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Typical user of LBS
Capture
Query
Display/storage
Web
Retrieval
Log/geotag
Environment
Typical user of MGIS
Capture
Map display/storage
Web
Survey
Environment
Typical user of LBGC
Capture
Request
Visualisation/storage
analyse
Derive new data
Web
New data
Environment
Survey
FIGURE 15.1 A generalised view of actions (black arrows) and information flows (grey arrows) for typical
users of LBS, MGIS and LBGC.
15.3 GEOGRAPHICAL SCOPE OF LBGC
Alongside the differing emphases placed on data capture and analysis in the field between LBS,
MGIS and LBCG, there are also differences occurring in the nature of the spatial footprint relevant
to the activities performed and in the potential of mobile devices to represent broader locational
descriptors beyond a set of simple spatial coordinates, what we will collectively term here their
geographical context. The different techniques discussed in this chapter can all be considered loca-
tion based , using the coordinates of the user's current position to identify, by means of filtering, any
information of interest, or as a location tag, when capturing new data. LBS is particularly tied to
spatial coordinates, either through placing a user on the map or by providing the focus for a where's
my nearest type operation which is a classic spatial query. Functions offering support to pedestrian
navigation begin to consider a broader spatial context, as described, for example, by Li and Willis
(2006: 97), who proposed a 'framework for context awareness in the interaction between individu-
als, devices and environments'. Wayfinding operations, recognised as complex, purposive and moti-
vated spatial activities (Golledge, 1999), require the user to engage with the broader spatial context,
including salient landmarks or even the terrain itself (Bidwell et al., 2005). Indeed, the geometric
reference of coordinates is just one aspect of spatial context, as discussed by Bettini et al. (2010:
166), who observe that when asking the question, 'Where are you?', if put to someone on a mobile
phone, what people 'typically are interested in is not the exact location but the general situation of
the person they are talking to'.
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