For reasons it isn't worth going into I'm about to upgrade my iPod to an iPhone and this brings up an interesting dilemma. I've been hankering after a GPS in my car for years and now I'm about to get one. The concept of being able to plug in an address and be directed to it instead of having to reccee places before I go to them or using google streetview really appeals to me. I hate getting lost, and worse being late for important things because I was driving round in circles unable to find a tiny unmarked side street. Not that my navigation is terrible, but knowing exactly where you're going is one less thing to have to concentrate on especially in down-town Salt Lake, where lunch time commuters wander around the streets like a flock of lemmings.
Did you know in the UK alone 300,000 crashes were blamed on satellite navigation aids. In a quote from UK tabloid The Daily Mirror
One top academic argued mindless motorists were at fault for perceived problems with satnavs.
Psychology professor Cary Cooper, of Lancaster University, said: "When you see pictures of a lorry being lifted out of ditch with a crane, it's difficult to understand why drivers follow a satnav even when it's clearly wrong.
But some people are easily persuadable and will follow instructions, whether it is their wife or a computer telling them where to go.
Some people like to hand over control and don't want responsibility, even for something as simple as directions.
If you google 'sat nav accidents' there are many, many pages of stuff just like this. Having read plenty of these articles I have come to the conclusion I will let my GPS offer advice on my route - which I don't have to take if I don't want to- and will always keep a map handy.
www.engadget.com/tag/gps+accident/
http://j-walkblog.com/index.php?/weblog/posts/gps_related_accidents/
http://www.dcs.gla.ac.uk/~johnson/papers/GPS/Johnson_Shea_Holloway_GPS.pdf
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