topic Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System in State & Local Government Questions

What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 17:39:21 GMT

I saw a tweet today about immigration offices in Thailand having three word addresses and was directed to this site - www.what3words.com.

I watched the video and checked out the map. It is an intriguing system, I was wondering what you folks thought about it.

I assign addresses in my position as well as deal with addresses in error, or people that don't know their address (it happens more than you would think). Remembering three words would be easier than a number a street a city a state/province and a postal code.

There's less to screw up, but my initial thoughts are spelling and transposition. Also regardless of how much easier it is to remember three words you still need to get there using the transportation network. Emergency personnel can use parts of a traditional address to know the general location of an incident whereas with three random (and they are random) words nobody is going to know where that is until they plug it into the web site.

What do you think about it?

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JoeBorgione — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 18:23:39 GMT

I just took a look at it Jeff. Send the pizza to ports.saints.combining, and have them ask for Joe.....

The thing that is weird for me is the randomness of the three words; I guess they need to be random when you are dealing with that many grid cells. You think we could get Morgan Co to use it?

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 22:04:37 GMT

I still think it would be problematic for emergency personnel. Pronunciation might be a problem as well. Like vocab.happy.rabble - (Cloud Gate sculpture in Chicago), what if it was misheard as vocab.happy.rebel which is somewhere in the middle of Alaska.

And is vocab really a word?

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 22:18:59 GMT

And who would want to live at fried.monkey.brains?

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 22:21:33 GMT

They could make money on personalized addresses - buy your 3m square. Then you would have to get the copyright lawyers involved.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

ChrisDonohue__GISP — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 22:52:52 GMT

Interesting, but I'm still a bit fuzzy on the practical part of this system.

I wonder how they chose the words. They don't seem to be in any sequence as one traverses from one 3 meter x 3 meter square to another. They seem random.

Also, how will their addressing handle multiple locations in one 3x3 location. For example, the classic local conundrum of multistory Condo's? Or an 100 story building in New York City or another major city?

Finally, how will the average person relate to this? Do we need signage for each 3x3 location so people can identify it? Or is it assumed everyone will have a GPS with good enough accuracy to locate the appropriate square?

Chris Donohue, GISP

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

DarrenWiens2 — Tue, 15 Sep 2015 23:14:42 GMT

I think you're using the term "address" too... traditionally. Each w3w "address" is nothing more than a 3m x 3m (ish) 2d square. It doesn't apply to multistory buildings the way mailing addresses do. I can't imagine that this is intended to function as either mailing or navigational addresses. It's just an interesting way to describe a location, rather than attempting to memorize a lat/long coordinate pair.

Actually, the resolution is such that you could use the w3w address as destination points for routing. For example, meet me at the door at "event.boom.text' not the door at "bright.cotton.props". The w3w API really only has two functions, w3w to lat/long and back again, so this is every bit as possible as routing using Google Maps, etc.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:13:46 GMT

I think it can have its uses. I think more for travel or in areas without an established road network as long as there is a routing part to it. Locals will be better served by the familiar road network.

I also agree with Chris Donohue that the randomness might be its downfall. Our brains are wired to think linearly and when you start having to remember 3m squares by three words then space becomes pixelated and we don't handle that very well - we still have to connect those dots with lines. Maybe when teleportation becomes possible we will be able to develop that talent.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JoeBorgione — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:43:26 GMT

Maybe when teleportation becomes possible we will be able to develop that talent.

That'll be the key....

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

ChrisDonohue__GISP — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:44:56 GMT

I wonder if the developers of the Three Word system ran it through some checks for potential pronunciation confusion? As I'm learning more about addressing, I've found the Emergency Response criteria of not having potentially confusing location names is an interesting constraint.

For example, at the County-wide level in my area all new Streets are vetted to ensure not only that the new street name does not exactly match an existing street name, but also that a new street name is not close enough in pronunciation that it could be mistaken for another when a call comes in to Dispatch.

I've discovered that there is even coding developed to help check on this (Soundex functions)

Previous GeoNet thread on coding to find similar sounding street names

Chris Donohue, GISP

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

TimothyHales — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:49:12 GMT

What3Words had an exhibit booth this year at the Esri User Conference. It was definitely interesting to hear them describe their application. I went to download the app on my phone and realized it required iOS 8. At the time they lost me because I was still on iOS 7, but now that you brought this discussion up I am installing it on my phone.

Fairly simple to sign up although I don't know what good my account is as I can look up addresses. Looks like it integrates with Apple Maps, Google Maps, and Waze. I currently do not have a use for it; however, it's a unique concept.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

JeffWard — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 16:54:17 GMT

Get on the Joe Borgione

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

DuaneMarble — Thu, 17 Sep 2015 17:33:42 GMT

I strongly suggest that you read the extensive blog posting by Dr. Mike Dobson. Dr. Dobson is one of the world's leading experts on cartography and was, for many years, the chief cartographer for Rand McNally. Dr. Dobson's comments may be found at: Exploring Local » Blog Archive » What3Words – Not.Quite.Right

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

BillFox — Wed, 18 May 2016 21:56:46 GMT

Thank you Duane,

As Dr. Mike mentioned, "If you don’t have the time to read it, skip to the bottom section titled And Now a Word From Monty Python – it skips the details, but will give you the gist of my evaluation."

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

ScottBranchfield — Fri, 27 May 2016 21:21:40 GMT

I guess I am so biased by the existing system it is hard for me grasp the practicalities of this. In addition to the other concerns mentioned, I wonder about a natural disaster where the emergency responders might not have access to the web.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

GIS-Cambria — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 18:04:55 GMT

With the W3W service and API I think just being able to access W3W in an app can assist in locating an address and help with emergency services. If a caller says I'm at wrench.water.leaf then a dispatcher should be able to find that. At the least W3W will be part of our dispatching app.

@Chris D and anyone else stating the vertical element: I contacted W3W and proposed they add a 4th ID to their spec. The 4th ID can be meter based and identify the height (use a - sign in front for below surface). A quad of info is just as easily parsed as a triplet, and the numeric part based on meter is easily 3D and converted to whatever local measurement. For example: wrench.water.leaf.4 is 4 meters above ground. Simple, easily parsed, and probably very quick to add/code into W3W. HOWEVER: when I spoke with someone from W3W about this they stated that so far the need for 3D was not significant?? Really W3W?

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

DarrenWiens2 — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 18:15:30 GMT

But then they'd have to change it to: W3W&1N

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

GIS-Cambria — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 18:54:03 GMT

That made me laugh! Thanks.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

CaitlinChristenson1 — Tue, 26 Jul 2016 19:16:22 GMT

They approached us about it as well but we declined since we have E 911 addressing already in place and converting to NG 911. I think it would be good as others were saying in places where they don't have any type of addressing scheme already planned.

Re: What Three Words - Global Addressing System

ChrisDonohue__GISP — Thu, 25 Aug 2016 17:27:40 GMT

To continue the discussion:

One element I see as a potential drawback in W3W is the lack of predictable arrangement as one moves from one area to another.

For example, with a traditional street address system one can get a sense of where things are because their is a predictable arrangement. If someone says they are at 2000 J Street and need to go to 2400 J Street, their already is a known directionality to work with. Just looking at the addresses posted on the street, an observer can see the progression. Plus in some places, the cross-street correlates with the address. So if someone said to meet them at 2000 J Street in Sacramento, California, a local person would know that the meeting is at the corner of 20th Street and J Street, as that area has gridded streets where the addressing correlates with the street grid. My point here being a person can see the progression and find things intuitively, without having to pull out a technology device.

In contrast if someone says they are at tone.season.detail and wants to go to ozone.remote.earth (which are the W3W equivalents to 2000 J Street and 2400 J Street), without technology and the W3W system, you will be hard-put to figure out where to go intuitively. As one moves from 2000 J Street to 2400 J Street, the W3W addresses progression is tend.zips.this, sits.moment.than, factories.washed.cities, proper.even.hogs. Their is no predictable order, so one cannot even figure out if they are going the correct way on J Street towards their destination. Figuring out where to go will require technology. Food for thought - is that a good thing?

Chris Donohue, GISP