4 ms·

This is great. Fortunately, at my work, if I just drive past the main entrance, and enter the parking lot nearest our entry door, I can start my journey throug

by deaps 7y ago

This is great. Fortunately, at my work, if I just drive past the main entrance, and enter the parking lot nearest our entry door, I can start my journey through the lot at the closest point. This obviously eliminates the need for guessing or betting or settling early. I admit that at certain times I do enter from the furthest entrance...and I always drive past the first spot, and bet on that second one. Quite often there is a better spot as I'm walking in, but sometimes there's not. So when faced with the opportunity, I follow the prudent strategy. Now at an unfamiliar location (walmart, movie theater, whatever), I always try to find a spot that butts up against a curb (preferably on one side AND the back of the spot as well) to lessen exposure of my vehicle to other motorists (doors, bumpers) as much as possible.

jameshart 7y ago
This actually suggests that there are interesting psychological implications to parking lot circulation design. If you design a lot so that people can explore it in an order that matches a monotonous decrease in the ‘value function’ they place on each space location, you reduce driver stress because they can take the simple strategy of parking in the first available space and know they could not possibly have done better by following a different strategy (ah - except for waiting by the entrance and holding up traffic til someone leaves, of course). This assumes you can identify a common value function everyone (or most people) places on each space of course. Making people follow the value function in increasing order - as in the example, where each space you pass is closer to the entrance and so ‘better’ - seems to force this strategy choice. This suggests all kinds of analogies in user experience and organizational and game design problems...

4 ms·

This is great. Fortunately, at my work, if I just drive past the main entrance, and enter the parking lot nearest our entry door, I can start my journey throug

by deaps 7y ago

jameshart 7y ago
This actually suggests that there are interesting psychological implications to parking lot circulation design. If you design a lot so that people can explore it in an order that matches a monotonous decrease in the ‘value function’ they place on each space location, you reduce driver stress because they can take the simple strategy of parking in the first available space and know they could not possibly have done better by following a different strategy (ah - except for waiting by the entrance and holding up traffic til someone leaves, of course). This assumes you can identify a common value function everyone (or most people) places on each space of course. Making people follow the value function in increasing order - as in the example, where each space you pass is closer to the entrance and so ‘better’ - seems to force this strategy choice. This suggests all kinds of analogies in user experience and organizational and game design problems...