Lonely Planet augments muggers' earnings Lonely Planet's latest Compass Guides offer Android handset-packing city visitors an augmented version of reality, if they aren't busy finding the perfect geek destination at FourEyesUp. Anyone planning a late summer trip might like to take a look at that new service, which promises to provide details of educational sites …
I spent two years there and still only explored about 10% of the interesting things to see just in Mexico City.
Mind you, you *really* wouldn't want to pull out your smartphone too much there... Maybe it should have a "vibrate when I'm near something interesting" option.
Lonely Planet is the oldest but not the greatest travel resource. Many others - Footprint, Roughguide, Fodors, Frommers - have a far better record for accuracy and currency. LP's staff cuts are reflected in it's regurgitation of old, inaccurate data published annually for, seemingly, the sole purpose of cash flow generation.
LP was famous for maintaining service on the KunMing <> HeKou narrow gauge railway in Western China in it's guide books for two years after it fell into a river following a landslide.
They also recommended a hotel in the Philippines for 3 or 4 years, in it's guidebooks, after the property was consumed in a fire!
Their low point came when it was revealed guide writers accepted gratuities in return for write ups in they guides (see: < http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/blog/2008/apr/14/thelessthanlonelyplanet > and < http://www.amazon.com/Travel-Writers-Hell-Swashbuckling-Questionable/dp/0307394654 >).
Let's hope that Lonely Planet's venture into new media is built on fresh data for cities like SaiGon and Ha Noi are changing so frequently that even residents have a tough time keeping up with progress.
I disagree about Rough Guide (and, for that matter, Lonely Planet which I usually find excellent).
Rough Guide is just that: rough. When I went to New Zealand on a world tour their book about the country included some trendy colonial-bashing articles using historically inaccurate evidence about the relationship between the British and the Maoris. It might have been seen to be 'cool' to bash the native-beating British but accurate it wasn't. The edition was also peppered with adverts. If I get adverts I expect the book to be free (or else I'd be a Sky subscriber!).
We had been using Lonely Planet for the previous five months of our travels through China, SE Asia and Australia, and we went straight back to it afterwards. Got a trip next month though for which we've bought a LP, so I'm hoping I don't end up eating my words (or the book).
...the coolest new software i have seen in a long time.
Besides museums and merchants, there is room in the GPS universe for a monster social networking app to emerge.
Now just add a little Gait recognition and automatic threat reporting to make the devices less desirable to thieves.
Privacy? Hold on while i look up that word in Google.
Paris because im trying to quit drinking.
Don't get the 'mugger' reference in the post title -- unless 'mugger' has a different meaning outside that wee cultural backwater we like to call the US of A.
It's sad to see online guides falling prey to various forms of corruption and coercion. The Yelp! payola scandal really brought a lot of this to the attention of many folks for the first time.
It's apps like these that take augmented reality from the novelty category and place it firmly in the useful/must have position. Games and lightweight advertising/marketing applications of augmented reality have their place but for the technology to really become mainstream we need things like Lonely Planet's guides and (self promotion warning) the greeting cards that my company, Atomic Greetings produces. These applications make augmented reality truly useful to the average person. For travelers, finding points of interest quickly and easily is invaluable. As for my firm, augmented reality allows people to record a video message inside the greeting card - making their communication so much more personal and real.
Stan Timek
Atomic Greetings
Augmented reality greeting cards done right, with video !
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