Google Attitude of Latitude

Google knows where you are. Using GPS enabled devices and geotagged Wi-Fi spots, Google can pinpoint where you are, and let everyone else know. The privacy issues and Big Brother implications are obvious, but as usual, Google has a reasonable and useful purpose in letting you share your information with them. It's like Twitter meets Google Maps meets Facebook meets geocaching.



The basic idea of Google Latitude is that you can let your smartphone or laptop be a physical tracking device for where you are. Then your friends and family can know where you are at all times. Think of it as an automatic twitter update on your location that your contacts can view on Google Maps. The functional possibilities can't be overlooked:

• Notice that your friend is only three blocks away


• Monitor your Aunt's trip through Europe


• Find out if your husband is really stuck in traffic

This sort of know-where-you-are at all times will be particularly useful for teenagers, who will do two things:

1. Hope their parents don't find out such technology exists

2. Limit their friends access to varying degrees. "You didn't tell me you were going to Lucy's... I'm not letting you see my Latitude! And you can tell Lucy that she'll only have access to my city-level."

Of course you can also set your location manually. More importantly, you can opt out if you're afraid of letting Google know one more insight into your life. Let's be honest, Google probably doesn't really care where I go. But advertisers sure might. The technology can currently be utilized using a Nokia Symbian S60, Windows Mobile (5 and up), BlackBerry phone, or your laptop. Support for the iPhone, iPod Touch, T-Mobile Android G1, and other lesser-known (ready Sony Ericsson) java-enabled phones will be coming soon.

I'm currently sporting a free, not-so-smart-phone, so for those of you who are interested I'm at the corner of 24^th and Lincoln, writing a blog post. Go ahead and tell Google where I am, and see if they wouldn't mind crawling some other great blog posts:

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