Monday, March 26, 2007

We know where you are!

You know, as a long-time software industry guy, there is a long standing joke over whether something is a "feature" or a "bug". With GPS devices coming standard on many phones (and more soon), you can easily take track your location and tie it into mapping software directly on the device. No need for a secondary GPS device - just use the phone. What else can this functionality do? Read this article from Forbes.

Think about it - wouldn't it be neat to tie this into FaceBook, MySpace, etc? A kind of "Where am I now"? I used to use a service that did this by IP address, called Plazes. But now, your cell can auto-upload locations - and EVERYONE can know exactly where you are!

Cool:

- Tell your friends - "come meet me!", and they get a map of your location and directions automatically
- Easily ask questions like "where is the nearest coffee shop around me?"
- If you have kids - you can be safe in knowing where they are
- when you travel you could upload pics against coords - and plot it on Google Garth or upload to sites like EveryTrail.

Scary:

- transmitting this data over the internet means that it isn't secret - any hacker could find out where you are (incl the gov't)
- absolutely no privacy in where you go and what you do. Turn it off? Uh, what will your spouse think about that?

Soo....feature or bug?

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