Location Aware Tasks -or- why grocery lists don't help me much
By Eddie Lopez. Sunday, 25. March 2007, 15:16:47
I've tried posting a grocery list on the fridge and keeping track of stuff throughout the week that I need to get, it just doesn't work for me. Maybe I'm lazy, maybe I'm just missing some user centered process that works best for me. I quite regularly decide to go to store on the way home from work, or "while I'm out" -in other words, when I don't have that list handy.
There are two problems I need to solve- the traditional list solves the first one:
The second item there is often where the process breaks down for me, so what can be done? Go electronic of course! That's our answer for everything.
There are two problems I need to solve- the traditional list solves the first one:
- Quickly keep track of things I run across that I need to get as I encounter them- "hmmm need a new vacuum cleaner bag, I'll make a note of that." (yes, I have gone back to stupid bagged vacuums)
- Recall all of those items I've collected when I get to the store
The second item there is often where the process breaks down for me, so what can be done? Go electronic of course! That's our answer for everything.
Ah- I just got a Blackberry not too long ago. Perfect, I can use that as a replacement of the paper list. I always have that on me, so it should suit me fine. But it just doesn't cut it- my grocery lists are usually for exceptional things- things that I wouldn't normally be thought about like cat litter, a roll of paper towels, those plastic cube things you freeze and put in lunch boxes to keep them cool... that kind of stuff. As such, there are plenty of time when I shop for groceries where the exceptional items is equal to zero, so I don't religiously check my phone when I'm shopping and it has fallen out of favor as the preferred method to make sure my cat isn't wallowing around in his own filth.
So how about this? We've got cell phones with GPS included in them now. I'm certain it's not "always on" GPS, but assuming we can solve the privacy and battery issues sufficiently, how about having a location aware reminder such that- based on the current location (within a radius perhaps), a previously set task or reminder will alert you. I've never used a GPS device before, but I'm quite convinced that this has to be there in existing devices, which is why I spent so much time setting up the grocery list scenario- to bring it to a "user centered" mindset. I want to get away from notions like "way points" and "coordinates" -in fact, I'd like to get away from a "map" mindset altogether (well, for this concept at least). Here's my scenario:
- I walk up to the door of my favorite store, open my phone and click "Save location as..." and enter a name: "Target SuperCenter" ...and click save.
- Days later, I notice that I need to get some cat litter and "Add a location aware task" and type "Grocery list- Cat Litter" and set the location from "My saved locations:" Target SuperCenter
- I decide that I need to stop off at the store on my way home from work. As soon as I get within some radius of the front door of the Target SuperCenter, my phone alerts me "Task: Grocery List- Cat Litter"
Of course, hopefully you'll see tons of potential for things much more than a grocery list- Instead of setting up "to-dos" with alert times at "Monday morning at 7:30" you can instead set them for "next time your at the office" or basically you can remind yourself of things that don't have a time associated with them, but do have a place.
What would you do with "always on" and OS integrated GPS? (apart from worry about your government tracking your moves of course). If this is a common feature in GPS devices, I'd like to hear about how it's used or marketed/advertised, and if there's any cell phone+software combo out there that would fit this mold.
WIDGETIZE
WillYum # 25. March 2007, 17:19
As for this idea. This is great. I actually had the opportunity to go on a sales trip recently where they had GPS devices, the devices had completely changed how they operated. They asked for addresses, not directions. Only rarely did this not work out but the devices performed astoundingly.
In your scenario, instead of guessing when we'll be near the store, or trying to remember to check our device when we are there, the device says, "Hey! You're here, why not do this!".
On the more nefarious side... the side that will likely lead this kind of revolution. Advertisers would love this kind of thing. Know where you are so they could target their ads. Though Minority Report eye scan ads just flashed into my head and scared me.
The point being, this is definitely one of those ideas that would work how we work without even knowing. Like having a child in the car with you who goes "Dad, don't forget to pick up a movie for mom," as you drive by Blockbuster.
Believe me, if I had a few thousand dollars or so to develop something like this, we'd be freakin' billionaires.
To expand on your idea. You could keep wiki like lists. Finally put that stupid computer to use on your frig. Let your wife add to your list while standing at the frig. You could even let her record a little message so that when you were heading toward the Super Target, Wal-Mart or Retail Chain of Your Choice it could play, "Honey, would you pick up some rice for dinner tonight?" --
Yum
Eddie_Lopez # 25. March 2007, 19:05
Eddie_Lopez # 26. March 2007, 17:21
acemi # 26. March 2007, 19:32
A few years ago I watched a presentation of a project, it wasn't for grocery list though
Eddie_Lopez # 26. March 2007, 20:21
OmegaJunior # 27. March 2007, 11:14
So how about combining the voice records to the technique of voice dialing and other voice recognition systems? That way the shopping lister would recognise your voice entry "cat litter, walmart" and list it in written language as "cat litter", at the location of "walmart".
Thus, when in the car, listening to your grocery list, the lister could select the best route to navigate to all locations, and once in the store, it could announce the items on its list for just that store one by one just like voice mail, or it could show the items in text, in a list.
And maybe you'd want to save several recurring items to a recurring schedule, synchronising it with your home computer's calendar? Or the other way around: if the fridge recognises it's out of milk, have it add an item on your list automatically.
Eddie_Lopez # 27. March 2007, 11:52
...but you do bring up some interesting points. I like the voice recognition aspects in particular.
kmaage # 3. April 2007, 08:07
The thing I've struggled with is how does a user input location?
Type in an address? (I don't know the address, it's just Stuff-Mart)
Type in a saved name? ("the store" is what we call it in real life, but we are able to re-map that identifier, on the fly, to any one of multiple locations as the need arises)
Select from a list of common locations? (Common in what context?)
Tie locations to tasks? (Record in kitchen = tied to grocery store, record in home office = tied to work office)
What about when a location is connected with time? (Remind me "when I leave the house," but when exactly? every time you walk near your door? when you are 10 feet away? 20 feet? 50 feet? after you've already gotten in the taxi?)
There is tremendous power in location data interacting with cell phones/todo lists, but as Spiderman's uncle says: "With great power comes great responsibility." The responsibility to really craft the interface to meet user needs elegantly.
WillYum # 4. April 2007, 00:42
Just look at Google Earth. You can pull up all kinds of locations and get relevant information from the community about what you are looking at, imagine linking that?
All that said, I'm a big fan of 'data organizers' -- Prime example, AOL "Radio" vs "I-Tunes Radio". AOL Radio is organized by genere, or at least what they think fits in each genre, but once you learn what you like, you can easily find that music.
I-Tunes... Maybe I haven't found the easier way but it's also organized by genere but then lists 5 bazillion 'radio stations' and the genere organization is so broad you could easily spend days trying to find the music you really want to hear.
On AOL they've made it very easy to say, "I want classical jazz," "I want punk rock," "I want emo, 'adult' alternative, disney soundtracks, comedy," etc, etc.
In other words, they've done the hard work, IMHO. This kind of thought would have to go into a system like this, some real market research and even more important, thought, into using a system.
Needless to say, this sort of thing is years from being implemented in a worthwhile way. If not decades, the cell phone companies can't even make phones right and it's their job. (Now, if I had a few million to blow, we could probably cut that down to a year, a few good engineers and some usability love).
Yum
Eddie_Lopez # 4. April 2007, 19:47
Location (GPS) device will mark the location, you just tag it with whatever you want: "Stuff Mart", "Home", "Work", "123 Main St.", or even the more adventurous: "Bus Route", "That great Chinese place we ate at on my Birthday."
Yeah- Common to whatever we've already associated them to. When I mark a location "Stuff Mart" I can save it, or further tie it to "store" or "groceries" or "Northeast Rochester" ...tagging I suppose, but I originally envisioned a taxonomy.
I'd like to have a store category that would let me generically tie to a "group" like store, or drill down to the specific instance of the store as well. So I can have a location aware task that says "next time I'm at *a store* (regardless of which), then get some salad dressing."
The first thought is just to have have location aware tasks have a boolean "when I exit/when I enter" the location. That way, you can have a "home" flag set at the end of your driveway, or your front door or whatever that mimics your typical behavoir.
But tagging, and boolean flags, and I've also thought about "radius" options as well- I'm starting to get over the top with my configuration options. I'd have to think about what would be most useful and what is just "wouldn't it be nice"
WillYum # 5. April 2007, 16:25
The simplest thing I could come up with is do some algorithimic analysis of the GPS coordinates and try to coordinate them with an address, search the address for a store name and phone number.
That would be the "ideal" solution... it clearly would not work in every circumstance but in well-established developments it would likely work more often than not.
You say "record this location" and it pops up the 4 or 5 best guesses based on GPS coordinates and "phone book" records (this is a high level overview).
While it would probably take a while to develop, from an end user perspective this type of solution would be making technology work for you.
...
On a tangent, the biggest issue I have with Google Maps, Mapquest, etc is the area I live in is one of the fastest sprawling areas in the United States today. Satellite imagery simply cannot keep up, nor can phone books, nor can basic maps... in other words, it's growing so fast that the typical systems can't keep up. Alternate methodology would have to be developed to handle these types of situations.
Yum
Anonymous # 7. August 2008, 14:33
pls help me in my project,,,,
give a location on where can i put a buss.?????????
plssssss,,,,
Anonymous # 7. August 2008, 14:34
:worried: give me some ex. 4 that thanx....