[OSM-talk] walking - get them to carry a gps!

[Tom Carden]

On 05/07/06, Nick Black <nickblack1 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> So what's the difference between using a paper map for navigation and using
> a digital map for navigation.

Nothing, for navigation purposes.

> If you can use a paper map to guide you, why
> not use the "snap to" features in a GPS unit?  One difference would be
> "artistic expression" as the paper maps are only a guide whereas snapping to
> a digital vector is quite definitive.  Is that the difference?
>

Sort of, but I wouldn't get into whether it's artistic expression or not.

If you 'snap to' the map in the GPS then you aren't making a record of
your journey.  Instead, you're tracing the underlying map and making a
copy of it.    Sure, it's a selective copy saying only where you've
been, but it's not the same as a record of where you really have been,
is it?

You could use a digital map as a navigational aid (IMHO, IANAL) but
only so long as there was no direct connection to the GPS tracks you
were recording.

That's how I see it anyway.

Tom.