Some general nonsense and linkage from a bloke who spends his time building websites, moaning about stuff, brewing various types of brown booze, and riding a motorbike.
Localisation versus location awareness
There was a good deal of talk about the emerging trend for localised information and small interest groups paired with the promise of ubiquitous, location-aware devices such as the iPhone and its smartphone brethren, but I wonder whether the discussion is not more about location awareness/sensititvity than it is about locality.
GPS-enabled smartphones make it possible to discover information on the hoof and to find things in our immediate vicinity, but that’s not localisation it’s location sensitivity.
How do we use that technology to foster offline, face-to-face human interaction on a localised basis? Given that many of us (particuarly the city dwellers) live increasingly isolated physical existences with little interaction with our immediate geographical neighbours, is it even possible (or for some people desireable)?
I may be able to use my phone to find the nearest purveyor of coffee-based beverages if parachuted into an unfamiliar city, but how does that help me connect with real human beings in a meaningful way (other than to exchange cursory pleasantries at the espresso bar)?
