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So, yeah, Google Maps sent the author down the wrong way, but how are paper maps going to be any better? The paper maps aren't going to know that those roads ar
by dustincoates 2y ago
So, yeah, Google Maps sent the author down the wrong way, but how are paper maps going to be any better? The paper maps aren't going to know that those roads are closed, either.
What does the author propose as an alternative? He's in Sicily, so he can't rely on his own built-up knowledge. Maybe he's suggesting asking locals, but nothing's stopping him from doing that, and it's not so easy.
So yeah, online maps have downsides, but what concretely is the proposal?
- saulpw 2y agoThe road wasn't closed. Google Maps was wrong. And with a paper map, you would have the intuition that it might be stale, so you ask a local. Whereas Google Maps is marketed as the latest and greatest and most up-to-date, so you wind up trusting it, even over your own senses sometimes! The trust is the mistake, but it's hard not to fall into that trap when it works reasonably well most of the time. But it's a fragile system--when it fails, you're truly SOL. Whereas paper and people are anti-fragile--they're less trustworthy but because of that, they're also more resilient. Who hasn't gotten directions from a stranger and wondered if they were a troll or an imbecile? And then either gotten a second opinion or proceeded with caution?
- yetihehe 2y agoSometimes it's about shunning responsibility: I followed a map and made an error, I'm responsible, someone will be mad at me. I followed google maps, they are responsible for providing bad directions, so it's not my error, you should be mad at google, not me.
- dustincoates 2y ago> We followed the navigation apps, and after 30 minutes of driving, they dropped us off at a closed road. We turned around, drove another 20 minutes or so, and encountered another shuttered lane. I'm talking about these closed roads.