Faster Maps Through Technology

by Dave Luna on

The great duo of Lewis and Clark trekked across unexplored territory without the aid of GPS, satellite radio, and No Doz. Suckers, indeed! Thankfully, it’s the 21st century, and your roadtrips can be just as productive with less effort.

These days, the savvy traveler doesn’t need to track his movements across these great United States in a leather-bound journal. All one needs is a GPS receiver capable of logging waypoints. Simply set the receiver to record, toss it onto a dash or onto a pack, and get moving. Once you’ve arrived at your destination, download the GPS data onto a computer and feed it into the free, web-based GPS Visualizer. GPS Visualizer analyzes this data and creates a map as a JPEG, Google Map, or a Google Earth file.

It really can’t get much simpler to chronicle your travels, and with all of that extra time you’ve saved, you can think about how you just one-upped two of history’s greats.

Don’t Rely on GPS to Always Pick the Shortcut

by Iva Skoch on

Lest we become overly reliant on our GPS system for traveling, a recent news piece should give pause.

A London ambulance crew used their GPS to take a mental patient from one hospital to another. For the trip, which should have been only 10 miles, they scrupulously followed the GPS directions, which took them some 400 miles out of their way. They noticed something wrong when they got to Manchester.

The GPS system in the ambulance has been fixed, so they’ll save gas and time the next time they take the trip. I can just imagine hearing that woman’s voice from the GPS snickering: “No, seriously, take the next right. Would I lie?”

DCP: Tajikistan

by Adrienne Wilson on

Why I didn’t think to check in with DCP (Degree Confluence Project) sooner than the day prior to my departure to Tajikistan, I don’t know. Too much else going on? As cool as the project is, I have yet to invest in a good GPS device of my own, but that doesn’t have to keep me or anyone else into confluencing from dropping into the site from time to time.

Looks as if there are 13 confluences in all and only one has been completed in the country almost two years ago. Considering the country is 93% mountain I’m sure some of these can be just as hard to reach as the many located in the middle of the ocean. The authors of the one completed in Badakshon note their trouble breathing as the air got thinner. Otherwise nothing really fascinating sticks out about their excursion.

Philly Taxi Drivers Protest Use of GPS Tracking Plan

by Adrienne Wilson on

NPR has an audio listen on the taxi situation in Philly, where cab drivers are protesting a plan to place GPS (Global Positioning Systems) in their vehicles. The GPS devices would allow the cab dispatchers to know and pinpoint the exact location of a driver, but the driver’s are saying this is a violation of their privacy.

Hmm… Personally, I think it is a great plan. I don’t catch cabs too often, but it peeves me to high heaven when I call one and wait decades for them to arrive. I start imagining all the stops or personal errands they decided to run in route to picking me up for my very important flight or meeting. (Violation of privacy – ha!) When you phone into the dispatchers it’s as if they are in a whole different world from the drivers. They always say something like this: “Yes, he will be there in five minutes. He said he is nearby.” Sometimes I just want to cough bull sh–, but I always keep my cool. Not to say all cab drivers taking the scenic route to get where they need to be or that they’re not stuck in traffic, but it would do dispatchers a great deal of wonder to be able to say something more specific and a little less generic.

Hope a plan like this works out in Philly for the greater good of people who actually have to get to important places or meetings.