Today I noticed...GPS and Google Maps are sometimes wrong.

We have had some delivery drivers using our driveway as if it was a major thoroughfare. They will zip up the hill, whip around the house, and go toward one of our neighbors' house. Then, they will stop because the driveway is so rough, they fear they will tear up their vehicle or get stuck or something like that. 

Of course, when I am outside, I can inform the driver but often I am not home and informing that one driver does not help the multitude of drivers that are out and about making deliveries. So, I went onto Maps to see what I could learn.

I saw that there are several mistakes relating to our little corner of the world. So, I clicked on the menu button found in the upper left corner of my computer screen. It looks like three lines stacked atop one another.

That opened a sidebar menu which allowed me some options. 

I selected Edit the Map. This gave me a new menu with lots of options to send product feedback.

Then, I began using the trial and error method to try to suggest edits for different things that looked wrong on their map. First, they had one of our barns labeled with our neighbor's address. (I drew a red rectangle around it.) Our barn should not be 7605 on any map. It is a part of our address. Actually, 7605 should be marking that brown roofed structure that my arrow is pointing toward on the image below. So, I selected Wrong information and suggested they fix wrong info about a place already in Google Maps.

That was a fairly easy suggestion. a bit of the map opened and I drug the pin that was hovering over our barn down to the neighbor's house. It may take some time for the edit to show up on Google Maps but I am hopeful that they will fix it.

Then, I noticed that there is a blue marker indicating where I am on their map. It was inaccurate as well. It should be located at the end of our driveway. (The red rectangle is around the blue marker in the image below and should be near where the red arrow is below it.)

So, I clicked on the blue marker and a pop-up box gave me the option to choose Street View. I could see that my address is labeled incorrectly on their map. It showed me at 7590 instead of 7601. So, I selected Wrong Pin Location or Address and suggested that they fix an address and where it appears on the map.

Next, I searched for directions from where the blue marker was showing up to my own address. I noticed that our driveway is marked as a Restricted usage road.  That is why the delivery drivers' GPS would send them up our driveway to get to a neighbor.

So, back to the Send Product Feedback menu to add another suggestion. This time I selected Add or fix a road and entered information in the space provided to let them know that this is not a road at all. It is a private driveway that leads to our house and our barns. 

All these suggestions took a little bit of time but, in my experience, the map will soon be corrected. I have made suggestions to Google Maps before and they are generally accepted and changed to be correct within a matter of days.

So, if you notice GPS sending you or delivery drivers to a location that is incorrect, take a few minutes and provide them feedback. They will probably make the corrections and you will have less frustrations in the long run.

Virtual Visit

Have you seen or tried any of these virtual reality apps and sites?  Last week our instructional technology team led a professional development that was all about virtual reality.  My part was to share a couple of apps and provide time to interact with a Google Cardboard.  The Cardboard is a lot of fun and does give the sensation of actually being there in a lot of ways.  I dropped Mike down in a photosphere a few miles from our house and he kind of panicked because he was right in the middle of a state highway and feared he was going to get run over by a vehicle!  The roller coaster was a little too realistic for me and I could have gotten a bit woozy if I hadn't stopped after a big old dip.

One of the gals was sharing an app that goes along with the Guinness Book of World Records.  We could stand next to the tallest man who lived; it was like having a virtual visit from him.  Below is how I would look standing next to him.  I barely reached his waist!

You can see that he looks like he is standing on a book.  That is the Guinness book.  There is a trigger on the page that tells about the tallest man on record.  The app will project an image and then a photo can be made of a person standing next to him.  Below is what it looked like from my perspective.

The girl making the photo with a tablet was standing in the doorway of the classroom that can be seen.  It was a bit of fun to get the morning started.  We had stations for participants.  They could create lessons using VR apps or online sites.  They could use a 360 app to create their own photospheres using a phone or tablet.  They could take virtual field trips using available photospheres.  It truly was a chance for folks to experience something in a classroom that many students might never be able to visit in reality.  Our district was fortunate enough to participate in Google's Expedition testing this past spring and we are looking forward to using that in our classrooms in the fall.  Exciting learning opportunities which also bring in an element of fun!