Family and friends tracking you?

[dieseldiva]

I would be interested in seeing company policies on this. Both carriers and customers. I can't carry a camera into a facility, but I can broadcast a map of anywhere I go with my ever-smarter phone....please check your phone at the gate

eb

If they were to put a policy in place to prohibit the use of the smartphones OR the tracking apps, how would they ever enforce it?

What is to stop people from simply BLABBING over their cell or on the CB about what they're carrying and where they're going. What is the difference whether the information comes from word of mouth or electronically?

Lastly, if I'm to be trusted to carry their high-dollar freight, wouldn't it also seem that they can trust me to turn off any tracking features that I may have on board, not to mention keep my big yip shut moving down the road?

 

[buddy]

While doing this job I feel there is no need for anyone except my carrier needs to track my position. For us it is important to reduce our risk for harm to us let alone the frieght.

We have explained to our family and friends that if they ask "where are you now or where are you going?", we will respond with "I cant tell you". They understand and wont/dont push the issue.

If you ask me this app is just another toy of technowlogy that is not important to everyday life especially with our line of work.

For us we appriciate what security procedures our carrier has is place (some improvements wouldnt hurt). Afterall, The safety of my wife and I come before any load.

Just saying.

 

[Freightdawg]

In aviation, it is very easy to track a particular airplane if you have the "N" number, or flight number. I had a co-pilot whose wife always tracked our flights. She would call him right when we were either loading or unloading freight. I had to make him call her back later, because of the safety factors. Most of our freight was on pallet dollies, and it would be easy to get hurt if you were not paying attention.

 

[Turtle]

There's an app for the Droid and iPhone that works by picking up the ADS-B transmissions from the plane. The Android version works like Google Night Sky in that you can just point the phone at a plane in the air (or just up in the air if you can't even see the planes up there), and it will ID the plane and tell you everything about the flight, including departure and destination, height, likely course, all kinds of nifty stuff for the fashionable terrorist on the go. The Department of Homeland Security is just schoolgirl giddy.

 

[Freightdawg]

There's an app for the Droid and iPhone that works by picking up the ADS-B transmissions from the plane. The Google version works like Google Night Sky in that you can point the phone at a plane in the air (or just up in the air if you can't even see the planes up there), and it will ID the plane and tell you everything about the flight, including departure and destination, height, likely course, all kinds of nifty stuff for the fashionable terrorist on the go. The Department of Homeland Security is just schoolgirl giddy.

That is nice to know! Makes one feel much safer!

 

[Turtle]

That is nice to know! Makes one feel much safer!

The Google Night Sky app is really amazing. You point the Droid (or whatever) towards a celestial body, and because the phone knows where it is and how it is oriented, it will ID the star, planet or galaxy. You can search for one, too, like the "moon" and the Droid will direct you in which way to point the phone to locate the moon.

That's how the Plane Finder app works on the Droid, as well. You point the phone at a plane, and it'll ID it for you and give you all kinds of info on it (paid version is comprehensive, free version is limited). If you want to get an idea of what this looks like on the phone, check this out.
planefinder.net - Real Time Air Traffic Flight Radar

Hover the pointer over a plane see all the info. Use the slider to zoom, or double-click the maps also zooms. It's the kind of Web page (and app) that, I'm sure, makes a pilot feel all warm and fuzzy.

For the Droid:
Plane Finder - Android app on AppBrain


Oh, yeah, they've also got ShipFinder that does the same thing for ships.
Ship Finder

Ship Finder - Android app on AppBrain

 

[ebsprintin]

Maybe they can come up with a truck finder too, so the company doesn't have to call and ask where I am.

eb

 

[dieseldiva]

Maybe they can come up with a truck finder too, so the company doesn't have to call and ask where I am.

eb

Now that's funny there!!

A while back, the Hubs was doing a little solo work while I was taking care of business at home. He was in the Toledo area but the extranet showed him close to Youngstown!

 

[Freightdawg]

Wow Turtle,
That is even more frightening than I imagined!