Torvalds and Hohndel explained why they chose to re-write the GUI using Qt.
Subsurface further depends on GConf, SQLite, ATK and makes use of OpenStreetMap and/or OpenSeaMap.
Subsurface officially runs on Linux, OS X and Microsoft Windows. It is written using the POSIX API and not the Linux API, so it should be portable to any POSIX-compliant operating system. The mobile version using Qt Quick via KDEs Kirigami framework allows it to run on Android and iOS.
As Subsurface binary software deployment for Linux users for the various Linux distributions turned out to be problematic, the packaging was changed to a portable, self-contained, distro-agnostic AppImage in 2015.

Supported dive computers

As of release 4.9.3 in September 2019, Subsurface supports the downloading and processing of dive log data from the following dive computers:
MakerModels
Aeris
Apeks
Aqualung
Atomic Aquatics
Beuchat
Citizen
Cochran
Cressi
Deepblu
Dive Rite
DiveSystem
Genesis
Heinrichs Weikamp
Hollis
Mares
Oceanic
Ratio
Reefnet
Scubapro
Seabaer
Seac
Seemann
Shearwater Research
Sherwood
Subgear
Suunto
Techdiving
Tusa
Uemis
Uwatec
Zeagle