Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Behind the "My Location" Errors In Google Maps

Posted by Soulskill on from the i-can-see-my-house-from-here dept.

waderoush writes "Ever since Google added the 'My Location' feature this week to the desktop and laptop versions of Google Maps, allowing Firefox and Chrome users to see their current location on a map, people have been reporting bizarre location errors — Manhattanites, for example, are being told by Google that they're in Austin, TX. Ted Morgan, the CEO of Boston-based location software provider Skyhook Wireless, talked about the problems in an interview Friday. Skyhook's Wi-Fi-based location-finding technology was passed over when Mozilla adopted Google's own location services toolkit for Firefox 3.5 in April; Morgan says that was unfortunate for Web app developers, because Google's 'crowdsourced' database of Wi-Fi access point locations is far less reliable than Skyhook's."

25 of 78 comments (clear)

  1. Skyhook's implementation really is inventive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The initially war-drove around, mapping APs. Then when users connect to those APs in the database and query the location, they also send back a report on other nearby APs. This allows their database to grow and become more accurate over time, without them having to keep war-driving previously established areas.

    1. Re:Skyhook's implementation really is inventive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I sincerely hope it gets more accurate! Not only is it consistently wrong, it isn't even wrong the same way. Today it is showing me in a very small, tight circle in a city 60 miles away. That's better than a few days ago when it was flip-flopping between a 15 mile radius circle in the right area and an area in a state several states away from me.

      Not ready for prime time, that's for sure.

    2. Re:Skyhook's implementation really is inventive by bstreiff · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Skyhook's reliance on wireless APs doesn't work so well when the APs move. I took my APs with me when I moved to a new place, but my iPhone (which uses Skyhook's assisted-GPS) thought I was always at my old place for months until I realized what was going on and that I should submit my AP MAC addresses to correct their location.

      It's possible that it sees an AP near you that's recently been moved.

    3. Re:Skyhook's implementation really is inventive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Seeing as how this is a lower density residential area (with just single family homes on decent sized lots (10,000 SQ FT lots), and nobody next to me has moved in awhile I think it is more likely that it changes as some of the AP's show as available, then show as not available (the list sometimes shows 3 other times it shows up to 6). I imagine that is the difference. Right now it shows 5. Oops, checked again and it is 6 APs. So I think as they come and go from the list it decides I have moved miles.

  2. Can't find My Location by Dalroth · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I've been looking in Google Maps for this mythical "My Location" feature and I can't seem to find it. What am I doing wrong? I've got my default location setup, but I'm pretty sure that's not what they referring to.

    Bryan

    1. Re:Can't find My Location by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      Right above the zoom buttons, you have a street view icon. Between the street view icon and the scroll buttons, you may see a small circle. Click there.

      Unfortunately, Google has horrible user agent sniffing. I'm on Firefox on Linux, and I need to spoof myself as a Windows user to get that button.

    2. Re:Can't find My Location by BusDriver · · Score: 2, Informative

      It's just above the zoom in and out slider, a little round circle in a square (with cut off corners). Or just below the hand with the four arrows.

      Click that and a bar will appear at the top of firefox and ask if it's ok to share your location.

      Hope this helps.

    3. Re:Can't find My Location by The+MAZZTer · · Score: 2, Informative

      It's the little circle thing by the panning and zooming and street view controls.

      When I click it it takes me to Austin, TX, which is over 1500 miles from where I actually am. And where I actually am isn't even Manhattan, but New Jersey. Google says it's because laneline-based connections are probably going to show erroneous results based on ISP, except that Verizon is based in Viriginia according to whois, not Texas!

    4. Re:Can't find My Location by auric_dude · · Score: 2, Funny

      The Google "My Location" feature is indeed hard to find and some also report having problems finding other G"spots"

    5. Re:Can't find My Location by kybred · · Score: 3, Funny

      Addendum: Whois on my own IP also indicates a Virginia location. I can't figure out how they're getting Texas!

      That's because Texas is where you want to be!

    6. Re:Can't find My Location by waderoush · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Dalroth: The new My Location feature only works when you're visiting Google Maps using Firefox 3.5+ or Google Chrome 2.0+ (or any browser equipped with Google Gears).

    7. Re:Can't find My Location by jrumney · · Score: 2, Funny

      Great, apparently I live under a motorway junction about 10 miles away. Thanks Google, you just made me homeless!

  3. Google Groups Suffering A Similar Issue by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    I think that Google needs to look into its error management systems, as this isn't the only Google system to have trouble lately. Google Groups is having some major issues with the search engine- it's next to impossible to find things right now. Searches that should find information find nothing, and the advanced search is especially broken.

    Google Groups search was especially useful in finding helpful information on older usenet posts, so it's unfortunate that this is the case. While I'm not saying the problems are related, I do feel that it speaks to a systemic issue that needs to be addressed- if both Google Maps and Google Groups are buggy, then what is being done to ensure this doesn't happen?

    1. Re:Google Groups Suffering A Similar Issue by Jack9 · · Score: 2, Informative

      This has nothing to do with "error management". Geolocation by IP is based off a combination of who leased the IP and where the packets are routed. If you are working through a dedicated T3 in Orange County, you're likely to resolve to Seattle. This is a persistent problem for geolocation services, not specifically Google. I'm not sure the point of the article, when anyone who's used commercial and free lookups, knows this is par.

      In other news, they probably heard that Vista is a next generation OS.

      --

      Often wrong but never in doubt.
      I am Jack9.
      Everyone knows me.
  4. Problem not limited to Chrome and Firefox by ilsa · · Score: 2, Funny

    Every now and then my G1 will insist that I am somewhere in Oregon. Usually I am clued in by the weather app giving a clearly erroneous temperature on the front screen. Perhaps my phone is just asking for a trip to someplace cool, since Vegas gets pretty hot in the summer. So far the phone has always come to its senses in a few hours.

    --
    -- I Am Not A Terrorist.
  5. Re:Remind me not to use Firefox 3.5! by General+Wesc · · Score: 5, Informative

    As any sane person would expect, and thirty seconds on Google would confirm, the browser asks permission before sending the location data. Screenshot. No privacy is being taken away.

    Lesson of the day: don't make nutty assumptions, and don't post knee-jerk reactions based on them.

  6. who cares... by hitmark · · Score: 3, Funny

    get a gps dongle, and install google gears if your using firefox (tho i'm not sure if there is one for 3.5 yet), and get improved accuracy.

    question is, when can one get automated routing to the nearest pizza place?

    --
    comment first, facts later. http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm
  7. Re:Remind me not to use Firefox 3.5! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Please dear god tell me that screenshot isn't from your computer! That's gotta be one of the most disturbing skins I've seen in a long time.

  8. I hate this 'location-based' crap by 0123456 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    A while ago I was working in Italy: Google would then redirect me to Google in the Netherlands, and Facebook rather kindly switched automatically to displaying its pages in Dutch. Steam usually gets the location right, but won't then let me use my perfectly valid British credit card to buy games when I'm not in Britain.

    This is one of the most user-unfriendly ideas to infest the web over the last few years.

    1. Re:I hate this 'location-based' crap by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

      Language switching based on guessed location is evil. That's what the accept-language HTTP header is for!

    2. Re:I hate this 'location-based' crap by dkf · · Score: 2, Interesting

      A while ago I was in Germany, and Google insisted that I read the German version of Google, even though my browser said that it only understood English (as I configured it). It's fine when they use GeoIP to present a localized version of a page, but not when the Accept-Language request headers requests otherwise.

      I suspect that the problem is that a lot of people have misconfigured (or buggy) browsers that foul up the Accept-Language header, always claiming to prefer English. That puts Google in a bit of a bind; they're damned whatever they try, so they try to satisfy the majority and minimize the level of grief. FWIW, when I use Google in Germany, it still comes up in English. (Well, I think it does, but I've not checked for a bit and my configuration might have other differences too.)

      --
      "Little does he know, but there is no 'I' in 'Idiot'!"
    3. Re:I hate this 'location-based' crap by marcansoft · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I get that in Spain, but that's okay, since you can change the Google preferences to English easily enough.

      However, what I don't get is the non-advertised, hidden, mandatory biasing of search results based on the Google UI language. Results vary depending on what language is picked for the Google UI (and no, this isn't the "show only results in such and such language" feature, as it still shows results in multiple languages - it's just biased in preference of the UI language). Why isn't there a checkbox to turn it off, and why is it hardcoded to use the UI language? Very often, if I'm using Google in spanish I find that the most relevant results for obvious queries (say, some well-known open source software) are in 4th or worse place, and the first few spots are occupied by some random sites about it that happen to be in Spanish. I get the idea and why some people might like it, but I don't see why they will not explain it or offer an option to turn it off.

  9. Try using Navizon (also crowdsourced but accurate) by some1somewhere · · Score: 2, Interesting
    I don't know exactly how Google is "crowdsourcing" the AP locations and similar (TFA doesn't clarify), but a competing firm to Google and Skyhoook, Navizon, uses similar tech.

    The difference is that while it is unclear what method Google use, Navizon clearly states they will PAY users who have GPS installed in their phones, to roam around and collect Cell ID, APs, etc. and submit it to them. At the SAME time you get maps to see where you are, Buddies to see where your friends are, etc.

    So in this instance, Navizon is paying for the crowd to submit the latest/updated data all the time. So if I drive around an area, and an AP that was there yesterday is no there anymore, you won't get the same error as Google where you suddenly appear to have gone to a different city/state/whatever, as I just personally updated the AP landscape.

    Great stuff, and to get paid as well... I guess it is cheaper for Navizon to pay users a $10 or $20 dollars for a few hours of "driving" rather than run their own vans around trying to update APs all over the world, and this way the database is likely to stay very, very fresh!

    --
    **FREE** Track and view your phone's via CellID and/or WIFI and/or GPS :- http://tinyurl.com/la6fhd
  10. I want to help make it better by Plug · · Score: 3, Insightful

    What is the link to the "Your guess at my location was wrong: I am actually at" page?

  11. Its okay by garphik · · Score: 2, Funny

    Its still beta ;-)