The Royal Institute of Navigation have been talking about the demise of traditional map reading and navigation skills today. They say that society is being “sedated by software” through the use of GPS and mobile devices. While I’ve got some sympathy with their view I don’t think it’s the whole story. Technology has an important role to play in developing spatial awareness.
We’re quite fond of our bikes at Netskills but it’s not often we get a chance to use them for work if you ignore the regular commuting. Recently, I took the plunge and brought my bike with me on a trip to a fieldwork showcase event in rural North Wales. True to Netskills’ principles, technology played a part in planning and recording the trip.
I’d stumbled upon ARIS about a year ago but never had a chance to try it out until recently. Given that I’m now doing workshops on geolocation stuff and I’m presenting at an Enhancing Fieldwork showcase, it seemed the right moment to try. ARIS is …