Where Would You Be Without GPS?
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By Carolyn Y. Johnson, The Boston Globe  Feb. 19--To the true technophile, personal digital devices are more  anatomy than accessory, and the physical world is kind of a nuisance. A simple  trip to the mall can be a distraction: You actually have to look up from your  screen.
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A Wi-Fi hot-spot builder develops a decked-out trailer capable of delivering broadband access even in the middle of nowhere. The WanderPod gets its first test run at the launch of SpaceShipOne in the Mojave Desert. By Dan Brekke.
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If Nokia had its way, you would throw away your iPod, your digital camera, maybe even your PC and TV--and certainly all those road maps cluttering the glove compartment of your car.
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The New York Times' David Pogue reviewed five Global Positioning Systems that are all tiny, self-contained, and battery-operated.
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Someday soon, many cell phones might store as many as 2,000 songs -- or enough map data for a built-in GPS to steer you any place on the planet.
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Packing for a trip involves a new level of "what did I forget?" anxiety: What if you depart without all the chargers your gadgets require?
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Just like going to the video store without your movie list, visiting the internet without your bookmarks can lead to endless Google side trips and a possible stop at eBay. Wired's How To Wiki delivers a guide to making your bookmarks portable and keeping them in sync anywhere you go.
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Travellers apathetic about lost kit Two in five mobile devices left at UK airports this summer will never be reclaimed, according to a new survey by mobile security specialists Pointsec.â¦
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One sport that relies increasingly on GPS technology is horseback riding (&quot;Space-age sport,&quot; Aug. 16). Horseback riders who practice trail riding for pleasure, or the more demanding cross country sports, are beginning to use GPS in large numbers.
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(InfoWorld) - Forget isolation and relaxation. For the seriously connected geek of today, vacations just aren't what they used to be. An informal and completely unscientific poll of InfoWorld readers revealed that -- although a few certified techies unplug completely when on vacation -- most elect to stay at least somewhat connected with their regular life; thanks to the ever-broadening range of cellular and wireless networks, most of them can. [See InfoWorld's Top 10 geek vacation list.] Jeff Helm witnessed the transition at one vacation spot: "I first took the family to Pigeon Forge (near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park) in October 2001. I walked across the hotel parking lot to the new public library to get on the Internet and check mail. I was told I would have to fill out a form, pay $5, let them hold on to my driver's license, and swear that I wouldn't 'conduct any business' or credit card transactions of any kind." Fast-forward to August 2006: "We went to the same hotel. I got out of the car to check in, and my PDA gave an audible report that it found a wireless signal. Yes, the same library was now beaming invitations to connect to the Internet to everyone in the area. Every hotel â¦ did the same. I checked e-mail at the outside mall, waiting for a patio table at the restaurant, and just about every place I went. I shut off the audible alert because the thing was going off constantly with all the networks." "The Outer Banks of North Carolina have a full complement of Net hotspot and cell-phone coverage capabilities," writes Peter B. Young. "I like to sit in the shade of an upper deck on our mansion-of-the-week, my sturdy old laptop plugged into an outlet in the living room or often out on the deck itself, and let 'er rip -- as gentle southern breezes caress my worn and wounded body." Rand Foster recommends cruising the San Juan Islands in northwest Washington between                                                     Vancouver Island and the mainland: "There is Wi-Fi at every marina." Brad St. Pierre found the perfect combo in Canada's Northwest Territories: "At the Bayside B and B in Yellowknife, I could watch the lakeside airplane and boat activity from the lounge or deck all day while surfing the Net. With almost 24 hours of sunshine, it's never too late to do the things you forgot to do while you were online." High-tech contractor David G. Evans found a way to have his vacation and get paid for it, too. "I was on call for production support. I spent a few weeks grooming my contacts to text me if they had an issue. That being done, I found a wonderful camp spot in Seaside, Calif., 20 seconds from pristine dunes and the ocean, 15 minutes from downtown Monterey, private, inexpensive, and well equipped. The recreation room has two hookups for Internet and a Web-mail kiosk. "Since this was an East Coast contract, I would get up at 4:30 or 5 to do a quick message check and reply as a first-thing-in-the-morning connection for them. Then we would drive to the Monterey Bay Aquarium but leave me three blocks away at the Kinko's with my laptop, where access is free, 24 hour, and comfortable. I would spend an hour or two working, then wander down to the wharf to meet them for some exhibits and lunch. If there was work, I would check back at Kinko's; if not, we had family time. Except for some mad coding from the backseat of the Volvo, plugged into the cigarette lighter for a portion of the trip home, this was the best working vacation I ever had." Edward C. Horvath had the best idea for a busman's holiday: "Buy yourself a ticket to the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference. Live on caffeine, sugar, new technology, and the famed Jobs Reality Distortion Field for a week." The prize for the most far-out connected experience has to go to Savio Rodrigues, one of the authors of our Open Sources blog. He proudly sent us a photo from Machu Picchu -- not of himself, but of his BlackBerry, with a strong connection. A close second: April Harris Calderwood's working vacation, "going to a third-world country and helping a community project with technology; you rest and give back to the community."
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InfoWorld - Location-based services appeared here, there, and everywhere at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, as service providers maneuvered to take advantage of the increasing number of mobile phones shipping with integrated GPS (Global Positioning System) modules. Many of the services put the emphasis on finding your friends, not finding your way, as GPS evolves into more of a social tool.
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A Boston company that builds location-based services for cellphones is lowering the bar for entrepreneurs to launch mobile widgets in the wireless world, whether it's NearBio, a mobile application that finds the closest biodiesel pumps, or Everytrail, a GPS widget that maps hikes and rides.
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Adding location data to images is a pain right now, but geotagging is worth it, and it'll get easier. Here are my warnings and a wish list.
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MDM today announced a new mobile travel solution application for Palm OS and other platform handhelds. Directions on-the-Go offers navigational assistance without the need for a GPS or wireless connection.
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With Web sites like Yahoo and MapQuest giving away maps and driving directions it seems like a waste of money to buy a standalone program that basically does the same thing. To survive, software publishers need to offer a lot more than the online freebies. Microsoft Corp.'s Streets &amp; Trips 2005 does just that.
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Forget a Global Positioning System or even a map. The Earth's own original satellite is the most important guide for two hikers making the first known continuous trek of the nation's western coastline.
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Presto digital delivery service helps folks without a PC stay connected. In Gear Factor.