Why GL

[bmanning@ISI.EDU]

> >It is as precise or imprecise as the publisher wishes it to be!  ;-)
> 
> 'Can be' would be better verbage.
> 
> You state that all you need is a cheep portable GPS to use LOC.
> 
> Is there any other DNS RR that requires a non-network oriented device to use
> a DNS entry?
> 
> Requiring people to need a GPS to use LOC (in my mind is ridiculous)

	No, GPS is not required.  (I'll note that GPS may help and
	there are estimates of low double-digit millions for the number
	of deployed GPS chips in the next 2-3 years or one GPS device
	for every two computing devices.)


> To answer your question:
> 
> 1. You do not need a GPS to use the RR.

	Either LOC or the proposed GL.

> 2. The RR is readily understandable

	perhaps - I have trouble with many addresses in China, India
	and Africa.  Often they are a single building in the
	community and people must go to that location for postal mail
	delivery. There is no way of id'ing a each specific building for
	postal service.  I can't get the accuracy that I want w/ GL. 
	I can with LOC.

> 3. It supports any location in the 'known' universe

	Not really, unless I can code "Somewhere over there" or 
	"To the Left!"

> 4. It is just as precise as any RR that uses Longitude and Latitude

	Nope.

> 5. It is most likely more precise that LOC and GPOS after you factor in
> 'User Errors' of the people using a GPS.  Someone using a GPS could not even
> find my house using the thing, he was two blocks off and owned the GPS for
> two years.  Precision of GPSes varies greatly.

	See the statements above on the lack of requirement for GPS.


> I do not see how LOC is anymore flexible than GL.  If you are talking about
> not giving your exact location away, you would do this with GL by using only
> the city (or state) name in the quoted string, anything more ambiguous and
> why bother putting it in.

	Numbers tend to be less cryptic than alpha or iconic strings 
	that most people use for expressing location.

	RU14-18, Rack8, Room 820, 4676 Admiralty Way, Marina del Rey, CA. 90292

vs
	33 55 59.318 N 118 25 55.223 W 10M 20M

	If you are are native Korean reader, which makes more sense?
	
> Your zip code and postal address is not some arbitrary thing a little radio
> shack gizmo tells you is right.  your postal address IS RIGHT all the time.

	But won't tell me where on the King Ranch I am (side note to
	non-US readers, the King Ranch in Texas has its own zip code and
	covers thousands of square miles.  And of course postal codes never
	change. Just like telco area codes.

> Al Costanzo


--bill