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The History of Location Technology

THE HISTORY OF LOCATION TECHNOLOGY by @shanesnow for Mashable SMOKE SIGNALS MANY 1000s BC From the American Indians to the ancient Chinese, smoke signals were used not only to locate home, but also to communicate messages. Accuracy: Distance: CELESTIAL NAVIGATION AS EARLY AS 3200 BC For thousands of years, navigators (especially seafaring ones) used mathematics to determine their coordinates by measuring the angle of the sun or stars. For centuries, there was no reliable way to determine longitude at sea. In the mid 18th Century, clockmaker John Harison invented a chronometer which allowed sailors to determine longitude by aCcurately tracking the time change between home and their current location. Accuracy: Difficulty: HOMING PIGEONS FROM 100O BC Certain types of Rock Pigeons were bred to be able to find their homes from extremely long distances away. These were used for courier services and navigation itself for thousands of years. Accuracy: Distance: THE MAGNETIC COMPASS BETWEEN 1100-1200 AD By using a magnet to point to the earth's poles, this invention allowed navigators to finally determine their heading, in addition to lattitude (and eventually longitude). Accuracy: Difficulty RADIO TRIANGULATION EARLY 1900s By measuring the strengths of radio signals, ships, aircraft, and military ground troops began to be able to estimate their coordinates from very long distances. Accuracy: Difficulty: SATELLITE GPS STARTING IN 1960 A group of around 30 satellites orbits the earth and is used to triangulate the position of a receiver. Nearby satellites send timestamped messages, and the receiver calculates the AUTOMOTIVE GPS NAVIGATION distance of each satellite based on the speed of the incoming messages compared to the time they were sent. 1990s While many GPS receivers were used for military purposes since the '60s, the automotive GPS nav unit became the first dedicated GPS device to gain traction Receiver sizes have been shrinking ever since the '60s when GPS systems were first tested. among consumers. Accuracy Difficulty: Initially mapless and slow, the auto GPS is now a driving staple, commonly including maps and turn-by-turn directions. Accuracy: Difficulty: GPS-ENABLED SMART PHONES 2000s Though cell phones started carrying GPS in the mid '00s, the debut of Apple's iPhone brought the most notable changes to the industry, allowing a host of third party applications to start developing programs to take advantage of the built-in satellite positioning hardware. Accuracy: Difficulty: AND NOW: LOCATION-BASED APPS, GAMES, AND SOCIAL NETWORKS Everyone and their mom is building one. With the tech already in the hands of millions of consumers, the cost to build a location-based application that pinpoints the user's precise location on Planet Earth is.. well, $0, if you have the patience to take a few programming tutorials. Come to think of it, the math required is propably pretty similar to that the early sailors used. Only you have a calculator. opt brightkite foursquare Cowalla and now 100s more... ..... ......e 2010 2007 2008 2009 by @shanesnow for Mashable THE HISTORY OF LOCATION TECHNOLOGY by @shanesnow for Mashable SMOKE SIGNALS MANY 1000s BC From the American Indians to the ancient Chinese, smoke signals were used not only to locate home, but also to communicate messages. Accuracy: Distance: * * CELESTIAL NAVIGATION AS EARLY AS 3200 BC For thousands of years, navigators (especially seafaring ones) used mathematics to determine their coordinates by measuring the angle of the sun or stars. For centuries, there was no reliable way to determine longitude at sea. In the mid 18th Century, clockmaker John Harison invented a chronometer which allowed sailors to determine longitude by aCcurately tracking the time change between home and their current location. Accuracy: Difficulty: HOMING PIGEONS FROM 100O BC Certain types of Rock Pigeons were bred to be able to find their homes from extremely long distances away. These were used for courier services and navigation itself for thousands of years. Accuracy: Distance: THE MAGNETIC COMPASS BETWEEN 1100-1200 AD By using a magnet to point to the earth's poles, this invention allowed navigators to finally determine their heading, in addition to lattitude (and eventually longitude). Accuracy: Difficulty RADIO TRIANGULATION EARLY 1900s By measuring the strengths of radio signals, ships, aircraft, and military ground troops began to be able to estimate their coordinates from very long distances. Accuracy: Difficulty: SATELLITE GPS STARTING IN 1960 A group of around 30 satellites orbits the earth and is used to triangulate the position of a receiver. Nearby satellites send timestamped messages, and the receiver calculates the AUTOMOTIVE GPS NAVIGATION distance of each satellite based on the speed of the incoming messages compared to the time they were sent. 1990s While many GPS receivers were used for military purposes since the '60s, the automotive GPS nav unit became the first dedicated GPS device to gain traction Receiver sizes have been shrinking ever since the '60s when GPS systems were first tested. among consumers. Accuracy Difficulty: Initially mapless and slow, the auto GPS is now a driving staple, commonly including maps and turn-by-turn directions. Accuracy: Difficulty: GPS-ENABLED SMART PHONES 2000s Though cell phones started carrying GPS in the mid '00s, the debut of Apple's iPhone brought the most notable changes to the industry, allowing a host of third party applications to start developing programs to take advantage of the built-in satellite positioning hardware. Accuracy: Difficulty: AND NOW: LOCATION-BASED APPS, GAMES, AND SOCIAL NETWORKS Everyone and their mom is building one. With the tech already in the hands of millions of consumers, the cost to build a location-based application that pinpoints the user's precise location on Planet Earth is.. well, $0, if you have the patience to take a few programming tutorials. Come to think of it, the math required is propably pretty similar to that the early sailors used. Only you have a calculator. opt brightkite foursquare Cowalla and now 100s more... ..... ......e 2010 2007 2008 2009 by @shanesnow for Mashable THE HISTORY OF LOCATION TECHNOLOGY by @shanesnow for Mashable SMOKE SIGNALS MANY 1000s BC From the American Indians to the ancient Chinese, smoke signals were used not only to locate home, but also to communicate messages. Accuracy: Distance: * * CELESTIAL NAVIGATION AS EARLY AS 3200 BC For thousands of years, navigators (especially seafaring ones) used mathematics to determine their coordinates by measuring the angle of the sun or stars. For centuries, there was no reliable way to determine longitude at sea. In the mid 18th Century, clockmaker John Harison invented a chronometer which allowed sailors to determine longitude by aCcurately tracking the time change between home and their current location. Accuracy: Difficulty: HOMING PIGEONS FROM 100O BC Certain types of Rock Pigeons were bred to be able to find their homes from extremely long distances away. These were used for courier services and navigation itself for thousands of years. Accuracy: Distance: THE MAGNETIC COMPASS BETWEEN 1100-1200 AD By using a magnet to point to the earth's poles, this invention allowed navigators to finally determine their heading, in addition to lattitude (and eventually longitude). Accuracy: Difficulty RADIO TRIANGULATION EARLY 1900s By measuring the strengths of radio signals, ships, aircraft, and military ground troops began to be able to estimate their coordinates from very long distances. Accuracy: Difficulty: SATELLITE GPS STARTING IN 1960 A group of around 30 satellites orbits the earth and is used to triangulate the position of a receiver. Nearby satellites send timestamped messages, and the receiver calculates the AUTOMOTIVE GPS NAVIGATION distance of each satellite based on the speed of the incoming messages compared to the time they were sent. 1990s While many GPS receivers were used for military purposes since the '60s, the automotive GPS nav unit became the first dedicated GPS device to gain traction Receiver sizes have been shrinking ever since the '60s when GPS systems were first tested. among consumers. Accuracy Difficulty: Initially mapless and slow, the auto GPS is now a driving staple, commonly including maps and turn-by-turn directions. Accuracy: Difficulty: GPS-ENABLED SMART PHONES 2000s Though cell phones started carrying GPS in the mid '00s, the debut of Apple's iPhone brought the most notable changes to the industry, allowing a host of third party applications to start developing programs to take advantage of the built-in satellite positioning hardware. Accuracy: Difficulty: AND NOW: LOCATION-BASED APPS, GAMES, AND SOCIAL NETWORKS Everyone and their mom is building one. With the tech already in the hands of millions of consumers, the cost to build a location-based application that pinpoints the user's precise location on Planet Earth is.. well, $0, if you have the patience to take a few programming tutorials. Come to think of it, the math required is propably pretty similar to that the early sailors used. Only you have a calculator. opt brightkite foursquare Cowalla and now 100s more... ..... ......e 2010 2007 2008 2009 by @shanesnow for Mashable THE HISTORY OF LOCATION TECHNOLOGY by @shanesnow for Mashable SMOKE SIGNALS MANY 1000s BC From the American Indians to the ancient Chinese, smoke signals were used not only to locate home, but also to communicate messages. Accuracy: Distance: * * CELESTIAL NAVIGATION AS EARLY AS 3200 BC For thousands of years, navigators (especially seafaring ones) used mathematics to determine their coordinates by measuring the angle of the sun or stars. For centuries, there was no reliable way to determine longitude at sea. In the mid 18th Century, clockmaker John Harison invented a chronometer which allowed sailors to determine longitude by aCcurately tracking the time change between home and their current location. Accuracy: Difficulty: HOMING PIGEONS FROM 100O BC Certain types of Rock Pigeons were bred to be able to find their homes from extremely long distances away. These were used for courier services and navigation itself for thousands of years. Accuracy: Distance: THE MAGNETIC COMPASS BETWEEN 1100-1200 AD By using a magnet to point to the earth's poles, this invention allowed navigators to finally determine their heading, in addition to lattitude (and eventually longitude). Accuracy: Difficulty RADIO TRIANGULATION EARLY 1900s By measuring the strengths of radio signals, ships, aircraft, and military ground troops began to be able to estimate their coordinates from very long distances. Accuracy: Difficulty: SATELLITE GPS STARTING IN 1960 A group of around 30 satellites orbits the earth and is used to triangulate the position of a receiver. Nearby satellites send timestamped messages, and the receiver calculates the AUTOMOTIVE GPS NAVIGATION distance of each satellite based on the speed of the incoming messages compared to the time they were sent. 1990s While many GPS receivers were used for military purposes since the '60s, the automotive GPS nav unit became the first dedicated GPS device to gain traction Receiver sizes have been shrinking ever since the '60s when GPS systems were first tested. among consumers. Accuracy Difficulty: Initially mapless and slow, the auto GPS is now a driving staple, commonly including maps and turn-by-turn directions. Accuracy: Difficulty: GPS-ENABLED SMART PHONES 2000s Though cell phones started carrying GPS in the mid '00s, the debut of Apple's iPhone brought the most notable changes to the industry, allowing a host of third party applications to start developing programs to take advantage of the built-in satellite positioning hardware. Accuracy: Difficulty: AND NOW: LOCATION-BASED APPS, GAMES, AND SOCIAL NETWORKS Everyone and their mom is building one. With the tech already in the hands of millions of consumers, the cost to build a location-based application that pinpoints the user's precise location on Planet Earth is.. well, $0, if you have the patience to take a few programming tutorials. Come to think of it, the math required is propably pretty similar to that the early sailors used. Only you have a calculator. opt brightkite foursquare Cowalla and now 100s more... ..... ......e 2010 2007 2008 2009 by @shanesnow for Mashable

The History of Location Technology

shared by Anonymous (not verified) on May 02
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Location-based services like Foursquare and Gowalla put a friendly face on a Big Brother-like technology that lets people know where you are and what you are doing at all times. But it's just the late...

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