QR Codes on the Trail

I can think of 3 reasons why QR codes should not appear on Mt Jackson:

1) If the WMNF will not allow a summit sign, why should they allow a sign with coords - and why safety info when by now you are past the point at which most of it is useful?

2) It will increase the perceived gentrification of the White Mtns by providing something more useful to the smarter and more wealthy - there is already a feeling that the AMC wants the mtns for themselves not locals

3) The markers will be prone to vandalism and natural decay hence one should not rely on them but people will

And you are a moderator?

You are supposed to weed out the personal attacks, not create them. I realize that we have a difference of opinion on some things, but let's be nice about it, please.

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Geocaching reviewers have separate reviewer accounts so that viewers can tell between their official and personal comments

One hiking forum even has anonymous moderators so you never know who deleted your post just their alias

RoySwkr said:

Geocaching reviewers have separate reviewer accounts so that viewers can tell between their official and personal comments

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Here we have moderator hats. They're quite spiffy.

RoySwkr said:

2) It will increase the perceived gentrification of the White Mtns by providing something more useful to the smarter and more wealthy - there is already a feeling that the AMC wants the mtns for themselves not locals

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This is an interesting remark...I was not aware of tension between locals and the AMC (then again, I'm not really immersed in White Mountain culture). Can you expand on this?

Also, I'm not sure that Smartphones are only a gadget for the wealthy. They seem to be ubiquitous these days and I'm sure as time goes on they will become the standard and other types of phones will become much less available.

If you want to get away from technology altogether, throw away all that synthetic clothing, those fancy snowshoes, and $80 hiking poles. Put on some cotton clothing and go have fun, like they did in the "old days".

ow2010 said:

This is an interesting remark...I was not aware of tension between locals and the AMC (then again, I'm not really immersed in White Mountain culture). Can you expand on this?

Also, I'm not sure that Smartphones are only a gadget for the wealthy. They seem to be ubiquitous these days and I'm sure as time goes on they will become the standard and other types of phones will become much less available.

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I can remember an AMC work weekend when I asked a Council member how come all the new Council members that year had Ivy League degrees and half of them lived in Cambridge MA. He just looked puzzled and said, "Aren't all AMC members like that?"

Recently the exclusion of the AMC Highland Center from property taxes in spite of its pricey rates, advocacy of Wilderness over snowmobiles, and opposition to logging are hot buttons with many locals including the Mt Cabot landowner.

You don't have to be wealthy to have a smartphone but you need a good income to pay for the data plan. Cell phones in general are more popular with urban types (such as AMC is visualized) than rural residents who often can't get cell coverage at home.

BobC said:

If you want to get away from technology altogether, throw away all that synthetic clothing, those fancy snowshoes, and $80 hiking poles. Put on some cotton clothing and go have fun, like they did in the "old days".

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Obviously you've never hiked with me While I do wear synthetics in winter, I get them from Goodwill after you yuppies are done with them

Since I took the time to read this whole thread I guess I might as well add my own .02. A few things I have decided (IMO) are 1) To replace regular signs with QR codes would be absurd, 2) I don't think that it would be worth putting on all signs. They wouldn't be allowed in wilderness areas any way, and 3) I wouldn't see a problem with putting them on a sign at the trailhead or on one of those large kiosks that have most of the relevant info anyway. Maybe offering a download of a map could be useful.

So far the discussion has been about esthetics and usefulness, suppose I add this question:

What portion of the trail sign budget should be spent on QR codes, given that those who can use them are probably already better informed than average and already have a smartphone that they can use to access outside info?

Encouraging "Distracted Hiking"?

Having these things on the signs might encourage cell phone carriers to improve coverage - a benefit for those who need help for some reason. But then again better coverage might turn the fountain into a steam crossing.

Stash said:

Having these things on the signs might encourage cell phone carriers to improve coverage - a benefit for those who need help for some reason.

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IMO, unlikely. Such use would be a negligible fraction of their business and the extra coverage would cost them money.

Doug

RoySwkr said:

What portion of the trail sign budget should be spent on QR codes, given that those who can use them are probably already better informed than average and already have a smartphone that they can use to access outside info?

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If a proportion of the sign budget is spent on QR codes, it is likely to result in less info on the physical signs. (The logic would be that most hikers could read the QR codes, so why bother with the text. FWIW this logic is already in commercial use: the "90% of our users use Internet Explorer so why bother supporting other browsers" excuse... And yes, I've heard this directly from marketing people.)

A creeping danger.

Doug

DougPaul said:

IMO, unlikely. Such use would be a negligible fraction of their business and the extra coverage would cost them money.

Doug

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We all have opinions or thoughts. Seems, though, that some can't be stated without being questioned.

RoySwkr said:

...You don't have to be wealthy to have a smartphone but you need a good income to pay for the data plan.

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Perhaps, Roy. For an increasing number of us, a cell or smartphone is our only phone. Many don't need a landline if they have cell service at their home.

RoySwkr said:

...Cell phones in general are more popular with urban types (such as AMC is visualized) than rural residents who often can't get cell coverage at home.

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Do you have any data to support that generalization?

Kevin Rooney said:

Perhaps, Roy. For an increasing number of us, a cell or smartphone is our only phone. Many don't need a landline if they have cell service at their home.

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I don't disagree with either statement. But nearly everyone in urban areas can get cell service at home unlike rural areas, and a smartphone costs far more to have than a landline or prepaid regular cell. This may be less important to computer consultants than unemployed mill workers.

skiguy said:

http://www.dailyhiker.com/news/nps-pilots-map-program-using-smartphone-technology/

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Maybe it was deliberate, but I could not get that code to scan on my Droid.

I couldn't either; however, it is almost certainly simply the URL that's written on the top of the box.

I apologize if this was mentioned - I've followed about 3/4 of this thread.

Just a thought: considering technological change is occurring at an exponential rate, I wonder if the trail signs themselves will far outlive the usefulness of the QR codes.

What's the average life of a trail sign?

Now in use in Connecticut

According to the Connecticut Forest & Park Association, they are now at some Connecticut trailheads, with more to come.

http://www.ctwoodlands.org/node/613

TomK

Raven said:

Just a thought: considering technological change is occurring at an exponential rate, I wonder if the trail signs themselves will far outlive the usefulness of the QR codes.

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Yes--this is a serious risk. A lot of old digital data has been lost (become inaccessible) because we have lost the ability to read the media. For instance, at least some of the data from the Apollo moon missions has been lost.

The consumer market adopts and abandons data formats pretty quickly. (eg analog audio tape, audio tape cassettes, VHS video, RS-232 (COM ports), and more). In contrast, I have seen trail signs that must have been at least 30 years old (on an abandoned trail).

Newer isn't always better...

Doug