Will GPS consign The Knowledge to history's ash heap?
 

To be licensed to drive a taxi in London, applicants must embed a virtual map of the city in their brains, and be able to instantly plot a route between any two points lying within Metropolitan London, defined as within a six-mile radius of Charing Cross. This wiki article describes the process: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Knowledge

My question is this: now that anybody with $200 can buy a GPS that will do the same thing, will <i>The Knowledge</i> be superseded, superannuated, and outdated by technology? Or will it be retained - yet another useless appendage of English culture, like the Ceremony of the Keys and the Royal Family?

Not if the applicants can't use GPS when they're tested.

The $200 device won't replace The Knowledge - it won't for example instantly give you an alternative route when a road is blocked

I thought the $200 gave you access to a satellite without which the GPS is useless. Even duct tape won't help!

&gt;...will The Knowledge be superseded, superannuated, and outdated by technology? Or will it be retained - yet another useless appendage of English culture,...&lt;

Gee, Robe, why do I get the feeling that you have a dog in this fight? :)

What happens when the GPS doesn't work?

((I))

GPS leaves a lot to be desired, at least here in the US.

Cases in my experience:
1. Tampa: couldn't find restaurant, tho GPS showed we were there. We could even smell it. Guys smoking in doorway showed us it was hidden _behind_ the building with the listed address.

2. Boston area: routed from one suburb to another on a route where drugs are openly dealt and drive-by shootings happen every weekend

3. Brookline, MA: sent us by an elaborate route to put us directly in front of our restaurant. Problem? No parking there; all parking is on the other side of Beacon Street, so we had to drive up Beacon into Boston and make a U-turn against traffic.

This is precisely the kind of thing a human being with &quot;the Knowledge&quot; knows, and it is worth paying for, even if the GPS could be programed to call me &quot;Guv.&quot;

&quot;The $200 device won't replace The Knowledge - it won't for example instantly give you an alternative route when a road is blocked&quot; Mine will. Maybe you need to upgrade.

&quot;I thought the $200 gave you access to a satellite without which the GPS is useless.&quot; What?

&quot;What happens when the GPS doesn't work?&quot; The same thing that happens when the engine doesn't work - you get it fixed.

&quot;GPS leaves a lot to be desired, at least here in the US...This is precisely the kind of thing a human being with 'the Knowledge' knows...&quot; Any competently programmed navigation system could be equipped with <u>ALL</u> of <i>The Knowledge</i> - you must be thinking of an off-the-shelf system. I'm thinking of a purpose-built, dedicated application. It could probably be done in about the same time it takes for one person to learn the territory.

There's more to the Knowledge than just knowing the streets. You have to be th right kind of person (which apparently means you have to be a fat chelsea supporting know-all)

That function can be simulated trivially by a $5 microprocessor.

You don't know many fat chelsea fans do you robes? I think you're over-estimating.