[geeks] Now for something completely geek

[velociraptor]

On 8/18/06, Charles Shannon Hendrix <shannon at widomaker.com> wrote:
> Thu, 17 Aug 2006 @ 21:32 -0400, James Fogg said:
>
> > Now that cell phones have GPS receivers, is there any way to acquire
> > that data and use it? I've heard of web sites that let you track a phone
> > location, is the really possible? Is there a way to get the phone to
> > display geodata like a simplified GPS receiver?
>
> I'd just like to learn how to turn them off, completely.

Nextel/Sprint (at least when I was using them) are turned off by
default unless they are sold in a fleet with applications using said
GPS.  AFAIK, there is no way to turn on the GPS remotely, but I
haven't investigated.

Having a GPS is obviously of some use in a phone, but unfortunately,
many non-GPS specific apps are just not set up to handle
Longitude/Latitude.  I spent at least 30 min. on the phone with a
major nation-wide emergency response company[0] trying to explain to
them where I was, since it was out in the sticks of PA.  I offered
Long/Lat as my Nextel had that capability, but they wanted *zip
code*--like I learn the zip code of all the places I find myself going
(especially paintball events--pretty much all of them are in BFE).

=Nadine=

[0]It wasn't AAA, but my latest dealings with them indicates they are
no better, and in some respects worse.