August 19, 2011. Bill Szydlowski
credit: nate steinerHave you ever wondered why it is possible to locate cell phone with a simple app that you can install on it? Today I’ll tell you how this is possible. GPS is not a very old technology, and that’s why who wasn’t especially interested in it probably does not know its meaning. It stands for global positioning systems that work along with the GPS satellites around earth, reason for which some say that global positioning satellite system would be a much better name for it.
Whoever thought about getting a cell phone tracker application probably should know that this type of applications only work thanks to the GPS chip found in the cell phones. The entire thing works like a link between some sources. First comes the phone which asks for location info, and then this goes right to a few satellites who transmit back the location status, and everything gets eventually to a cell phone tower, the most accessible to the cell phone. This is how the entire procedure goes and that is why you need a signal in order to get your cell phone tracking system to work.
Not so long ago, just the military used it. More then that, nobody else knew, so the release of the GPS ten years ago seemed very innovative and great. The first GPS devices that appeared were not very accurate, because the approximate location of something was really vague, as you could find it somewhere around 100 yards.
Of course, the limitation those GPS devices had weren’t established because the military’s egocentrism, but because they feared that enemies could use the same technology to attack us with missiles really accurately. Time convinced them that they were wrong and that everything was just a little paranoia. So the much more accurate systems these days allow the user to find something with a 20 yards accuracy.
Whoever likes spending time outdoors and exploring new places doesn’t really need a compass anymore, because that entire job can be done much more easily by a GPS receiver, if there is signal.
Updated August 19, 2011. Published July 19, 2011. Bill Szydlowski
