Earlier when I had to get direction from my current location to a destination, I would have to fill the current location. And when I was trying to get the directions while on the move, forget about it. That will take me stopping and feed the nearest location that I am aware of and then estimating the new directions that I get back.

Not anymore. All I have to do is use this new feature in Google Maps called My Location. At the press of a button I can get my current location (approximate) on my Blackberry Pearl. And then get the directions from there. No more trying to figure out where I am, if I am lost. No more stopping at gas stations in unknown locations to ask for directions. As long as I have cell phone signal, I am good. This is almost as good as having a portable GPS.

Google Maps approximates the current location based on the information provided by the service provider, about the “cell” of the Mobile tower that I am connected to. My brother told me about this way of tracking long about 4-5 years back, when he was working for a Cell Phone Service Provider. He even suggested the same use for future (maybe he should have patented the idea). Of course I can improve on this by adding a Bluetooth GPS for my exact location. But this is good enough for me.

Now, this is 1 more reason I can say to my wife - “I don’t need directions, I know where I am at”.

Posted by admin in Network, software