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DARPA's Map-Based Wiki Keeps Platoons Alive
blackbearnh writes "One of the biggest problem that a platoon on the ground in Iraq or Afghanistan faces is that when a new unit cycles in, all the street-sense and experience of the old unit is lost. Knowing where insurgents like to plant IEDs, or even which families have a lot of domestic disputes, can spell the difference between living and dying. In response to this, DARPA created TIGR, the Tactical Ground Reporting System. Developed as much on the ground in active warzones as in a lab, TIGR lets platoons access the latest satellite and drone imagery in an easy-to-use map based interface, as well as recording their experiences in the field and accessing the reports of other troops. In this O'Reilly Radar interview, two of the people responsible for the development of TIGR talk about the intel issues that troops face in hostile territory, the challenges of deploying new technology meant for combat areas, the specific tricks that they had to employ to make TIGR work over less-than-robust military networking, and how TIGR is impacting platoons in their day to day operations"
This is great for a couple of reasons. First it gives troops on the ground better intel on what to watch for and where, doing a job of keeping them alive. But it also looks like it can help troops get a better understanding of the area. What are your poor areas prone to violence. Long gone are the days when you can shoot first and ask questions later. This sort of intel is a valuable step to understanding the people over there and maybe even working with them rather than working against them. I'm sure the vast majority of Iraqi's just want an end to the violence, and are willing to work with whomever will help them get the status quo back.
The musings of just another geek and his junk.
I totally need something like this for my GPS-enabled cell phone for a real world Hichhiker's Guide. :)
.: Max Romantschuk
Sounds like the army encounters (on a more dangerous scale) one of the very same problems that the corporate world does. Loss of institutional knowledge.
Makes sense that they should try out systems similar to those that are being trialled in other areas to combat this problem.
You are assuming the network over which it is served in the field is not completely localized. Or that somehow it never occurred to them that the Taliban might have hackers.
You are arm-chair IT managing.
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